Non Destructive Testing and Model Validation of Corroded PC Bridge Deck Beams

This paper presents the preliminary results of extensive on-site experimental activities based on non-destructive diagnostic tests carried out within the BRIDGE|50 research project. This project has been established jointly by Politecnico di Milano and Politecnico di Torino with public authorities and private companies for a wide experimental campaign on a prestressed concrete (PC) viaduct dismantled after a 50-year lifetime in the context of the Torino-Ceres construction works (http://www.bridge50.org). A group of 29 PC deck beams, including 25 I-beams and 4 box beams, and 2 PC pier caps have been moved and stored in a testing site. The results of the non-destructive tests carried out on these structural elements are used for calibration and validation of both structural analysis models and corrosion deterioration models to support a proper planning of full-scale load tests on the deck beams.