Work

Fatigue behavior and life prediction of frost-damaged reinforced concrete beams under water submersion: Experimental and numerical study

Year: 2026

Type: article

Abstract: Reinforced concrete (RC) bridge deck slabs in cold regions are frequently subjected to both fatigue loading and freeze–thaw cycles (FTC), leading to progressive deterioration. However, current design approaches typically treat these mechanisms independently, which may result in non-conservative service life predictions. To elucidate the influence of FTC on fatigue performance, three-point bending fatigue tests were conducted on RC beams under dry, submerged, and combined FTC and submersion conditions. Under severe frost damage, fatigue life is reduced by 80% relative to wet fatigue and by up to 98.3% relative to dry fatigue. A finite element model was developed and calibrated within a multi-scale computational framework to quantitatively analyze the fatigue behavior of frost-damaged RC beams. Based on numerical and experimental results, an empirical prediction formula was proposed for the reduction factor for wet fatigue life ( R F ) from the relative dynamic modulus of elasticity (RDME).

Source: Engineering Structures

DOI: 10.1016/j.engstruct.2026.123391

Authors: Yanyue Qin, Kai Matsutani, Kazunori Miyanaga, Hideto Kida, Xi Ji, Yuya Takahashi

Institutions: The University of Tokyo, SHO-BOND Corporation (Japan)

Language: English

Topic: Concrete Corrosion and Durability

Subfield: Civil and Structural Engineering

Field: Engineering

Domain: Physical Sciences

SDG: Industry, innovation and infrastructure

Open Access status: hybrid

Estimated APC paid: $4,620