Coda wave has been demonstrated to be a powerful tool for non-destructive evaluation and test (NDT) since it is very sensitivity to changes in media. This sensitivity is attributed to the fact that its trailing parts have traveled a large volume and may have traversed the defect region repeatedly. The diffusion equation, describing the propagation of the average energy, is one of the basic theories in current coda wave-based NDT techniques. Diffusion coefficient is usually assumed to be independent of stress changes and defect positions in concrete structures; however, the heterogeneity and inhomogeneity inherent of concrete materials may cause this assumption problematic, especially for large-size concrete structures. Here, a typical four-bending test with varied loads is performed on a real-size reinforced concrete beam. A couple of transducers are installed to cover its top and side surfaces to collect coda waveforms at each loading step. Then diffusion coefficient values are calculated under varied external loads and at multiple receiver locations by applying the diffusion equation to the associated coda wave measurements. The results show a trend that diffusion coefficient values in general increase with loads, but minute cracks break this trend and lead decreases in its values by introducing more tortuous propagation paths. These results are also consistent with the trend in our direct wave velocity measurements. Diffusion coefficient complementing other wave attributes such as direct wave velocity may offer a novel potential approach for concrete structural NDT applications.
Coda waves experiencing long propagation time and travel path are sensitive to weak changes in a medium. Coda wave interferometry (CWI) is an efficient method to analyze coda waveform variations. In this paper, the CWI technique is used to detect minute cracks and stress changes in a 6-meter reinforced concrete beam. Specifically, four-bending tests with varied loads are conducted on the beam, and a couple of sensors are installed sparsely to collect ultrasonic wave signals. Then for each source-receiver pair, the coda waveform variations between load steps are quantified using the CWI technique. The results show that the stress changes and minute cracks in the beam can be detected through the velocity changes and decorrelations of the coda waveforms. The presented study may provide a useful tool for concrete structural nondestructive evaluation and testing (NDT) applications.
The heterogeneities contained in concrete will cause strongly multiple scattering behaviors during the propagation of ultrasonic waves, forming the so-called coda waves. External loads will slightly change concrete structural size and further introduce stretching effects on coda waveforms. In this paper, coda waves are collected from several concrete samples under different loads, and the waveform variations are quantified through a stretching technique. The results show that their stretching ratios are varied according to external load strengths, which implies that stress changes in concrete can be detected by coda wave measurements. The presented study could be very value for nondestructive testing of concrete structures.
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