Corrosion Effects on the Seismic Vulnerability Index of Reinforced Concrete Scholar Buildings

Abstract

The Veracruz - Boca del Río metropolitan area in Mexico presents high temperatures and even high chloride ion concentrations, causing an aggressive environment with significant corrosion rates. Therefore, in reinforced concrete buildings in said area, their service life and integrity can compromise. Rapid Screening Methods (RSM) are used to determine their Seismic Vulnerability Index (SVI). The Benedetti-Petrini RSM can be used to determine the SVI of the corroded structures, adapting how the state of conservation is evaluated and weighted. To that end, the corrosion level and the crack width were correlated to estimate how their state of conservation can be deteriorated, reducing the service life. To test its usefulness, nine faculties, whose ages are close to 50 years, were analyzed, and the SVI of the original and modified methods were compared. Additionally, as expected, the buildings close to the coastline, and the faces exposed to wind direction, were the most damaged. The results indicate that the modified SVI provides rational decisions and improves the action management for each structure.