1

Identification of rebar corrosion induced by carbonation in cracked

concrete

Rita Maria GHANTOUS1, Raoul FRANÇOIS2, Stéphane POYET1, Valérie L’HOSTIS1,

Nhu-Cuong Tran3

1Den-Service d’Etude du Comportement des Radionucléides (SECR), CEA, Université Paris-

Saclay, F-91191, Gif-sur-Yvette, France

E-mail: {ritamaria.ghantous, stephane.poyet, valerie.lhostis}@cea.fr

2Université de Toulouse, INSA, UPS, Laboratoire Matériaux et Durabilité des Constructions

F-31077 Toulouse, France

E-mail: Raoul.francois@insa-toulouse.fr

3EDF, R&D, MMC

F-77818 Moret-sur-Loing cedex, France

e-mail: nhu-cuong.tran@edf.fr

Abstract

Reinforced concrete is broadly used in the construction of buildings, historical monuments,

infrastructures as well as nuclear power plants. For different reasons, many concrete structures

are subjected to unavoidable cracks that accelerate the diffusion of atmospheric carbon dioxide

to the steel/concrete interface. Carbonation at the interface induces steel corrosion that could

cause the development of new cracks in the structure, which is a determining factor for its

durability.

The aim of this article is to study the effect of the existing cracks on the carbonation-induced-

corrosion development. The results indicate that after the initiation phase, the corrosion kinetics

decreases with time and that the crack opening does not have any influence on the corrosion

kinetics. The interpretation of the results allows the authors to conclude that a “corrosion plug”

is developed deep in the crack due to the high corrosion initiation kinetics. Therefore, this “rust

plug” acts as a barrier to oxygen, water diffusion and allow repassivation which drops down

the corrosion kinetics and makes it independent from the crack opening.

Keywords: reinforced concrete; cracks; carbonation-induced corrosion; environmental conditions.

2

1. Introduction

Corrosion of steel is the main pathology affecting reinforced concrete structures and therefore

it is a determining factor for their durability. These structures are subjected to unavoidable

cracks which create a pathway for atmospheric carbon dioxide, oxygen, water, chlorides to the

steel/concrete interface and subsequently reduce the time to corrosion initiation. Both

laboratory studies [1]–[6] and in situ observations [7]–[11] have noted an expedited corrosion

initiation in cracked concrete compared to un-cracked concrete. Load-induced cracking is

accompanied by interfacial slip and separation between concrete and steel. This phenomenon

is observed in several studies [12]–[15] that show that both chloride-induced corrosion and

carbonation-induced corrosion start and develop few millimeters around the rebar at the

interception with the preexisting crack [16], [17]. While general consensus on the deleterious

effects of cracks and steel/mortar interface quality on the initiation of reinforcement exists in

the scientific community, the effects of those phenomena on the propagation of reinforcement

corrosion are still up to debate. The study of Dang et al. [18] is among the most recent research

dealing with carbonation-induced corrosion propagation. In this study, ring-shaped mortar

specimens with mechanical preexisting cracks induced by internal pressure were carbonated in

accelerated conditions (50% CO2 - 65% RH). Thereafter, these mortar specimens were

subjected to humidification/drying cycles to accelerate the corrosion development. It was

observed that the carbon dioxide spread along the total length of the steel/mortar interface and

induces corrosion initiation on the entire circumference of the carbonated rebar. The

carbonation of the whole steel-concrete interface is quite contradictory with the previous results

of [12]–[15]. It is then questionable whether this result is due to the shape of the reinforced

concrete specimen and/or to the exposure conditions. This corrosion propagation all around the

steel reinforcement is very harmful for the structure. This is because corrosion products are

known to have a volume greater than the original iron volume that generates internal tensile

stress at the concrete surrounding rebar. Therefore, new cracks develop in the concrete cover

characterized by a low tensile strength resistance [19]. In a very aggressive corrosion

conditions, spalling of concrete cover may also be visible.

In the field of nuclear energy, reinforced concrete is used for structures that have an impact on

safety (containment building, cooling tower), it is therefore important to complete the study [4],

and understand the effect of cracking and steel/concrete interface damage, both in terms of

corrosion initiation and propagation in cracked specimens.

This study aims to give answers for the following questions:

Do crack openings have an impact on the kinetics of the carbonation-induced corrosion

in reinforcement?

Will carbonation-induced-corrosion deep in the crack induce the development of

corrosion cracks and threaten the durability of the structure or it will form a “corrosion

plug” in the crack and slow down the corrosion propagation?

In the forthcoming sections, the experimental protocols developed to provide answers for the

above questions are detailed and the obtained results are discussed afterwards.

2. Experimental program

2.1 Materials and specimens preparation

Specimens tested have a prismatic shape of 70×70×280 mm. For each specimen, a 6 mm

laminated rebar is used and is positioned in its middle as shown in Figure 1. All the specimens

3

are prepared with a mortar mix which uses three parts sand, two parts cement and one part

water. Ordinary Portland cement (CEM I 52.5) and siliceous sand (according to CEN EN 196-

1) are used. The yield strength of the steel used is 500 MPa. Mortar is poured in the prismatic

mold in two layers; each of them being vibrated in order to eliminate air bubbles. After 24

hours, the specimens are demolded and thereafter cured for 28 days immersed in water with

calcium hydroxide. The mechanical properties of the mortar mix measured following the

current standards and recommendations are shown in Table 1. The specimens tested in this

study are fabricated from 6 consecutive concrete batches.

Figure 1: Schematic of the reinforced mortar

specimen

Compressive strength fc (MPa) 55

Tensile strength fctk (MPa) 3.5

Young’s Modulus E (GPa) 33.3

Poisson’s ratio ν 0.21

Table 1: Mechanical characteristics of

the mortar mix

2.2 Cracking of the prismatic specimens

Immediately after curing, cracks of different openings are generated at mid-span of the

prismatic specimens using the three-point bending test. This cracking protocol consists in

applying the load in the mid span of the simply supported specimen using a hydraulic pump as

shown in Figure 2(a). The crack is usually obtained in the cross section subjected to the maximal

tensile stress. In order to quantify the crack opening, a Linear Variable Differential Transformer

(LVDT) is placed where the crack is expected to appear as shown in Figure 2(b). This LVDT

measures the horizontal displacement between two points located at 20 mm from either side of

the specimen center. Throughout the test, the applied load and the measured displacement by

the LVDT are registered continuously. Note that the displacement registered by the LVDT

before appearance of the crack is due to the flexural deformation of the beam and cannot be

considered as a crack opening. Therefore, to calculate the crack opening, these initial

displacements were set equal to zero.

At the beginning of the bending test, the load is increased slowly until a crack is

generated/detected. Then, by performing loading\unloading cycles and by increasing the

maximum applied load from one cycle to another cycle, the residual crack opening increases.

Therefore, the crack opening can be controlled and a range of crack opening be obtained (Figure

3). The load direction is perpendicular to the casting direction in order to apply the same

mechanical loading on the upper surface and the lower surface of the specimen with respect to

casting direction. The reason is that upper and lower steel/concrete interface are different due

to the effect of bleeding and settlement of fresh concrete ([20], [21]). It is important here to

limit the length of the zone in which the bond between steel and mortar is altered. It has been

proven in a previous study that the three point bending test does not lead to a total steel/mortar

interface damage [22]. For this study, three residual crack openings are performed on several

prismatic specimens which are 0.1 mm, 0.3 mm and 0.5 mm.

4

(a)

(b)

Figure 2: 3-points bending test on 70×70×280 mm specimens

Figure 3: Range of the residual crack opening obtained by the three point bending test

2.3 Corrosion

Corrosion is known to be slow in structures subjected to the atmosphere (carbonation induced

corrosion). In order to be able to study the corrosion propagation during this project, it was

inevitable to find a suitable protocol allowing the acceleration of corrosion process naturally in

the laboratory in a way to stay representative for the environmental conditions surrounding

cooling towers of nuclear power plants. Therefore, specimens are subjected to accelerated

carbonation at 3% CO2, 55% relative humidity and 25°C for one month. It was verified that this

duration is long enough to ensure carbonation of the alteration zone [22]. Carbonation induces

depassivation of the steel intercepting the crack and thus an active corrosion may start once the

LVDT (W)

LVDT

(deflection) Pump

F

LVDT Crack opening

280 mm

40 mm

210 mm

0

2

4

6

8

10

12

14

0.0 0.1 0.2 0.3 0.4 0.5 0.6 0.7 0.8 0.9 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4

Lo

ad

(kN

)

Crack opening W (mm)

Loading/unloading cycles (experimentally)

5

requested reagent (water and oxygen) are ensured. It is important to note that before

carbonation, the cracked specimens are pre-conditioned at (20 ± 1˚C – 60 ± 5% RH) for one

month. This step is important in order to reduce the water content of the cementitious materials

and thus ensure CO2 diffusion in these materials during the carbonation test.

After carbonation, specimens are subjected to corrosion conditions representative of those

surrounding cooling towers located in France. It is known that cycling between drying and

humidification of reinforced concrete is the most harmful process for corrosion. Therefore, it is

chosen here to accelerate corrosion by performing multiple raining/drying cycles. To perform

these cycles, a custom raining chamber is designed and manufactured.

In this device, the raining chamber is equipped with three rows, in order to settle the required

number of specimens. The rain is ensured using a micro drip system (Figure 5 (b)). On each

row, water is recuperated in a collector (yellow color in Figure 4) and is evacuated through a

common pipe for the three rows (grey pipe linked to the yellow collector in Figure 4). Tap water

is used to ensure rainfall. To avoid clogging of sprinklers due to hard water, water is filtered to

remove impurities (in green in Figure 4). The pH of the water is 7.5 and its chemical

composition is given in Table 1.

Raining/drying cycles are programmed by an automated control unit. In each row of each

raining chamber, a thermohygrometer is continuously measuring the temperature and the

relative humidity. Moreover, this experience is performed in an air-conditioned laboratory in

which the temperature is regulated at 20˚ C ± 1°C and relative humidity ranges around 60 ±5%.

A hygrometer is also continuously measuring the hygrometric conditions inside the laboratory

room. Dedicated software is registering hygrometric data each minute. A real view of the small

chamber in visible in the Figure 5 (a).

(a)

Figure 4 : Plans for custom raining chambers

6

(a)

(b)

Figure 5: Real atomized device for humidification/drying cycles

Table 1: Elements present in water

Element NH4-N

(mg/L)

NH4

(mg/L)

NO2

(mg/L)

HCO3

(mg/L)

Cl

(mg/L)

NO3

(mg/L)

SO4

(mg/L)

CO3

(mg/L)

Amount <0.039 <0.05 <0.01 200 12 17 45 <1

The rain phase duration is 30 minutes period at each cycle while the drying phase lasts 72 hours

following each rainfall period. During the rainfall period, the relative humidity value increases

to 95% ± 5%. After the raining period, the drying phase starts and in this phase relative humidity

value takes around 12 hours to drop down to approximately 60% ± 5% (Figure 6).

Figure 6: Relative humidity variation during raining/drying cycles in the reference protocol

2.4 Corrosion analyses

Three specimens are dedicated for destructive physical-chemical analyses at each measurement

date (15, 30, 60, 119 raining/drying cycles corresponding to 1.5, 3, 6, 12 months). Moreover,

Automatic

control unit

Limestone and

impurities

cartridge

Hygrometric

continuous recording

20

40

60

80

100

0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27

Re

lati

ve

hu

mid

ity (

%)

Days

Rain chamber (30 minutes raining) laboratory

72 h

12 h

Sprinkler

Pipe ND 13mm

7

the free corrosion potential of the rebars is monitored continuously during the experiment.

These two methods are detailed below.

2.4.1 Physical-chemical analysis: extraction of rebar and visual inspection of the

corrosion product distribution

The specimen is first split in two parts. Before extracting the reinforcement, visual inspection

of the corrosion products distribution along the steel rebar is performed. Corroded lengths

measured on its upper and lower part with respect to casting direction are noted. These corroded

lengths measurements are crucial for the calculation of the corrosion kinetics.

After steel extraction, phenolphthalein is pulverized on the splited surface to measure the

carbonated length along the steel mortar interface and compare it to the corroded length (Figure

7).

Figure 7: steel corrosion length with respect to the length of the carbonated steel/mortar

interface

2.4.2 Physical-chemical analysis: gravimetric measurements

The corrosion products attached to the extracted rebar are removed from the steel surface by

chemical attack (Sb2O3 + SnCl2 + HCl) following the standard ISO 8407 [23]. The difference

between the initial mass of the steel (before corrosion) and its final mass (after chemical

treatment) gives the steel mass loss induced by corrosion (∆𝑚𝑆).

In our study, to be accurate, gravimetric measurements are repeated on three rebars corroded in

the same conditions for each maturity date of analysis. And therefore, the average of these three

values are taken into account for the approximation of corrosion kinetics

2.4.3 Physical-chemical analysis: corrosion kinetics estimation

The carbonation-induced corrosion does not present a pitting morphology like the chloride-

induced corrosion. The corrosion products layer is known to be more homogenous in

carbonation-induced corrosion and this allow us to suppose that the thickness of the steel lost

during this corrosion process is uniform along the steel corroded length (Figure 8). Therefore,

the volume of the steel lost (VSL) during the corrosion process is calculated using equation 1.

SSL is the surface of the corroded twisted steel rebar. The determination of this surface is directly

dependent from the average of the corrosion length (LC) measured on the upper and the lower

4.7 cm

30mmCrack

Carbonated length

4.8 cm

Corroded length

Rebar footprint

8

part of the steel/mortar interface during the visual inspection. This surface is calculated by the

main of the polarization curve method where D is supposed to be equal to 6 mm. By replacing

the volume of the steel lost in equation 1 by equation 3 in which ρS is the density of steel equal

to 7860 kg/m3, the thickness of the steel lost during corrosion (TSL) can be calculated as shown

in equation 4. TSL is obtained at each maturity date of the corrosion analysis and thus the kinetics

of corrosion can be calculated using equation 5 and its unit is µm/year. This equation is adequate

to the one proposed in the study [24].

Figure 8: Assumption taken in the corrosion kinetics calculation

𝑉𝑆𝐿 = 𝑆𝑆𝐿 × 𝑇𝑆𝐿 1

𝑆𝑆𝐿 = 1.384 × 𝜋 × 𝐷 × 𝐿𝐶 2

𝑉𝑆𝐿 =

∆𝑚𝑆

𝜌𝑆

3

𝑇𝑆𝐿 =

∆𝑚𝑆

𝜌𝑆 × 𝑆𝑆𝐿

4

𝐶𝑜𝑟𝑟𝑜𝑠𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝑘𝑖𝑛𝑒𝑡𝑖𝑐𝑠 =

𝑇𝑆𝐿

𝐶𝑜𝑟𝑟𝑜𝑠𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝑑𝑢𝑟𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 (𝑚𝑜𝑛𝑡ℎ)× 12

5

2.4.4 Electrochemical analysis (Free corrosion potential measurements)

To monitor the steel corrosion state, an embedded Manganese Dioxide reference electrode

(ERE 20) for potential reading is cast into the mortar cover of some specimens and it is

positioned at 50 mm from the crack (Figure 9). In this configuration, the reference electrode

measures a coupled corrosion potential (between active and passive parts of steel bar) which is

continuously registered using a data acquisition switch unit.

Ste

elC

orr

ode

dL

eng

th (

LC)

Thickness of

the Steel Loss

(TSL)

Non corroded rebar Assumptions taken for the CPL

9

Figure 9: Electrochemical measurement

3. Results

3.1 Gravimetric measurements and length of corrosion products layer

Figure 10 presents the results of the gravimetric measurements, iron mass loss increases with

the number of cycles and with crack opening. Whatever the crack opening, the iron mass loss

tends to reach after 30-60 raining/drying cycles. One can notice a decrease in the iron mass loss

for specimens showing 0.5 mm residual crack opening between 60 and 119 cycles. It is

important to note that the iron mass lost cannot be recovered and this decrease is mainly due to

variability in materials properties and in the corrosion development process itself.

The evolution of the corrosion length with respect to the number of cycles is presented in Figure

11. Similarly to the iron mass loss, the corrosion length increases with the residual crack

openings and trend to stabilize after 30-60 raining/drying cycles.

Figure 10: Iron mass loss in specimens having different residual crack openings with respect

to raining/drying cycles (lines are only guides to the eye)

ERE 20 Referenceelectrode

Mortar

Steel

Varnish

Data Acquisition

Switch Unit

50 mm

0

20

40

60

80

100

120

0 20 40 60 80 100 120

Iro

n m

ass lo

ss (

mg

)

Number of raining/drying cycles

100 µm

300 µm

500 µm

1 month in the

1.5 month

3 months

Vertical crack (30min raining)6 months 12 months

10

Figure 11: Evolution of the corrosion length of steel in specimens having different residual

crack openings with respect to raining/drying cycles (lines are only guides to the eye)

3.2 Corrosion rate

The corrosion rate was estimated using equations (4) and (5) (Figure 12). It is plain to see that

the corrosion kinetics decreases with the number of cycles. It can also be noticed that nearly 60

cycles, the corrosion rate seems to be independent from the residual crack opening.

Figure 12: Evolution of the corrosion kinetics in specimens having different residual crack

openings with respect to raining/drying cycles

0

2

4

6

8

10

0 20 40 60 80 100 120

Ave

rag

e c

orr

osio

n le

ng

th (

cm

)

Number of raining/drying cycles

100 µm

300 µm

500 µm

1 month in the

1.5 month

3 months

6 months 12 months

Vertical crack (30 min raining)

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

0 20 40 60 80 100 120

Co

rro

sio

n k

ine

tics (

µm

/an

)

Number of raining/drying cycles

1.5 month

3 months

Vertical crack (30min raining)

6 months

12 months

11

3.3 Distribution of the corrosion Products layer

Figure 13(a) shows corrosion over carbonation length ratios measured on the upper part of

steel/mortar interface with respect to rain cycles while Figure 13(b) gives the same information

of Figure 13(a) regarding the lower part of steel/mortar interface. The upper part and the lower

part of the steel/mortar interface are defined according to the casting direction. It is visible that

the corrosion products fill the carbonated steel/mortar interface zone at the first thirty

raining/drying cycles and do not spread for a greater length. As a conclusion, the corrosion

products do not create corrosion cracks. Moreover, the digital scanning of specimens do not

show any additional crack other the initial one.

Figure 13: Corroded length with respect to carbonated length for different crack openings

(filled points correspond to the upper part of the steel/mortar interface while empty points

correspond to its lower part).

3.4 Free corrosion potential measurements

The evolution of the measured corrosion potentials is given in Figure 14. Two periods of

corrosion process can be observed. The first represents the corrosion initiation and the second

represents the corrosion propagation. A drop down in the corrosion potential from -70 mV/SCE

to -350 mV/SCE during the first month of exposure to raining/drying cycles indicates the

corrosion initiation. Thereafter, the corrosion potential starts to increase from -350 mV/SCE to

meet the corrosion potential of the uncracked specimen (around -70 mV/SCE). Furthermore,

the corrosion potential measured on specimens having 0.1 mm residual crack opening increases

earlier than in specimens having 0.3, 0.5 mm residual crack openings. This is in agreement

with the corrosion kinetics measurements showing at the beginning the lower value for

specimens having 0.1 mm residual crack opening.

0

0.2

0.4

0.6

0.8

1

1.2

1.4

1.6

1.8

2

0 20 40 60 80 100 120 140

(Co

rro

de

d /ca

rbo

nate

d)

len

gth

(cm

)

Number of raining/drying cycles

Upper and lower part of the steel/mortar interface (Vertical crack)

100 µm (1) 300 µm (1) 500 µm (1)100 µm (2) 300 µm (2) 500 µm (2)100 µm (3) 100 µm (3) 500 µm (3)

1 month in the

1.5 month

3 months

6 months

12 months

12

Figure 14: Corrosion potential (versus SCE) evolution in cracked specimens exposed to

raining cycles for 270 days.

4. Discussion

The results indicate a decrease in the corrosion kinetics with the number of raining/drying

cycles. The effect of the crack opening on the corrosion kinetics is masked after several

raining/drying cycles. Moreover, the corrosion products do not spread beyond the carbonated

zone limits. In addition, no corrosion cracks are visible on the outside surface of the specimens.

Furthermore, an increase in the free corrosion potential is noticed after several

humidification/drying cycles. All these results allow the authors to deduce that the corrosion

products form a plug in the crack. The latter acts as a barrier to oxygen and water that slows

down the corrosion propagation then leading to repassivation. This result is in agreement with

the one obtained by a numerical simulation in the study of Millard et al. [25].

5. Conclusion

In this research study, the effect of the crack opening on the propagation of carbonation-induced

corrosion is tested and analyzed. A suitable protocol is developed to ensure raining cycles

needed for the corrosion development in the laboratory. The authors deduce that a corrosion

plug develops deep in the crack and slows down the corrosion propagation according to the

results obtained from the corrosion kinetics and corrosion potential measurements and the

observed corrosion products distribution. The observed corrosion rates after 120 cycles of

raining/drying are very small (around 5 μm/year) and don’t influence the cooling tower safety

for the next decades of years. Moreover, this corrosion plug will cancel the effect of the crack

opening on the corrosion propagation. The results presented in this paper will be useful for EDF

in optimizing the maintenance program of French cooling tower fleet in the objective of

ensuring an operating lifetime beyond 60 years.

15 cycles

30 cycles

60 cycles

13

References [1] C. Arya and F. K. Ofori-Darko, “Influence of crack frequency on reinforcement

corrosion in concrete,” Cem. Concr. Res., vol. 26, pp. 345–353, 1996.

[2] N. S. Berke, M. P. Dallaire, M. C. Hicks, and R. J. Hoopes, “Corrosion of Steel in

Cracked Concrete,” Corros. Sci., vol. 49, pp. 934–943, 1993.

[3] R. Francois and G. Arliguie, “Effect of micro-cracking and cracking on the

development of corrosion in reinforced concrete members,” Mag. Concr. Res., vol. 51,

pp. 143–150, 1999.

[4] O. Gautefall and O. Vennesland, “Effects of cracks on the corrosion of embedded steel

in silica-concrete compared to ordinary concrete,” Nord. Concr. Res., vol. 2, pp. 17–28,

1983.

[5] T. U. Mohammed, N. Otsuki, M. Hisada, and T. Shibata, “Effect of Crack Width and

Bar Types on Corrosion of Steel in Concrete,” J. Mater. Civ. Eng., vol. 13, pp. 194–

201, 2001.

[6] P. Schießl and M. Raupach, “Laboratory Studies and Calculations on the Influence of

Crack Width on Chloride-Induced Corrosion of Steel in Concrete,” ACI Mater. J., vol.

94, pp. 56–61, 1997.

[7] P. Fidjestol and N. Nilson, “Field test of reinforcement corrosion in concrete,” ACI

Spec. Publ., vol. 65, pp. 205–217, 1980.

[8] K. Katawaki, “Corrosion of steel in the concrete exposed to seawater spray zone,”

Symp. Proc. Crack. Concr. Struct., pp. 133–136, 1977.

[9] G. Rehm and H. Moll, “Versuche zum studium des einflußes der rissbreite auf die

rostbilding an der bewehrung von stahlbeton-bauteilen.,” in Deutscher Ausschuss für

Stahlbeton, 1964, p. 169.

[10] P. Schießl, “Zur frage der zulassigen rissbreite und der enforderlichen betondeckung

im stahlbetonbau unter besonderer berucksichtigung der karbonatisierung des betons,”

in Deutscher Ausschuss für Stahlbeton, 1976, p. 255.

[11] E. F. O’Neil, “Study of reinforced concrete beams exposed to marine environment,”

ACI Spec. Publ., vol. 65, pp. 113–132, 1980.

[12] R. François, I. Khan, N. A. Vu, H. Mercado, and A. Castel, “Study of the impact of

localised cracks on the corrosion mechanism,” Eur. J. Environ. Civ. Eng., vol. 16, pp.

392–401, 2012.

[13] A. Michel, A. O. S. Solgaard, B. J. Pease, M. R. Geiker, H. Stang, and J. F. Olesen,

“Experimental investigation of the relation between damage at the concrete-steel

interface and initiation of reinforcement corrosion in plain and fibre reinforced

concrete,” Corros. Sci., vol. 77, pp. 308–321, 2013.

[14] B. J. Pease, “Influence of concrete cracking on ingress and reinforcement corrosion,”

Thesis Technical University of Denmark, 2010.

[15] B. Pease, M. Geiker, H. Stang, and J. Weiss, “The design of an instrumented rebar for

assessment of corrosion in cracked reinforced concrete,” Mater. Struct., vol. 44, pp.

1259–1271, 2011.

[16] R. Durton and A. Mommens, “corrosion des armatures dans le béton armé,” 1964.

[17] R. François and J. C. Maso, “Effect of damage in reinforced concrete on carbonation or

chloride penetration,” Cem. Concr. Res., vol. 18, pp. 961–970, 1988.

[18] V. H. Dang, R. François, V. L’Hostis, and D. Meinel, “Propagation of corrosion in pre-

cracked carbonated reinforced mortar,” Mater. Struct., vol. 48, pp. 2575–2595, 2015.

[19] V. H. Dang, “Initiation and propagation phases of re-bars corrosion in pre-cracked

reinforced concrete exposed to carbonation or chloride environment,” thèse Institut

National des Sciences Appliquées de Toulouse, 2013.

[20] A. T. Horne, I. G. Richardson, and R. M. D. Brydson, “Quantitative analysis of the

14

microstructure of interfaces in steel reinforced concrete,” Cem. Concr. Res., vol. 37,

pp. 1613–1623, 2007.

[21] T. Soylev and R. François, “Quality of steel–concrete interface and corrosion of

reinforcing steel,” Cem. Concr. Res., vol. 33, pp. 1407–1415, 2003.

[22] R. M. Ghantous, A. Millard, S. Poyet, R. François, V. L’Hostis, and N. C. Tran,

“Experimental and numerical characterization of load-induced damage in reinforced

concrete members,” in 9th International Conference on Fracture Mechanics of

Concrete and Concrete Structures, 2016, pp. 1–7.

[23] NF EN ISO 8407, “Corrosion des métaux et alliages - Élimination des produits de

corrosion sur les éprouvettes d’essai de corrosion,” 2014.

[24] D. Landolt, Corrosion and surface chemistry of metals. CRC Press, 2007.

[25] A. Millard and V. L’Hostis, “Modelling the effects of steel corrosion in concrete,

induced by carbon dioxide penetration,” Eur. J. Environ. Civ. Eng., vol. 16, pp. 375–

391, 2012.