Probabilistic model for steel corrosion in reinforced concrete structures of large dimensions considering crack effects

A probabilistic model for chloride induced corrosion of the reinforcing steel in concrete structures is presented in this work. The main purpose of this model is to simulate the complex phenomena involved in a detailed yet simple way, appropriate for implementation on large-scale, real structures. Addressing this problem a time-dependent model is developed that can simulate all stages of reinforced concrete corrosion, i.e. corrosion initiation, crack initiation and propagation. The novelties of the formulation include a new empirical model for the crack propagation stage, which combines corrosion crack width with steel-bar cross sectional loss, based on published experimental results, and the dynamic influence of propagating cracks on the corrosion mechanism. Probabilistic concepts are also employed due to numerous sources of uncertainty in the degradation model and the extent of damage is quantified by considering the spatial variability of the various parameters. Probability density functions for certain variables and random model parts are suggested as well. A numerical application and a critical discussion are presented at the end. Finally, due to the variety of covered topics and the extensive reference list, the paper can also serve a secondary purpose as a state-of-the-art review source. (C) 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.