Corrosion Management at the Port of Newcastle

Corrosion Management at the Port of Newcastle

Dr. Luke Menefy & Dr.Kingsley Opoku, SMEC
Scott Bacon, Newcastle Port Corporation

Newcastle Port Corporation is directly responsible for the operations and maintenance of 11 multi-user berths and associated infrastructure within the Port of Newcastle. In accordance with their asset management strategy NPC commissioned a condition assessment of Berth’s 3 and 4 at the Western Basin. The berths form a total quay line of 518 meters and deck surface area of 7,379m2. They were constructed in the late 1960’s in a staged construction sequence starting with Berth No.3. The berths (shown below) are of reinforced concrete construction, comprising a cast in situ reinforced concrete deck and crane beams supported on five rows of precast (prestressed) concrete piles. An anchored steel sheet pile wall retains fill on the landside of the berths. SMEC’s Materials Technology Group was engaged to undertake a condition assessment of the berths to identify the following: (1) the cause and extent of damage (2) develop suitable repair options with priority and (3) assess the remaining life with and without repairs. The following article presents a summary of the key findings from the project.