Performance assessment of cracks in reinforced concrete: from crack width to crack volume

Author(s): J. Pacheco, B.Šavija, E. Schlangen, R. B. Polder
Paper category: Workshop
Book title: RILEM International workshop on performance-based specification and control of concrete durability
Editor(s): D. Bjegović, H. Beushausen, M. Serdar
ISBN: 978-2-35158-135-3
e-ISBN: 978-2-35158-136-0
Pages: 419 - 426
Total Pages: 8
Language: English

Abstract: 
Studies on the durability of cracked concrete have shown that cracks allow fast ingress of chlorides and CO2, rendering in shorter initiation periods of reinforcement corrosion. One of the most common type of cracks are bending cracks, which have the characteristic of being wider at the concrete surface and becoming narrower as the crack propagates through the concrete cover. The assessment of cracks in existing structures is usually limited to the measurement of the crack width and comparing the result to the standards. Depending on the exposure conditions, the limiting crack width for structures exposed to marine environment is 0.3 mm according to the Eurocode. An aspect that could be underestimated is the formation of secondary cracks along the concrete-steel interface. In this study, reinforced concrete specimens were subject to cracking. During cracking, the electrical resistance of concrete was monitored across the crack. Subsequently, the geometry of the cracks was assessed by impregnating the crack. Image analysis was performed on photographs taken from the concrete slices. The correlation between crack volume estimations and the crack opening displacement (COD) are presented.

Online publication: 2013
Publication Type: full_text
Public price (Euros): 0.00