A new method for estimating the scale of fluctuation in reliability assessment of reinforced concrete structures considering spatial variability

Abstract

The scale of fluctuation ( θ) of the material and geometrical parameters is the basis of studying the spatial variability of reinforced concrete structures. In this article, a new estimation method for the scale of fluctuation based on Bayesian information criterion is proposed. And based on the analysis of experimental data recorded on the three 36-year-old beams of the Jianggong Bridge and 246 corroded steel bars, the scale of fluctuation ( θ) of concrete compressive strength ( f c ) and steel pitting factor ( R) are estimated. The theoretical bending moment of three test beams are calculated considering the influence of the spatial distributions of f c , R, and other relative variables. The reasonableness and superiority of the Bayesian information criterion model than the auto-correlation function method and the semivariogram function model are verified by comparing the theoretical results with the measured bending moment of the three beams mentioned above.