Life cycle cost design of concrete structures

A life cycle cost based procedure for the design of reinforced concrete structural elements is presented in this thesis. The design procedure attempts to integrate structural performance and durability together with economic cost optimization into the structural design process. The evaluation of structural performance and durability is made on the basis of determination of service life of reinforced concrete. The service life is determined based on the concept of exceedance of defined limit states, a principle commonly used in structural design. Two limit states relevant to corrosion of reinforcement a?? i) initiation of corrosion and ii) initiation of corrosion followed by cracking of the concrete cover are used. The service life decides the magnitude and timing of the future costs incurred during the life of the structure. Tradeoffs between initial costs and future costs and the influence of the various design variables on the life cycle cost are evaluated to determine the optimum design alternative. All these considerations are encapsulated into a computational model that enables the seamless integration of durability and structural performance requirements with the structural design process.

Author dc:creator

• HARIKRISHNA NARASIMHAN

• concrete durability, service life, life cycle cost, chloride induced corrosion, durability design, performance based design, cost optimization