A hybrid corrosion-structural model for simulating realistic corrosion topography of maritime structures

A multiscale multiphysics model has been developed coupling nonlinear structural behaviour and the corrosion kinetics. This study develops a hybrid mechano-electrochemical corrosion model using finite element method to evaluate long-term topography evolution on carbon steel stiffened plates for marine applications. A parametric study is performed on a stiffened plate (1.5 m 0.95 m) with different localised corrosion locations (0.75 m 0.045 m) at different load levels. Stress-based anodic and cathodic surfaces are defined using a level-set function to solve the transport equation, facilitated by the moving boundary technique. Key model insights show broad-pitted corrosion features with benching, closely resembling those found in actual ship inspections and/or surveys.