At present, prescriptive regulations with regard to concrete cover and composition are applied to provide sufficient durability of reinforced concrete members under exposure conditions with different degrees of severity. In view of current knowledge on deterioration mechanisms and their modelling, it is planned to change from these deemed-to-satisfy specifications to a performance-based design approach in future standards. In such specifications, concrete durability design is based on the statistically characterized performance of concrete, determined in standardized tests with respect to defined classes of concretes with similar performance.
This paper presents the results of a study in which concrete mixes were tested and analysed with respect to their carbonation resistance. Compositions with similar performance are grouped into carbonation resistance classes. These classes are described statistically and requirements for performance testing are given. In addition, composition requirements are introduced in order to determine concrete performance depending on mix composition prescriptively. Finally, an example is given for the assessment of concrete performance with regard to carbonation.
This work was carried out at the request of JWG under CEN TC 250/SC2 and CEN TC 104/SC1 as an input and starting point for the ongoing committee work to implement the methodology from the fib Model Code for Concrete Structures 2010 in the next generation (2021) of European concrete standards.