Reinforced concrete is a versatile modern construction material. Despite its advantages as a composite material, corrosion of the embedded reinforcing steel leads to infrastructure deterioration and loss of service. Non-Destructive Testing (NDT) methods are required to quantify the reinforcement condition, and to help manage human and financial risks arising from unexpected outright failure or service restrictions. Reinforcement condition can be assessed using a novel, time- and cost-efficient NDT method based on the self-magnetic behaviour of ferromagnetic materials. In this study, the magnetic properties of three similar rebars, each having three similar sized longitudinal defects, are recorded and assessed through experiments and a numerical simulation model. Strong correspondence is demonstrated between the magnetic properties from numerical simulation and from the experimental objects. For instance, applying the experimentally obtained defect detection threshold to the mathematically simulated results allows accurate defect detection in the simulations, showing that self-magnetic behavior is a powerful tool for condition assessment of ferromagnetic reinforcing materials.
Reinforced concrete is the most commonly used material in urban, road, and industrial structures. Quantifying the condition of the reinforcing steel can help manage the human and financial risks that arise from unexpected reinforced concrete structure functional failure. Also, a quantitative time history of reinforcing steel condition can be used to make decisions on rehabilitation, decommissioning, or replacement. The self-magnetic behavior of ferromagnetic materials is useful for quantitative condition assessment. In this study, a ferromagnetic rebar with artificial defects was scanned by a three-dimensional (3D) laser scanner. The obtained point cloud was imported as a real geometry to a finite element software platform; its self-magnetic behavior was then simulated under the influence of Earth’s magnetic field. The various passive magnetic parameters that can be measured were reviewed for different conditions. Statistical studies showed that 0.76% of the simulation-obtained data of the rebar surface was related to the defect locations. Additionally, acceptable coincidences were confirmed between the magnetic properties from numerical simulation and from experimental outputs, most noticeably at hole locations.
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