Influence of stochastic chlorine environment on the spatiotemporal deterioration of marine RC structures

Abstract

The stochastic nature of the chloride environment plays an instrumental role in the variability of the deterioration processes afflicting marine reinforced concrete structures. The objective of this study is to investigate the influence of the stochastic chloride environment on the spatiotemporal variability of deterioration processes based on spatiotemporal reliability analysis. Based on long-term detection data from the Zhapu Port of Hangzhou Bay, the scale of fluctuation of chloride concentration and chloride diffusion coefficient in the depth dimension was obtained. The effect of the spatiotemporal variability of chloride environmental impacts and structural resistance on structural deterioration was evaluated in terms of both extent and probability based on three random field models. The results demonstrate that appropriate access to information on the scale of fluctuation in terms of both environmental impacts and structural resistance can construct more robust random fields. Moreover, the effect of the previous limit state on cover spalling is greater than the effect on cover cracking and structural collapse. In addition, the relationship between corrosion failure and structural failure was obtained, and the extent and duration of cover spalling constitute an important indicator of structural reliability.