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Corrosion thinning reduces the effective cross-sectional areas of steel structures and degrades their mechanical properties. This study aims to investigate the relationship between the corrosion thinning of carbon steel for transmission towers and the degradation of its mechanical properties.

A macroscopic finite element model of a transmission tower was established and then combined with the corrosion thinning and mechanical properties of Q355 steel in different test periods measured in neutral salt spray, SO₂ atmosphere and wet heat environments to conduct a finite element simulation of a transmission tower with different corrosion thinning of Q355 steel.

When the residual thickness of the tower leg angle was reduced to 4.03 mm, the maximum stress solved in the simulation exceeded the yield strength, with the tower already at risk of collapse owing to corrosion failure under extreme conditions of basic wind speed.

This study innovatively utilises transmission tower finite element models and experimental data from mechanical degradation experiments to quantify the relationship between corrosion thinning and the mechanical properties of Q355 steel, ensuring the effective assessment of the mechanical properties of corroded transmission towers.