A model for coupled moisture, heat and sodium chloride transport in concrete structures

Abstract The durability of materials is directly connected with deterioration agents. Hence, concrete structures can be subject to the effects of salt and moisture, significantly reducing their useful life. The salts that enter the concrete pores can attack its reinforcement. They can also accumulate at certain points and crystallize, leading to cracks and fractures and consequently reducing the resistance. This paper presents a mathematical model for the coupled heat, moisture and salt transportation in pores. The main equations were discretized through the finite volume method, solved simultaneously by the MultiTriDiagonal Matrix Algorithm. The verification of the model was made by comparing with studies from the literature and demonstrated good agreement between the outcomes.