TY - CONF A1 - Bartholmai, Matthias A1 - Johann, Sergej A1 - Kammermeier, Michael A1 - Müller, Maximilian A1 - Strangfeld, Christoph T1 - RFID sensor systems embedded in concrete – systematical investigation of the transmission characteristics N2 - Long-term completely embedded sensor systems offer innovative possibilities for structural health monitoring of concrete structures. Measuring of relevant parameters, e.g., temperature, humidity, or indication of corrosion can be performed with low energy sensors. This allows to implement passive RFID sensor systems without cable connection and battery, which are power supplied exclusively by the electromagnetic field from the external reader device. To evaluate characteristics and conditions of this concept, a systematical investigation of the transmission characteristics with variation of relevant parameters, as communication frequency, installation depth, type of concrete, moisture content, etc. is currently carried out in an interdisciplinary research project at BAM. First results are presented in this paper. T2 - 8th European Workshop On Structural Health Monitoring CY - Bilbao, Spain DA - 05.07.2016 KW - Structural health monitoring KW - Embedded sensor KW - Energy harvesting KW - Wireless sensors KW - RFID sensors KW - Transmission characteristics PY - 2016 SP - 1 EP - 5 AN - OPUS4-37129 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - CONF A1 - Strangfeld, Christoph A1 - Johann, Sergej A1 - Müller, Maximilian A1 - Bartholmai, Matthias T1 - Moisture Measurements with RFID based Sensors in Screed and Concrete N2 - To quantify the moisture in concrete, RFID based humidity sensors are embedded. Passive high frequency, ultra-high frequency RFID tags as well as active Bluetooth sensors are tested. After concreting, all sensors measure the corresponding relative humidity to monitor the concrete moisture. Two case studies are performed, embedding in an existing construction, i.e. the duraBASt test bridge, and embedding in cement based mortar in the laboratory. As basis for robust and long-life sensors in alkaline concrete, different casing materials are tested. Furthermore, signal strength measurements and their sensitivity to different moisture levels are performed. T2 - 8th European Workshop On Structural Health Monitoring CY - Bilbao, Spain DA - 05.07.2016 KW - Humidity sensors KW - Moisture measurements KW - RFID based sensors KW - DuraBASt PY - 2016 SP - 1 EP - 10 AN - OPUS4-36817 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - CONF A1 - Johann, Sergej A1 - Strangfeld, Christoph A1 - Müller, Maximilian A1 - Bartholmai, Matthias ED - Aulova, Alexandra ED - Rogelj Ritonja, Alenka ED - Emri, Igor T1 - RFID sensor systems embedded in concrete - requirements for long-term operation N2 - One of the more difficult tasks for structural health monitoring is the continuous evaluation of the stability and load capacity of the building materials. This knowledge can be won, e.g., by taking material samples at the examining place with the drawback of partly destroying the structure. To avoid this, modern sensor and communication technologies offer promising methods for non-destructive testing. To address the tasks for monitoring of concrete structures, in the presented study, different sensors were combined with RFID transponders and embedded in concrete components. T2 - 33rd Danubia - Adria Symposium on Advances in Experimental Mechanics CY - Portorož, Slovenia DA - 20.09.2016 KW - Structure health monitoring KW - Concrete KW - Embedded KW - RFID sensors PY - 2016 SN - 978-961-94081-0-0 SP - 68 EP - 69 CY - Ljubljana AN - OPUS4-37535 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - CONF A1 - Bartholmai, Matthias A1 - Johann, Sergej A1 - Kammermeier, Michael A1 - Müller, Maximilian A1 - Strangfeld, Christoph T1 - Transmission characteristics of RFID sensor systems embedded in concrete N2 - Completely embedded sensor systems for long-term operation offer innovative possibilities for structural health monitoring of concrete structures. Measuring of relevant parameters, e.g., temperature, humidity, or indication of corrosion can be performed with low energy sensors. This allows to implement passive RFID sensor systems without cable connection and battery, which are power supplied exclusively by the electromagnetic field from the external reader device. To evaluate characteristics and conditions of this concept, a systematical investigation of the transmission characteristics with variation of relevant parameters, as communication frequency, installation depth, type of concrete, moisture content, etc. is currently carried out in an interdisciplinary research project at BAM. First results are presented in this paper. T2 - IEEE Sensors 2016 CY - Orlando, FL, USA DA - 30.10.2016 KW - Embedded sensors KW - Energy harvesting KW - Wireless sensors KW - RFID sensors KW - Transmission characteristics KW - Structural health monitoring PY - 2016 SN - 978-1-4799-8287-5 SN - 1930-0395 SP - 1541 EP - 1543 PB - IEEE AN - OPUS4-38388 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Johann, Sergej A1 - Strangfeld, Christoph A1 - Zimmek, David A1 - Bartholmai, Matthias T1 - Smart electronic helper for long-term monitoring of bridges and building structures N2 - Increasing traffic volume on the one hand and ageing infrastructure on the other hand have created many new challenges for maintenance and structural health monitoring of roads and bridges. In the past, many bridges and road structures have been neglected, often resulting in traffic congestion, road closure, and increased repair costs. This research is concerned with the development of a system to improve the challenge of maintenance and early detection of damage, particularly moisture penetration and corrosion of steel reinforced concrete components. The objective is to develop a method that will also work after 30 years and longer. Many new IoT solutions are equipped with internal energy storage elements (accumulators or batteries) which are inappropriate here, since most relevant signs of concrete degradation occur after decades, where the functioning of such elements are more than questionable. The presented technology approach uses radio-frequency identification (RFID) and enables connectivity to sensors. It offers the advantage of an passive, completely independent energy supply without any energy storage components. Since the system should be permanently embedded in concrete, it is crucial to develop a long-term stable device which is adapted to the environmental influences of the structure, e.g., long-term resistance in very alkaline environment of pH 13. In numerous experiments, the robustness of the system was tested and evaluated. Various tests with encapsulations to protect the electronics were performed, and for long-term validation different concrete specimens were instrumented with RFID-sensor-systems. Their operating time is now around two years and investigations for signs of fatigue and damage to the encapsulation and the electronics are ongoing. T2 - SMAR 2019 CY - Potsdam, Germany DA - 27.08.2019 KW - Sensors KW - Passive RFID KW - Smart structures KW - SHT KW - Long term monitoring PY - 2020 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:kobv:b43-501931 UR - https://www.ndt.net/?id=25011 SN - 1435-4934 VL - 25 IS - 1 SP - 1 EP - 6 PB - NDT.net CY - Kirchwald AN - OPUS4-50193 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Strangfeld, Christoph A1 - Johann, Sergej A1 - Bartholmai, Matthias T1 - Smart RFID Sensors Embedded in Building Structures for Early Damage Detection and Long-Term Monitoring N2 - In civil engineering, many structures are made of reinforced concrete. Most Degradation processes relevant to this material, e.g., corrosion, are related to an increased level of material moisture. Therefore, moisture monitoring in reinforced concrete is regarded as a crucial method for structural health monitoring. In this study, passive radio frequency identification (RFID)-based sensors are embedded into the concrete. They are well suited for long-term operation over decades and are well protected against harsh environmental conditions. The energy supply and the data transfer of the humidity sensors are provided by RFID. The sensor casing materials are optimised to withstand the high alkaline environment in concrete, having pH values of more than 12. Membrane materials are also investigated to identify materials capable of enabling water vapour transport from the porous cement matrix to the embedded humidity sensor. By measuring the corresponding relative humidity with embedded passive RFID-based sensors, the cement hydration is monitored for 170 days. Moreover, long-term moisture monitoring is performed for more than 1000 days. The Experiments show that embedded passive RFID-based sensors are highly suitable for long-term structural health monitoring in civil engineering. KW - RFID based sensors KW - Embedded sensors KW - Corresponding relative humidity KW - Porous building materials KW - Reinforced concrete KW - Corrosion KW - Civil engineering PY - 2019 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:kobv:b43-500831 VL - 19 IS - 24 SP - 1 EP - 18 PB - MDPI CY - Basel, Swiss AN - OPUS4-50083 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - CONF A1 - Johann, Sergej A1 - Strangfeld, Christoph A1 - Zimmek, David A1 - Bartholmai, Matthias ED - Helmerich, Rosemarie ED - Ilki, A. ED - Motavalli, M. T1 - Smart electronic helper for long-term monitoring of bridges and building structures N2 - Increasing traffic volume on the one hand and ageing infrastructure on the other hand have created many new challenges for maintenance and structural health monitoring of roads and bridges. In the past, many bridges and road structures have been neglected, often resulting in traffic congestion, road closure, and increased repair costs. This research is concerned with the development of a system to improve the challenge of maintenance and early detection of damage, particularly moisture penetration and corrosion of steel reinforced concrete components. The objective is to develop a method that will also work after 30 years and longer. Many new IoT solutions are equipped with internal energy storage elements (accumulators or batteries) which are inappropriate here, since most relevant signs of concrete degradation occur after decades, where the functioning of such elements are more than questionable. The presented technology approach uses radio-frequency identification (RFID) and enables connectivity to sensors. It offers the advantage of an passive, completely independent energy supply without any energy storage components. Since the system should be permanently embedded in concrete, it is crucial to develop a long-term stable device which is adapted to the environmental influences of the structure, e.g., long-term resistance in very alkaline environment of pH 13. In numerous experiments, the robustness of the system was tested and evaluated. Various tests with encapsulations to protect the electronics were performed, and for long-term validation different concrete specimens were instrumented with RFID-sensor-systems. Their operating time is now around two years and investigations for signs of fatigue and damage to the encapsulation and the electronics are ongoing. T2 - 5th International Conference on Smart Monitoring, Assessment and Rehabilitation of Civil Structures (SMAR 2019) CY - Potsdam, Germany DA - 27.08.2019 KW - Long term monitoring KW - Passive RFID KW - SHM KW - Sensors KW - Smart structures PY - 2019 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:kobv:b43-489890 SP - 1 EP - 6 PB - German Society for Non-Destructive Testing (DGZfP e.V.) AN - OPUS4-48989 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - CONF A1 - Strangfeld, Christoph A1 - Johann, Sergej A1 - Müller, Maximilian A1 - Bartholmai, Matthias T1 - Embedded passive RFID-based sensors for moisture monitoring in concrete N2 - Damages in infrastructure due to moisture amount to billions of Euros every year. For a more predictive structural health monitoring in civil engineering, the detection and monitoring of hazardous moisture in steel reinforced concrete constructions is of high interest. The sensors have to be wireless, elsewise they weaken the concrete cover of the rebars. The lifetime of such constructions is normally decades, thus the sensors have to be battery-free and fully passive. Considering these requirements, passive RFID-based sensors are developed. Communication and energy supply are realized wireless via the electromagnetic field of a RFID transmitter. The passive RFIDbased sensors are embedded into the concrete to enable the monitoring of moisture transport in porous materials. Results of the hydration process are shown. T2 - IEEE Sensors 2017 CY - Glasgow, Scotland, UK DA - 30.10.2017 KW - Embedded sensors KW - Wireless sensors KW - Passive sensors KW - RFID-based sensors KW - Structural health monitoring KW - Moisture PY - 2017 SN - 978-1-5386-4056-2 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1109/ICSENS.2017.8234166 SP - 870 EP - 872 PB - IEEE AN - OPUS4-43033 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - CONF A1 - Bartholmai, Matthias A1 - Johann, Sergej A1 - Strangfeld, Christoph ED - Chan, T. ED - Mahini, S, T1 - Embedded wireless sensor systems for long-term SHM and corrosion detection in concrete components N2 - State-of-the-art communication standards like RFID and Bluetooth Low Energy enable the development of sensor systems which can be completely embedded into concrete components for long-term SHM and early damage detection. Objective of the project KonSens which is carried out at BAM is the development, implementation, and validation of sensors for measuring of Parameters relevant for corrosion, like moisture, pH value, and electrical conductivity, inside steel reinforced concrete components. The primarily addressed application is detection and evaluation of corrosion processes in concrete bridges. In contrast to cable connected sensors, embedded wireless sensors avoid any pathways for intrusion of moisture and chemicals, e.g., chlorides which could trigger corrosion activity. To allow for long-term, ideally life-time operation, the once embedded sensor systems must work highly energy efficient. One option are passive RFID sensor systems, which work without battery. The energy is transmitted to the system through the electromagnetic field, even to operate sensors. A crucial parameter is the transmission depth in concrete. First experiments with RFID sensors working at frequencies of 13.56 MHz (HF) and 868 MHz (UHF) embedded in concrete specimen resulted positive for transmission depths of up to 13 cm, which is quite promising, considering that corrosion would appear first at the top level of rebars. A second generation of passive RFID sensor systems has been implemented with improved antenna design. Current experiments using these systems focus on the Transmission characteristics in terms of transmission depths and the impact of concrete moisture. Low-energy humidity sensors are used and analysed regarding their capability for measuring the material moisture. Additionally, a relation between transmitted power to the embedded sensor and the moisture content of the concrete specimen caused by energy absorption can be presumed and is under systematic investigation. T2 - International Conference on Structural Health Monitoring of Intelligent Infrastructure 2017 CY - Brisbane, Australia DA - 05.12.2017 KW - RFID sensors KW - Structural health monitoring KW - Sensors in concrete KW - Smart structures PY - 2017 SN - 978-1-925553-05-5 SP - 1 EP - 7 AN - OPUS4-43492 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Johann, Sergej A1 - Strangfeld, Christoph A1 - Müller, Maximilian A1 - Mieller, Björn A1 - Bartholmai, Matthias T1 - RFID sensor systems embedded in concrete – validation experiments for long-term monitoring N2 - Structural Health Monitoring (SHM) is an important part of buildings surveillance and maintenance to detect material failure as early as possible and to contribute in protection of structures and their users. The implementation of Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) sensor systems without cable connection and battery into building components offers innovative possibilities to enable long-term in-situ SHM of addressed structures, bridges. The objectives of the presented study are complete embedding of RFID sensors systems in concrete, full passive communication with the systems, at best for the whole life span of structures. One challenge for this task is the highly alkaline environment in concrete, which requires non-degrading and robust encapsulation. Further Requirements are passive communication and energy supply, appropriate antenna design, placement and fixation in concrete, and the selection and implementation of sensors and connections. The concept is to develop and optimize a simple and robust system, which meets the requirements, as well as comprehensive validation in concrete specimen and real world applications. Two different systems were developed (HF and UHF RFID, respectively). First tasks were the implementation of analog sensors using the superposition principle for the signal adaption. Investigation of suitable materials for robust encapsulation and sensor protection against basic environments. Four materials were investigated in pH 13 solution for 14 days - 3D-Printer-Polymer was completely resolved - PVC has no noticeable decrease in weight - (VitaPro) glass filter for the sensor protector, has weight loss 2.7 % - The epoxy resin has increased by 1.8 % due to moisture expansion Different concrete samples were prepared for the validation of the systems. RFID sensors were embedded in different integration depths. Investigate the energy- and data transfer through concrete, also with varying moisture content. Additionally, signal strength data was used to optimize and validate the antenna characteristics in concrete. Next steps are to guarantee a sufficient energy supply for UHF RFID systems embedded in different concrete mixtures and further embedding the HF and UHF RFID systems in real bridges and buildings to validate the long term monitoring. T2 - DGZfP-Jahrestagung 2017 CY - Koblenz, Germany DA - 22.05.2017 KW - Smart structures KW - RFID sensors KW - Long-term requirements KW - Structural health monitoring KW - Passive RFID KW - Sensor requirements KW - Sensors in concrete PY - 2017 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:kobv:b43-403496 UR - https://www.ndt.net/?id=21499 SN - 1435-4934 VL - 22 IS - 9 SP - 1 EP - 7 PB - NDT.net CY - Kirchwald AN - OPUS4-40349 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER -