Capturing the global structural impact of local corrosion

Abstract

The assessment of corroded reinforced concrete structures is highly relevant, given the large number of affected structures. Reliable evaluations must capture the effects of local corrosion on the global structural behaviour, and a multitude of structural analyses is typically required to cover possible damage scenarios due to the uncertainty on the corrosion state. Regarding the latter, the common quantification of corrosion by mass loss and minimum residual cross-section is not sufficient for a pertinent assessment. Accordingly, we need to (i) clarify how to quantify local corrosion, (ii) develop mechanically consistent analytical models for the load-deformation behaviour of locally corroded structures and (iii) implement these in computationally efficient structural analysis tools. This keynote outlines the associated challenges along with potential solutions.