Structures and Buildings Proceedings of the Institution of Civil Engineers

http://dx.doi.org/10.1680/jstbu.16.00153
Fuzzy logic for estimating chloride Paper 1600153
diffusion in concrete Received 07/08/2016 Accepted 26/09/2017
Keywords: concrete structures/materials technology/
Mazer, Lima and Medeiros-Junior mathematical modelling

ICE Publishing: All rights reserved

Fuzzy logic for estimating chloride diffusion

in concrete
&
1 Wellington Mazer PhD &
3 Ronaldo A. Medeiros-Junior PhD
Professor, Department of Civil Construction, Federal University of Professor, Department of Civil Construction, Federal University
Technology – Paraná (UTFPR), Curitiba, Brazil of Parana (UFPR), Curitiba, Brazil (corresponding author:
&
2 Maryangela G. Lima PhD ronaldodemedeirosjr@yahoo.com.br) (Orcid:0000-0003-4879-4869)
Professor, Department of Civil Engineering, Technological Institute of
Aeronautics (ITA), Sao Jose dos Campos, Brazil

1 2 3

Chlorides are the agents responsible for starting the process of corrosion of steel reinforcement, thus reducing the
service life of concrete structures, especially in marine environments. The penetration of chloride ions depends on
several factors linked to the nature of the concrete cover and the exposure environment. The diffusion coefficient
may establish the depth of chloride penetration in concrete in a given time and therefore this coefficient is related
directly to the service life of reinforced concrete structures. This paper presents a methodology for determining the
chloride diffusion coefficient using a mathematical model based on fuzzy logic. The following parameters were
considered in the modelling: water/cement ratio, concrete compressive strength and the temperature during mixing
of the concrete. The results show the feasibility of using fuzzy logic for the development of models to estimate the
chloride diffusion coefficient in concrete.

Notation Medeiros-Junior et al., 2015a). In addition, Fick’s second law

Da apparent chloride diffusion coefficient
fck compressive strength
T temperature
μA(x) membership function of x in Ã
1. Introduction
Reinforcement corrosion due to the action of chlorides is one
of the main causes of degradation of reinforced concrete struc-
tures. Several studies have demonstrated that the main factors
influencing chloride penetration in concrete are the type of
cement, the chloride diffusion coefficient, the water/cement
(w/c) ratio, the concrete curing process, the surface concen-
tration of chlorides, the exposure conditions, the relative
humidity and the ambient temperature (e.g. Castro-Borges
et al., 2013; Kuosa et al., 2013; Medeiros-Junior et al., 2015a).
is used in the case of non-stationary flow, where Da is applied
(Crank, 1975).
The chloride concentration in the concrete/reinforcement inter-
face relates to the service life of a reinforced concrete structure
exposed to the action of those ions. Many of the models used
to determine chloride penetration in concrete are based on
Fick’s laws (Petcherdchoo, 2013; Sun et al., 2012), and some
of these models consider the diffusion coefficient as constant
in time (Amiri et al., 1997; Andrade, 1993; Xu, 1994).
However, this argument is not valid for concrete since previous
studies have shown variations in the chloride diffusion coeffi-
cient according to penetration depth, the degree of cement
hydration, the surface concentration of chlorides, temperature
and the pH of the concrete (Nogueira and Leonel, 2013;
Safehian and Ramezanianpour, 2013).

Castellote et al. (2001) pointed out the existence of two types
of chloride diffusion coefficients – the effective diffusion coeffi-
cient (Def ), determined through steady-state experiments and
considering only ionic transportation, and the apparent diffu-
sion coefficient (Da), which is determined in non-stationary
flow experiments and considers the performance of total
chloride ions. Therefore, the use of Da in prediction models for
the initiation of the corrosion process in reinforcement is
highly recommended (Andrade, 1993; Castellote et al., 2001;
In addition to Fick’s laws, other methods can be used to deter-
mine the diffusivity of chlorides in concrete. One of these
methods is use of the Nernst–Einstein equations (Lu, 1997),
which can also be used to evaluate concrete permeability.
In addition, the Nernst–Planck and Poisson–Boltzmann
equations, which describe ionic transportation, may also be
used (Bourbatache et al., 2012; Friedmann et al., 2004, 2008).
Narsilio et al. (2007) achieved good estimates of the chloride
diffusion coefficient using the Nernst–Planck equations and

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 Structures and Buildings
simplified methods, when compared with results from
migration tests.
Choi et al. (2017) presented a model for determining chloride
diffusivity in concrete based on capillary porosity. Migration
tests on samples with three different water/binder (w/b) ratios
were used to validate the model. To do this, four ages of con-
crete were studied and the numerical results were found to be
similar to the test data. Pradelle et al. (2017) conducted a sen-
sitivity probabilistic analysis of four different chlorides ingress
models and, as a result, noted the importance of the concrete
cover in predicting the service life of structures.
Silva et al. (2017) developed a model for predicting the chlor-
ide diffusion coefficient based on statistical analysis of 493
case study samples from 43 publications. They concluded that
the main factors affecting the chloride diffusion coefficient
were mineral additions, the w/b ratio and the cement content
(Silva et al., 2017). Using factors such as temperature, relative
humidity, w/b ratio, cracks and porosity of concrete, Zhang
et al. (2016) developed a model coupling diffusion and convec-
tion for the transport of chlorides in unsaturated concrete. The
model produced results that were in accordance with data from
the literature.
In search of a better model of the chloride penetration profile,
some researchers have used deterministic or probabilistic
models to describe the transport mechanism of chlorides in
concrete (Andrade et al., 2013; Bastidas-Arteaga et al., 2011;
Val and Trapper, 2008). In this context, chaos theory seems to
be a good option for the development of concrete technology
models. Another way to model the diffusion process is through
the use of fractals. The flexibility of fuzzy logic is also a good
feature for working with subjective and qualitative parameters,
however the physical and chemical parameters of the material
still dominate its behaviour.
Models with applications to concrete technology based on a
mathematical approach using fuzzy logic, chaos theory or frac-
tals are few and quite recent (Altmann et al., 2012; Anoop and
Raghuprasad, 2012; Anoop et al., 2002) and therefore the
development of new models is of interest. To this end, a meth-
odology for the determination of the chloride diffusion coeffi-
cient using a mathematical model based on fuzzy logic is
presented in this paper.
2. Basic concepts of fuzzy logic
The expression ‘intelligent systems’ (previously known as
‘artificial intelligence’) is used in a large number of compu-
tational systems. The adjective ‘intelligent’ is used as these
systems are created based on human behaviour. However,
such a system does not itself present reasoning. Intelligent
systems include neural networks, genetic algorithms and fuzzy
systems.
2
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Fuzzy logic for estimating chloride
diffusion in concrete
Mazer, Lima and Medeiros-Junior
Fuzzy systems have the characteristic of allowing the analysis
of often vague and imprecise linguistic terms. Fuzzy set theory
was enunciated in 1965 by Lofti Zadeh (Zadeh, 1965) and has
since been applied by researchers to several fields, including
biomedicine and energy (Liu, 2015; Yordanova, 2014). A fuzzy
set A in x is characterised by a membership (characteristic)
function fA(x), which associates each point in x to a real
number in the interval [0, 1]. The value of fA(x) represents the
‘grade of membership’ of x in A. Thus, the nearer the value of
fA(x) to unity, the higher the grade of membership of x in A
(Zadeh, 1965).
Fuzzy set theory uses concepts similar to ordinary sets, such as
empty set, complement set, union and intersection and so on
(Zadeh, 1965). Zadeh (1968) noted that a fuzzy set may be
used to solve problems related to information processing,
control, pattern recognition, system identification, artificial
intelligence and, more generally, decision processes involving
incomplete or uncertain data. A fuzzy set is formally defined
as (Zadeh, 1965)
1: Ã ¼ fðx; μA ðxÞÞjx [ X g
where X represents the universe of discourse in which the
elements x are defined and μA(x) is the membership function
of x in Ã. A universe of discourse represents all elements per-
taining to the fuzzy set; elements that have a degree of mem-
bership greater than zero create the support set (Jantzen,
1998).
The membership function μA(x) defines the degree of member-
ship of a variable within the universe of discourse, and has a
value in the range of [0, 1] (Jantzen, 1998) when the set is con-
sidered normal or standardised. Membership functions can
take many forms, but trapezoidal and triangular shapes are
commonly used due to their simplicity.
A fuzzy inference system is elaborated, for the most part, from
knowledge built by an expert and it consists of determining
which rules will be activated and combined in the system
(Jantzen, 1998).
Shaw and Simões (1999) highlighted the existence of two basic
types of fuzzy rules – the modus ponens rule (affirmative mode)
and the modus tollens rule (negative mode). The modus ponens
rule is used in engineering problems, since it keeps the cause–
effect relationship.
Fuzzy sets are applied when it is necessary to evaluate sets
whose elements are not numeric. In such cases, the variables
are called linguistic variables. For example, in a temperature
set, the variables may assume values of low, medium or high,
and each value that a variable can take is represented by a
membership function. The linguistic variables should systema-
tically characterise complex phenomena, badly defined
 Structures and Buildings
phenomena or subjective phenomena (Huang and Ruan,
2000). Thus, a linguistic variable normally expresses a qualitat-
ive value, while the membership functions represent a value
quantitatively.
In order to apply fuzzy set theory, it is first necessary to trans-
form the values of the working variables into fuzzy values.
This process, called fuzzification, consists of attributing mem-
bership degrees to each one of the input variables of the
system using the membership functions (Jantzen, 1998).
The decision-making process of a fuzzy system involves two
aspects: (a) the rule base that has all knowledge associated
with the application domain, as well as the linguistic rules that
will lead to the decision making; (b) the inference that relates
the fuzzy sets of the input and output of the system, using
information from the rule base (Jantzen, 1998).
After the decision-making process, the obtained fuzzy values
have to be transformed into real values so that those can be
used. In other words, it is necessary to turn a linguistic vari-
able into a discrete value. This process is called defuzzification
(Jantzen, 1998).
Therefore, when designing a system of fuzzy inference it is
important to consider that the input data are non-fuzzy or
precise, as in the case of most practical applications, it then
being necessary to transform those data into fuzzy sets (fuzzifi-
cation). After processing the inference system, an answer in a
fuzzy set is obtained and it is then necessary to interpret this
result, transforming it into a non-fuzzy or precise value (defuz-
zification) (Huang and Ruan, 2000). The main defuzzification
methods are centre of area, centre of maximum and mean of
maximum methods (Shaw and Simões, 1999).
2.1 Centre of area method
This method calculates the centroid of the composed area
according to Equation 2. This equation represents the fuzzy
output term, composed of the union of all rule contributions.
PN
 ui μout
2: u ¼ Pi¼1
N environment, EAC III indicates a marine or chemically less
i¼1 μout
In Equation 2, ui is the position of the centroid of the individ-
ual pertinence function, μout is the area of the pertinence func-
tion and u* is the result of the defuzzification.
2.2 Centre of maximum method
In this method, the discrete output is calculated as a weighted
mean of the maximum, whose weights are given by the vector
of output possibilities, as indicated by Equation 3.
PN P
ui nk¼1 μ0;k
3: u ¼ Pi¼1
N P n
i¼1 k¼1 μ0;k
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Fuzzy logic for estimating chloride
diffusion in concrete
Mazer, Lima and Medeiros-Junior
2.3 Mean of maximum method
This method consists of using the output. Its value has the
greatest pertinence value, as indicated by Equation 4.
X
N
ui
4: u ¼
i¼1
N
Shaw and Simões (1999) present orientations on how to
choose the best method of defuzzification to be used, accord-
ing its purpose of use. For quantitative decision support, the
authors recommend the centre of maximum method.
3. Mathematical modelling
The mathematical model proposed in this paper aims to esti-
mate the chloride diffusion coefficient using fuzzy logic, con-
sidering parameters of the concrete (w/c ratio, compressive
strength and concrete pouring temperature). A fuzzification
process is used to define the degree of membership of each one
of these parameters. The relevant membership functions of the
output variable are defined based on fuzzy rules in order to
perform the defuzzification process. From this step, the chlor-
ide diffusion coefficient (Da) is defined. The fuzzy rules base
of the system and the chloride diffusion coefficient values
should be set on a number of relevant data, with statistical
significance, considering the cement type and mineral admix-
ture used.
3.1 w/c ratio
An increase in w/c ratio leads to increased concrete porosity,
which affects mass transport properties, including permeability
and diffusivity (Medeiros-Junior and Lima, 2016). To define
the membership functions and the range of w/c ratios, the
Brazilian standard NBR 6118 (ABNT, 2014) was used. This
standard is the most frequently used for concrete design in
Brazil and it sets maximum values of the w/c ratio as a func-
tion of the environmental aggression class (EAC) to which the
structure is exposed, as shown in Table 1. EAC I refers to a
rural or submerged environment, EAC II refers to an urban
aggressive industrial environment and EAC IV refers to a
chemically more aggressive industrial environment and tidal
splash zones. Therefore, according to NBR 6118 (ABNT,
2014), a structure subjected to the action of chlorides will be
EAC III or EAC IV depending on the exposure area con-
sidered. The membership functions for w/c ratio are defined in
Equation 5, based on values established by NBR 6118 and
Table 1. w/c ratio of reinforced concrete as a function of
environmental aggression according to NBR 6118 (ABNT, 2014)
EAC I EAC II EAC III EAC IV
w/c ratio ≤0·65 ≤0·60 ≤0·55 ≤0·45
3
 Structures and Buildings Fuzzy logic for estimating chloride
diffusion in concrete
Mazer, Lima and Medeiros-Junior

1·0
0·9
Grade of membership

0·8 EAC IV EAC III

0·7
0·6
0·5
0·4
0·3
0·2
0·1
0
0·3 0·4 0·5 0·6
w/c ratio

Figure 1. Membership functions for w/c ratio

considering the linear relationship between w/c ratio and the 3.2 Compressive strength
chloride diffusion coefficient observed by several authors The compressive strength of concrete is related to its porosity:
(Andrade et al., 2013; Sun et al., 2012). Figure 1 shows the as compressive strength increases, concrete porosity and the
membership functions for EAC III and EAC IV. chloride diffusion coefficient are reduced. NBR 6118 (ABNT,
2014) also sets minimum values of compressive strength as a
For EAC III function of the EAC (Table 2), in the same way that it estab-
lishes values for the w/c ratio.
If 045  w=c  055 ! μ ¼ 1
5a: If w=c , 045 ! μ ¼ 0 The membership functions for compressive strength (Equation 6)
If w=c . 055 ! μ ¼ 0 were defined considering the minimum values set by
NBR 6118 for EAC III and EAC IV. The functions are illus-
trated in Figure 2. The curves represent the classes of concrete
defined by NBR 6118 as a function of environmental aggres-
For EAC IV sion corresponding to the action of chlorides. Triangular func-
tions were used to represent the compressive strength since it is
If 030  w=c  045 ! μ ¼ 1 possible that a given value may be part of two distinct sets in
5b: If w=c , 030 ! μ ¼ 0 fuzzy set theory, with different membership degrees, with a
If w=c . 045 ! μ ¼ 0 smooth transition between sets, as illustrated in Figure 2.

To elaborate the membership functions, the possibility that up

to 5% of the strength values may be below the specified value
Figure 1 shows the existence of two curves defining the mem-
was considered, as provided by NBR 6118. For this reason,
bership functions for w/c ratios allowed for the EAC regarding
the membership functions have a slight tail to the left. The
chloride attack on concrete. Rectangular functions were used
upper limit was set at 50 MPa, this being the maximum value
because EAC IV allows the use of w/c ratios less than or equal
of compressive strength for group I of resistant concretes
to 0·45 and EAC III allows w/c ratios less than or equal to
according to NBR 6118.
0·55. Therefore, there is no smooth transition between the
classifications. The curves were limited at their lower end to
The membership functions defined here are similar to the
the value of 0·3 due to the difficulty of casting concrete with
functions defined by Anoop et al. (2002). In Figure 2, it is
w/c ratios below this value without significant use of chemical
possible to use, as input variables, the compressive strength
admixtures that may exert influence over the chloride pen-
( fck) defined in the project for an age of 28 d or, in the case of
etration process (Medeiros-Junior et al., 2015b). At the upper
extremity, the w/c ratio was limited to 0·6, since this is the
maximum value allowed for EAC II; however, this situation Table 2. Compressive strength of reinforced concrete as
would not apply to exposure conditions in a marine a function of environmental aggression according to NBR 6118
(ABNT, 2014)
environment.
EAC I EAC II EAC III EAC IV
In this method, after setting the w/c ratio based on the EAC, it Compressive ≥20 MPa ≥25 MPa ≥30 MPa ≥40 MPa
is necessary to give the grade of membership of this variable in strength at 28 d
accordance with the membership function or with the aid of (cylindrical
Figure 1. This procedure generates the vector A = [a1, a2]. samples)

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 Structures and Buildings Fuzzy logic for estimating chloride
diffusion in concrete
Mazer, Lima and Medeiros-Junior

1·0
0·9
0·8 C30
Grade of membership

0·7 C35
0·6 C40
0·5
0·4
0·3
0·2
0·1
0
25 30 35 40 45 50
Compressive strength: MPa

Figure 2. Membership functions for compressive strength

existing structures from where samples were extracted, the 3.3 Concrete pouring temperature
results of compressive strength testing. The concrete pouring temperature affects chloride ingress in
concrete at early ages. A high curing temperature accelerates
To use the proposed method, in accordance with the compres- the early hydration reactions in Portland cement, but does not
sive strength set in the design, the expressions shown in produce significant long-term effects.
Equation 6 or Figure 2 should be used to set the degree of
membership of this variable; this generates the vector A temperature of 5°C, recommended by the British Cement
B = [b1, b2, b3]. Association as the minimum temperature for concrete pouring
and also used by Peterson et al. (2013) for observing chlorides
For C30 concrete ingress, was considered as the lower limit for the concrete
temperature. Generally, it is not recommended to perform con-
If fck , 275 ! μ ¼ 0 crete pouring at low temperatures because it reduces the
fck  275 hydration rate of the cement, thus harming the concrete prop-
If 275  fck  30 ! μ ¼
6a: 30  275 erties. A temperature of 40°C, as used by Anoop et al. (2002),
fck  30
If 30  fck  35 ! μ ¼ 1  was set as the upper limit because in most research studies con-
35  30
crete moulded in situ is submitted to curing at ambient temp-
If fck . 35 ! μ ¼ 0
erature. The values adopted also cover the variation of normal
temperatures in Brazil.

For C35 concrete The membership functions adopted try to represent a con-
dition where temperatures are considered as low or high, with
If fck , 325 ! μ ¼ 0 a smooth transition between them, adopting a temperature
fck  325 considered as medium for that and using the condition of
If 325  fck  35 ! μ ¼
6b: 35  325 fuzzy sets that allows a value to be part of two distinct sets.
fck  35
If 35  fck  40 ! μ ¼ 1  The membership functions used for variable placement con-
40  35 crete temperature, T, are presented in Figure 3 and defined by
If fck . 40 ! μ ¼ 0
Equation 7.

For T = low
For C40 concrete

If fck , 375 ! μ ¼ 0 If T , 5 ! μ ¼ 0
fck  375 If 5  T  10 ! μ ¼ 1
If 375  fck  40 ! μ ¼
6c: 40  375 7a:
fck  40 T  10
If 40  fck  45 ! μ ¼ 1  If 10  T  20 ! μ ¼ 1 
45  40 20  10
If fck . 45 ! μ ¼ 0 If T . 20 ! μ ¼ 0

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 Structures and Buildings Fuzzy logic for estimating chloride
diffusion in concrete
Mazer, Lima and Medeiros-Junior

1·0
0·9
Grade of membership

0·8
0·7
0·6 Low
0·5 Medium
0·4 High
0·3
0·2
0·1
0
0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 40
Concreting temperature: °C

Figure 3. Membership functions for concreting temperature

For T = medium or high. The several possibilities of combinations of these vari-

ables lead to qualification of the chloride diffusion coefficient,
If T , 10 ! μ ¼ 0
which may assume qualifications of low, normal or high.
T  10
If 10  T  20 ! μ ¼
7b: 20  10 In this study, the chloride diffusion coefficient (Da) value was
T  20
If 20  T  30 ! μ ¼ 1  classified as high, normal or low depending on a previous
30  20
database that correlates the system input parameters to the dif-
If T . 30 ! μ ¼ 0
fusion coefficient, which must constantly be replenished, so
that it presents statistical significance.
For T = high
The diffusion coefficient values used for the membership func-
If T , 20 ! μ ¼ 0 tions were chosen based on several reported studies, as shown
T  20 in Table 3.
7c: If 20  T  30 ! μ ¼
30  20
If T . 30 ! μ ¼ 1 Figure 4 illustrates the membership functions of the output
variable of the system, the chloride diffusion coefficient (Da),

When using this method, the ambient temperature average

during the processes of pouring and curing of concrete should Table 3. Diffusion coefficient values used for the membership
be defined. The temperature value and Equation 7 or Figure 3 functions
determine the degree of membership of this variable by gener-
Chloride diffusion
ating the vector C = [c1, c2, c3]. Author coefficient: m2/s

Guimarães and Helene (2000) 1  10−13 to 2·1  10−12

3.4 Fuzzy inference system Chatterji (1995)
The output variables were defined based on the input variables Bentz et al. (1996)
of the system and the possible combinations between them, as Nugue et al. (2004)
well as the fuzzy rules base and membership functions. Halamickova et al. (1995)
Nielsen and Geiker (2003)
Vu and Stewart (2000)
In order to define the inference rules, the conjunctive operation Hong and Hooton (1999)
‘and’ was adopted, since the w/c ratio and compressive strength Gowripalan et al. (2000)
are defined for dimensioning concrete. It is also possible to Lu (1997)
determinate the temperature during the concrete pouring. Khatib and Mangat (2002)
Castellote et al. (2001)
Thus, the following reasoning was used: ‘Fw/c and fck and T
Tang (1999)
then Da’, where Fw/c represents the pertinence function for the Zhang et al. (1997)
w/c ratio, fck is concrete compressive strength (MPa) and T is Truc et al. (2000)
the concrete pouring temperature (°C). In the fuzzy rules, the Thomas and Bamforth (1999)
w/c ratio is indicated by EAC III or EAC IV, the compressive Anoop et al. (2002)
Boddy et al. (1999)
strength is represented by the concrete class (C30 (30 MPa),
Calçada (2004)
C35 (35 MPa) or C40 (40 MPa)) and the concrete pouring Kropp and Hilsdorf (1995)
temperature may assume the linguistic variables low, medium
1  10−13 to 1  10−10
7  10−12 to 9  10−11
4  10−12 to 1  10−12
8·2  10−12 to 2·3  10−11
5·5  10−12 to 1·3  10−11
1  10−12 to 2  10−11
3·5  10−12 to 4·3  10−11
6·1  10−12 to 3·8  10−12
5·3  10−14 to 2·6  10−12
3  10−12 to 1·8  10−10
8·8  10−13 to 5·1  10−12
1  10−12 to 1·2  10−9
8  10−12 to 5  10−12
1  10−12 to 1  10−11
5·9  10−13 to 1  10−11
7·9  10−12 to 1·5  10−12
3·3  10−13 to 2·5  10−12
1  10−14 to 2·4  10−11
1·1  10−12 to 3·1  10−11

6
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 Structures and Buildings Fuzzy logic for estimating chloride
diffusion in concrete
Mazer, Lima and Medeiros-Junior

1·0
0·9
Grade of membership

0·8
0·7
Low
0·6
Medium
0·5
High
0·4
0·3
0·2
0·1
0
1 × 10–14 3 × 10–14 1 × 10–13 3 × 10–13 5 × 10–13 7 × 10–13 1 × 10–12 3 × 10–12 5 × 10–12 7 × 10–12 1 × 10–11 3 × 10–11
Apparent diffusion coefficient: m2/s

Figure 4. Membership functions for apparent diffusion coefficient

which are defined in Equation 8. Experimental Da values from
several studies (Aït-Mokhtar et al., 2013; Kuosa et al., 2013;
Peterson et al., 2013) were used to create Figure 4. Those
values were determined in different studies and by different
methods, and consequently with different precision. It was
thus considered imprudent to represent a class by a single
maximum value, so an attempt was made to create a transition
between the classes. Usually, membership functions are defined
from user experience and triangular or trapezoidal functions
are usually chosen due to their simplicity; therefore, trapezoi-
dal functions were adopted in Figure 4.
For Da = low
The criteria for deciding the boundaries in Equations 5–8 and
the shape of the membership functions (triangular and trapezoi-
dal forms) were defined based on the Brazilian standard (ABNT,
2014) and recommendations from other fuzzy logic research
(Jantzen, 1998). Especially in engineering, triangular and trape-
zoidal fuzzy set membership functions are sufficiently accurate
and have the advantage of simple implementation (Wolkenhauer,
2001). Kute and Kale (2013) note that, in Sugeno’s method
(Takagi and Sugeno, 1985), the output membership function is a
constant or linear function. Liu et al. (2014) made a consistent
analysis of triangular fuzzy membership functions and many
authors use triangular functions (Chen et al., 2013; Nazari and
Milani, 2011; Nieto-Morote and Ruz-Vila, 2011).

If Da  1  1013 ! μ ¼ 1 Initially, the fuzzy vectors for the input variables Fw/c, fck and
Da  1  1013 T (A, B and C) were determined in order to perform the defuz-
8a: If 1  1013  Da  1  1012 ! μ ¼
1  1012  1  1013 zification. The rules possible to be applied were identified in
If 1  1012  Da ! μ ¼ 0 accordance with the fuzzy rules base, considering that the
fuzzy operators used the conjunction ‘and’ the max–min infer-
ence was used to obtain the composition of the output variable
of the fuzzy system. Therefore, combination of the vectors A,
For Da = normal
B and C formed the matrix D and application of the max–min
If Da  3  1013 ! μ ¼ 0
inference generated the vector E. This procedure is presented
in Section 3.5.
Da  3  1013
If 3  1013  Da  1  1012 ! μ ¼
1  1012  3  1013
Finally, the value of the chloride diffusion coefficient was
8b: If 1  1012  Da  3  1012 ! μ ¼ 1
determined by the centre of maximum defuzzification method,
Da  3  1012
If 3  1012  Da  1  1011 ! μ ¼ 1  which consists of a weighted average of the maximum values
1  1011  3  1012
of the output variable membership functions part of the fuzzy
If Da . 1  1011 ! μ ¼ 0
system.

It should be noted that current chloride diffusion coefficient

For Da = high models are not point-in-time, but are time dependent
(Medeiros-Junior et al., 2015b). For example, Shafei et al.
If Da  1  1012 ! μ ¼ 0 (2012) used internal parameters (concrete properties and diffu-
Da  1  1012 sion characteristics) and external parameters (temperature,
8c: If 1  1012  Da  1  1011 ! μ ¼
1  1011  1  1012 relative humidity and concentrations of carbon dioxide and
11
If Da . 1  10 !μ¼1 chloride ions) to develop a finite-element framework for the
prediction of corrosion initiation in reinforced concrete and

7
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 Structures and Buildings Fuzzy logic for estimating chloride
diffusion in concrete
Mazer, Lima and Medeiros-Junior

showed that most of these parameters have non-linear time-
dependent characteristics. Thus, to produce more realistic pre-
dictions, the development of time-dependent diffusion coeffi-
cient models is encouraged.
max–min inference, there is a pertinence of 0·2 for the two
membership functions (output variable) are the non-zero values
from Equation 9, defined by the inference rules, so that the esti-
mated chloride diffusion coefficient is given by Equation 10
using the centre of maximum defuzzification method.

3.5 Application example of the 02  2  1012 þ 02  2  1012

10: Da ¼ ¼ 2  1012 m2 =s
proposed methodology 04
An example is now presented to illustrate the methodology
presented in this paper. Assume a concrete with a 28 d com- This application is just an example and the relations between
pressive strength of 28 MPa, a w/c ratio of 0·5 and a concrete the characteristics assumed in this article and the diffusion
pouring temperature of 23°C. The fuzzy vectors for the input coefficient should be established for each set of cements and
variables are as follows. concretes investigated. Thus, it is the proposed method that is
emphasised here, not the isolated values used in the example.
& Fw/c = {0; 1}: according to Figure 1, for a w/c ratio of
0·5, for EAC IV, the pertinence is 0; for EAC III the 4. Conclusions
pertinence is 1. A method for predicting the chloride diffusion coefficient
& fck = {0·2; 0; 0}: according to Figure 2, for a compressive using the w/c ratio, compressive strength and temperature of
strength of 28 MPa, the pertinence is equal to 0·2 for C30 concrete pouring using fuzzy logic has been presented. The
and equal to 0 for C35 and C40. membership functions and values of the chloride diffusion
& T = {0; 0·7; 0·3}: according to Figure 3, for a concrete coefficient used in the defuzzification process were based on
pouring temperature of 23°C, the pertinence is 0 for the research results from 20 different studies. The results of this
curve corresponding to low, 0·7 for medium and 0·3 for high. work show the feasibility of using fuzzy logic in concrete tech-
nology. An example application was presented to show the
Using the max–min inference, in matrix form, the following usage of the methodology.
combinations are possible between the input variables of the
system, with the respective pertinences to feed the defuzzifica- The parameters used for defining the membership functions of
tion process. the methodology were based on a Brazilian standard, but it
2 3 2 3 would be possible to adapt them to other standards. The
0 02 0 0 values used in the defuzzification process of the diffusion coef-
6 7 6 7
60 02 0  37 6 0 7 ficient could also then be updated due to those new par-
6 7 6 7
60 7 6
6 02 0  77
6 0 77
ameters. Regarding applicability, this methodology was created
6 7 6 7
60 0 0 7 7 6 0 7 for conventional concretes and practical situations of civil con-
6 6 7
60 7 6 struction for which the input parameters of the model (w/c
6 0 0  37 6 0 77
6 7 6 7 ratio, compressive strength and temperature) are generally
60 0 7
0  77 6 0 7
6 6 7 available.
6 7 6
60 0 0 7 6 0 77
6 7 6 7
60 0 0  37 6 0 7
6 7 6 7 Acknowledgements
6 7 6
60
6
0 0  77
7 ) Min ¼ 6 0 77 The authors acknowledge the Instituto Tecnológico de
9: 61 7 6 7
6 02 0 7 6 0 7 Aeronáutica (ITA) and Universidade Tecnológica Federal do
6 7 6 7
61 02 7
0  37 6 02 7 Paraná (UTFPR).
6 6 7
6 7 6 7
61 02 0  77 6 02 7
6 7 6 7
61 7 6 0 7
6 0 0 7 6 7
6 7 6 7 REFERENCES
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