TY - JOUR A1 - Zheng, H. A1 - Ertel, Jens-Peter A1 - Kourmpetis, M. A1 - Kanfoud, J. A1 - Niederleithinger, Ernst A1 - Gan, T.-H. T1 - Integrity testing of cast in situ concrete piles based on an impulse response function method using sine‑sweep excitation by a shaker N2 - In this study, an Impulse Response Function analysis of pile response to sine-sweep excitation by a low cost, portable Shaker was used to identify defects in piles. In straightforward impact-echo methods, echoes from the pile toe and defects are visible in the time domain measurements. However, these echoes are not present in the time domain records of piles subjected to sine-sweep excitations, due to interactions between the input and output signals. For this reason, the impulse response function in the time domain has been calculated and is able to identify the echoes from pile impedance changes. The proposed methodology has been evaluated both numerically and experimentally. A one-dimensional pile-soil interaction system was developed, and a finite difference method used to calculate the pile response to sine-sweep excitation. The numerical simulations indicate that impulse response measurements with a synthesized logarithmic, sine-sweep excitation could be an effective tool for detecting defects in piles. The methodology was further tested with field trials on 6 cast in situ concrete test piles including 1 intact pile and 5 defective piles subjected to sine-sweep excitations by a shaker. In 5 of the 6 cases the echoes from the pile toe could be identified in the deconvoluted waveforms—the impulse Response functions. Damage detection is more difficult and dependent on the selection of the optimal regularization parameter. Further research and optimization of the deconvolution process is needed to evaluate the effectiveness compared to standard pile integrity testing methods. KW - Pile testing KW - Shaker KW - Deconvolution PY - 2019 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1007/s10921-019-0595-4 SN - 0195-9298 SN - 1573-4862 VL - 38 IS - 2 SP - 55, 1 EP - 18 PB - Springer CY - Cham, Switzerland AN - OPUS4-48185 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Wiggenhauser, Herbert A1 - Niederleithinger, Ernst A1 - Milmann, Boris T1 - Zerstörungsfreie Ultraschallprüfung dicker und hochbewehrter Betonbauteile T1 - Nondestructive testing of thick and highly reinforced concrete structures with ultrasound N2 - Ein Ultraschallsystem mit großer Apertur, genannt LAUS – Large Aperture UltraSound, wird vorgestellt und die technischen Eigenschaften erläutert. Es besteht aus zwölf Prüfköpfen, die beliebig auf Betonoberflächen mit Unterdruck befestigt und jeweils als Sender oder Empfänger genutzt werden. Alle möglichen Kombinationen ergeben 132 Einzelmessungen, die zur Rekonstruktion des durchschallten Volumens genutzt werden. Das System wurde an zwei Bauwerken erfolgreich erprobt. Die Dicke einer sehr stark bewehrten Fundamentplatte eines Fallturms wurde bestimmt. Die Messungen erfolgten in einem Raster auf einer Fläche von 2,0 × 1,8 m2 und die Rückseite konnte eindeutig abgebildet werden. Weitere Anzeigen aus dem Inneren der Platte zeigen das Potenzial des Systems. An einem Brückenbauwerk wurden indirekt Verdichtungsmängel lokalisiert. Dazu wurden mit dem LAUS-System die im Brückenträger verlaufenden Spannkanäle durch fast 2 m Beton abgebildet. N2 - An ultrasound system with a large aperture, called LAUS - Large Aperture UltraSound, is presented and the technical characteristics are explained. It consists of twelve sensor units which can be attached independently on concrete surfaces with vacuum and which are used as transmitters or receivers respectively. All possible combinations result in 132 individual measurements which are used to reconstruct the insonificated volume. The system has been successfully tested on two structures. The thickness of a very heavily reinforced foundation slab of a drop tower was determined. The measurements were carried out in a grid on a surface of 2.0 x 1.8 m(2) and the back side could be clearly imaged. Further indications from inside the foundation show the potential of the system. Voids in concrete were indirectly located in a bridge structure. For this purpose, the LAUS system was used to image the tendon ducts running in the bridge beam through almost 2 m of concrete. KW - Ultraschall KW - Beton KW - Brücke KW - Fundament KW - LAUS PY - 2017 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1002/bate.201700040 SN - 0932-8351 VL - 94 IS - 10 SP - 682 EP - 688 PB - Ernst & Sohn CY - Berlin AN - OPUS4-42614 LA - deu AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Wiggenhauser, Herbert A1 - Niederleithinger, Ernst T1 - Innovative ultrasonic techniques for inspection and monitoring of large concrete structures N2 - Ultrasonic echo and transmission techniques are used in civil engineering on a regular basis. New sensors and data processing techniques have lead to many new applications in the structural investigation as well as quality control. But concrete structures in the nuclear sector have special features and parameters, which pose problems for the methods and instrumentation currently available, e.g. extreme thickness, dense reinforcement, steel liners or special materials. Several innovative ultrasonic techniques have been developed to deal with these issues at least partly in lab experiments and pilot studies. Modern imaging techniques as multi-offset SAFT have been used e. g. to map delaminations. Thick concrete walls have successfully been inspected, partly through a steel liner. Embedded ultrasonic sensors have been designed which will be used in monitoring networks of large concrete structures above and below ground. In addition, sensitive mathematical methods as coda wave interferometry have been successfully evaluated to detect subtle changes in material properties. Examples of measurements and data evaluation are presented. KW - Automated scanning systems KW - Multi-Offset Array KW - Enhanced Imaging KW - Embedded ultrasonic sensors PY - 2013 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:kobv:b43-290513 SN - 2100-014X VL - 56 SP - 04004-1 EP - 04004-9 PB - EDP Sciences CY - Les Ulis AN - OPUS4-29051 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Wang, Xin A1 - Chakraborty, J. A1 - Niederleithinger, Ernst T1 - Noise Reduction for Improvement of Ultrasonic Monitoring Using Coda Wave Interferometry on a Real Bridge N2 - Reinforced concrete bridges are iconic parts of modern infrastructure. They are designed for a minimum service life of 100 years. However, environmental factors and/or inappropriate use might cause overload and accelerate the deterioration of bridges. In extreme cases, bridges could collapse when necessary maintenance lacks. Thus, the permanent monitoring for structure health assessment has been proposed, which is the aim of structural health monitoring (SHM). Studies in laboratories have shown that ultrasonic (US) coda wave interferometry (CWI) using diffuse waves has high sensitivity and reliability to detect subtle changes in concrete structures. The creation of micro-cracks might be recognized at an early stage. Moreover, large-volume structures can be monitored with a relatively small number of US transducers. However, it is still a challenge to implement the CWI method in real SHM practical applications in an outdoor environment because of the complex external factors, such as various noise sources that interfere with the recorded signals. In this paper, monitoring data from a 36-m long bridge girder in Gliwice, Poland, instrumented with embedded US transducers, thermistors, and vibrating wire strain gauges, is presented. Noise estimation and reductionmethods are discussed, and the influence of traffic, as well as temperature variation, are studied. As a result, the relative velocity variation of US waves following the temperature change with a very high precision of 10−4% is shown, and a good bridge health condition is inferred. The influence of lightweight real traffic is negligible. The study verified the feasibility of the implementation of the CWI method on real bridge structures. KW - Ultrasound KW - Coda Wave Interferometry KW - Noise KW - Concrete KW - Bridge PY - 2021 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1007/s10921-020-00743-9 VL - 40 IS - 1 SP - Article number: 14 PB - Springer Nature AN - OPUS4-52052 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Vössing, Konrad A1 - Niederleithinger, Ernst ED - Faix, O. T1 - Nondestructive assessment and imaging methods for internal inspection of timber. A review. N2 - This paper reviews state-of-the-art in nondestructive testing (NDT) and semidestructive testing (SDT) methods applicable for imaging the condition of structural timber. Both NDT and SDT imaging reveal defects, damages, and decay, while the extent of wood decay can also be quantified. Combined with an appropriate data interpretation concerning the internal defects, the mechanical properties of the material can also be assessed. The possibilities and limitations of the most relevant individual NDT and SDT methods, also in combination with each other, are outlined and compared. To facilitate comparison, many observations are reported based on the same test specimen. KW - Drilling resistance KW - Electrical resistivity KW - Radar KW - Radiography KW - Sonic stress wave KW - Ultrasound KW - Non destructive testing KW - Timber structure PY - 2018 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1515/hf-2017-0122 SN - 0018-3830 SN - 1437-434X VL - 72 IS - 6 SP - 467 EP - 476 PB - De Gruyter CY - Berlin AN - OPUS4-44445 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - CONF A1 - Vössing, Konrad A1 - Gaal, Mate A1 - Niederleithinger, Ernst T1 - Air-coupled ferroelectret ultrasonic transducers for nondestructive testing of wood in through transmission and reflection mode N2 - The necessity and demand for nondestructive testing of wood-based materials which can automatically scan huge areas of wood is increasing. Air-coupled ultrasound (ACU) is used to detect defects and damage without altering the structure permanently. Using through transmission it is possible to detect even small holes and missing adhesive. If only one side of an object is accessible the reflection mode is preferred at the expense of a reduced resolution and penetration depth. Novel ferroelectret transducers with a high signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) enable a high-precision structure recognition. The transducers made of cellular polypropylene (PP) are quite suitable for ACU testing due to their extremely low Young’s modulus and low density which result in a favorable acoustic impedance for the transmission of ultrasonic waves between the transducer and air. Thus, defects such as delamination, rot, and cracks can be detected. Promising results were obtained under laboratory conditions with frequencies from 90 kHz to 200 kHz. The advantage of these ACU transducers is that they do not require contact to the sample, are accurate, and cost effective. Ultrasonic quality assurance for Wood is an important attempt to increase the acceptance of wooden structures and towards sustainability in civil engineering in general. T2 - International Conference on Sustainable Materials, Systems and Structures CY - Rovinj, Croatia DA - 20.03.2019 KW - Air-coupled ultrasound KW - Cellular polypropylene KW - Wood KW - Nondestructive Testing KW - Defect detection PY - 2019 SP - 28 EP - 33 AN - OPUS4-47682 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Vössing, Konrad A1 - Gaal, Mate A1 - Niederleithinger, Ernst T1 - Imaging wood defects using air coupled ferroelectret ultrasonic transducers in reflection mode N2 - Air-coupled ultrasound (ACU) is used to detect defects in wood panels without physically contacting the sample and with a quick scanning rate. Transducers made of cellular polypropylene (PP) with a high signal-to-noise ratio are quite suitable for ACU testing of wood. The extremely low modulus of elasticity and low density of PP transducers results in a small difference in acoustic impedance for the Transmission of ultrasonic waves between the transducer and air, allowing new areas of application to become possible. To demonstrate the suitability of the reflection technique, measurements are shown on the three samples Multiplex, LVL, and MDF and compared with transmission measurements. Due to this acoustic barrier and the use of cellular PP transducers, an exact detection of delamination and cavities is possible in wood panels up to 40 mm thick. If only one side of an object is accessible and the depth of the defect is of interest, the reflection technique is preferred at the expense of a reduced measuring accuracy and Penetration depth. KW - Wood KW - Ultrasound KW - Air coupled KW - Defects PY - 2020 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1016/j.conbuildmat.2020.118032 VL - 241 SP - 118032, 1 EP - 8 PB - Elsevier Ltd. AN - OPUS4-50235 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Vössing, Konrad A1 - Gaal, Mate A1 - Niederleithinger, Ernst T1 - Air‑coupled ferroelectret ultrasonic transducers for nondestructive testing of wood‑based materials N2 - Air-coupled ultrasound (ACU) is used in through transmission to detect delamination, rot, and cracks in wood without altering the structure permanently. Novel ferroelectret transducers with a high signal-to-noise ratio enable high-precision structure recognition. Transducers made of cellular polypropylene are quite suitable for ACU testing due to their extremely low Young’s modulus and low density resulting in a favorable acoustic impedance for the transmission of ultrasonic waves between the transducer and air. Thus, structures with great dimensions, with a thickness of up to 300 mm and material densities below 500 kg/m3, can be inspected. Promising results were obtained under laboratory conditions with frequencies ranging from 90 to 200 kHz. The advantage of ACU transducers is that they do not equire contact to the sample; they are accurate and cost-effective. Ultrasonic quality assurance for wood is an important avenue to increase the acceptance of wooden structures and toward sustainability in civil engineering in general. KW - Ultrasound KW - Wood KW - Defect KW - Air-coupled PY - 2018 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1007/s00226-018-1052-8 VL - 52 IS - 6 SP - 1527 EP - 1538 PB - Springer AN - OPUS4-46653 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - CONF A1 - Strangfeld, Christoph A1 - Hindersmann, I. A1 - Niederleithinger, Ernst T1 - Smart Bridge The duraBASt test bridge equipped with RFID-based sensors N2 - The duraBASt area at the highway intersection “Köln-Ost” is a large test field for road testing. It includes the duraBASt test bridge which is approximately 66 m long and 14.25 m broad. This bridge is part of the “road in the 21st Century” project and is equipped with several sensors for structural health monitoring. This feasibility study is carried out to investigate the prerequisites necessary for the constraction of intelligent bridges in the foture. Embedded sensors are able to measure quantities such as temperature, strain, moisture, corrosion, etc. In the presented work, the focus is set on passive RFID-based sensors. The communication and energy supply are realised by a mobile transmitter through the concrete cover. Hence, no cables or batteries are required. The sensors are designed to withstand the alkaline environment in concrete. Thus, moisture and corrosion values are measurable for several decades. T2 - 10th International Conference on Bridge Maintenance, Safety and Management CY - Online meeting DA - 11.04.2021 KW - RFID based sensors KW - Embedded sensors KW - Bridge Monitoring PY - 2021 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1201/9780429279119-321 VL - 2021 SP - 2353 EP - 2358 PB - Taylor & Francis Group CY - London AN - OPUS4-53816 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - CONF A1 - Rabe, U. A1 - Pudovikov, S. A1 - Herrmann, H.-G. A1 - Wiggenhauser, H. A1 - Prabhakara, Prathik A1 - Niederleithinger, Ernst T1 - Evaluation of retroreflective corner echo for detection of surface breaking cracks in concrete by ultrasound N2 - The retroreflective corner echo is used, for example, in ultrasonic non-destructive testing of metals to find fatigue cracks in tubes or shafts. If the much weaker crack tip signal is additionally detected, the crack length can also be determined. A corner reflection occurs in cases of surface breaking cracks with predominantly perpendicular orientation to the surface. The intensity of the corner reflection depends on the angle of incidence and on the ultrasonic wave mode used. For the reliable detection of vertical surface breaking cracks in metals, transversal waves are commonly used, which propagate at an angle of 37° to 53° to the inspection surface. As shown in this contribution, the wide spread low frequency ultrasonic arrays with dry point contact sources available for ultrasonic testing of concrete also allow to receive corner echoes. These devices generate transversal waves in concrete structures with a large divergence of the sound field. A series of experiments was carried out with such dry point contact arrays on concrete specimens with artificial test defects and controlled induced cracks of different depths. The ultrasonic time-of-flight signals were recorded, exported and reconstructed utilising the SAFT (Synthetic Aperture Focusing Technique) algorithm. The SAFT reconstruction parameters were adjusted to visualize the corner echo indication. As will be shown, with this targeted processing, the reproducible detection of surface breaking cracks in concrete is possible. The retroreflective corner echo can thus be exploited in civil engineering for non-destructive inspection of concrete. T2 - NDT-CE 2022 CY - Zurich, Switzerland DA - 16.08.2022 KW - Concrete KW - Crack depth KW - Ultrasound KW - SAFT PY - 2022 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:kobv:b43-563365 UR - https://www.ndt.net/article/ndtce2022/paper/27256_manuscript.pdf IS - 27256 SP - 1 EP - 4 PB - NDT.net AN - OPUS4-56336 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER -