Experimental Study on the Degradation of Bonding Behavior between Reinforcing Bars and Concrete after Corrosion and Fatigue Damage

Abstract

In marine environments, the durability of reinforced concrete structures such as bridges, which suffer from the coupled effects of corrosion and fatigue damage, is significantly reduced. Fatigue loading can result in severe deterioration of the bonds between reinforcing steel bars and the surrounding concrete, particularly when reinforcing bars are corroded. Uniaxial tension testing was conducted under static loading and fatigue loading conditions to investigate the bonding characteristics between corroded reinforcing bars and concrete. An electrolyte corrosion technique was used to accelerate steel corrosion. The results show that the bond strength was reduced under fatigue loading, although the concrete did not crack. Therefore, fatigue loading has negative effects on the bond strength between corroded steel bars and concrete. The effects of corrosion cracking on bond strength become more pronounced after corrosion cracking appears along the main reinforcing bars. When the average width of cracking along main reinforcing bars exceeds 3 mm, the bonding properties deteriorate rapidly based on the effects of corrosion cracking, whereas fatigue loading exhibits no additional effects on bond strength.