Open Access

Extrusion based 3D concrete printing (3DCP) is a growing technology because of its high potential for automating construction and the new possibilities of design. In conventional construction methods, a sample is taken to be representative for one material batch. However, in 3DCP continuous mixing is used which results in variations during the mixing process. Therefore, one sample is not representative for the entire structure. This leads to the necessity of continuous and real-time process monitoring. This study focuses on the variations of pressure and temperature which are caused by changes in the material due to the ongoing mixing process. Changes in material, which is transported downstream, are influencing sensor signals in different positions with a time delay. In the following, the data is analysed to investigate if the changing material and the so caused change in pressure can be used to calculate volume flow.

Es wird eine Studie zur Charakterisierung eines anisotropen Stahls vorgestellt, bei der Ultraschalluntersuchungen mit Mikrostrukturanalysen verbunden werden. Das Material weist hohe Festigkeit und Korrosionsbeständigkeit auf, zugleich ist mit anisotropen Eigenschaften die mechanischen und betrieblichen Eigenschaften beeinflussen zu rechnen. Vorläufige Ergebnisse lassen vermuten, dass weitere Untersuchungen notwendig sind, um die Fähigkeiten und Grenzen des Materials genau zu bestimmen. Es wird ein systematischer Ansatz mit Array- Prüfköpfen, Time-of-Flight Diffraction (TOFD) Technik und mikrostrukturellen Untersuchungen angewendet, um die Wechselwirkung zwischen Anisotropie und Mikrostruktur des Stahls zu analysieren. Ultraschallprüfungen mit der TOFD-Technik und in Tauchtechnik liefern Einblicke in das anisotrope Verhalten des Werkstoffes, einschließlich entsprechenden Kornorientierung, Dämpfung und Schallgeschwindigkeitsvariation. Diese Messungen führen in Verbindung mit mikrostrukturellen Analysen zu einem tieferen Verständnis des Materialverhaltens. Unser Hauptziel ist es, ein Framework zu erstellen, welches die Ultraschallantwort anisotroper Materialien mit ihren mikroskopischen Struktureigenschaften verbindet. Die vorgestellte Methodik ermöglicht eine zerstörungsfreie und zügige Bewertung der Materialintegrität, was besonders bei der Anwendung von Hochleistungsmaterialien relevant ist. Durch diesen integrativen Ansatz werden verschiedener Charakterisierungsmethoden kombiniert, um ein umfassenderes Materialverständnis zu erreichen.

Extrusion based 3D concrete printing (3DCP) is a growing technology because of its high potential for automating construction and the new possibilities of de-sign. In conventional construction methods, a sample is taken to be representative for one material batch. However, in 3DCP continuous mixing is used which re-sults in variations during the mixing process. Therefore, one sample is not repre-sentative for the entire structure. This leads to the necessity of continuous and re-al-time process monitoring. At the Bundesanstalt für Materialforschung und -prüfung (BAM), Berlin, a test rig is developed to allow for comprehensive monitoring of the printing process. For this purpose, sensors for torque, temperature, pressure and moisture are in-stalled into the pipe. A laser scanner is installed at the nozzle to acquire infor-mation about the geometry of the extruded material. This study focuses on the variations of pressure and temperature which are caused by changes in the material due to the ongoing mixing process. Preliminary results indicate that changes in the material properties cause changes in the sensor signals as well. These changes can be observed in various sensors with a delay, caused by material which is carried downstream. In the following, the data is ana-lysed to investigate if the changing material and the so caused change in pressure can be used to calculate volume flow.

This thesis deals with the development of a novel optical fiber sensing scheme based on geometric phase for sensing strain and its application to seismology. Interference of two coherent frequency offset electromagnetic waves gives rise to a geometric phase in the resulting beat signal. The existence of this phase was recently reported along with requisite conditions for its existence. This thesis proposes to detect and use this geometric phase in the context of distributed and dynamic fiber optic strain sensing, also known as distributed acoustic sensing (DAS). In the first part, I devise a novel DAS hardware setup capable of detecting the geometric phase considering that its measurement methods require the measurement of beam intensities and the beat signal’s envelope. The geometric phase is a function of relative intensity and polarisation state of two interfering beams. Therefore, its measurement is verified by determining its relation on these quantities using a polarisation scrambler and a piezoelectric transducer, inline an optical fiber. It is a fundamental study that has implications in coherent optical communication and novel sensing mechanisms. The second part involves using the geometric phase in DAS for measurement of strain. I attempt to replace the traditionally measured dynamic phase in a DAS setup with the geometric phase. This is made possible by the fact that the geometric and dynamic phases are reportedly coupled over every beat period such that their sum remains constant. However, the spatial resolution for geometric phase is lower as it is measured per beat period. I determine an equivalence for the two phases empirically as well as optimum test parameters such as the required frequency offset between the interfering beams. The advantages offered by the use of geometric phase are demonstrated; geometric phase can be measured even when the two interfering beams have non-identical polarisation states, unlike the traditionally measured dynamic phase. Moreover, it does not require phase unwrapping and is therefore free from unwrapping errors. In the third and final part, the setup, after optimisation, is tested in the field to detect seismic waves travelling on the surface of the Earth in response to a set of blasts carried out at a test-site. The surface waves are used for the characterisation of the structure and material properties of the first tens of meters of the Earth with applications in earthquake monitoring, resource exploration and infrastructure planning. In short, this study is the first of its kind to measure geometric phase in beat signal of light using optical fiber medium and to measure strain with it, for which a novel hardware setup and a novel sensing mechanism is designed and tested in addition to its application in real-world seismology measurements.

Many laboratories have been working about Active Thermography as a Non Destructive Testing method for many years. This method can be applied on metallic or composites materials for surface or subsurface defects. Thus, many different configurations can be encountered to measure the heat distribution and generate heat flow into the part. Signal processing is also widely used to improve the performance of detection. After encouraging results, aerospace, automotive and energy industries are now involved into industrialization of the technology to apply it for production or maintenance applications. Good practices and common wording are often required by end-user to qualify the process. Since the beginning of the 2000s, a working group was founded within CEN/TC138 'Non-destructive Testing' to define standards in thermography, in the European Committee for Standardization (CEN). Some other actors have also produced standards (ISO, IEC, ASTM...). This paper aims to list the standards currently available about thermography and the associatd vocabulary. It describes the generic terms to be used in active and passive thermography (operating modes, reference blocks, reporting…) and also more specific elements about laser and induction thermography for example. It will also put in perspective the further works to be done in the next few years to take into account the new trends in active thermography and how to qualify for industrial applications.