Arto Köliö

Systematic condition assessment of concrete facades and balconies exposed to outdoor climate

Determining the condition of a concrete building or structure through periodic assessments during its lifespan is an essential part of proper maintenance. The repair methods of concrete facades and balconies are selected primarily on the basis of their technical condition. The information on the deterioration level of structures provided by a condition assessment assists in the selection of appropriate repair methods and assessment of related risks and service life of the repair. The content of a condition assessment is to be such that set goals are achieved. Usually the aim is to determine the repair or maintenance need and safety of structures. To achieve that, the deterioration and performance defects of structures need to be established. Concrete facades and balconies can be subject to several types of deterioration. Thus, the existence, scope, location, degree, impacts and future progress of deterioration need to be determined in each case. The wide variation in the level of deterioration between dif...

Corrosion Propagation Phase Studies on Finnish Reinforced Concrete Facades

This work discusses a research project on active corrosion as a part of the service life of concrete facade panels in Nordic climate. The objective of the studies was to contribute to the knowledge on the corrosion propagation phase in these structures under actual long term weather exposure and to generate data for its modelling purposes. The project combined statistical analysis of a large database of condition investigation data to the more in-depth analysis of twelve case buildings and field measurement data on reinforcement corrosion. Corrosion rate was tied to long term weather data representing the geographical location of the buildings. As one of the results it was shown that, although carbonation resistance remains as the primary factor in ensuring proper service life, the modelling of active corrosion may provide a considerable extension to it.

The Effect of Climate Change on Freeze-Thaw Cycles in Nordic Climate

In Finland weather conditions are very aggressive for concrete structures which are not sheltered against rain. One of the most serious issues concerns freeze-thaw cycles when at the same time ambient conditions are wet. This situation is common in Finland during autumn, spring and warm winter when daytime temperature is slightly above 0 °C and by night below.