Performance in the marine environment Considering the wide use of concrete for marine applications there is surprising ly little

documentation to be found on in-service performance. The apparent cause for this is that provi ded satisfactory design and execution, concrete is an optimal material for harbour, coastal and offshore construction as it combines durability, strength and economy. This fact is supported by studies of floating concrete docks back in the 1970 s, showing dramatic savings, requiring less than 10% the ma intenance of similar all-steel docks, ref. 1. Other structures also utilize the water-tightness properties of concrete; storag e tanks, nuclear containment structures and submarine tunnels. Sare and Yee, ref. 8, report negligible repair and maintenance costs for the 19 pre-stressed concrete barges constructed in the Philippines during 1964-66 for Lusteveco, with no need for dry-docking. After many years in service, average annual maintenance cost of the concrete bar ges are found to be about 1/3 compared to steel barges. The fabrication cost of Yee s barges showed a saving of 16 percent compared to tha t of steel. In the period 1974 to 1975, the total downtime per floating barge per year for maintena nce work was six days for the concrete structures. The similar steel barges had an average downti me of 24 days. The Refiner I barge, checked by Bureau Veritas for issuing necessary certificate s for the towed voyage, was designed for 4.2m wave height. It is worth noting that the vessel in fact endured a storm in the Bay of Biscay during which time the conditions were undoubtedly more seve re than those contemplated in the calculations (the pontoon drifted in winds of force 10-11 an d angles of roll and pitch of 14 and 10 respectively were observed). The unit behaved perfectly well th rough this unexpectedly severe environment. It seems to be general consensus that concrete vessels and barges have proved to have good seagoing qualities, to be safe and strong, and suffer m uch less from vibration than steel ships - to the crew s satisfaction. The 1970 s and 1980 s saw the spectacular development of offshore bottom fixed concr ete structures, installed in up to 300 meters (1000 ft) of water depth in the midst of one of th e world s stormiest oceans, the North Sea. It is remarkable how well these structures have performed in the hostile marine environment, successfully withstanding the extreme loads from waves approaching 30 meters in height as well as the dynamic cyclic forces. Experience has shown that the offsh ore concrete structures currently in use are virtually maintenance-free. It is generally recognized that the first concrete platforms in the North Sea were over-inspected and that the need for extensive i nstrumentation of platforms of common types should be reconsidered.