ABSTRACT
Reinforced concrete structures are subjected to deterioration during their design life cycle. Among various sources of deterioration, chloride penetration has major degrading effects on the durability of structures and can potentially make them vulnerable to natural and manmade hazards. To predict the future structural condition and plan for necessary maintenance and repair actions, the first step is to understand chloride penetration into concrete and then to identify the most influential factors. The current study models the time-dependent chloride penetration using a comprehensive finite element model. Since reinforced concrete structures are located in different environmental conditions, this study investigates the effects of key environmental stressors, such as temperature, humidity and surface chloride concentration. In addition to the external stressors, material properties are known to play a significant role in the chloride penetration as well. Among the material properties, chloride diffusion coefficient is particularly investigated as the parameter that can capture relevant concrete properties. The outcome of this study contributes to improve the life-cycle performance and cost assessment of reinforced concrete structures subjected to various exposure conditions.
