NEWS ALERT: MCI® Resilience in Countering Construction Material Shortages

The last two years have been a supply chain roller coaster. In the concrete sector, this surfaced in numerous reports of ready-mixers facing shortages of calcium nitrite or other materials used to enhance concrete durability. The story has been different with MCI® admixtures, which continue to offer a sound and steady solution for corrosion protection and extended service life.

Calcium Nitrite Alternative
MCI
® admixtures are much more than mere calcium nitrite inhibitor (CNI) alternatives. For instance, MCI®-2005 is typically easier to work with than CNI because it does not accelerate set time. It uses a fixed dosage rate and goes beyond inhibiting chloride corrosion to also protect against carbonation induced corrosion. Even better, MCI®-2005 is a USDA Certified Biobased Product and is certified to meet ANSI/NSF Standard 61 for drinking water system components.

Galvanized/Epoxy Coated Rebar Alternative
Contractors have also seen shortages of galvanized and epoxy coated rebar. Although a completely different approach to corrosion than specialty rebars, using MCI
® admixtures can be a great alternative because they typically offer cost savings in addition to meeting corrosion protection and service life requirements. They also preclude corrosion concerns that arise when the protective layer on galvanized or epoxy coated rebar is chipped.

Pozzolan Alternative
Another construction material in shortage has been pozzolans such as fly ash. While one goal of pozzolans is to help meet strength requirements, the other is to meet durability criteria including protection against corrosive attack. Ready-mix suppliers can adjust various parts of the mix design (e.g., water-cement ratio) to help make up for the first concern, while MCI
® admixtures can be used for the latter durability concern by inhibiting corrosion.

A Reliable Supply for Ready-Mixers
Amid the uncertainty of today’s market, MCI
® admixtures have remained a strong source of corrosion protection for ready mixers and a sound alternative to other materials commonly used to extend concrete service life. Whether you find yourself facing a material shortage or simply looking for a practical/economical corrosion solution for your concrete structure, contact Cortec® Corporation to learn more about specifying MCI® as a corrosion inhibiting admixture: https://www.cortecmci.com/contact-us/

Keywords: calcium nitrite shortage, supply chain shortages, MCI admixtures, calcium nitrite alternative, epoxy coated rebar alternative, construction material shortages, corrosion protection, MCI, Cortec, extend service life

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Top MCI® Products for Historical Restoration

MCI Mini Grenades

 

Two priorities exist when restoring historical structures that have deteriorated from corrosion: (1) Mitigate corrosion to extend service life and minimize future repairs. (2) Do so without changing the appearance of the structure. This is especially difficult with historical concrete structures, as the addition of new materials could alter the color or texture of the concrete. Fortunately, Cortec® MCI® products have proven to be excellent resources for both maintaining and repairing heritage structures.

Rebar and Concrete Surface Prep

Rebar rust is typically the leading cause of concrete deterioration, and good surface prep is therefore integral to a successful repair. Traditionally this involves labor-intensive sandblasting and cleaning of the rusted rebar to white metal. CorrVerter® MCI® Rust Primer offers a convenient alternative to treat and passivate rusted rebars. A single component, fast drying water based primer, CorrVerter® MCI® can be applied to layers of tight rust, converting it into a hydrophobic passive layer. This method reduces labor and makes re-rusting less likely in the near future. Ash Hasania, Technical Sales & Product Manager for Cortec® MCI®, explained the consequences of overlooking this convenient surface prep method: “You can basically sandblast and not choose any corrosion inhibitor on the steel, but rust is going to come back fairly quickly, and [repair workers] will have to open it up again and clean it and . . . do the same cycle.”

Another important aspect of surface prep is making sure the concrete is clean. For example, concrete contaminated with oils or greases can be cleaned with MCI®-2061 or MCI®-2062. These cleaners contain microorganisms for extended cleaning power. Left overnight, the microorganisms degrade and digest greasy substances within the concrete. They also continue to provide residual cleaning even after the surface has been rinsed off.

Adding Migrating Corrosion Inhibitors to Repair Mortars

One of the most difficult parts of a historical concrete repair can be matching new repair mortars or concrete mixes to the old surface where patching is needed. Sometimes this requires highly specialized historical or decorative concrete mixes. MCI® Mini Grenades can be added directly to these specialty mixes to introduce Migrating Corrosion Inhibitors to the repair. These concrete corrosion inhibitors have been successfully used in historical preservation jobs to extend service life without changing the color or look of the final repairs. They may also discourage the progression of the ring anode effect in areas adjacent to the repair by migrating and evening out the corrosion potential between existing concrete and repaired areas.

Surface Applied Corrosion Inhibitors in Historical Restoration

Surface Applied Corrosion Inhibitors (SACIs) are another important tool in historical restoration and preservation. SACIs can be applied at any stage of a structure’s lifecycle, extending time to subsequent repairs. MCI®-2018 is an excellent option for preventative maintenance because it contains Migrating Corrosion Inhibitors with a 100% silane water repellent to slow the ingress of moisture and chlorides. MCI®-2020 is ideal for heritage structures where corrosion problems have already begun. It contains a higher concentration of corrosion inhibitors, minus the water repellent. Both SACIs are clear and do not change the color of the concrete while allowing Migrating Corrosion Inhibitors to penetrate into the concrete, slow the corrosion process, and extend service life.

Past MCI® Heritage Projects

Cortec® MCI® Technology has been used in many historical restoration projects or heritage structures where minimal change in appearance was as critical as corrosion mitigation.

  • Zagreb Cathedral: Steel joints reinforcing the south tower at regular intervals were coated with CorrVerter® MCI® Rust Primer to arrest the corrosion while minimizing cost and intrusiveness of the repair.
  • Pentagon: Corrosion due to carbonation that extended 3.5 inches (9 cm) deep prompted a major repair on the Pentagon lightwell walls. After 200,000 ft² (18,581 m²) of hand patches were made (using specially cut boards to mimic the pattern created by forms during original construction), MCI®-2020 V/0 was applied over 1,000,000 ft² (92,903 m²) of surface area, along with a silane sealer and mineral-based coating to provide a minimum 20-year design life with the hopes of extending service life by 50 years.
  • New York Hall of Science: The cast-in-place concrete façade of this unique structure had a shallow concrete cover, a common characteristic of brutalist architecture (often coinciding with high porosity) that makes such buildings more prone to corrosion. Repair work included application of MCI®-2020 and a water repellent. Probes were embedded during the repair and subsequently confirmed effective corrosion protection.
  • Memorial University, St. John’s, Newfoundland: The entrance of the education building was adorned with a decorative design in brutalist architectural style. Rebar corrosion took place beneath a very shallow concrete cover. CorrVerter® MCI® was used to passivate the rebar. MCI®-2020 was surface applied to protect the decorative entrance from further corrosion and extend the service life of the repair.

MCI® products are an excellent companion to heritage repairs because they mitigate corrosion without affecting structural appearance. Contact Cortec® to consult on which products may be ideal for your historical or heritage restoration project: https://www.cortecmci.com/contact-us/

Keywords: historical concrete restoration, concrete repair, brutalist architecture, Cortec, MCI, Migrating Corrosion Inhibitors, rebar rust, concrete corrosion, rusted rebar in concrete, From Grey to Green

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NEWS ALERT: How to Mitigate Rebar Corrosion in Precast Concrete

Precast concrete is a high-quality building material with countless uses: for bridges, parking ramps, light poles, culverts, prefab houses, tanks, and much more. Since precast concrete is made and cured in a controlled environment, it has a low risk of corrosion vs. cast-in-place concrete. That is . . . until cracking occurs, as can often happen during transportation. Once cracks form, corrosives can enter and additional freeze-thaw cracking can occur, leading to long-term corrosion damage. Fortunately, Cortec® MCI® is an easy way to arrest corrosion and extend service life at any stage in the precast concrete lifespan.

MCI® Admixtures for New Precast Elements
Although many engineers understandably see no need to add corrosion inhibitors to the precast concrete mix, this is the best place to do so to minimize future problems when long service life is desired. Admixtures such as 
MCI®-2005 NS do not negatively affect the ready-mix. They introduce Migrating Corrosion Inhibitors that form a protective molecular layer on the surface of metal reinforcement, delaying time to corrosion and reducing corrosion rates once started. Precast elements that contain an MCI® admixture are already prepared to fight corrosion if cracking occurs from normal wear and tear in transit.

MCI® SACIs for Existing Precast Elements
While the use of MCI
® admixtures is ideal, sometimes it is difficult to convince decision-makers that another product is needed until the problem becomes obvious. Conveniently, MCI® comes in multiple forms that can be applied even after concrete elements are cast. For example, an excellent response to finding cracks on precast bridge segments stored at the construction site is to apply an MCI® SACI (surface applied corrosion inhibitor). MCI®-2020 offers the highest concentration of Migrating Corrosion Inhibitors that penetrate into concrete and eventually make their way to the reinforcing steel. The addition of a water repellent helps seal the MCI® in and corrosives out. Another option is to apply a twoin-one MCI® water repellent such as MCI®-2018. This SACI combines Migrating Corrosion Inhibitors with a 100% silane water repellent that guards against the intrusion of water, chlorides, and carbonation. 

MCI® for Precast Concrete Repair
Sometimes, corrosion has already gone so far that precast concrete elements must be repaired. MCI
® Technical Sales and Product Manager, Ash Hasania, found this to be the case when he encountered a client with deteriorating concrete light poles that were more vulnerable to corrosion because of old, poor quality concrete cast in a slender design. MCI®-2023 was used to re-passivate rusted rebars. MCI® Mini Grenades were added to the ready-mix for the new concrete patches. Once the concrete cured, surfaces were treated with MCI®-2020 and MCI®-2018 for additional corrosion protection. Going forward, the customer began adding MCI®– 2005 to the light poles during casting.

Precast and Prevent with MCI®
Precast concrete is everywhere: along the road, under the ground, and sometimes even at home. In spite of the quality advantages of precast concrete vs. cast-in-place concrete, prefab elements still face corrosion risks as a result of cracking and other issues. MCI® offers a simple solution to extend the service life of precast concrete early or late in the process.

Contact Cortec® MCI® to learn more about fortifying your precast concrete structures with Migrating Corrosion Inhibitors: https://www.cortecmci.
com/contact-us/

Keywords: precast concrete lifespan, precast concrete vs cast in place, extend service life of concrete, MCI, Migrating Corrosion Inhibitors, From Grey to Green, Cortec, how precast concrete is made, admixtures, rebar corrosion in concrete

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NEWS ALERT: Four Great Reasons to Attend World of Concrete 2023!

Calling all MCI® reps and distributors!!! It is that time of year again!

With construction season winding down and January fast approaching, it is not too early to start planning your visit to the World of Concrete 2023! Here are + four not-to-miss opportunities for Cortec® MCI® reps and distributors next January 16th-19th in Las Vegas:

1. Take advantage of one-on-one time with your Cortec® MCI® rep (contact your rep to secure a time slot now).
2. Grow your concrete repair network and have fun at the Monday night ICRI kick-off event.
3. Catch up, connect, and be inspired at our MCI
® rep meeting (ask about MCI® repair mortar updates and testing).
4. Enjoy our invitation-only fun activity for MCI
® reps and distributors!

You are also welcome to simply hang out with the MCI® team at Booth #S10856 during exhibit hours Tuesday through Thursday (January 17th-19th), or explore the grounds to check out the wealth of educational resources and networking opportunities at your fingertips during the only annual international event dedicated to commercial concrete and masonry industries!

Contact your rep today to schedule a one-on-one: https://www.cortecmci.com/contact-us/

Get registered with ICRI promo code A36: https://www.compusystems.com/servlet/ar?evt_uid=130&promocode=A36

World of Concrete 2023
January 17
th– 19th, 2023 (Exhibits)
Las Vegas Convention Center
Las Vegas, NV
Booth # S10856
www.worldofconcrete.com

Keywords: WOC2023, World of Concrete, Cortec MCI, reasons to attend WOC, ICRI, From Grey to Green, construction industry, MCI repair mortars, concrete repair

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NEWS ALERT: From Concrete Repairs to Clays and Cornhole – Cortec® MCI® Enjoys Fall ICRI!

Convention, November 7th-9th in Atlanta, Georgia. This outstanding networking venue brought together a wide range of attendees—from students curious about how MCI® works to engineers looking for answers on specific projects. One common question asked at the booth was whether MCI® surface applied corrosion inhibitors (SACIs) could compensate in repairs where corrosion inhibitors had not been added to the ready-mix due to an oversight. Another engineer looking for help on a specific project has already been working to specifying MCI®– 2020 after a discussion with Ash Hasania (MCI® Technical Sales & Product Manager).

Not all time was spent at the booth, as Jessi Meyer, Ash Hasania, Kevin Quan, and Lisa Marston played an important role in committee meetings— sometimes as observers, sometimes as full committee members. Ash was a delegate to the ICRI chapters meeting, which shared many interesting ideas to encourage future chapter growth. We were also represented at the “Women in ICRI,” “Life Cycle and Sustainability,” and “Corrosion” committee meetings. Technical sessions gave MCI® team members another chance to build their understanding of everything from repair assessments after catastrophic events to mid-century modernist concrete façade repairs. An awards luncheon topped off the educational aspect with great case histories on award-winning repair projects!

The convention was not complete without some time to unwind and build relationships in a recreational setting. Highlights included clay shooting, a dinner social, and even a cornhole tournament. All in all, it was a great time to learn and collaborate with key players in the industry. Special thanks to those of you who stopped by our booth! If you missed us or have further questions, contact us here: https://www.cortecmci.com/contact-us

Keywords: how MCI works, surface applied corrosion inhibitors, SACI, MCI-2020, ICRI Fall Convention, From Grey to Green, concrete façade repairs, concrete repair, Cortec, MCI

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