Validation of models for assessment of durability of concrete structures exposed in chloride environments

Paper in proceeding, 2011

This paper presents validation of models for assessment of durability of concrete structures exposed in chloride environments. Nowadays there is a tendency that the traditional prescription-based design of concrete structures is moving towards the performance-based design, in which models are needed for assessment of durability of concrete structures exposed in aggressive environments, such as chloride environments. In order to apply the models in the durability design and redesign of concrete structures it is necessary to validate the models against long-term field data for their applicability with respect to exposure climate. In this study, three models including the simple ERFC-model, the DuraCrete model and the ClinConc model for prediction of chloride ingress in concrete were selected for validation using the field data collected from both the field exposure sites after over 10 years exposure and the real concrete structures after 30 years in service. These field data cover both the marine and the deicing salt road environments. The results show that the simple ERFC-model significantly overestimates chloride ingress. The DuraCrete model, if the input parameters are properly selected, may give a reasonably good prediction, otherwise may underestimate chloride ingress. The ClinConc model in general gives fairly good predictions for chloride ingress in both the marine and the de-icing salt road environments.