Sensitivity analysis of chloride ingress models: Case of concretes immersed in seawater

Abstract

Reinforced concrete structures exposed to a marine environment deteriorate as a result of chloride-induced corrosion of the steel rebars. A wide variety of models to predict chloride ingress in water-saturated concretes have already been developed to understand and predict the underlying transport processes. The majority of these models focus on the initiation period of chloride-induced corrosion in order to predict the service life of reinforced concrete structures. They require information on the concrete properties, the concrete cover thickness, the definition of corrosion initiation, etc. These models combine well-known mechanisms, i.e. diffusion of relevant ions, electrical interactions between ions, and interactions between these ions and the solid matrix. As the mechanisms to consider are well identified, the objective here is to perform a probabilistic analysis of some common models. A general framework is proposed to calculate a reliability service life for reinforced concrete structures under chloride attack in case of continuous immersion in seawater. Then a sensitivity analysis is performed in terms of the most relevant mechanisms and influencing input data. The results point out the crucial role of the concrete cover thickness, the critical chloride content and, to a lesser extent, the effective chloride diffusion coefficient. The difficulty to use the Freundlich isotherm for chloride binding is highlighted; it seems to be due to the non-linearity of the description which is still difficult to control. Highlights• A reliability sensitivity analysis of chloride ingress models is performed.• A framework is proposed to calculate a reliability service life for RC structures.

Exploring the Emerging Evolution Trends of Probabilistic Service Life Prediction of Reinforced Concrete Structures in the Chloride Environment by Scientometric Analysis

“…Monte Carlo simulation method is a probabilistic evaluation method which is widely used in the early period; finite element analysis and Bayesian network have been widely used in recent years [53][54][55]. (3) e spatial variability of chloride diffusion [56,57] and the sensitivity analysis of the parameters affecting time to corrosion initiation are the evolution trends on the related research [58][59][60].…”

Assessment of GFRP bond behaviour for the design of sustainable reinforced seawater concrete structures

“…On the other hand, there are several RC structures of important economic and social impact located in the maritime environment (ports, bridges, coastal defence structures and offshore structures) which are subjected to the simultaneous action of several physical and chemical deterioration processes that accelerate its degradation, reduce its service life, apart from increasing its maintenance costs [7]. Among others, corrosion of the steel reinforcement and degradation of the concrete cover layer are the most catastrophic effects that result from the exposure to the typically high chlorides and sulphates concentrations [8][9][10]. Nevertheless, the emergence of fibre reinforced polymers (FRP) and the replacement of conventional steel by these new materials may be the key to prevent the main damages that aggressive agents would cause in steel reinforcement, since these are not susceptible to corrosion and may allow seawater to be directly used in the concrete composition.…”

Sustainable Utilization of Quartz Sandstone Mining Wastes: Chloride and Corrosion Resistance

“…The lower the water/cement ratio, the greater the resistance to penetration of deleterious materials. At present, reinforced concrete structures are to be designed in such a way that they can tackle degradation related to mechanical, chemical and environmental actions [Pradelle et al, 2017].…”