Durability of Reinforced Concrete in Red Sea Marine Structures

Reinforced-concrete structures in the marine environment often deteriorate in the early stages of their service life. The main cause is corrosion in reinforcement and concrete, which may interact adversely with each other. In this paper eighteen cubes and eight reinforced concrete beams were casted and investigated for durability in tidal and submerged zones. The effect of deterioration, which is influenced by various factors, such as the mix proportion of the concrete, the depth of cover and the environmental conditions, was observed and the results from physiochemical processes, such as ion transportation and carbonation are discussed. The results of cubes in tidal zone observed that fluctuating in weight and so in volume which lead to produce cracking, as expressed in the study, for the cubes in submerged zone, increased in weight and subsequently lead to expansion and the marine growth covered the surface; for beams prevent adequate visual examination of concrete. The penetration and diffusion of chloride ions at the early age of construction, forming a corrosion environment of the reinforcing steel, but without carbonation