REHABILITATION

(REPAIR AND RENOVATION)

METAL STRUCTURES

Dr. ing. Dragos Voiculescu

 1. INTRODUCTION

In general, traditional building techniques and methods

are used for repair and renovation, but they must take
into account the specificities of the metallic materials
over time.

The methods for preparation of metallic materials and

the assembly techniques have evolved according to the
industrial development. It is therefore necessary to
carry out repair work in good knowledge of the
material properties, modes of assembly and design
rules used in the time of the construction erection.
Particularly, the metallic materials have been
subjected to important developments. Thus, the
use of cast irons, wrought irons and steels, shows
very different characteristics. Even the evolution
of steels, from the early twentieth century, also
shows very variable material characteristics and
behaviors that should be considered in all repair
projects.
The most important development for steel is the
weldability which gradually emerged from the
1930’s, along with the development of welding
techniques and research on the metallurgical
aspects of steel weldability.
 2. HISTORY OF MATERIALS IN METAL
STRUCTURES
After the masonry and wood, metallic materials were
used for construction from the late eighteenth
century.

Three iron-based alloys, cast iron, wrought iron and

steel, will define the main periods of construction for
metal structures.
 2.1. REMINDERS OF METALURGY

Depending on the temperature, pure iron has

different crystallographic network forms.

From a CC-centered cubic crystallographic network (α

iron or ferrite) at low temperature, iron is transformed
into a CFC-centered faces cubic crystallographic
network (γ iron or austenite) at 912 °C and then
recover a centered cubic crystallographic network at
high temperatures centered before the
transformation solid - liquid.
The properties of the iron-carbon alloys are
characterized in the phase diagram as a function of
the chemical composition and their preparation
process (thermal cycles).

The phase diagram Fe-C presents the areas of

solubility of carbon in the iron at different
temperatures and the levels of allotropic
transformations. The simplified diagram shown
below is established under conditions of slow
heating and slow cooling.
 2.2. THE PROPERTIES OF METALLIC MATERIALS

a) The tensile test is the most classical mechanical

test procedure which is fully normalized (EN
10002).

On a effort-deformation diagram, the classical

characteristics measured are:
– The yield strength of steel Re successively expressed
in kg/mm2 then MPa or N/mm2.
– The maximum tensile load Rm or breaking load
successively expressed in kg/mm2 then MPa or
N/mm2.
– The elongation expressed in %.
b) The impact test characterizes the energy
absorbed by breaking a notched specimen (EN
10045).

This test carried out at different temperatures

allows the classification of grades of steel and
represents a brittle fracture risk characterization
and weldability of the material.

First performed on U-notched test specimens,

and expressed in J/cm2, this test is done today on
V-notched test specimens and is expressed in
joules.
 2.3. THE EMPLOYED MATERIALS

At the end of the eighteenth century, the

industrial methods for manufacturing iron
alloys, allowed the development of cast iron
alloys, with a carbon content of about 3%, and
mediocre characteristics, which favored the
production of structures operating in
compression inspired from masonry structures
- arched structures.
From 1820, the development of the industrial
techniques allowed the fabrication of wrought iron
(fier forjat), having an improved tensile strength, that
could be used for the construction of metalic girders.

The second half of the nineteenth century will be

marked by the appearance of steelmaking processes;
Bessemer process (1856), Siemens-Martin (1865) and
Thomas (1877), will allow the production of large
quantities of material. Thanks to its mechanical
properties, primarily its high strength, steel will totally
replace the early twentieth century cast iron and
wrought iron in bridge construction.
 2.3.1. The cast iron

Cast iron was used in many bridges in the XIX-th century, but
most of the works had a limited life span.

The cast is a fragile material, with low tensile strength as

evidenced by the characteristics found for the products of that
era:
– Carbon: 3 à 3,5 %
– Silicium: 2 à 3,5 %
– Elasticity limit: 50 à 100 N/mm2
– Tensile strength: 100 à 180 N/mm2
The first cast iron bridge was built across the Severn at Coalbrookdale in
England in 1779
 2.3.2. Wrought iron

Wrought iron was obtained by puddling from

liquid melted introduced into a reverberatory
furnace and mixed with oxidant additions.

After melting, the metal was cleaned: this

operation was realised by stirring of the bath of
metal; this was followed by a decarburization
phase in oxidative atmosphere at a temperature
below the melting temperature of iron.
A worker mixing melted iron with oxidant additions
• Reverberatory furnace used
for puddling:
A : Hole ;
B : Refractory clay ;
C : Tie rods ;
D : Grating ;
E : Work door ;
F : Laboratory opening ;
G : Maintenance plate ;
H : Stone
Wrought iron thus obtained has, according to
various bibliographies of the time, an
approximate chemical composition :
– carbon : 0,01 %,
– manganese : 0,02 %,
– phosphorus : 0,2 %,
– sulfur : 0,05 %,
– silicium : 0,2 %.
The mechanical characteristics of these irons
are heterogeneous with the following values :
– elasticity limit (E) : 230 to 300 N/mm2 (measured
on existing works, bibliography gives lower values
170 N/mm2),
– breaking load(R) : 260 to 400 N/mm2,
– elongation (A) : 10 to 20 % (in the rolling direction)
: almost zero (in the transverse direction).
 2.3.3. The old steels

Construction steels are iron-carbon alloys with the carbon

contents variable, depending on the mode of fabrication and
the desired grade.

Other elements are present because they could not be

eliminated in the preparation; some are harmful, such as
phosphorus, sulfur, nitrogen.

The main chemical elements used to characterize the

fabrication method are nitrogen, nickel, chromium, copper,
phosphorus, sulfur.
Phosphorus is an embrittling element, it
strongly decreases the resilience of rough
rolled products. The drop of resilience is
especially pronounced beyond 0.07%
phosphorus

The effect of these impurities justifies extreme

caution before hiring a repair on ancient
metals and make necessary to obtain good
knowledge of the materials used.
 2.3.4. Modern steels

"Modern steels" correspond to weldable

steels grades have been the subject of
standardization.

They are generally prepared by processes with

oxygen and the grades obtained do not
present difficulties in welding
The processes developed with oxygen,
without external heat, derived from the
Bessemer process. After loading materials
(lime, scrap metal and cast iron), oxygen
insufflation can be done in different ways :
– through the spout of the converter, using a metal-
water cooled lance: oxygen is blown to the surface
of the liquid bath (LD processes, OLP, Kaldo);
– through nozzles arranged in the converter bottom:
oxygen is then blown through the melt (recent
processes OBM, LWS).
To increase the strength of sheets, steelmakers
have two ways :
– raise the carbon and silicium content to increase the
hardness;
– increasing the hardenability (duritatea) of steel to
obtain a finer structure, by adding manganese for
example.

But this development has been done to the

detriment of weldability (cold cracking risk) and
toughness of the metal and steelmakers had to
use other means to change the characteristics of
steel.
• For steels with improved resistance to atmospheric
corrosion
Improved atmospheric corrosion resistance steels or
autopatinables are protecting themselves against
corrosion by forming an oxide layer on their surface.
These are steels are containing a low percentage of
copper (about 1%). They are better known under their
brand name, such as Corten, Indaten, Diweten.
The protection is achieved when the product is exposed
alternately to a dry and wet atmosphere and a dark
brown oxide layer, also called patina was formed. This
oxide layer is relatively resistant and waterproof. It
therefore constitutes an obstacle to corrosion, that can
no longer continue in depth.
The use of this type of steel is not recommended in aggressive
media and for construction in permanent contact with water
or condensed moisture.

It should also be very careful to avoid any possibility of water

retention which would ultimately cause an alteration of the
material.

Furthermore, the protective layer, which can last several

years, is accompanied by a clearance of rust that can dirty the
non-ferrous parts of construction. It will therefore be
necessary to collect all the runoff water that have been in
contact with the weathering steel.
• Cast steel case
In case of foundry cast steel, the pieces are obtained directly
by solidification of the liquid metal in impressions (or molds)
which reproduce as faithfully as possible the final shape and
size of the elements.

This practice is technically and economically attractive

because it eliminates costly secondary machining operations,
and it will keep gross casting skin which generally has a fine
microstructure favorable to the good performance of service.
The use of cast steel for various parts, such as:
bearing elements, beams ... may present elevated
carbon content, so any work on this type of material
requires metallurgical characterization.
 2.4. DIMENSIONAL DEVELOPMENTS
The cast iron of the first metallic structures was in the
form of castings according to the drawings of engineers
and architects.

Wrought iron successor comes either in the form of

molded elements but as plates, rods, profiles, in shapes
and sizes offered by steelmakers. The construction is a
combination of rolled or forged parts assembled by
ordinary bolts, and especially by rivets. Part
dimensions are quite low. Achievable sheet in 1830, for
example, had thicknesses between 3 and 20 mm,
widths which did not exceed 500 mm and lengths
limited to 1000 millimeters. In bridge construction, the
thicknesses used are of the order of 10 - 12 mm.
With the advent of steel, produced thicknesses
amount to 65 mm and lengths go up to 4 meters. The
evolution of the steel equipment and the growing
needs of the industry (boiler making, shipbuilding)
will advance very rapidly these numbers.

Between 1870 and 1890, in sheet metal production,

the weight passes 12 then 30 tonnes and the lengths
of 5 then 10 meters, while the thicknesses and
maximum widths achievable are established
respectively at 300/400 mm and 3 m.
The profiled sheets are long
sheets whose width varies
in the longitudinal direction
and which, in the bridge
construction, allow better
approximation of the ideal
profile dictated by the
distribution of the bending
moment.
Among the feasible profiles,
the most common are :