Development of a triboluminescence-based sensor system for concrete structures

Abstract

The triboluminescence phenomenon has been proposed as a sensor system for detecting and monitoring damage in aerospace and civil infrastructure systems (CIS). While significant work is being done in developing such systems for aerospace structures, little or no work is being done in developing triboluminescence-based sensor systems for the critical and aging CIS. This article reports some findings in the work being done by the authors to develop such a sensor system for civil infrastructure applications. A ZnS:Mn-based cementitious patch that emits light when stressed or fractured was developed and its triboluminescence performance under loading characterized. The results show that a ZnS:Mn concentration level of 10% gives the best triboluminescence response without adversely affecting the compressive strength of the patch, while also minimizing the use of the expensive ZnS:Mn crystals. The triboluminescence response increased as the concentration of ZnS:Mn in the system increased. The highest triboluminescence response was obtained at a concentration level of 25% but resulted in significant reduction in the system's compressive strength. Nonetheless, the presence of ZnS:Mn affects the hydration process by slowing down the conversion of the needleshaped crystals of calcium sulfoaluminate hydrate (ettringites) into the monosulfate hydrate that makes concrete vulnerable to sulfate attack.

Optical Evaluation of In Situ Crack Propagation by Using Mechanoluminescence of SrAl2O4:Eu2+, Dy3+

“…At this point, it is noteworthy to point out that this new technique shows the possibility to characterize the structural integrity of large structural health monitoring systems (SHMS) in case that the ML material is used as an artificial skin in form of ML paint, patch, or thin film, although further studies will be needed to verify the effect of the crack speed quantitatively on the basis of the exact ML solution under dynamic condition. Considering that failure of engineering structures mainly arises from the expansion of micro or macrocracks inherent in the applied materials under operational environments, tracing the whole evolution of all cracks and instantaneously evaluating their significance would be the essential requirement for SHMS . With this regard, the use of the ML technology could be one of the possible substitutive and substantial methods for SHMS due to its relative simplicity but effectiveness in detecting arrested or propagating crack tips and assessing the in situ structural state by means of fracture parameters, such as SIFs determined from the cumulative ML fringe patterns in front of static or dynamic cracks.…”

“…Considering that failure of engineering structures mainly arises from the expansion of micro or macrocracks inherent in the applied materials under operational environments, tracing the whole evolution of all cracks and instantaneously evaluating their significance would be the essential requirement for SHMS. 45,46 With this regard, the use of the ML technology could be one of the possible substitutive and substantial methods for SHMS due to its relative simplicity but effectiveness in detecting arrested or propagating crack tips and assessing the in situ structural state by means of fracture parameters, such as SIFs determined from the cumulative ML fringe patterns in front of static or dynamic cracks. Given the additional prominent features of the ML technology, such as being a whole-field reaction, having a short response time, representing a noncontacting measurement, and exhibiting cost effectiveness, etc., this newly suggested theoretical and empirical method for the evaluation of conventional fracture could be considered as one of breakthroughs in the research field of ML-based structural diagnosis.…”

Synthesis conditions of europium tetrakis dibenzoylmethide triethylammonium crystals

“…It has been proposed to harness the TL emission within composite materials to sense damage [8,9]. Much research has been done to develop an in situ, wireless damage-sensing component for composite materials [10][11][12]. One major concern during developing a triboluminescence-based damage-sensing device is whether the TL emission is of a great enough intensity to be properly recorded.…”

Is the fracto‐mechanoluminescence of ZnS:Mn phosphor dominated by charged dislocation mechanism or piezoelectrification mechanism?

“…The present paper reports the FML of the ZnS:Mn phosphor and attempts to solve the two problems related to the dominating mechanism of ML and impact velocity dependence of ML in the ZnS:Mn phosphor. The study of ML of ZnS:Mn phosphor is meaningful, as recent studies have shown that ZnS:Mn phosphor has the potential for use in sensors for the detection of damage in structures using ML and ML structural health monitoring systems .…”