Durability of Floating Concrete Platforms

Abstract

Concrete is the cheapest construction material and the second most consumed man-maid product after drinking water, which is easily cast to any shape. Concrete technology has evolved very rapidly in recent years and continues to improve with new advancement in construction and materials technology. Early concrete platforms dated to more than 100 years ago with primitive design mixes, materials and construction technique. Since then, many concrete platform have been constructed; some with poor quality and some with very reasonable performance. However, generally the concrete platforms were more durable when compared to steel structures but they are slower to construct. In the past 30 years, there is a new wave of concrete platforms riding on advancement of concrete and construction technology. The owners of concrete platforms now demand for durability design of 100 years or more. The construction time is also significantly reduced. In this paper, durability design of floating concrete platforms is discussed, among which is the recent construction of 138 m × 46 m concrete drydock built for Marisco Ltd. with a lifting capacity of 9500 tons. As stationary platforms, concrete platforms are more durable, less expensive, safer, and more stable and they require less maintenance as compared to steel platforms. However, structural and durability design as well as construction experience are critical for successful execution.