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Concrete cover cracking due to uniform reinforcement corrosion

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Abstract

Service life design (SLD) is an important tool for civil engineers to ensure that the structural integrity and functionality of the structure is not compromised within a given time frame, i.e. the service life. In SLD of reinforced concrete structures, reinforcement corrosion is of major concern and reinforcement de-passivation is a frequently used limit state. The present paper investigates an alternative limit state: corrosion-induced cover cracking. Results from numerical simulations of concrete cover cracking due to reinforcement corrosion are presented. The potential additional service life is calculated using literature data on corrosion rate and Faraday’s law. The parameters varied comprise reinforcement diameter, concrete cover thickness and concrete material properties, viz. concrete tensile strength and ductility (plain concrete and fibre reinforced concrete). Results obtained from the numerical simulations reveal that, depending on the serviceability limit state applied, the service life of a reinforced concrete structure can be increased significantly by allowing minor damage of the cover.

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Acknowledgments

The first author gratefully acknowledges the full financial support of the PhD project “Application of FRC in Civil Infrastructure” by the Danish Agency for Science, Technology and Innovation, COWI A/S, DTU, Bekaert NV, Grace and the Danish Road Directorate. The second author acknowledges the financial support from Femern Bælt A/S, Sund & Bælt Holding A/S, and the Danish Agency for Science, Technology and Innovation.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. COWI A/S Denmark, Kongens Lyngby, Denmark

    Anders Ole Stubbe Solgaard

  2. Department of Civil Engineering, Technical University of Denmark, Kongens Lyngby, Denmark

    Anders Ole Stubbe Solgaard, Alexander Michel, Mette Geiker & Henrik Stang

  3. Department of Structural Engineering, Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU), Trondheim, Norway

    Mette Geiker

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  1. Anders Ole Stubbe Solgaard
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  2. Alexander Michel
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  3. Mette Geiker
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  4. Henrik Stang
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Correspondence to Anders Ole Stubbe Solgaard.

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Solgaard, A.O.S., Michel, A., Geiker, M. et al. Concrete cover cracking due to uniform reinforcement corrosion. Mater Struct 46, 1781–1799 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1617/s11527-013-0016-6

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1617/s11527-013-0016-6

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