Structural behavior of PC beams under simultaneous corrosion and sustained loads

The paper presents an experimental study for the evaluation of the flexural response of prestressed concrete beams subjected to simultaneous sustained loads and corrosion. The tested beam features a 200 x 300 mm rectangular cross section, a total length of 3700 mm and a clear span of 2700 mm. In the performed four-point bending test, the beam was subjected to about 60% of the ultimate load of an identical undamaged reference beam, and to a simultaneous accelerated corrosion process of the strands. The flexural response of the tested element was monitored over a period of 70 days, up to failure, shown to be highly dependent on the localization of the corrosion phenomena affecting the strands, especially when coinciding with the maximum bending moment position. The obtained results confirm the importance of accounting for the combined effect of reinforcement corrosion and loading when assessing the structural performance of prestressed concrete beams.