The Effect of the Shot Blasting Process on the Dynamic Response of Steel Reinforcement

Abstract

As it is widely known, corrosion poses a real threat for reinforced concrete structures, especially when they are located in coastal areas. This phenomenon, in conjunction with repeated loads, such as intense seismic events, adversely affect their useful service life. Several experimental studies have presented the magnitude of degradation of steel reinforcement due to corrosion in the presence of fatigue, which affects either the serviceability or durability of steel reinforcement. As a result, the current experimental study presents the results of the shot blasting process of steel reinforcement at various times of exposure to a corrosive environment and the influence on their dynamic response after the execution of low cycle fatigue tests at different constant strain amplitudes. The findings show the beneficial effect of the shot blasting process in terms of percentage mass loss and the improvement of mechanical performance of steel bars in terms of service life and energy dissipation capacity. Moreover, the assessment performed with a quality material index demonstrates the improved mechanical performance of shot blasted specimens vs. bare specimens, in the long term for medium range-imposed deformation.