Ultrasonic pulse velocity (UPV) is a nondestructive technique used for the estimation of concrete properties. This paper investigates the use of UPV test in combination with compressive strength test in order to lower the uncertainty of the latter. For this purpose, 23 mixes were used. The uncertainty of converting UPV measuring results into compressive strength was estimated. A function for combining compressive strength test results with UPV measurements is introduced along with a corresponding uncertainty budget.
The objective of the study is to introduce an experimental uncertainty budget process for concrete compressive strength test, based on a protocol that incorporates effects of multiple factors significant for the measurement result. The proposed procedure is rather useful for laboratories seeking accreditation according to ISO/IEC 17025, in order to emphasize the contribution of type A uncertainty estimations, rather than relying on type B estimations that are unable to address the correlation between those factors. Two independent experiments were performed. Experiment I is proposed as a simple, suitably designed, reproducibility trial for laboratories performing EN 12390 test method, i.e. when a specified nominal curing age is targeted, following experimental design on multiple uncertainty parameters. A sensitivity analysis was introduced based on a semi-empirical multifactorial regression model (experiment II) for concrete compressive strength as a function of specimen's curing age and W/C ratio. The present study is an effort towards an integrated and standardized method for experimental, semi-empirical multifactorial regression estimation of the uncertainty budget for the EN 12390 test method, being useful, also, as a baseline for internal quality control programs when adjusted for the specific characteristics of concrete specimens tested by a laboratory.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.