Effect of environmental temperature on efficiency of electrochemical chloride removal from concrete

Abstract Environmental temperature varies significantly with place and time and therefore affects the efficiency of electrochemical chloride removal (ECR) treatment on reinforced concrete structures. To find the appropriate temperature for ECR application in real structural elements, exposure of concrete to ambient temperatures −10, 0, 20, and 50 °C were selected to study the effects of environmental temperature on ECR treatment. It is found that the total efficiency was quadrupled when the temperature was varied from 0 °C to 20 °C and increased by 13% when the temperature was raised to 50 °C, which means that rising temperature is an effective way to improve ECR efficiency.