Dear Members,

PEO Mississauga Chapter welcomes you to join this Evaluation and Preservation of Heritage Structures Seminar presented by Professor Pillai from Indian Institute of Technology Madras and Haixue Liao from Vector Corrosion Technologies on September 11, 2023. In this seminar, evaluation and preservation technologies will be discussed, case studies including Presidential Palace (Rashtrapati Bhavan) in India, Rainbow bridge in Niagara Falls, Canada, and Nanjing Changjiang Bridge in China, will be presented:

1. Conservation of 100-year-old steel reinforced lime-concrete system in a Class I heritage building using galvanic anode cathodic protection, by Professor Radhakrishna G Pillai, Indian Institute of Technology Madras (IITM).
2. Concrete Series – Evaluation and Preservation of Heritage Structures, by Haixue Liao, P.Eng., PE, CP Specialist, Regional Manager, Vector Corrosion Technologies Ltd.

Seminar Date:   Monday, September 11, 2023
Seminar Time:   6:15 PM to 9:00 PM
Seminar  Location:  Mississauga Valley Community Centre,
Program Room 1,
1275 Mississauga Valley Blvd.
Mississauga, ON L5A 3R8
Agenda:
6:15 – 6:40 pm   ​Event opening, social and networking
(Pizza, snacks and drink will be served)
6:40 – 7:50 pm  Keynote speech 1:
Conservation of 100-year old steel reinforced lime-concrete system by Professor Radhakrishna G Pillai
7:50 – 8:00 pm   Q & A
8:00 – 8:40 pm   Keynote speech 2:
Evaluation and Preservation of Heritage Structures by Haixue Liao.
8:40 – 9:00 pm  Q & A, social and networking

Registration Cost: $5.00 (Pizza, snacks and drinks provided)
Registration Website: https://peoseminar2023.eventbrite.ca 
Contact: Nawres Fouad, P.Eng. or Austin Tian, P.Eng.

Abstract of Topic 1 – Conservation of 100-year old steel reinforced lime-concrete system:

Numerous concrete structures are ageing and experiencing severe corrosion issues causing huge economic burden (say, at least about 3% of GDP worldwide).  Also, many repair strategies do not last for long leading to frequent repairs and eventual demolition and replacement of concrete structures.  Galvanic anode cathodic protection is a suitable technology to achieve durable repairs (say, for even about 25 years).  Based on a 15-year long laboratory experiment on panels, the long-term performance of galvanic anodes and their possible failure mechanisms will be presented. Then, a challenging case study on the use of various types of galvanic anodes to conserve the 2 km long sunshade (with steel embedded in lime concrete; 2 km long and 4 m wide slab with 2 m cantilever) of the Presidential Palace in India (a Class-I Heritage Structure) will be presented in detail.  Based on the 3-year data collected from this structure, the insights on the advantages of hybrid or fusion anodes over the conventional anodes in accelerating the protection of steel from further corrosion will be discussed.  The talk will conclude with the performance specifications for selecting durable anodes, methods for designing cathodic protection systems for extending service life by at least a quarter century, and the life cycle cost benefits of adopting cathodic prevention and protection techniques.  Steel corrosion is an electrochemical problem, and the repair strategy must consider electrochemistry of the problem along with the structural mechanics – not only the latter.

Introduction to the speaker:

Prof. Radhakrishna G. Pillai earned his Ph.D. in civil engineering from Texas A&M University, College Station, USA and since 2010 is serving as a faculty in the Department of Civil Engineering at the Indian Institute of Technology Madras (IITM), Chennai, India. He has graduated 8 PhDs and 5 MS (by Research) students; and published about 60 journal papers in the areas of construction materials, durability, corrosion mechanisms, cathodic protection, service life assessment and design, and precast/prestressed concrete systems.  He is involved with Bureau of Indian Standards, Indian Concrete Institute, AMPP (formerly NACE International) and RILEM.

Abstract of Topic 2 – Concrete Series: Evaluation and Preservation of Heritage Structures

Many heritage structures constructed 100 years ago have been the landmarks and pride of its cities, countries and its people. However, many of them have experienced corrosion damages and various repair cycles. How to evaluate the conditions and preserve these structures has been a challenge to many asset owners. This presents huge opportunities for engineers and contractors.

This seminar will first briefly introduce non-destructive and limited destructive testing techniques to evaluate the conditions, then discuss the corrosion mitigation solutions to preserve these concrete structures, and case studies including Rainbow bridge in Niagara Falls, Canada, Nanjing Changjiang Bridge in China, Bok Tower – masonry-encased steel frame building in Florida, USA, will be presented.

Introduction to the speaker:

Haixue Liao, P.Eng., PE, CP Specialist

Regional Manager, Vector Restoration Ltd.

Liao is a professional engineer registered in Ontario and New York in the US. He is a qualified presenter for American National Council of Structural Engineers Associations, certified continuing education program, “Evaluation, Repair, Protection and Strengthening of Existing Concrete Structures”.

He is a AMPP certified cathodic protection specialist, with extensive experience in reinforced concrete evaluation, repair, strengthening and protection. He also has more than 25 years of experience in post-tensioning installation, evaluation and rehabilitation. Liao is a committee member of Post-Tensioning Institute CRT60, DC55 and DC80. He is also the president of Canada Structural Engineers Association.