Abstract
This paper presents the results, after a 10 year-evaluation, from an Iberoamerican project called “Effect of the environment on reinforcement durability” (DURACON). This project correlates the influence of urban and marine meteorochemical parameters on the performance of reinforced concrete structures in nine countries (Bolivia, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Mexico, Spain, Uruguay, Portugal and Venezuela). The environment was evaluated using ISO Standard 9223 and the concrete was characterized physically by measuring compressive strength, elastic modulus, total and effective porosity, as well as effective porosity and resistance to water absorption using the Fagerlund method. To that effect, concrete specimens (with and without reinforcement) were prepared for electrochemical and physical/mechanical/chemical tests using the existing materials in each participating country, following strict procedures which enabled the preparation of similar concrete specimens. Two water/cement (w/c) ratios (0.45 and 0.65) were selected, where 0.45 w/c ratio concrete had a minimum cement content of 400 kg/m3 and the one with 0.65 w/c ratio a minimum 28-day compressive strength of 210 kg/cm2. Type I Portland cement, siliceous sand, and crushed rock as coarse aggregates (13-mm maximum nominal size) were used. The results showed the differences in behavior between tropical and non-tropical environments, with the tropical countries being the most aggressive ones.
