Corrosion of steel in cracked concrete: Chloride microanalysis and service life predictions

Reinforcement corrosion is frequently considered as the predominant degradation mechanism affecting reinforced concrete structures. Reinforced concrete structures are commonly subject to harsh environmental and loading conditions in which aggressive species can penetrate. Chlorides, present in seawater or de-icing salts, are the main responsible...

Dynamically loaded beam failure under corroded conditions

De-icing salts, used on roads in heavy winters, may enter reinforced concrete (RC) structures via its capillary pore system or via cracks, initiating reinforcement corrosion and reducing its remaining service-life. Vehicles passing real bridges exert a dynamic impact action that might activate a fatigue failure mechanism. In order to generate...

Shear Behaviour of Reinforced Concrete Members without Shear Reinforcement: A New Look at an Old Problem

Shear loading on structures has been recognized as one of the most relevant actions determining structural safety since the 19th century. In the case of reinforced concrete structures, despite the great efforts that have been made through experimental and theoretical research over many years, the nature of the shear failure process of a...

The influence of cracks on chloride-induced corrosion of reinforced concrete structures - development of the experimental set-up

Chloride-induced corrosion of steel reinforcement is one of the major threats to durability of reinforced concrete structures in aggressive environmental conditions. When the steel reinforcement starts to corrode, structures gradually lose integrity and service life is shortened. Cracks are inevitable in practice and they facilitate ingress of...

Shear In Reinforced Concrete Slabs under Concentrated Loads close to Supports

The capacity of existing solid slab bridges in the Netherlands is under discussion for two reasons: 1) the increased traffic loads and volumes and 2) the fact that the majority of the existing bridges were built before 1976, and are thus reaching the end of their original life span. Upon assessment according to the governing codes, a large...

Concrete slabs under a combination of loads in shear

Previous experimental research at Delft University of Technology indicated an increased shear capacity of slabs under concentrated loads as a function of decreasing distance to the adjacent line support. Expressions have been derived for this increase, including the definition of an appropriate effective width. However, it is unknown if the...

Recommendations for the shear assessment of reinforced concrete slab bridges from experiments

Upon assessment of existing reinforced concrete short-span solid slab bridges according to the recently implemented Eurocodes that include more conservative shear capacity provisions and heavier axle loads, a number of these structures were found to be shear-critical. The results from recent experimental research on the shear capacity of slabs...

The Integration of EIS parameters and bulk matrix characterization in studying reinforced cement-based materials

Corrosion in reinforced concrete is a major and costly concern, arising from the higher complexity of involved phenomena on different levels of material science (e.g. electrochemistry, concrete material science) and material properties (macro/micro/ nano). Reinforced cement-based systems (e.g. reinforced mortar and concrete) are multi-phase...

The integration of eis parameters and bulk matrix characteristics in studying reinforced cement-based materials

Corrosion in reinforced concrete is a major and costly concern, arising from the higher complexity of involved phenomena on different levels of material science (e.g. electrochemistry, concrete material science) and material properties (macro/micro/ nano). Reinforced cement-based systems (e.g. reinforced mortar and concrete) are multi-phase...

Combined effect of fibers and steel rebars in high performance concrete

In this paper a brief overview on the effect of tension stiffening in normal strength concrete and High Performance Fiber Concrete (HPFC) is given. On the basis of an existing model, several simplifications are proposed to describe the post-cracking performance of HPFC, and a simplified model for practical application is developed. This model is...

Investigation of Corrosion and Cathodic Protection in Reinforced Concrete. II: Properties of Steel Surface Layers

The present study explores the formation of corrosion products on the steel surface (using as-received low carbon construction steel) in reinforced concrete in conditions of corrosion and subsequent transformation of these layers in conditions of cathodic protection (CP).

Investigation of Corrosion and Cathodic Protection in Reinforced Concrete. I: Application of Electrochemical Techniques

The electrochemical behavior of steel reinforcement in conditions of corrosion and cathodic protection was studied, using electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) and compared to reference (noncorroding) conditions. Polarization resistance (PR) method and potentiodynamic polarization (PDP) were employed as well, in addition to ac 2 pin...

Electrochemical Behavior, Microstructural Analysis, and Morphological Observations in Reinforced Mortar Subjected to Chloride Ingress

The behavior of steel reinforcement was studied using electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) and polarization resistance (PR) techniques in conditions of chloride-induced corrosion in ordinary Portland cement-mortar specimens immersed in 7% NaCl for a test period of 120 days and compared to specimens immersed in demineralized water for the...

Computational modelling of chloride ion transport in reinforced concrete

Exposure to a saline environment is a major threat with respect to the durability of reinforced concrete structures. The chloride ions, which are present in seawater and de-icing salts, are able to penetrate the concrete up to the depth of the reinforcement. They can eventually trigger a pitting corrosion process. The assessment of a corrosion...

Structural dependence of rotations capacity of plastic hinges in R.C. beams and slobs

Aspects of Robust Computational Modeling for Plain and Reinforced Concrete

The problems commonly encountered in the numerical analysis of reinforced structures are often related to biaxial stress states in the structure. In this study this problem is solved with the formulation of a composite plasticity model which describes both cracking and crushing of concrete within the framework of plasticity theory. The other...