Phase-field simulations of cover cracking in corroded RC beams

Corrosion of steel reinforcement bars is a crucial issue for the reinforced concrete structures. Being one of the most common deterioration mechanisms, corrosion severely affects the serviceability and durability of the structure as the steel reinforcement suffers from a reduction of the cross section and deterioration of the mechanical properties. Additionally, due to the steel oxidation process, residual material is formed, and the volume occupied by the reinforcement increases, leading to cracking and spalling of the concrete cover. A predictive model coupling concrete carbonation process and phase-field approach for brittle fractures is proposed to simulate the carbonation induced corrosion of rebar and the subsequent cracking phenomenon. First, a Fick diffusion law is used to describe the carbon dioxide (CO2) diffusion within the concrete which leads to a generalized corrosion process. As the corrosion evolves, the steel mass loss is converted into expansion strain due to the formation of residual material, and the damage evolution within the concrete cover is determined. After validation against examples from the literature, numerical simulations are performed, presenting a phase-field strategy capable to describe the cover cracking of corroded RC beams.