Concrete 2017 kicked off on 22 October in Adelaide. The three day event brought together delegates from all over Australia and around the globe to be immersed in a conference that sported over 160 technical presentations, 40+ exhibitions, and a number of workshops and networking events. Concrete 2017 was also the 3^rd meeting of the International Congress on Durability of Concrete (ICDC), which was jointly organised by the Concrete Institute of Australia (CIA) and the Norwegian Concrete Association (NCA), bringing many of the world’s durability experts together.

The technical presentations ranged from topics such as how the Christchurch earthquake changed building specifications to using waste material from lithium mines, nickel refineries, and even rice husks as a cementitious material. Many talks were situated around innovation of materials, technology, and concrete testing methods.

With regard to testing innovation, Dr. Liam Holloway at MeND Consulting teamed up with Microanalysis to look at chloride concentration within concrete structures. The ingress of chloride can cause significant deterioration if the chloride comes into contact with reinforcing steel. This can lead to steel corrosion, causing expansion, cracking, and potentially spalling, leading to the structural integrity of the material to be compromised. Standard test methods for quantifying chloride levels in concrete require sections of a core sample to be pulverised and titrated.  Dr. Holloway and Nimue Pendragon (Microanalysis) analysed core samples by SEM-EDS to map for Cl ingress and compared the data to standard titration tests on cores taken from similar areas of the same structure. Based on dataset comparisons, element mapping of Cl by SEM-EDS shows promise as an alternative to the standard titration method, though more work and refinement needs to be done. The paper can be downloaded here.
 

Capping off Concrete 2017 was the gala dinner and Excellence in Concrete Awards 2017. There were 51 project entries, 26 of which were contenders for the National Medallions of Excellence. Congratulations to WA state winners GHD and Vermilion Oil and Gas Australia for their state winning project ‘Maintenance and Repair Plan for Wandoo B Concrete Gravity Structure’. The Wandoo B Concrete Gravity Structure is located 75 km offshore from Karratha and supports Vermilion Oil and Gas production. The structure, which was built in 1997, had an original design life of 20 years. GHD and their team needed to complete an investigation to ensure that the structure would last an additional 20 years (2037). Braving shark infested waters and using cutting-edge remotely operated submersible technology, the team determined that a 20 year life extension of the structure could be achieved. More information on the project can be found here:
http://www.concreteinstitute.com.au/News/National/Project-Profile-Wandoo-B-Concrete-Gravity-Structur.aspx

Overall, Concrete 2017 was a phenomenal experience. Here’s to seeing everyone in Sydney for Concrete 2019!
 

On Wednesday 1^st November, Microanalysis held a special information evening for the Australasian Corrosion Association (ACA) and Surface Coating Association Australia (SCAA) professional associations.

Pulling every away from the tasty nibbles and drinks, the 12 members had a guided tour of the Laboratory to learn a little of what Microanalysis Australia is up to in the corrosion field as well as in a diverse range of other industry sectors.

Exploring the lab, the delegates learned about spatial elemental  analysis in the two Zeiss SEM/EDS systems, identifying corrosion products versus naturally occuring ferrous phases in the two Philips/PANAlytical XRDs, sizing microbes in the Malvern Mastersizer, understanding settling rates using a Sedigraph, Hiac Royco Particle Counters for contaminant concentration determination in liquids – particularly important for corrosion inhibitor cleanliness and surface corrosion and pitting analysis on the  Solarius Laser Profilometer. 

After the tour,  the group returned to the drinks and food where Nimue Pendragon and Owen Carpenter presented some information about failure analysis using SEM EDS, bulk goods testing by ADG and IMDG, and UNDG C1 corrosion analysis by laser profilometer.

Lastly, the group learned that Microanalysis Australia is participating in an inter-laboratory data validation study that is working towards the development of a new bulk solids cargo corrosion test. Whilst the particulars are commercially sensitive at this time, it can be said that the Solarius Profilometer has been an invaluable tool for scanning corroded areas to obtain pit depth and surface profiles. It’s capacity for large volume throughput with a high degree of repeatability compared to alternative techniques has cemented it’s place as the preferred instrument for researchers in the corrosion industry.

Download a copy of the full presentation here.

We hope an informative evening was had by all.