Concrete in the civil infrastructure system is susceptible to various deterioration causes and mechanisms. Reinforced and pre-stressed concrete (RC and PSC) structures in marine environment are especially vulnerable to early deterioration, mainly due to chloride-induced corrosion. The chloride-induced deterioration manifests itself in different types of deterioration and defects, e.g., rebar corrosion and section loss, breakage of strands and tendons, cracking, scaling, and delamination, with varying severity. One serious problem affecting the service life of the RC and PSC structures is delamination, which can be described as thin concrete cracking that lies in most cases directly above the rebar mat or pre-stressing strands. Incipient delamination does not necessarily imply structural failure of an element. However, the presence of a delamination may accelerate deterioration mechanisms and cause other types of defects, e.g., development of vertical cracks and spalling.
展开▼
