“…In most cases, cracks do not appear until the advanced stages of corrosion due to the assumed bond between steel and concrete. The majority of oxidation products occupy a volume between two and six times the initial volume of the steel [ 44 , 45 ], depending on the type of generated oxide: FeO, magnetite Fe 3 O 4 , maghemite γ-Fe 2 O 3 , and hematite α-Fe 2 O 3 can occupy approximately twice the volume of the initial Fe; lepidocrocite γ-FeOOH and iron hydroxides Fe(OH) 2 and Fe(OH) 3 , four times the initial volume; and hydrated iron hydroxide Fe(OH) 3 + 3H 2 O, six times the initial volume [ 46 , 47 ]. However, the larger volume of oxidation products can diffuse or flow through the network of pores, capillaries, and potential microcracks in the concrete, resulting in a smaller effective expansion on the concrete cover than what the initial steel actually experiences [ 48 , 49 , 50 , 51 , 52 ].…”