Mechanical and low-cycle fatigue behavior of stainless reinforcing steel for earthquake engineering applications

Use of stainless reinforcing steel (SRS) in reinforced concrete (RC) structures is a promising solution to corrosion issues. However, for SRS to be used in seismic applications, several mechanical properties need to be investigated. These include specified and actual yield strengths, tensile strengths, uniform elongations and low-cycle fatigue behavior. Three types of SRSs (Talley S24100, Talley 316LN and Talley 2205) were tested and the results are reported in this paper. They were compared with the properties of A706 carbon reinforcing steel (RS), which is typical for seismic applications, and MMFX II, which is a high strength, corrosion resistant RS. Low-cycle fatigue tests of the RS coupons were conducted under strain control with constant amplitude to obtain strain life models of the steels. Test results show that the SRSs have slightly lower moduli of elasticity, higher uniform elongations before necking, and better low-cycle fatigue performance than A706 and MMFX II. All five types of RSs tested satisfy the requirements of the ACI 318 code on the lower limit of the tensile to yield strength ratio. Except Talley 2205, the other four types of RSs investigated meet the ACI 318 requirement that the actual yield strength does not exceed the specified yield strength by more than 18 ksi (124 MPa). Among the three types of SRSs tested, Talley S24100 possesses the highest uniform elongation before necking, and the best low-cycle fatigue performance.