J. Gulikers

Residual Service Life of Existing Concrete Structures – Is it Useful in Practice?

An increasing number of existing reinforced concrete structures are approaching their intended design service life. The common assumption is that these structures will thus soon require more maintenance cost and attention from their owners. In order to manage and plan maintenance activities in a predictable and transparent way asset owners desire quantitative information on their structures’ actual condition. Periodically performed visual inspections don’t provide unambiguous quantitative figures that support decisions for maintenance activities on the long-term. Consequently the residual service life was identified as an alternative to indicate the condition. The involvement of numerous experts has resulted in a scientific approach on service life prediction in which mathematical models to describe a time-dependent deterioration process dominate.