Mechanical Properties of Corroded Steel Rebars after 20 Years of Saltwater Exposure

This study provides the firsthand corrosion data of Grade 40 #3 and #4 deformed steel rebars that had been exposed to saltwater environment for 20 years under service load. Cross-sectional area loss and mass loss were measured. The mechanical and physical properties were investigated experimentally. The results were compared with fresh specimens and previously published results. The cross-sectional area loss and mass loss showed comparable results with the experiments on specimens suffering from long-term chloride ingression in the existing literature works. The tensile stress–strain behavior was also found to be similar to the previous research on corroded rebar from reinforced concrete structure under service load. The data from physical and mechanical investigation will be helpful to realistically estimate the long-term corrosion damage of rebars in reinforced concrete structures exposed to the marine environment. The influence of strain aging phenomena of corroded rebar on the mechanical and fracture behavior is also discussed in the paper. These effects need to be considered for capacity prediction and factor of safety estimation of corroded reinforced concrete structures.