ABSTRACT
In this paper, the time-dependent reliability of PC girders in a marine environment is estimated considering the spatial variability of steel weight loss. Non-linear finite element (FE) analysis of aging PC girders is performed. Spatial variation of steel weight loss represented by uniform, Gaussian and non-Gaussian stochastic fields is included in the FE modelling. To obtain the relationship between input parameters and computational results from FE analysis, the response surface method is used for reducing the time required to repeat the structural analysis. The life-cycle reliability outcomes associated with three different models for the steel weight loss distribution are compared and discussed in an illustrative example.
