Reinforced concrete structures exposed to aggressive environments often require repair or retrofit even though they were designed to last >50 years. This statement is especially true for structures subjected to sulfate attack. It is critical that fundamental models of life prediction be developed for durability of concrete. Based on experimental results obtained over a 40-year period, scaling and saturation laws were formulated for concrete exposed to sulfate solution. These features have not been considered in current models used to predict life cycle of concrete exposed to aggressive environment. The mathematical analysis shows that porous concrete made with high and moderate water-to-cement ratios develops a definite scaling law after an initiation time. The scaling coefficient depends on the cement composition but does not depend on the original water-to-cement ratio. Dense concrete made with low water-to-cement ratios develops a cyclic saturation curve. An index for ''potential of damage'' is created to allow engineers to design concrete structures with better precision and cement chemists to develop portland cements with optimized composition.T he challenge of designing concrete structures capable of withstanding aggressive environmental conditions over an extended period has attracted the attention of engineers and scientists for Ͼ2,000 years. The Egyptians and Greeks used lime in their construction practices, and the Romans achieved technological excellence in their built structures by developing what is called ''Roman concrete'' (1). Unfortunately, the quality and durability of building construction using hydraulic cements decreased after the fall of the Roman Empire and was not considered again until the mid-18th century. In 1756, John Smeaton (see ref.2), who coined the term ''civil engineering,'' was charged with constructing a new lighthouse on Eddystone Rock. Taking into consideration that the lighthouse would be subjected to the most severe weather and water conditions, he embarked on an extensive research project to design more robust cements. Eventually, he developed the optimum combination of materials, and the lighthouse he engineered stood for 126 years, at which point it was replaced by a more modern lighthouse. Fundamental research on chemistry of hydration reactions began during the late 19th century with the work of Le Chatelier in France and Michaelis in Germany (2). Technology improvements in the 20th century resulted in concrete made with portland cement becoming the most used construction material in the world. The present worldwide consumption of concrete is of the order of 10 billion tonnes yearly (3). Except for water, no other material reaches this remarkable level of consumption.Dry-mixed concrete begins in a powdery form. Once in contact with water, it turns into a slurry that can be manipulated into desirable shapes. After a few hours, concrete hardens and starts to gain strength. The sizes of the pores in the cement paste matrix range from several nanometers in the calcium sil...