Fundamental understanding of the corrosion behavior of galvanized steel reinforcement in mechanically stabilized earth walls

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The use of Mechanically Stabilized Earth (MSE) walls and facings have gained widespread acceptance in North America for the past 30 years, as evidenced by the numerous completed structures. Exposure of MSE walls and facings to aggressive conditions could lead to early failure, and areas exposed to de-icing salts tend to present conditions similar to aggressive environments. This project seeks to attain a better understanding of the corrosion behavior of galvanized steel when exposed to de-icing salts and other environmental pollutants. The objectives to this project are to ascertain the environmental causes of corrosion in galvanized steel under aggressive conditions, and to identify the optimum galvanized coating characteristics and possible surface treatments to improve the corrosion resistance of MSE walls and facings in order to create a set of construction guidelines for the construction of MSE walls under aggressive environments. The research will be highly beneficial to understand the corrosion behavior of MSE walls and facings which would allow better quality control in future road infrastructure construction projects and to optimize the operational parameters. The results of this work are of importance to the private sector, and also to the transportation and public sectors in Canada. The anticipated benefits of the work to Canada and the sponsor are significant and will have an impact on the ability of other Canadian companies to compete efficiently in the global market.