We characterize the Brillouin gain spectra (BGS) in perfluorinated graded-index polymer optical fibers (PFGI-POFs) at 1.32 µm and 1.55 µm. Three kinds of PFGI-POFs with the same core diameter, but which are fabricated by different manufacturers, are tested. For all the PFGI-POFs, the Stokes power measured at 1.32 µm is higher than that at 1.55 µm due to the lower propagation loss, but significant differences in Stokes power are observed among the three. Based on the measurement obtained by the optical time-domain reflectometry, we show that the actual propagation loss of the PFGI-POFs plays a crucial role in observing BGS.
Structural health monitoring by distributed fiber optic sensors embedded into technical textiles
(2012)
Technical textiles with embedded distributed fiber optic sensors have been developed for the purposes of structural health monitoring in geotechnical and civil engineering. The distributed fiber optic sensors are based on Brillouin scattering in silica optical fibers and OTDR in polymer optical fibers. Such 'smart' technical textiles are used for reinforcement of geotechnical and masonry structures. The embedded fiber optic sensors provide online information about the condition of the structure and about the occurrence and location of any damage or degradation.--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Technische Textilien mit integrierten faseroptischen Sensoren eröffnen neue Möglichkeiten der Zustandsüberwachung (structural health monitoring) in Geotechnik und Ingenieurbau. Die verteilt messenden Sensoren basieren auf der Brillouin-Streuung in Glasfasern und auf der OTDR in polymeroptischen Fasern. Derartige 'intelligente' technische Textilien werden in erster Line zur Verstärkung von geotechnischen Bauwerken und von Gebäuden genutzt. Die integrierten Sensoren liefern eine zeitnahe Information über den bestimmungsgemäßen Zustand des Bauwerks sowie über die Entstehung und den Ort von lokalen Bauwerksschäden.
We report on the development of a complete system for spatially resolved detection of critical soil displacement in river embankments. The system uses Brillouin frequency domain analysis (BOFDA) for distributed measurement of strain in silica optical fibers. Our development consists of the measurement unit, an adequate coating for the optical fibers and a technique to integrate the coated optical fibers into geotextiles as they are commonly used in dike construction. We present several laboratory and field tests that prove the capability of the system to detect areas of soil displacement as small as 2 meters. These are the first tests of truly distributed strain measurements on optical fibers embedded into geosynthetics.
We have studied the influence of gamma rays on physical properties of different commercially available silica optical fibers stepwise irradiated up to a total dose of 100 kGy. The detection of radiation-induced changes in silica glass offers the possibility of using selected optical fibers as distributed radiation sensors. The measurements performed by us were based on optical backscatter reflectometry and Brillouin distributed sensing. The measurement methods enable an analysis of radiation-induced modification of the group refractive index and density of the optical fibers. The most distinct physical effect observed by us concerns the increase of the optical attenuation with rising total radiation doses. Quantitative measurement results indicate a crucial impact of fiber dopants on radiation-induced physical and sensory characteristics of silica optical fibers affected by differences in fiber fabrication techniques. Based on the obtained results, the suitability of distributed Brillouin sensing for dosimetry applications seems to be improved by modifying the refractive index profile of the fiber core.
Bond monitoring in temperature dependent applications using Brillouin optical time domain analyser
(2016)
Adhesive bond has to be evaluated for its integrity over a range of temperature. Adhesive is being used to bond the sensors with structures. There is no validated technique to test its performance. In this paper, we propose a Brillouin Optical Time Domain Analyzer (BOTDA) based methodology to detect temperature-induced adhesive bond failure below room temperature using distributed fiber optic sensor. The differential coefficient of thermal expansion of the structure and fiber sensor can lead to bond failure at low temperature. Optical fiber impregnated in the structure will experience differential temperature/strain due to debond of the adhesive. This leads to the frequency and amplitude decomposition of the Brillouin spectra. This is a good indication for real-time monitoring of the integrity of a bond.
Smart geosynthetics for structural health monitoring using fully distributed fiber optic sensors
(2015)
We report on the development of a complete system for structural health monitaring of large-scale geotechnical structures. The system uses Brillouin frequency domain analysis (BOFDA) for distributed measurement of strain and temperature along glass optical fibers (GOFs) by determining the so-called Brillouin frequency shift (BFS). ln a number of research activities we managed to optimize the BOFDA measurement setup regarding the spatial resolution and the accuracy of the measured quantities. Moreover, we realized a simultaneaus measurement of strain and temperature by using nonzero dispersion-shifted fibers (NZDSFs) with several multiple Brillouin scattering resonances. ln cooperation with our German and ltalian industry partners we finally succeeded in fabricating low-attenuation smart geosynthetics as a sensor component of a fully distributed Brillouin-based fiber optic monitaring system.