Study on Mechanical Behavior of Reinforced Concrete Beams under Sulfate Attack

Abstract

In order to analyze the influence of sulfate corrosion on the mechanical behavior of reinforced concrete beams, the dry‐wet cyclic corrosion test was carried out on the model test beams, and the two test beams corroded for 0 d and 60 d were statically loaded, respectively. Then, the changes in flexural mechanical properties of the two test beams corroded for 0 d and 60 d were studied. Finally, the nonlinear finite element model was created by using ABAQUS. The plastic damage model is used to reflect the sulfate corrosion, and the mechanical properties of concrete beams under long‐term sulfate corrosion are further analyzed. The results show that the compressive strength of the test beam concrete after 60 days of corrosion is 13.6% higher than that before corrosion, which indicates that the strength of concrete is increased by sulfate corrosion in the early stage. With the increase of sulfate corrosion time, the strength and stiffness of the beam first increase and then decrease. With the change in corrosion time, the cracking load and flexural capacity first increase and then decrease, which is consistent with the mechanism of sulfate densification first and then deterioration of the concrete structure. The calculation formulas of cracking load and bending capacity obtained by fitting are accurate.