ICDCS 2008: International Conference on Durability of Concrete Structures

Background
Concrete structures are the most widely used form construction in the world. Over ten times more concrete is produced than all other construction materials put together. Concrete structures were traditionally viewed as being maintenance-free during their service life. However, over the past several decades, a number of durability-related problems have emerged globally and this stimulated research into the key factors relating to durability of concrete structures. It is now generally recognized that the concrete structures deteriorate with time. In reality, premature deterioration of concrete structures is a world-wide problem.
Meanwhile, China is going through an extensive construction period due to its rapid economic growth. The massive projects, invested over billion RMB, now are in construction. However, the designed service life of these projects is questioned because of lack of technologies and experiences, Therefore, there is an urgent necessity to formulate durability–based design and performance-based strategic maintenance methodologies to guarantee the durability of on-going construction projects.
The aim of this conference is to bring together leading experts in this field from around the world to present the latest development, share recent achievements, discuss current problems and address the future challenges on durability issues of concrete structures.
"The 2nd International Workshop on Life-Cycle Management of Coastal Concrete Structures"’ with emphasis on the corrosion-induced deterioration will be held in conjunction with this conference. The detailed information can be found in a separate brochure for this workshop. The workshop will be open to all registered participants of this conference free of charge.

Topics
The conference will deal with durability problems of concrete structures, giving particular emphysis environments, materials, components, and structures. The following topics will be included:
- Exposure environments and durability
- Ionic/molecular transport modeling
- Material degradation
- Performance of corroded components
- Design for durability
- Assessment & life prediction
- Life-Cycle Management of Concrete Structures
- Testing, inspection & monitoring methods
- Repair & maintenance
- Practical applications
- Standards & Guidance documents

Call for papers
The official language of the international conference is English. Authors are invited to submit abstracts together with Preliminary Registration Form to the ICDCS 2008 Secretariat as early as possible, but not later than the deadline 31 October, 2007. Abstracts should indicate clearly the aims and conclusions of the work to be included in the final papers and should be no more than one single-sided page. All submitted abstracts and final papers will be peer-reviewed.
The proceedings will be published by a formal scientific press and made available to all registered delegates at the conference.