Serviceability Reliability of Reinforced Concrete Beams with Corroded Reinforcement

To date, attention of researchers concentrated mainly on the serviceability failure of corroded reinforced concrete (RC) beams caused by excessive cracking. However, cracking of the concrete cover and a reduction in the bond strength (which may result in slip between the corroding reinforcement and the concrete) also decrease the stiffness of RC beams. As a result of it, displacements of the RC beams increase and may exceed a limit value specified in a code, i.e., it has been noted that corrosion may also cause the serviceability failure due to excessive displacements. In this paper the effect of corrosion on deflections of RC beams and, subsequently, on the probability of serviceability failure due to excessive deflection is considered. A nonlinear finite element model is used to describe the structural behavior of RC beams with corroding reinforcement. Uncertainties associated with the model and available data are taken into account. Results show that an increase in deflections due to corrosion has a lesser effect on serviceability of RC beams than corrosion-induced cracking.