Corrosion Behavior and Applicability of Weathering Steel in Vietnam

Under appropriate atmospheric environments, weathering steels can be applied to steel structures without painting and can thereby reduce the lifecycle cost of those structures. In this study, environmental factors were measured and exposure tests were conducted in Vietnam in order to clarify the influence of environmental factors on the corrosion behavior and applicability of weathering steels in tropical and temperate regions in Southeast Asia. First-year corrosion loss (the A value) showed a correlation with the amount of airborne salt and time of wetness. Corrosion loss (y) after x years exposure is expressed by y=Ax(B) approximately, where Parameters A and B depend on the corrosion environment. The B values in southern and central Vietnam were approximately 0.4 to 0.9, which were less than or equal to that in Japan. Based on these results, it is considered that the environments in southern and central Vietnam are suitable for use of weathering steel when the amount of airborne salt is 0.05mg center dot<bold>NaCl</bold>/dm(2)/day or less. (C) 2016 American Society of Civil Engineers.