Monitoring corrosion-induced concrete cracking adjacent to the steel-concrete interface
Journal article, 2023

Substantial research effort has been devoted on linking corrosion-induced cracking of concrete with the internal corrosion damage level. Still, numerical models of the corrosion and cracking process require internal parameters, that cannot be directly evaluated from experimental data. Therefore, this study provides a novel experimental method for monitoring the effects of steel corrosion adjacent to the steel-concrete interface. This non-destructive method is suited for small-scale laboratory-made specimen, and was designed to provide missing information required for subsequent calibration of numerical models. Hollow steel bars were cast into concrete and subjected to accelerated corrosion using the impressed current technique. The deformations of the hollow steel bars were measured using distributed strain sensing in an optical fibre, attached to the inner surface of the hollow steel bars. After the corrosion period, X-ray Computed Tomography scans were performed to evaluate concrete cracking and corrosion level. The results reveal a non-uniform distribution of strain around the perimeter of the steel, indicating a non-uniform radial stress distribution. The non-uniformity correlated very well with the position of the corrosion-induced cracks; with extension hoop strains in the steel at the location of these cracks and contraction hoop strains in between. Further, the corrosion level varied around the perimeter, with higher values near cracks. The combination of non-destructive monitoring techniques used in this study on small-scale laboratory-made specimens show great potential to reveal new insights on how the corrosion pattern, corrosion-induced cracking of the concrete cover and stress (indirectly measured through the strain in the steel) interact throughout the corrosion process.

Distributed optical strain sensing

Corrosion

X-ray computed tomography

Steel-concrete interface

Reinforced concrete

Concrete cracking

Author

Andreas Alhede

Chalmers, Architecture and Civil Engineering, Structural Engineering

Jelke Dijkstra

Chalmers, Architecture and Civil Engineering, Geology and Geotechnics

Karin Lundgren

Chalmers, Architecture and Civil Engineering, Structural Engineering

Materials and Structures/Materiaux et Constructions

1359-5997 (ISSN)

Vol. 56 9 162

Corrosion cracking: Image-based methods combined with modelling

Formas (2019-00497), 2020-01-01 -- 2022-12-31.

Splitting cracks as performance indicator for existing structures

Swedish Transport Administration (TRV2021/27819), 2021-01-01 -- 2023-12-31.

Subject Categories

Applied Mechanics

Infrastructure Engineering

Other Materials Engineering

DOI

10.1617/s11527-023-02252-3

Related datasets

Data for: Monitoring corrosion-induced concrete cracking adjacent to the steel-concrete interface [dataset]

DOI: 10.5878/156p-8w93

More information

Latest update

3/21/2024