Non-destructive evaluation of steel rebars corrosion in concrete beams

Abstract

Abstract The present study aims at developing a non-destructive evaluation technique based on elastic wave scattering and the finite element method for the detection and evaluation of localized damage in rebar of reinforced concrete beams. Simulation of corrosion effect was taken for a tensile bar by creating a defect in this bar while the rest of the rebar and stirrups were kept unchanged. The study is based on comparison of propagation pattern of elastic waves in the presence and in the absence of defect. The proposed method was found capable to provide non-destructive evaluation of rebar corrosion in reinforced concrete beams, thus enabling diagnosis of reinforcement concretes structures attacked by corrosion. The obtained results can be further used to locate corroded areas.