corrosion of steel in concrete
This book provides information on corrosion of steel in atmospherically exposed concrete structures to guide those responsible for buildings, bridges and all reinforced concrete structures as they design, construct and maintain them. It reviews the present state of knowledge of corrosion of steel in concrete from the theory, through to site investigations and remedying the problems. There is also a section on building structures to be more corrosion resistant.
The aim of the book is to educate and guide engineers, surveyors, students and owners of structures so that they will have a clearer idea of the problem of corrosion, its causes and where to go to start finding solutions. No single book can be a complete course in any subject and there is no substitute for personal 'hands on' experience. There are many experienced engineers and corrosion experts who deal with these problems on a day to day basis. The reader is recommended to seek expert advice when dealing with subjects that are new to him. However, the aim of being an 'informed client' is to be recommended and this book should help in that respect. It is also essential that students of civil engineering and building sciences understand the problems they will face as they start to practise their skills. We need more engineers, materials scientists and surveyors who are trained to look at wider durability issues than the purely structural.
While corrosion of steel in concrete is a major cause of deterioration, it is not the only one. Out in the real world we must not become blinkered to other problems like alkali-silica reactivity, freeze-thaw damage and the structural implications of the damage done and of repairs. In this book, however, we concentrate on the corrosion issue, although there will be passing references to other problems where relevant
their brains mercilessly and enjoyed working and relaxing with many such as Brian Wyatt of Tarmac; Nick Buenfeld and Gareth Glass of Imperial College; Ken Boam, Mike Gower and Peter Johnson of Maunsells; David Whiting of Construction Technology Laboratories; Ken Clear and Jack Bennett; Carmen Andrade of the Instituto Eduardo Torroja in Madrid; Jesús Rodríguez of Geocisa; and many more. I must also thank all those who provided the pictures used to illustrate the text. I have tried to acknowledge the sources but I offer apologies to any I have overlooked.
My thanks also go to my publisher, and to Nick Clarke whose helpful suggestions have strengthened the book considerably, and to my reviewers Steve Millard, John Miller and Peter Pullar Strekker. They helped clarify and extend the text and the time they put in was considerable. However, this work is my own and I am responsible for any errors and inconsistencies that you the reader may find in it.
Finally, eternal thanks to my wife, Veronica, and my parents, Olive and Philip. Everything one says about the support of the family sounds glib and clichéd, but it is, none the less, true. Without my parents' support I would not have got where I am today. Veronica's support has been invaluable in quietly encouraging me to get on with the job, make sure that I am focused on the task in hand not involved in pie in the sky ideas. She has supported my activities while getting on with her own very busy career.
My apologies for naming such a small number of the many people whom I have had the pleasure and privilege of working with. My thanks to all of them and their willingness to share their knowledge with me and many others.
It is difficult to know where to start and end with acknowledgements. I started my career after finishing university at the Central Electricity Research Laboratory, working in one of the largest groups of corrosion scientists in the UK and Europe. Sadly that group is dispersed with the privatization of the Central Electricity Generating Board. I learned the basics of corrosion from Mike Manning, Jonathan Forrest and Ed Metcalfe and many others at CERL.
I then joined Taywood Engineering and enjoyed carrying out some of the first trials of cathodic protection on reinforced concrete structures above ground in the UK, Hong Kong and Australia. I learned enormous amounts about deterioration of reinforced concrete structures, civil engineering and contracting from Roger Browne, Roger Blundell, Roger McAnoy, Phil Bamforth and a powerful team of engineers and scientists who were all at the forefront of concrete technology. I continue to have good relations and helpful exchanges with the Taywood team.
I was then privileged to be invited to work at the Strategic Highway Research Program (SHRP) in Washington, DC. For three years we coaxed a $150 million research programme into life, and after five years we then shut it all down having spent the allotted budget. My thanks go to Damian Kulash who led the programme and was brave enough to take on an unknown foreigner to oversee the structures research and to Jim Murphy and Don Harriott who led the Concrete and Structures Group and taught me about highways. I must also thank all my colleagues at SHRP, the researchers who did the real research work and the advisory and expert committee members who gave their time and insights to help create some very valuable manuals and guidance for highway engineers.
And so to the present. After five years as an independent consultant I have had the chance to work with some of the leading experts in the field of corrosion and deterioration of reinforced concrete. I have picked
