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This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License
Article
Durability of Concrete in the Arabian Gulf
Author(s)
Mufid Al-Samarai
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DOI:10.17265/2161-6213/2015.11-12.003
Affiliation(s)
Sharjah Engineering Research Institute, Sharjah Research Academy, 2580, Sharjah, UAE
ABSTRACT
The gulf region is currently witnessing an extensive urbanization development and billions of dollars are being spent on reinforced concrete construction projects. It is estimated that the present projects being executed in the Gulf States are in the range of 800 billion Dollars. By 2020, six of the tallest ten buildings in the world would be in the region. These mega projects will not only exert pressure on resources but will also require high performance materials, top project management and greater quality control. All over the region, there are many concrete structures which are in outstandingly good conditions compared to their age, but there are also examples of structures that deteriorated to poor conditions within a few years. Many reinforced concrete buildings exhibited some signs of distress early in their service life. Awareness of the importance of concrete durability has risen in the region alongside the need to stretch concrete to its uttermost limits. In many parts of the Middle East, there are important factors such as unskilled workmanship, deleterious substances, funds and speed of construction that influences the durability of structures and bridges to a great extent. Considering the hot and arid weather of the region and the need to use high-strength concrete brings forward the problem of concrete durability in hot weather. It can be seen that concrete structure tends to deteriorate more rapidly exhibiting greater problems with cracking control than those in temperate regions of the world. Maintenance in the Middle East has consistently been treated as a secondary activity in the construction industry, attracting only a minimal recognition of its importance. However, in recent years, maintenance has gained greater attention since its being looked to as a tool towards sustainability and a means toward the conservation of the construction stock. In the present paper, a brief summary of research and issues related to durability, hot weather concreting, sustainability and maintenance will be presented. Results of an investigation on the effect of hot weather on cracks and non-destructive testing will be also elaborated.
KEYWORDS
Durability, hot-weather concreting, sustainability, maintenance.
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