No abstract

The imaging technique based on guided waves has been a research focus in the field of damage detection over the years, aimed at intuitively highlighting structural damage in two-or three-dimensional images. The accuracy and efficiency of this technique substantially rely on the means of defining the field values at image pixels. In this study, a novel probability-based diagnostic imaging (PDI) approach was developed. Hybrid signal features (including temporal information, intensity of signal energy and signal correlation) were extracted from ultrasonic Lamb wave signals and integrated to retrofit the traditional way of defining field values. To acquire hybrid signal features, an active sensor network in line with pulse-echo and pitch-catch configurations was designed, supplemented with a novel concept of 'virtual sensing'. A hybrid image fusion scheme was developed to enhance the tolerance of the approach to measurement noise/uncertainties and erroneous perceptions from individual sensors. As applications, the approach was employed to identify representative damage scenarios including L-shape through-thickness crack (orientation-specific damage), polygonal damage (multi-edge damage) and multi-damage in structural plates. Results have corroborated that the developed PDI approach based on the use of hybrid signal features is capable of visualizing structural damage quantitatively, regardless of damage shape and number, by highlighting its individual edges in an easily interpretable binary image.

The resilient modulus, M R , of subgrade soil is an important stiffness parameter for analysing fatigue cracking in either the asphalt or concrete layer of a pavement. Although subgrade soil is often unsaturated and subject to seasonal variations of moisture content and hence suction in the field, effects of soil suction on the resilient modulus are generally not accounted for in existing testing methods. In this study, M R values of a subgrade soil under various stress and suction conditions were investigated using a suction-controlled cyclic triaxial apparatus. To enhance the accuracy of measurements, Hall-effect transducers were employed to monitor the local axial and radial deformation of each specimen. It was found that M R increases with number of load applications when a soil contracts, but decreases slightly when a soil dilates. When suction increases, the soil response tends to change from contractive to dilative due to suction-induced dilatancy. Moreover, the measured M R is highly dependent on the stress state. It decreases with cyclic stress due to the nonlinearity of the soil stress-strain behaviour, but increases significantly with suction due to the presence of water tension. At the same stress and suction conditions, M R measured along the wetting path is generally larger than that measured along the drying path. A new semi-empirical equation representing the stress-dependency of M R is proposed and was verified using experimental results of four different soils.Résumé : Le module de résilience, M R , du sol de fondation est un paramètre important de la rigidité pour l'analyse des fissures de fatigue dans l'asphalte ou la couche de béton d'une chaussée. Même si le sol de fondation sur le terrain est souvent non saturé et soumis aux variations saisonnières de teneur en eau, et conséquemment de succion, les effets de la succion du sol sur le module de résilience ne sont généralement pas considérés dans les méthodes d'essais existantes. Dans cette étude, les M R d'un sol de fondation soumis à différentes conditions de contraintes et succion ont été étudiés à l'aide d'un appareil triaxial cyclique contrôlé par la succion. Pour améliorer la précision des mesures, des capteurs à effet de Hall ont été utilisés pour suivre les déformations axiales et radiales de chaque échantillon. Il a été observé que M R augmente avec le nombre d'applications de charges lorsque le sol se contracte, mais diminue légèrement lorsque le sol se dilate. Quand la succion augmente, le comportement du sol tend à changer de contractif à dilatant en raison de la dilatation induite par la succion. De plus, le M R mesuré est fortement dépendant de l'état des contraintes. Il diminue avec les contraintes cycliques en raison de la non-linéarité du comportement en contrainte-déformation du sol, mais augmente significativement avec la succion à cause de la présence de la tension de l'eau. Pour les mêmes conditions de contrainte et succion, le M R mesuré en mouillage est généralement plus grand que celui mesuré en séchage. Une nouvelle éq...

There has been increasing interest in using the nonlinear features of acousto-ultrasonic (AU) waves to detect damage onset (e.g., micro-fatigue cracks) due to their high sensitivity to damage with small dimensions. However, most existing approaches are able to infer the existence of fatigue damage qualitatively, but fail to further ascertain its location and severity. A damage characterization approach, in conjunction with the use of an active piezoelectric sensor network, was established, capable of evaluating fatigue cracks in a quantitative manner (including the co-presence of multiple fatigue cracks, and their individual locations and severities). Fundamental investigations, using both experiment and enhanced finite element analysis dedicated to the simulation of nonlinear AU waves, were carried out to link the accumulation of nonlinearities extracted from high-order AU waves to the characteristic parameters of a fatigue crack. A probability-based diagnostic imaging algorithm was developed, facilitating an intuitive presentation of identification results in images. The approach was verified experimentally by evaluating multi-fatigue cracks near rivet holes of a fatigued aluminum plate, showing satisfactory precision in characterizing real, barely visible fatigue cracks. Compared with existing methods, this approach innovatively (i) uses permanently integrated active sensor networks, conducive to automatic and online health monitoring; (ii) characterizes fatigue cracks at a quantitative level; (iii) allows detection of multiple fatigue cracks; and (iv) visualizes identification results in intuitive images.

Plant evapotranspiration is recognised to affect soil suction of slopes and landfill covers. Previous work has focused on evapotranspiration-induced suction by a single plant, with little attention paid to the effects of planting density. The aim of this study is to quantify any changes in tree growth and tree-induced suction during evapotranspiration and rainfall under different planting densities for non-mixed-species plantations. A tree species, Schefflera heptaphylla, which is commonly found in Asia, was planted in silty sand at spacings of 60, 120 and 180 mm, representing three different planting densities. For each case, three replicates were tested to consider tree variability. In total, the responses of suction for 297 seedlings subjected to drying and a rainfall event with a 10-year return period were measured. The test results show that reducing the tree spacing from 180 to 60 mm induced greater tree-tree competition for water, as indicated by a 364% increase in peak suction upon evapotranspiration. Such tree-tree interaction led to: (a) a 19-35% reduction in the leaf area index; (b) a 17-36% decrease in root length; and (c) an obvious decay of roots. Upon the rainfall event, the infiltration rate for vegetated soil with trees planted at a spacing of 60 mm was up to 247% higher than those for soil with a wider tree spacing, where mainly fresh roots were found. Although most suction within the root zone (i.e. top 100 mm) was lost due to increased infiltration at 60 mm spacing, suctions in deeper depths below root zone were largely preserved.

The volume changes of saturated sand under heating and cooling cycles can greatly affect the serviceability of many earth structures in geo-energy and geo-environmental engineering. Up to date, this aspect of thermo-mechanical soil behaviour has not been fully understood. In this study, a temperature-controlled triaxial apparatus was developed to investigate the thermally induced volume changes of soil skeleton of saturated Toyoura sand. Soil specimens with different initial densities were isotopically compressed and then subjected to two thermal cycles in the temperature range of 23 to 50°C. During the first heating process, loose and medium dense specimens showed contractive strains of approximately 0·15% and 0·05% respectively as the temperature rose from 23 to 35°C. The observed contraction is most probably because the thermal expansion of soil particles adjusted force chains inside the specimen, inducing plastic contraction and soil hardening. Both specimens showed dilative strain of approximately 0·05% as the temperature increased further from 35 to 50°C. On the contrary, for the dense specimen with a more stable structure, only dilation was observed during heating with a volumetric strain of approximately 0·1%. During the second thermal cycle, the responses of sand specimens with different densities were almost reversible with heating dilation and cooling contraction.

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The present work concerns the development of a Lamb-wave-based imaging approach with the capacity to visually pinpoint structural damage, if any, in terms of the probability of damage occurrence at all spatial positions of the structure under inspection. To establish such probabilities, individual sensors of an active sensor network contributed their perceptions as to the damage occurrence near them using the signal feature time-of-flight (ToF) extracted from captured Lamb wave signals. All these perceptions were then fused by virtue of an image arithmetic algorithm. The prediction results were presented in an image where the location and size of all the damage instances in the structure became intuitional, rather than provided with definitive damage parameters. Such a probability-based imaging approach is by nature more consistent with the implication of prediction or estimation of damage than traditional identification endeavours. The effectiveness of the approach was experimentally demonstrated by predicting delamination in carbon-fibre-reinforced epoxy (CF/EP) laminates.