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The different defect types on SiC samples are measured with various measurement methods including optical and tactile methods. The defect types investigated include particles, carrots and triangles and they are analyzed with imaging ellipsometry, coherent Fourier scatterometry and atomic force microscopy. Each of these methods measures different properties of the defects and they all together contribute to a complete analysis.
Even after autoclaving for 2 weeks in the temperature range of 120 to 200 °C, CEM I paste with a water-to-cement ratio of 0.5 still contains some low-crystalline C-S-H. The conversion of low-crystalline C-S-H to crystalline is faster with increasing temperature. The observed low-crystalline and crystalline C-S-H phases (reinhardbraunsite, jaffeite) indicate that the sampleshave not reached equilibrium yet under these experimental conditions. However, there is a good agreement between experiment and thermodynamic modelling for the other solids indicating that the used datasets are suitable for this application.
The lack of traceability to meter of X-ray Computed Tomography (CT) measurements still hinders a more extensive acceptance of CT in coordinate metrology and industry. To ensure traceable, reliable, and accurate measurements, the determination of the task-specific measurement uncertainty is necessary. The German guideline VDI/VDE 2630 part 2.1 describes a procedure to determine the measurement uncertainty for CT experimentally by conducting several repeated measurements with a calibrated test specimen. However, this experimental procedure is cost and effort intensive. Therefore, the simulation of dimensional measurement tasks conducted with X-ray computed tomography can close these drawbacks. Additionally, recent developments towards a resource and cost-efficient production (“smart factory”) motivate the need for a corresponding numerical model of a CT system (“digital twin”) as well. As there is no standardized procedure to determine the measurement uncertainty of a CT system by simulation at the moment, the project series CTSimU was initiated, aiming at this gap. Concretely, the goal is the development of a procedure to determine the measurement uncertainty numerically by radiographic simulation. The first project (2019-2022), "Radiographic Computed Tomography Simulation for Measurement Uncertainty Evaluation - CTSimU" developed a framework to qualify a radiographic simulation software concerning the correct simulation of physical laws and functionalities. The most important outcome was a draft for a new guideline VDI/VDE 2630 part 2.2, which is currently under discussion in the VDI/VDE committee. The follow-up project CTSimU2 "Realistic Simulation of real CT systems with a basic-qualified Simulation Software" will deal with building and characterizing a digital replica of a specific real-world CT system. The two main targets of this project will be a toolbox including methods and procedures to configure a realistic CT system simulation and to develop tests to check if this replica is sufficient enough. The result will be a draft for a follow-up VDI/VDE guideline proposing standardized procedures to determine a CT system's corresponding characteristics and test the simulation (copy) of a real-world CT system which we call a "digital twin".
Great complexity characterizes Additive Manufacturing (AM) of metallic components via laser powder bed fusion (PBF-LB/M). Due to this, defects in the printed components (like cracks and pores) are still common. Monitoring methods are commercially used, but the relationship between process data and defect formation is not well understood yet. Furthermore, defects and deformations might develop with a temporal delay to the laser energy input. The component’s actual quality is consequently only determinable after the finished process.
To overcome this drawback, thermographic in-situ testing is introduced. The defocused process laser is utilized for nondestructive testing performed layer by layer throughout the build process. The results of the defect detection via infrared cameras are shown for a research PBF-LB/M machine.
This creates the basis for a shift from in-situ monitoring towards in-situ testing during the AM process. Defects are detected immediately inside the process chamber, and the actual component quality is determined.
Monopiles are currently the predominant foundation type for offshore wind turbines in Europe. Due to the increasing dimensions of the turbines, pile diameters beyond 10m become necessary. A design-relevant failure mode of monopiles is the local buckling of the pile wall in the embedded sections. Relevant buckling guidelines do not consider the soil-structure interaction specifically, although the embedment may allow for a reduction of wall thickness. However, Eurocode-based design concepts require a validation with comparative buckling cases for validation, either in terms of buckling curve parameters for both the algebraic stress-based and semi-numerical LBA/MNA design concept or as a calibration factor kGMNIA for fully numerical GMNIA calculations. These parameters are not yet available for embedded shells. To close this gap, we have conducted experiments on piles embedded in sand to investigate local buckling under soil-structure-interaction. The results will be used to calibrate numerical models. This research was carried out as part of the VERBATIM research project, funded by PTJ/BMWK and supported by the Carbon Trust's Offshore Wind Accelerator consortium.
A major advantage in the reassessment of existing structures is the possibility of including measured data that describe the actual properties and the current condition of the structure to be reassessed. Currently, the incorporation of such measured information is mostly unregulated. However, the use of measurement results is vitally important, since a measured data-based improvement of the computation models level of approximation can lead at least to more meaningful results, possibly to extended remaining life times of the structure and in the best case to a saving of resources. Conversely, not appreciating well measurable and relevant information can be equated with a waste of resources. In this paper, a concept for the comparable use of non-destructively measured data as basic variables in probabilistic reliability assessments is outlined and examined using a typical prestressed concrete road bridge as a case-study. An essential requirement is the calculation of measurement uncertainties in order to evaluate the quality of the measurement results comparably. In conclusion, the example of ultrasonic and radar measurement data is used to demonstrate the effects that the incorporation of the measured information has on the reliability of the structure.
Reliability assessment of existing concrete bridges with geometrical NDT results - Case studies
(2023)
The results of and the validity in reliability assessment of existing bridges essentially depend on the information available about the considered system. Information about the actual condition as well as structural and material characteristics can be observed on-site to refine the computation models used in assessment. Non-destructive testing (NDT) methods for concrete structures are capable of reconstructing missing, questioned, or inconsistent as-built plans. This contribution summarizes recent developments within the scope of the national pre-standardization project “ZfPStatik”, which aims to prepare a guideline about NDT-supported structural analyses. The focus is on the purposeful and explicit utilization of geometrical tendon and reinforcement bar positions (measured on-site using the ultrasound echo and ground penetrating radar (GPR) techniques) in probabilistic reliability analyses — shown by means of real case studies. The well-established first order reliability method is applied to different concrete bridges, which are typical for the German road bridge stock, to demonstrate the utility of incorporating quality-evaluated NDT-results in terms of changes in structural reliability.
Structural build-up describes the stability and early-age strength development of fresh mortar used in 3D printing. lt is influenced by several factors, i.e. the composition of the print able material, the printing regime, and the ambient conditions. The existing modelling approaches for structural build-up usually define the model parameters for a specific material composition with out considering the influence of the ambient conditions. The goal of this contribution is to explicitly include the temperature dependency in the modelling approach. Temperature changes have signifi cant impact on the structural build-up process: an increase of the temperature leads to a faster dissol ution of cement phases and accelerates hydration. The proposed extended model includes temperature dependency using the Arrhenius theory. The new model parameters are successfully calibrated based on Viskomat measurement data using Bayesian inference. Furthermore, a higher impact of the temperature in the re-flocculation as in the structuration stage is observed.
VOC-emissions and their odours from building products and furnishings present indoors should not have an impact on personal well-being or health. Odours can be measured by applying the standard ISO 16000-28. Indoor air determination of odour emissions from building products using test chambers. One of the described procedures is the assessment of perceived intensity using a comparative scale by a group of panellists. In this paper, the perceived intensity sampling procedure and its evaluation method are investigated and shown to need improvement. New technical developments in the methodology used to increase the reproducibility of measurement results are discussed. Since odour tests are used for labelling, they have a major influence on the assessment of construction products, similar to the procedure of the German Committee for Health Evaluation of Building Products (AgBB). In the original ISO standard, the evaluation is typically performed using a sampling container separated from the emission chamber. For a better sample presentation, an adapter was developed to connect the emission test chamber to the evaluation funnel and thus enable an odour assessment which is comparable to a direct measurement. The investigations show that losses of odourous substances can be greatly reduced, which is very desirable when seeking to obtain reliable results in odour measurement. Another experimental series was carried out to reduce the measurement effort in the evaluation of perceived intensity. Application of the developed greater than or less than/equal to. query could be helpful here. The results show that the query mostly leads to the same result as the evaluation of the perceived intensity using the method according to the standard but is much easier to perform. Overall, the results can contribute to improving the acceptance of the evaluation of perceived intensity using ISO 16000-28 and to determining odours from building materials increasingly more precisely.
Capillary active interior insulation materials are an important approach to minimize energy losses of historical buildings. A key factor for their performance is a high liquid conductivity, which enables redistribution of liquid moisture within the material. We set up an experiment to investigate the development of moisture profiles within two different interior insulation materials, calcium-silicate (CaSi) and expanded perlite (EP), under constant boundary conditions. The moisture profiles were determined by two different methods: simple destructive sample slicing with subsequent thermogravimetric drying as well as non-destructive NMR measurements with high spatial resolution. The moisture profiles obtained from both methods show good agreement, when compared at the low spatial resolution of sample slicing, which demonstrates the reliability of this method. Moreover, the measured T2-relaxation-time distributions across the sample depth were measured, which may give further insight into the saturation degree of the different pore sizes. In order to explain differences in the moisture profiles between CaSi and EP, we determined their pore-size distribution with different methods: conversion of the NMR T2 relaxationtime distribution at full saturation, mercury intrusion porosimetry and indirect determination from pressure plate measurements. CaSi shows a unimodal distribution at small pore diameters, while in EP, a bi-modal or wider distribution was found. We assume that the smaller pore diameters of CaSi lead to a higher capillary conductivity, which causes a more distributed moisture profile in comparison with that of EP.
In this work, we report on our progress for investigating a new experimental approach for thermographic detection of internal defects by performing 2D photothermal super resolution reconstruction. We use modern high-power laser projector technology to repeatedly excite the sample surface photothermally with varying spatially structured 2D pixel patterns. In the subsequent (blind) numerical reconstruction, multiple measurements are combined by exploiting the joint-sparse nature of the defects within the specimen using nonlinear convex optimization methods. As a result, a 2D-sparse defect/inhomogeneity map can be obtained. Using such spatially structured heating combined with compressed sensing and computational imaging methods allows to significantly reduce the experimental complexity and to study larger test surfaces as compared to the one-dimensional approach reported earlier.
Self-healing agents have the potential to restore mechanical properties and extend service life of composite materials. Thermoplastic healing agents have been extensively investigated for this purpose in epoxy matrix composites due to their strong adhesion to epoxy and their ability to fill in microcracks. One of the most
investigated thermoplastic additives for this purpose is poly(ethylene-co-methacrylic acid) (EMAA). Despite the ability of thermoplastic healing agents to restore mechanical properties, it is important to assess how the addition of thermoplastic healing agents affect properties of the original epoxy material. In this work, EMAA was added to epoxy resin and the effect of the additive on fracture toughness of epoxy was evaluated. Results indicate that although added in low concentrations, EMAA can affect fracture toughness.
The levelized cost of energy (LCoE) is an important measure to quantify the macro-economic efficiency of an offshore wind farm and to enable a quantitative comparison with other types of energy production. The costs of the structural integrity management - which is required to ensure an adequate lifetime reliability of the turbine support structures - are part of the operational expenditures of an offshore wind farm. An optimization of the structural integrity management may reduce the operational expenditures and consequently the LCoE. However, the effect of the structural integrity management on the LCoE is hardly known. To investigate this effect, this paper presents a sensitivity analysis of the LCoE of a generic offshore wind farm. The probabilistic models of the parameters influencing the LCoE are based on a literature study including an explicit model for the structural integrity management.
The analysis reveals that LCoE may potentially be reduced if an optimization of the structural integrity management enables a service life extension.
Almost all building materials in civil engineering have an open porosity and interact with or are affected by the environmental conditions. Structures might suffer from effects such as moisture adsorption, carbonation, corrosion, penetration of salt ions and chemical substances, etc. In the hygroscopic range, these processes are mostly driven by diffusion. Due to the confinement of small pores (< 1 µm), the Knudsen effect reduces the molecular diffusion. This reduction can become more significant in case of temporal changing pore systems because of physisorption of water vapor, carbonation, or chemisorption.
In this study, unstabilised earth blocks and earth masonry are investigated. In a first step, the pore size distribution of the blocks is measured and sorption isotherms are recorded in experiments. Besides the ordinary physisorption, the involved clay minerals undergo swelling or shrinking due to chemisorption. The following two effects must be considered: first, the reduction of the available pore space by the adsorbed water layer. For this, the Hillerborg sorption theory is used, which is a combination of the well-known Brunauer-Emmett-Teller sorption theory and the Kelvin equation. This allows the computation of adsorbed water layers even in curved pore geometries. Second, the variation of the initial pore size distribution due to chemisorption needs to be modelled. Based on these two models, the effective diffusion coefficient can be predicted. For validation, arrays of relative humidity sensors were embedded into a free-standing earth masonry wall. This monitoring was carried out over more than a year to have a broad variety of environmental conditions and was located in Berlin, Germany.
The prediction of the effective diffusion coefficient can also be transferred to other processes and allows the investigation of materials having temporarily changing pore systems. Examples are the carbonation of cementitious materials, alkali silica reaction, calcium leaching of long-lasting structures, etc. This effect becomes most prominent in the meso-pore range and might alter the effective diffusion coefficient by more than 100 %.
Energy efficient products often have a higher purchase price than less efficient alternatives. However, the life cycle costs are often lower due to the lower operating costs. From a purely economic point of view, efficient appliances are not only more ecological but often also more economical and, accordingly, should be purchased more frequently than less efficient appliances. However, this is not always the case. Information deficits are one of the major reasons of this discrepancy: the purchase price is visible during the purchasing process, but the follow-up costs are not, at least not in their exact amount. The EU Energy Label can be considered as a solution to close this gap. During the past decades, there has been a discussion on whether it would be better to communicate the monetary costs associated with energy consumption, since their calculation by the consumer is difficult or needs a high level of cognitive effort.
In this study, experiments and field studies on a total of 19 product groups were evaluated with regard to the question of whether the indication of costs instead of physical units affects the decision-making process of the consumer. It has been assessed under which circumstances it might positively influence the purchase decision of the customer, i.e. helping him or her to arrive at a more “energy efficient” decision. Overall, the results indicate that monetary claims possibly exceed the effect of claims on a physical basis when the costs or the differences between the alternatives available seem “relevant” to the consumer.
A new patented dynamic mechanical analysis (DMA) is presented, where the tensile, bending- or torsional stiffness of a media can be characterized in-situ during the phase transition from liquid to solid. An epoxy system, e.g. Hexion L285/H287, is filled into an elastomer container, such as a silicone tube. This can be mounted into a conventional OMA and, based on a linear viscoelastic approach, the storage modulus (E';G'), the loss modulus (E'';G'') and the loss angle tan(δ) can be measured at constant temperature as a function of time in order to investigate the liquid to sol-gel to solid transition. With this new method, the stiffness increase as a result of the cure process can be directly measured more precisely than with a rheometer in a shear plate set-up, because using an elastomer container gives a defined cross section for calculating the Young's modulus.
Fully-reversed fatigue behavior of scarf joint repairs for wind turbine blade shell applications
(2022)
To enable a quick and cost-effective return to service for wind turbine blades, localized repairs can be executed by technicians in the field. Scarf repairs, shown to be highly efficient with a smooth load transition across angled joint walls and a restored aerodynamic profile, are the focus of this work. The failure mechanisms of these structures were examined under quasi-static tensile and fully-reversed cyclic loading. While the scarf ratio was held constant at 1:50, the repair layup was varied between large-to-small and small-to-large. The effect of the presence of resin pockets and the fiber orientation mismatch between parent and repair material on the restored strength of BIAX ±45° glass fiber reinforced polymer scarf joint structures was studied.
A new type of ultrasonic borehole probe is currently under development for the quality assurance of sealing structures in radioactive waste repositories using existing research boreholes. The goal is to examine the sealing structures made of salt concrete for possible cracks, delamination, and embedded objects. Earlier prototype probes use 12 or 16 individual dry point contact (DPC) horizontal shear wave transducers grouped into a transmitter and a receiver array, each made up of six or eight individual transducers. They are operated with a commercially available portable ultrasonic flaw detector used in the civil engineering industry. To increase the generated sound pressure of the borehole probe, the number of transducers in the novel probe is increased to 32. In addition, timed excitation of each probe is used to direct a focused sound beam to a specific angle and distance based on calculated time delays. Hence, the sensitive test volume is limited, and the signal-to-noise ratio of the received signals is improved. This paper presents the validation of the newly developed phased array borehole probe by beam computation in CIVA software and experimental investigations on a semi-cylindrical test specimen to investigate the directional characteristics. In combination with geophysical reconstruction techniques, an optimised radiation pattern of the probe is expected to improve the signal quality and thus increase the reliability of the imaging results.
This is of great importance for the construction of safe sealing structures needed for the disposal of radioactive or toxic waste.
Ultrasonic Coda Wave interferometry has the potential to detect minute changes in scattering materials like concrete. By permanently installing ultrasonic transducers in concrete, DFG Research unit CoDA aims to develop methods for concrete damage assessment in Germany's aging infrastructure. To test the methods developed in simulations and laboratory experiments on a large scale, we have implemented several ultrasonic transducers at the Gänstorbrücke Ulm, one of Germany's most monitored road bridges. Since fall 2020 we are monitoring parts of the center of the Bridge, as well as an abutment, and compare the results to the commercial monitoring system. All data is recorded with a self-made data collection device, the so-called W-Box, and analyzed with different coda wave-based algorithms to detect signal and volumetric velocity changes. The long-term measurements show that the influence of temperature changes on strains and therefore ultrasound velocity changes calculated with coda waves can be monitored. The capabilities and limitations of the coda wave-based monitoring system are tested in a controlled experiment. Static loading using a truck with varying loads at several positions allows the calibration of the system to improve the detectability of possibly damaging loads and changes induced by this loading. A map of velocity change analyzing data from this load experiment shows that the influence of load on the material and strain distribution can be detected with array measurements.
Attenuation of ultrasonic signals in concrete has the potential to carry much information about the microstructure of the material. In this work a series of concrete specimens of varying porosities and pore size distributions were internally imaged with x-ray computed tomography (CT), and then subsequently examined with throughtransmission ultrasound. The CT images were used to quantify both capillary porosity of cement paste as well as internal interfaces that are likely to produce elastic wave scattering. Ultrasound signals were represented as a diffusion process such that absorption and scattering attenuation could be isolated. As implemented, the diffusion model was a poor predictor of capillary porosity, while diffusivity was a reasonable predictor of scattering interfaces. Diffusivity was found to scale extremely well with small scale porosity, which made it a good predictor of compressive strength.
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.
This contribution summarizes actual developments and draft fundamental teaching topics in the field of nondestructive testing in civil engineering (NDT-CE). It is based on the first memorandum on teaching and research in the field of NDT-CE at German speaking universities and provides an overview of the academic education and highlights possible focuses, especially in teaching but also takes into account noteworthy developments and topics in research in the field of NDT-CE.
Suggestions are given for the development and advancement of the teaching curricula in regards to a comprehensive and sound professional education of students in civil engineering and adjacent disciplines.
The Infrastar training school provides lectures and hands-on training to Master and PhD students, early-stage researchers and (young) professionals on all aspects of asset management of civil infrastructures with respect to fatigue of materials. It is organized yearly since 2019 and up to 20 profiles are selected to attend the 3.5-day training.
A team of 7 teachers provides insight in multi-disciplinary and intersectoral basic concepts in three core fields, ranging from the design to the dismantling of the structures (bridges and wind turbines):
1. Monitoring and auscultation,
2. Structural and action models,
3. Reliability, risk and decision analyses.
Each year, a recognized expert is invited to deliver a keynote lecture to raise interest in a specific aspect of one of the fields covered. The presentation is recorded and published on the training school website.
Concrete structures are invaluable assets to a society and managing them efficiently and effectively can be supported by information gathered through structural health monitoring (SHM). In this paper, a combined approach based on passive, i.e., acoustic emission (AE), and active, i.e., ultrasonic stress wave (USW) monitoring techniques for application to concrete structures is proposed and evaluated. While AE and USW are based on the same underlying physics, i.e., wave motion in solids, they differ fundamentally with respect to the nature of the source. For the former, external stimuli such as mechanical loads or temperature cause the rapid release of energy from initially unknown locations. As a result, AE events are unique and cannot be repeated. For the latter, a known source at a known location is employed at a specified time. This approach is thus controlled and repeatable. It is
argued that a combination of these two techniques has the potential to provide a more comprehensive picture of ongoing fracture processes, damage progression, as well as slowly occurring aging and degradation mechanisms.
This combined approach does thus promise new opportunities to support condition assessment of concrete structures. After providing an overview and comparison of the two techniques, results, and observations from a full-scale laboratory experiment and an in-service bridge monitoring study are discussed to demonstrate the promise of the proposed combined monitoring approach. Finally, suggestions for further work are presented.
Muon tomography applied to assessment of concrete structures: First experiments and simulations.
(2022)
Non-destructive techniques for reinforced or prestressed concrete inspection such as ultrasound or radar have found regular, successful practical application but sometimes suffer from limited resolution and
accuracy, imaging artefacts or restrictions in detecting certain features. Until the 1980s X-ray transmission was used in case of special demands and showed a much better resolution than other NDT techniques.
However, due to safety concerns and cost issues, this method is almost never used anymore. Muon tomography has received much attention recently. Novel detectors for cosmic muons and tomographic imaging algorithms have opened new fields of application. As a first step towards practical application in civil engineering and as a proof of concept we used an existing system to image the interior of a reference reinforced 600 kg concrete block. Even with a yet not optimized setup for this kind of investigation, the muon imaging results are at least of similar quality compared to ultrasonic and radar imaging, potentially even better. In a second step, we have performed simulations to assess the potential for a set of important testing problems such as grouting defects in tendon ducts. The next steps include the development of mobile detectors and optimizing acquisition and imaging parameters.
To improve ultrasonic imaging of concrete structures, we transferred a seismic migration technique, the Reverse Time Migration (RTM), to non-destructive testing. A 2D elastic RTM algorithm was tested on synthetic ultrasonic echo data. Compared to the typically used synthetic aperture focusing technique (SAFT) as well as our acoustic RTM algorithm, the presented elastic RTM results show an enhancement in imaging vertical reflectors and complex features inside the 2D numerical concrete model.
Hybrid optical measurement technique for detection of defects in epitaxially grown 4H-SiC layers
(2022)
Recent developments in power electronics require the use of new wide bandgap compound semiconductor. We demonstrate the use of the ellipsometry and white light interference microscopy to detect defects in epitaxially grown SiC layers on SiC substrates. Such hybrid optical metrology methods can be used to better understand the mechanism of the development of the defects as well as their effects on the material´s optoelectronic properties.
Whereas human factors (HF) in the non-destructive testing (NDT) of metallic components are a poorly investigated topic (in comparison to other industrial fields such as aviation), HF in the inspection of concrete components are even less known. Studies have shown that there is always some variability between individuals in their inspection results and that HF affect the reliability of NDT inspections. The aim of the ongoing WIPANO project is to draft a standard for a holistic reliability assessment, with concrete inspection as one case study. This includes also the HF. A human-oriented Failure Modes and Effects Analysis (FMEA) was carried out to do the following: a) identify possible human-related risks in tunnel inspection processes using a laser scan method (including data collection,evaluation, and assessment of tunnel damage) and b) evaluate these human-related risks as regards their possible causes, consequences and probability of occurrence – in addition with respect to existing and possible preventive measures. The results show that the causes for possible failures can lie within people, the physical environment, technology, organisation, and extra-organisational environment. Whereas current preventive measures rely mostly on the individual and quality management practices, there is potential for even larger improvement at the organisational and extra-organisational level. The FMEA results were also used to develop a quantification method to further understand the HF in tunnel inspection, which could possibly be included in the information into the overall reliability assessment. The usage of qualitative and quantitative data collected through the human-FMEA within the proposed quantification method shows promise that HF can be quantified and could offer broader understanding of HF influences on inspection in various industries
Existing concrete structures were usually designed for lifetimes of several decades. The current and urgently required efforts to increase sustainability and protect the environment will likely result in extended service lives up to 100 years. To achieve such objectives, it is required to assess structures over their entire lifecycles. Non-destructive testing (NDT) methods can reliably support the assessment of existing structures during the construction, operational, and decommissioning phases. One of the most important and safety-relevant components of a prestressed concrete structure are the tendons. NDT methods such as the ultrasonic echo method are suitable for both the detection and the localization of the tendons, i.e., the measurement of their geometrical position inside the component. The uniqueness of structures, concrete heterogeneity, and varying amounts of secondary components such as the reinforcement represent obstacles in the application of these methods in practice. The aim of this contribution is to demonstrate a practicable procedure, that can be used in the field to determine the parameters required for the measuring data analysis without extensive knowledge about the investigated components. For this purpose, a polyamide reference specimen is used to show which steps are required to obtain reliable imaging information on the position of tendons from the measurement data. The procedure is then demonstrated on a concrete test specimen that covers various relevant and practice-oriented test scenarios, such as varying tendon depths and component thicknesses.
Introduction of a monitoring system for Bingham fluids in additive manufacturing with concrete
(2022)
Freeform additive manufacturing of concrete structures is a rising technology in civil engineering with several fascinating advantages. Nonetheless, to ensure reliability and structural integrity, standards and quality control are required in the future to bring this technology into the market. As the concrete is manufactured continuously, continuous quality control of the printing process is also required, i.e. comprehensive process monitoring. At BAM, a test rig will be installed, enabling the printing of concrete structures with a maximum size of 2 m x 1 m x 1 m (l x w x h). Here, process monitoring is the focus of the test rig. In this study, we show the results of the first pump tests, including the measurement of several parameters such as temperature and pressure along the supply system, i.e. from the concrete pump to the printer head.
Healthy and energy efficient buildings must be free from disturbing odours. Odour emissions from building materials can be measured with the well-known and accepted standard ISO 16000-28 “Indoor air – Part 28: Determination of odour emissions from building products using test chambers”. For commonly used emission test chambers the sample air is collected in containers (bags) and presented to a group of panel members for the purpose of evaluating the odour. A standard sets requirements for the on-demand presentation in detail. These include the validation procedure for container materials, pre-treatment of bags, details on storage of filled bags and how to carry out the measurements. However, although these measures are proven in practice, incorrect measurements are still possible. Also errors can occur due to a very complex measurement procedure. So, there is a great need for research into how the odour samples are presented.
The proposal planned to be presented will introduce a new development in sample provision by using an adapter which enables collection and provision of sample air without storage or transport of bags. The adapter is a sample container which is permanently positioned on the emission test chamber´s outlet and continuously filled with sample air flowing through it. The flow is briefly interrupted at the time when a sample is taken by a panel member for the test.
The size of the container is sufficient to provide enough sample air for evaluation by at least one panel member via a funnel. Since sampling and presentation are technically connected, it means you can almost do away with storage or transportation and thus it can be presented almost unchanged to the panelmembers. The aim is to reduce measurement errors in the odour samples provision process and the improvement of measurement reproducibility. The paper presents the construction of the adapter as well as the results of emission and odour tests carried out so far.
In a joint project of partners from industry and research, the automated recycling of construction and demolition waste (CDW) is investigated and tested by combing laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy (LIBS) and near-infrared (NIR) spectroscopy. Joint processing of information (data fusion) is expected to significantly improve the sorting quality of various materials like concrete, main masonry building materials, organic components, etc., and may enable the detection and separation of impurities such as SO3-cotaining building materials (gypsum, aerated concrete, etc.). The project focuses primarily on the Berlin site to analyze the entire value chain, minimize economic/technological barriers and obstacles at the cluster level, and sustainably increase recovery and recycling rates. First measurements with LIBS and NIR spectroscopy show promising results in distinguishing various material types and indicate the potential for a successful combination. In addition, X-ray fluorescence (XRF) spectroscopy is being performed to obtain more information about the quantitative elemental composition of the different building materials. Future work will apply the developed sorting methodology in a fully automated measurement setup with CDW on a conveyor belt.
Ultrasonic measurement technology has become indispensable in NDT-CE. Air-coupled ultrasonic (ACU) measurement techniques promise to reduce measurement time. However, the signal quality suffers from large specific impedance mismatch at the transducer-air and air-specimen interface. Additionally, large pressure amplitudes are necessary for the penetration depth required in NDT-CE applications. To address the specific requirements of ultrasonic testing in NDT-CE, a robust ACU transducer was developed, that generates ultrasound by quickly switching a pressurized air flow. The simple design of the fluidic transducer makes the device maintenance free and resilient against harsh environmental conditions. Since the signal is generated by aeroacoustics, there is no specific impedance mismatch between the transducer and the surrounding air. The ultrasonic signal exhibits frequencies in the 30-60 kHz range and is therefore well suited to penetrate heterogenous materials such as concrete. This contribution gives an introduction in the working principle and signal characteristics of the fluidic transducer. Its applicability to measurements in concrete is verified. A detailed outlook is given to discuss the future potential of fluidic ultrasonic actuators.
Recently, non-destructive testing in civil engineering (NDT-CE), in particular of concrete components, has successfully mastered the leap from research to practice. Several methods have been established for field inspections to determine the concrete cover of reinforcement or to estimate the compressive strength as well as other parameters related to the concrete material. In addition, the application of nondestructive testing is indispensable, if information about the inner structure - such as the location of rebars and tendon ducts or the damage-related condition assessment to detect grouting defects, honeycombs, delamination, or corrosion - is required. Besides the selection of a suitable NDT method and an appropriate inspection system, the reliability of the results depends largely on the person who applies the non-destructive inspection technique and evaluates the inspection results. To ensure a high quality of non-destructive concrete evaluation as well as to keep the uncertainty caused by the inspection personnel to a minimum, structured, consistent and regulated theoretical as well as practical training of inspection personnel is essential. To close this gap, the subcommittee of education (UA-A) within the committee for NDT-CE of the German Society for Nondestructive Testing (DGZfP) has been reactivated in 2018 to establish uniform training standards for nondestructive concrete inspections in the long term. The subcommittee consists of scientists, practitioners, authorities, and clients. So far, the national standard DIN 4871 “Non-destructive testing - Qualification and Certification of NDT personnel in Civil Engineering (NDT-CE)” was developed and is currently under review. This standard considers the civil-industry-specifics, for example, that standards for NDT of concrete, as well as related product standards with a few exceptions, still do not exist at the moment. Within this presentation, the concept, the connection to ISO 9712 and other standards as well as an overview of the developed German standard DIN 4871 will be presented.
The work on Tribology, digitalisation, and the harmonised procedures developed in i-TRIBOMAT Open Innovation Testbed was presented. The project develops procedures and shares ideas on how to deal with characterisation techniques and provide services to end users in different places and locations, which is realised by adopting a common and widely agreed procedures. i-TRIBOMAT is active also via YouTube platform to enhance communication and spread the word amongst the interested parties and society.
In this study, the ability of an electronic nose developed to analyze and monitor odor emissions from three poultry farms located in Meknes (Morocco) and Berlin (Germany) was evaluated. Indeed, the potentiality of the electronic nose (e-nose) to differentiate the concentration fractions of hydrogen sulfide, ammonia, and ethanol was investigated. Furthermore, the impact change of relative humidity values (from 15% to 67%) on the responses of the gas sensors was reported and revealed that the effect remained less than 0.6%. Furthermore, the relevant results confirmed that the developed e-nose system was able to perfectly classify and monitor the odorous air of poultry farms.
Quasi-static dispersion of dusts for the determination of lower explosion limits of hybrid mixtures
(2020)
Knowledge of explosion limiting concentration of explosible materials is necessary for the design of explosion protection measures. Currently employed methods of testing MEC of a dust cloud or LEL of a hybrid mixture are based on arbitrary assumptions and possess technical limitations that often lead to values of MEC/LEL, which are unrealistically low or poorly reproducible.
This contribution presents an improved method for experimental determination of MEC of a combustible dust cloud or LEL of a flammable gas or hybrid mixture. The new set-up operates under laminar conditions and allows a uniform suspension of dust particles in an open top acrylic glass tube. Dust concentration is measured with the help of infrared sensors installed a few centimeters above and below the ignition source.
In order to evaluate the dependence of MEC on flow front velocity, MEC of lycopodium was determined at four flow velocities. The results show that the flow field intensity does not significantly influence the MEC of lycopodium for the flow ranges tested in this work. Moreover, LEL of hybrid mixtures of lycopodium and methane was also tested at flow velocities of 4.7 cm/s, 5.8 cm/s, 7 cm/s and 11 cm/s and compared with the values obtained from other sources. The results suggest that the requirement of high energy pyrotechnical igniter may be relinquished, provided that a truly homogeneous suspension of dust particles could be achieved.
Moreover, the effect of relative amount of dust and gas, on the course of ignition and flame propagation in hybrid mixtures at their LEL, was studied by the help of high speed videos. For hybrid mixtures of carbonaceous dusts (like lycopodium) at their LEL, ignition occurs in the gas phase, however, flame propagation is only possible through a two-way interaction of dust and gas during the course of combustion.
The production of materials with dimensions in the nanometre range has continued to increase in recent years. In order to ensure safety when handling these products, the hazard potential of such innovative materials must be known. While several studies have already investigated the effects of explosions (such as maximum explosion pressure and maximum pressure rise) of powders with primary particles in the nanometre range, little is known about the ignition temperatures and flame velocities. Therefore, the minimum ignition temperature (MIT) of metallic nano powders (aluminium, iron, copper and zinc) was determined experimentally in a so called Godbert-Greenwald (GG) oven. Furthermore, the flame velocities were determined in a vertical tube. In order to better classify the test results, the tested samples were characterised in detail and the lower explosion limits of the tested dust samples were determined. Values for the burning velocity of aluminium nano powders are higher compared to values of micrometre powders (from literature). While MIT of nanometre aluminium powders is within the range of micrometre samples, MIT of zinc and copper nano powders is lower than values reported in literature for respective micrometre samples.
In this work, we present our results achieved in several research activities for development of distributed fiber optic radiation sensors using glass and polymer optical fibers. The findings show that both the measurement of the radiation-induced attenuation (RIA) along the entire sensing fiber and the accompanying change in the refractive index of the fiber core can be used for distributed radiation monitoring.
Support structures of offshore wind turbines are subject to cyclic stresses generated by different time-variant random loadings such as wind, waves, and currents in combinationwith the excitation by the rotor. In the design phase, the cyclic demand on wind turbine support structure is calculated and forecasted with semi or fully probabilistic engineering models. In some cases, additional cyclic stresses may be induced by construction deviations, unbalanced rotor masses and structural dynamic phenomena such as, for example, the Sommerfeld effect. Both, the significant uncertainties in the design and a validation of absence of unforeseen adverse dynamic phenomena necessitate the employment of measurement Systems on the support structures. The quality of the measurements of the cyclic demand on the support structures depends on (a) the precision of the measurement System consisting of sensors, amplifier and data normalization and (b) algorithms for analyzing and converting data to structural health information. This paper presents the probabilistic modelling and analysis of uncertainties in strain measurements performed for the purposes of reconstructing stress resultants in wind turbine towers.
It is shown how the uncertainties in the strain measurements affect the uncertainty in the individual components of the reconstructed forces and moments. The analysis identifies the components of the vector of stress resultants that can be reconstructed with sufficient precision.
Fault detection for linear parameter varying systems under changes in the process noise covariance
(2020)
Detecting changes in the eigenstructure of linear systems is a comprehensively investigated subject. In particular, change detection methods based on hypothesis testing using Gaussian residuals have been developed previously. In such residuals, a reference model is confronted to data from the current system. In this paper, linear output-only systems depending on a varying external physical parameter are considered. These systems are driven by process noise, whose covariance may also vary between measurements. To deal with the varying parameter, an interpolation approach is pursued, where a limited number of reference models – each estimated from data measured in a reference state – are interpolated to approximate an adequate reference model for the current parameter. The problem becomes more complex when the different points of interpolation correspond to different noise conditions. Then conflicts may arise between the detection of changes in the eigenstructure due to a fault and the detection of changes due to different noise conditions. For this case, a new change detection approach is developed based on the interpolation of the eigenstructure at the reference points. The resulting approach is capable of change detection when both the external physical parameter and the process noise conditions are varying. This approach is validated on a numerical simulation of a mechanical system.
Numerical Analysis for an Electro‐Magneto‐Mechanical Phenomenon with High‐Order Accurate Methods
(2021)
This paper establishes an axisymmetric model for a levitation device. Therein, the Maxwell equations are combined with the balance of linear momentum. Different possible formulations to describe the MAXWELL equations are presented and compared and discussed in the example. A high order finite element discretization using GALERKIN's method in space and the generalized NEWMARK‐α method in time are developed for the electro‐magneto‐mechanical approach. Several studies on spatial and temporal discretization with respect to convergence will be investigated. In addition, the boundary influences and the domain size with respect to the levitation device are also examined.
Active thermography is a fast, contactless and non-destructive technique that can be used to detect internal defects in different types of material. Volumetric irregularities such as the presence of pores in materials produced by the Additive Manufacturing processes can strongly affect the thermophysical and the mechanical properties of the final component.
In this work, an experimental investigation aimed at detecting different pores in a sample made of stainless AISI 316L produced by Laser Powder Bed Fusion (L-PBF) was carried out using pulsed thermography in reflection mode. The capability of the technique and the adopted setups in terms of geometrical and thermal resolution, acquisition frequency and energy Density of the heating source were assessed to discern two contiguous pores as well as to detect a single pore. Moreover, a quantitative indication about the minimum resolvable pore size among the available and analysed defects was provided. A powerful tool to assess the Limits and the opportunities of the pulsed technique in terms of detectability and localizability was provided by comparing active thermography results to Computed Tomography as well as a related Finite Element Analysis (FEA) to simulate the pulsed heating transfer with Comsol.
To increase the competitiveness of jacket substructures compared to monopiles a changeover from an individual towards a serial jacket production based on automated manufactured tubular joints combined with standardized pipes has to be achieved. Therefore, this paper addresses fatigue tests of automatically welded tubular X-joints focusing on the location of the technical fatigue crack. The detected location of the technical crack is compared to numerical investigations predicting the most fatigue prone notch considering the structural stress approach as well as the notch stress approach. Besides, the welding process of the automated manufactured tubular X-joints is presented.
For the determination of safety characteristics of gases, vapors and dusts different types of ignition sources are used in international standards and guidelines. Table 1 compares technical relevant ignition sources with their main features. The paper presents test results of a comparative calorimetric and visual study between four different types of ignition sources. The ignition procedures were analyzed visually with a high-speed camera and electric recordings. In addition to that, the influence of the electrode-orientation, -distance as well as ignition energy on the reproducibility of the exploding wire igniter was tested.
The exploding wire is already in use for standardized determination of safety characteristics of gases, first tests on the suitability of the exploding wire igniter for dust testing have been carried out by Scheid et al. Using the exploding wire, the ignition energy can be varied from 2 to 10 000 J (2 x 5 000 J) and thus it could be used for gases, vapors, dusts and hybrid mixtures. Moreover it can be used at high initial pressures and it is the only ignition source with an easily measurable ignition energy release. Furthermore, it does not introduce another chemical reaction into the system.
Finally, a proposal for a standard ignition source for explosion tests on hybrid mixtures is derived from the test results.
Laboratory test results are of vital importance for correctly classifying and labelling chemicals as “hazardous” as defined in the UN Globally Harmonized System (GHS) / EC CLP Regulation or as “dangerous goods” as defined in the UN Recommendations on the Transport of Dangerous Goods. Interlaboratory tests play a decisive role in assessing the reliability of laboratory test results. Interlaboratory tests performed over the last 10 years have examined different laboratory test methods. After analysing the results of these interlaboratory tests, the following conclusions can be drawn:
1. There is a need for improvement and validation for all laboratory test methods examined.
2. To avoid any discrepancy concerning the classification and labelling of chemicals, the use of validated laboratory test methods should be state of the art, with the results accompanied by the measurement uncertainty and (if applicable) the probability of incorrect classification.
This paper addresses the probability of correct/incorrect classification (for example, as dangerous goods) on the basis of the measurement deviation obtained from interlaboratory tests performed by the Centre for quality assurance for testing of dangerous goods and hazardous substances (CEQAT-DGHS) to validate laboratory test methods. This paper outlines typical results (e.g. so-called “Shark profiles” – the probability of incorrect classification as a function of the true value estimated from interlaboratory test data) as well as general conclusions and steps to be taken to guarantee that laboratory test results are fit for purpose and of high quality.
High Entropy Alloys (HEAs) are a recent class of materials. In contrast to conventional alloys, HEAs consist of five alloying elements in equiatomic equilibrium. The high entropy effect is due, among other things, to the increased configuration entropy, which promotes solid solution formation. Many HEAs have enormous application potential due to excellent structural property combinations from very low to high temperatures. For the introduction of HEAs in real components, however, the question of the applicability of machining production technologies for component manufacture is of central importance. This has so far received Little attention in global materials research. Reliable and safe processing is essential for the demand of economical component production for potential areas of application, e.g. in power plant technology.
For metals, milling is the standard machining process. This article presents the results of machining analyses. It focuses on the surface integrity resulting from the milling process on a Co20Cr20Fe20Mn20Ni20-HEA. For this purpose, investigations were carried out using ball nose end milling tools for conventional milling process in comparison to an innovative hybrid process available at BAM Berlin, Ultrasonic-Assisted Milling (USAM). USAM promises a lower Degradation of the surface properties due to lower loads on the workpiece surface during machining.
For this purpose, basic milling parameters (cutting speed and tooth feed) were systematically varied and cutting forces were measured during the milling experiments. The subsequent Analysis of these forces allows an understanding of the mechanical loads acting on the tool and component surface. These loads cause topographical, mechanical and microstructural influences on the surface and consequently on the surface integrity. For their characterization, light and scanning electron microscopy were used, and the roughness and residual stresses via X-ray diffraction were measured. The results indicate significant advantages using USAM, especially due to reduced cutting forces compared to the conventional milling process. This causes lower mechanical loads on the tool and surface, combined with lower tensile residual stresses on and below the surface, and ultimately results in a significantly enhanced surface integrity.
The development of high energy laser sources enables single-pass welds of thick plates up to 30 mm, but often additional materials are needed to influence the properties of the weld seams. However, the homogenous distribution of filler materials in form of e.g. electrodes is only possible up to 7 mm while the elements are only traceable up to a depth of 14 mm. To overcome this problem a two-step process is used where first the edges of the weld partners are coated with the filler material by laser metal deposition (LMD) and afterwards are welded by laser beam. Single-pass welds with electromagnetic weld pool support of 30 mm thick S355 J2+N-plates with austenitic AISI 316L-coatings were investigated as well as the influence of the coatings to the penetration depth of the laser beam without electromagnetic weld pool support in double-sided joints. The weld seams were tested by X-ray inspection and cross sections.
High-entropy alloys (HEAs) are characterized by a solid solution of minimum five and medium-entropy alloys (MEAs) of minimum three principal alloying elements in equiatomic proportions. They show exceptional application properties, such as high-strength and ductility or corrosion resistance. Future HEA/MEA-components could be exposed to hydrogen containing environments like vessels for cryogenic or high-pressure storage where the hydrogen absorption and diffusion in these materials is of interest. In our study, we investigated the HEA Co20Cr20Fe20Mn20Ni20 and the MEA Co33.3Cr33.3Ni33.3. For hydrogen ingress, cathodic charging was applied and diffusion kinetic was measured by high-resolution thermal desorption spectros-copy using different heating rates up to 0.250 K/s. Peak deconvolution resulted in high-temperature desorption peaks and hydrogen trapping above 280 °C. A total hydrogen concentration > 40 ppm was identified for the MEA and > 100 ppm for HEA. This indicates two important effects: (1) delayed hydrogen diffusion and (2) considerable amount of trapped hydrogen that must be anticipated for hydrogen assisted cracking phenomenon. Local electrochemical Volta potential maps had been measured for the hydrogen free condition by means of high-resolution Scanning Kelvin Probe Force Microscopy (SKPFM).
Alkali-activated materials are ideal for the repair of concrete structures in harsh environmental conditions due to their high durability in chemically aggressive environments. However, slag-based mortars, in particular, are prone to shrinkage and associated cracks. In this respect, the application of steel fibres is one solution to reduce the formation of shrinkage induced cracks and to improve post cracking behaviour of these mortars. This study investigated the influence of two different types of steel fibres on the tensile properties of two alkali-activated mortars. Direct tensile tests and single fibre pull-outs were performed to analyse the determining failure modes both on macro and micro scale. Mechanical testing was accompanied by non-destructive testing methods such as digital image correlation and acoustic emission for a detailed analysis of the fracture process.
A shell test bench was developed at BAM 5.3 which allows for static and fatigue testing of curved fiber-reinforced plastic (FRP) structures, during which in-situ the damage state can be non-destructively inspected by thermography and strain-field measurement techniques. Sandwich shell specimens with typical wind turbine blade manufacturing defects were designed and tested. The tested imperfections show a fairly significant reduction (up to 90%) of the shell test specimens‘ lifetime, depending on the type of imperfection. Using the in-situ NDT methods incorporated in the shell test bench, the location and cycle time of the initial defects and the damage evolution was investigated.
The detection of cracks before the failure is highly significant when it comes to safety-relevant structures. Crack detection in metallic samples at high surface temperature is one of the challenging situation in manufacturing industries.
Laser thermography has already proved its detection capability of surface cracks in metallic samples at room temperature. In this work a continuous wave (CW) laser use to generate a laser, which is using to scan the metal surface with notch.
The corresponding heat distribution on the surface monitored using infrared thermal (IR) camera. A simplified 3D model for laser thermography is developed and validated with experimental results. A dedicated image processing algorithm developed to improve the detectability of the cracks. To understand the dependency of surface temperature, laser power, laser scanning speed etc. in defect detection, we carried out parametric studies with our validated model. Here we Report the capability of laser thermography in crack detection at elevated temperature.
Acoustic-structure interaction in the Scaled Boundary Finite Element Method for primsatic geometries
(2019)
Due to the short wavelength compared to the dimensions of the structure, the simulation of ultrasonic waves is still a challenging task. A numerical method well suited for this purpose is the semi-analytical Scaled Boundary Finite Element Method (SBFEM). When applying this method, only the boundary of a computational domain is discretized using finite elements, while the interior is described by an analytical ansatz. Hence, the number of degrees of freedom is reduced significantly compared to the classical Finite Element Method (FEM).
In recent years, a particular formulation of the SBFEM for the simulation of ultrasonic guided waves was developed. The method constitutes an efficient algorithm for prismatic structures of arbitrary length, such as plates, pipes, or beams. Wave propagation phenomena in such structures can be modeled for isotropic and anisotropic inhomogeneous waveguides. Even though the method is an efficient tool for the simulation of guided waves in solid media, a reliable model for the simulation of acoustic wave propagation in fluids as well as acoustic-structure interaction in terms of SBFEM is still missing. In principle, the fluid can be described by a displacement-based formulation and thus be implemented in existing SBFEM algorithms for solid bodies. However, due to the discretization with classical finite elements, spurious modes occur, which cannot be separated from the physical modes straightforwardly. The spurious modes can be suppressed using a penalty parameter. Although very accurate results were achieved for some problems, this procedure has been proven unreliable for certain cases.
For this reason, we propose a different approach in this contribution. We employ a pressure model to simulate the acoustic behavior of fluids. The implementation of the pressure model results in a higher effort due to the necessity of incorporating coupling terms, but it presents a stable alternative without spurious modes. The accuracy of the method is demonstrated in comparison with analytical solutions and results obtained using the FEM.
Raman band widths of anhydrite II reveal the burning history of high-fired medieval gypsum mortars
(2019)
The use of high-fired gypsum as binder for masonry and joint mortars or stuccowork in Central Europe in the Early and High Middle Ages was a regional specific as it depended on local gypsum deposits. The calcination technology possible at the time resulted in an assemblage of calcium sulphate phases dehydrated to different degrees and partly thermally damaged accessory minerals of the raw gypsum. Because of the absence of medieval textbooks, the observation of high-temperature, low-pressure mineral transformations and the correlation of phases coexisting in not hydrated binder relicts in the gypsum matrix to the mineralogy of the raw material and the burning conditions constitute the only source to the historical technological know-how.
The CaSO4–H2O system consists of five crystalline phases, which can be discriminated by structural analysis methods, such as Raman spectroscopy, due to obvious differences in their spectroscopic data: gypsum (CaSO4 ⋅ 2 H2O), bassanite (hemihydrate, CaSO4 ⋅ ½ H2O), anhydrite III (CaSO4), anhydrite II (CaSO4), and anhydrite I (CaSO4). Only recently, it was possible to demonstrate that small spectroscopic variations exist also within the relatively large stability range of anhydrite II from approx. 180°C to 1180°C: all Raman bands narrow with increasing burning temperature applied in the synthesis from gypsum powder. The determination of band widths of down to 3 cm-1 and differences between them of a few tenths of a wavenumber is not a trivial task. Thus, this contribution discusses peak fitting and strategies for correction of instrument-dependent band broadening.
Raman maps of polished thin sections of gypsum mortars provide access to the burning histories of individual remnant thermal anhydrite grains and enable the discrimination of natural anhydrite originating from the gypsum deposit. This novel analytical method was applied to samples from medieval South Tyrolean stucco decorations and sculptures. Beyond that, Raman microspectroscopy was employed for following pyrometamorphic reactions in natural impurities of the raw material. In the presented examples mineral thermometry indicates process temperatures above 800°C: the breakdown of magnesium-rich chlorite led to the formation of forsterite Mg2SiO4, while the thermal decomposition of dolomite CaMg(CO3)2 yielded – after hydration and carbonation – magnesite MgCO3, CaCO3 polymorphs and magnesian calcite. Lower burning temperatures, which leave the accessory minerals in their pristine form, can be traced by measuring the spectra of anhydrite crystalites in grains of firing products and evaluating Raman band widths. Throughout the applications of this analytical method so far, calcination temperatures ranging from approx. 600°C to 900°C were determined.
The moisture content of screed samples is monitored by means of embedded sensors. Relative humidity sensors and multi-ring-electrodes are used to measure the spatial moisture distribution during desorption. Based on the humidity data and the pore volume distribution, the moisture and the water layer thickness within the pore space are predicted.
Slit shape as well as cylindrical pores are evaluated. Finally, the measured real part of the electrical impedance and the calculated water layer thickness are correlated. Based on the available data, a significant trend change of the impedance is documented at a water layer thickness of approximately 3 nm. This water layer thickness corresponds to a relative humidity of 88.3%.
The identification of the dynamic behavior of structures, like bridges and towers, is relevant to address multiple issues. In many cases the dynamic parameters should be acquired only once or at a frequency that doesn’t justify the installation of distinct vibration sensors for a long-term monitoring. To identify modal frequencies of a structure, a drone based mobile sensing platform has been implemented. This sensing platform measures the relative displacement be-tween the structure and the drone, which also shows a strong dynamic behavior under wind tur-bulences. By regarding the dynamic model of the drone and additional measurements at the dis-tance sensor the absolute movement of the structure can be estimated based on the measured relative distance. This time domain data is a suitable input for various operational modal analysis algorithms. The system has been used to identify the dynamic properties of test and real structure, like a 1.5 MW wind turbine tower.
The initial focus of this research was on the development of a general workflow for the documentation and monitoring of historical stained glass windows using structured light scanning. Therefore windows from different churches, time periods and with different corrosion and damage phenomena were scanned before and after conservation measures. To evaluate the execution of the restoration measures the data was compared using 3D inspection software to examine the differences in geometry between the two scans. Various problems had to be solved, for example, how to deal with heavily reflective surfaces and the extreme contrast between light and dark surfaces, as seen in the borders between ‘Schwarzlot’ painting and plain glass. The application of materials for matting the surfaces, such as Cyclododecane spray, was impossible due to the high accuracy of the surface measurement required for 3D inspection. Regarding the contrast differences of the surfaces, the creation of exposure fusions and the use of polarization filters to reduce reflections were tested. In addition to the general problems encountered when recording translucent surfaces, the historical glasses caused additional problems in calculating surface comparisons. For example, the windows have to be moved and turned around several times, both during the conservation process and while scanning, causing deformations of the geometry due to the flexible lead rods allowing a certain degree of movement.
In the present study, the impact of static traffic loading on the slight deflection effects in the concrete structure of an existing bridge has been investigated using distributed fiber optic sensors. In the face of increasing traffic density and severe traffic loading, the results of the load tests on the Amsterdam bridge 705 make an important contribution to the understanding of its structural behavior. The concept of the static loading was based on the use of two 36-ton trucks stopped on the bridge at multiple pre-determined locations. The load applied in this way led to location-dependent small deflection effects recorded as longitudinal strain of the sensing fiber embedded at the underside of the bridge. The measurements were performed with a commercially-available solution based on Tunable Wavelength Coherent Optical Time Domain Reflectometry with the measurement accuracy in the range of 0.5 µm/m.
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.
Ultrasonic methods are used in concrete investigations since decades. While being limited to transmission testing in the laboratory for a while, in-situ echo measurements for structural investigations and condition assessment have made their way into practical application in the past 20 years. However, several challenges remain. On one side, there are technical issues as limitations in depth of penetration, resolution and imaging capabilities. On the other side there are still gaps in validation, standardization and certification, which are limiting the applicability in condition/load capacity assessment.
This review reports a couple of developments which will help to overcome these issues. This includes technical developments as new devices which are easier to handle on site or giving a much deeper penetration depth (e.g. the LAUS device at BAM) as well as improvements in imaging by hardware update (e. g. air coupled ultrasound or coded signals) or new software (e. g. RTM imaging). To foster the application in real world projects we are as well working on standardization by developing new reference specimen with international partners which will ensure world-wide comparability of ultrasonic and other methods and quality assurance codes. Further, non-destructive methods are being used to update probabilistic models used for the reassessment of existing structures to support the structural engineer’s decisions.
At present, to produce renewable energy offshore wind farms play an important role. The available space combined with the more valuable wind conditions make offshore locations very attractive for wind powered energy production. In Europe a significant number of offshore wind farms already exist, especially in the North and Baltic Sea. In future this trend will continue, and further offshore wind farms will be built. The majority of offshore wind turbines are mounted on steel foundation structures. Due to the high-cyclic loading by wind and waves fatigue stress plays a substantial role regarding structural safety.
Besides the consideration of fatigue within the design process, to monitor existing steel structures for potential fatigue cracks during their life time is a major topic and a challenge.
For the structures of the offshore wind turbines are large and partially under water effective reliable methods for the detection of fatigue cracks are required.
This contribution presents investigations on different crack detection methods applied at high-cycle fatigue tests on small-scale welded steel samples as well as on large-scale welded steel components. The tests were conducted at the BAM laboratories. For crack detection mainly three different methods were used and compared. The first method regards to the measurement of strain by conventionally strain gauges. Secondly, the crack luminescence was used as a new and effective optical method for surface monitoring. And finally, crack detection by pressure differentials of the inner and outer section of tubular steel elements was investigated. A comparison study will emphasize the advantages and disadvantages of the different methods and show which of the described methods is potentially more suitable for an application on real offshore wind structures.
The structural performance of many geotechnical systems (e.g. axially-loaded pile foundations), depends on the shearing resistance at the soil interface, which may govern the load bearing capacity of the foundation. Experimental investigations have shown that this interaction is mainly localised within a narrow shear band next to the structure. Under cyclic loading, a contraction of the soil at the interface may arise (net volume loss), possibly leading to a stress relaxation and thus to a reduction of the load bearing capacity (the so-called friction fatigue). Based on the constitutive similarities between soil continua and interfaces, we propose here the adaption of a Generalized Plasticity model for sandy soils for the numerical analysis of interface problems. In this contribution, the results of an experimental campaign for the parameter calibration of the constitutive model are presented. The tests have been conducted with a ring shear device involving different normal stresses, roughness of the steel plates as well as cyclic loading. The new modelling approach shows promising results and has the additional practical advantage that the interface zone and the soil continuum can both be described with the same constitutive model in general boundary value problems.
Investigation of the salinization in marine and offshore environment - test methods and challenges
(2019)
Salinization and contamination of metal surfaces by chloride-containing aerosols is of great importance with regard to corrosion phenomena in the maritime sector and in offshore applications. Especially Offshore Wind Turbines are exposed to extreme corrosive conditions due to high chloride concentrations in the atmosphere and the resulting high chloride deposition rates. It is of great importance to evaluate to what extent salinization of the surface influences the corrosion protection of coatings and pitting occurrence on stainless steels under atmospheric conditions to evaluate the durability of metallic building structures in offshore and marine environments. The evaluation of the scientific literature and regulatory guidelines has shown that there are still many open questions regarding the contamination of metal surfaces by chlorides. This contribution will discuss how salinization of metal surfaces is evaluated and monitored according to current standards and guidelines. Future challenges concerning test methods and the application of evaluated salinization values and deposition rates will be discussed.
Owners or operators of offshore wind farms perform inspections to collect information on the condition of the wind turbine support structures and perform repairs if required. These activities are costly and should be optimized. Risk-based methods can be applied to identify inspection and repair strategies that ensure an optimal balance between the expected total service life cost of inspection and repair, and the achieved risk reduction. Such an optimization requires explicit modeling of repairs. In this paper, the impact of different repair models on the results of a risk-based optimization of inspection and repair strategies is quantified in a numerical example considering a jacket-type steel frame subject to high-cycle fatigue. The example showed that, in this specific application, there is no need for detailed modeling of the behavior of repaired welded connections.
Global energy consumption will increase in the future necessitating both fossil fuels and renewable energy choices - especially wind energy. Such high energy demand requires installation of offshore energy structures, rigs, platforms and towers, which are susceptible to adverse environmental conditions along with maintenances. Due to their large size and remote locations, cylindrical grouted joints are often adopted between substructure and foundation in these offshore platforms and wind structures such as monopiles. However, these connections are composite structures with exterior sleeve, interior pile and infill mortar. Degradation and settlements were reported inside similar connections, which were installed in last three decades. Besides, grouting in the offshore sites were proven difficult to obtain ideal load bearing capacity. In-situ loading conditions were also found to be affecting the failure mechanism inside such connections. This study aims at characterizing the nature of cracks generated in these grouted connections under both static and cyclic loading. Scaled grouted joints were manufactured using a novel reusable mold, and connections were loaded to failure to visualize the main failure patterns. An assessment between failure under these two types of load is drawn along with comparison to previously available literature.
An important aspect with regard to the service life of zinc based galvanic anodes and the durability of the corrosion protection of steel in concrete is the “galvanic chloride extraction”. Chloride ions move in the electric field generated by the current, flowing between the galvanic anode and the cathodic steel. Migration leads to an accumulation of anions, e.g. chloride ions, at the anode and depletion of chlorides near the steel rebar surface. The ion migration was studied on steel reinforced concrete specimens admixed with 3 wt.% chloride/wt. cement and galvanically protected by a surface applied embedded zinc anode (EZA). The zinc anode was embedded and glued to the concrete surface by a geo-polymer based chloride free binder. The EZA was operated over a period of 1 year and the ion distribution between anode (EZA) and cathode (steel reinforcement) was studied by laser induced breakdown spectroscopy (LIBS) after 5 months, 7 months and 12 months. The results show that chloride ions efficiently migrate in the direction of the zinc-anode and accumulate there. Chloride distribution in the EZA correlates with the distribution of zinc ions generated by the anodic dissolution of the zinc anode in the binder matrix. The microstructure of the binder matrix and its interface to the zinc-anode are studied by REM/EDX – preliminary results will be reported.
Wavelength-scanning distributed acoustic sensing for structural monitoring and seismic applications
(2019)
We introduce wavelength-scanning coherent optical time domain reflectometry (WS-COTDR) for dynamic vibration sensing along optical fibers. The method is based on spectral shift computation from Rayleigh backscatter spectra. Artificial neural networks (ANNs) are used for fast and high-resolution strain computation from raw measurement data. The applicability of the method is demonstrated for vibration monitoring of a reinforced concrete bridge. We demonstrate another application example for quasi-static and dynamic measurement of ground deformation and surface wave propagation along a dark fiber in a telecommunication cable.
Textile floor coverings are often used in offices and residential buildings. Large areas like meeting rooms, cinemas, theaters and hotels are often equipped with such coverings. They contribute to the comfort of the users as they provide high pedaling comfort and sound absorption. The weakness of these building materials is due to the odor emission that is released from the floor covering, which affects the comfort of the users. A bad air quality and the resulting dissatisfaction can lead to lower employee productivity. The research project of the Hochschule für Technik und Wirtschaft Berlin (HTW-Berlin) is promoted by the German Environment Agency (UBA). The project has the following title: Low-emission and low-odor building products for energy-efficient buildings - Development of requirements and concepts for the Blue Angel from a climate protection perspective; investigates the emission and odor behavior of textile floor coverings (Emissions- und geruchsarme Bauprodukte für energieeffiziente Gebäude - Entwicklung von Anforderungen und Konzepten für den Blauen Engel aus Klimaschutzsicht; untersucht das Emissions- und Geruchsverhalten textiler Bodenbeläge).
In the 21st century, adequate habitat and functioning infrastructure are critical for global societal and economic stability. In addition, growing urbanisation and environmental pollution cause challenges to societies.
With increasing velocity, humanity faces that the current way of living is not sustainable. Thus, habitat,infrastructure, urbanisation, environment and sustainability are definitively among the most striking challenges of the 21st century.
By consulting, planning, building, maintaining, exploiting and processing of global resources, civil engineers contribute significantly to the existence of these challenges. This is a high responsibility, but due to the heavy involvement, together with adjacent disciplines such as architecture, geosciences, chemistry,
physics, environmental sciences and economics, civil engineers also hold the key to mitigate these challenges and provide a brighter global future.
Solutions towards greener, more sustainable and economically viable materials do exist, and there is ongoing research on how greener technologies can contribute to better livelihood and economic growth, but their level of implementation is limited, a major reason for which is that these approaches require more fundamental understanding rather than standard application.
Today, in scientific events often a certain separation between researchers from laboratories with highly sophisticated equipment and those from less privileged laboratories can be observed. It is not an uncommon situation that results presented at conferences are rubbished or ridiculed because the investigator only used low-end analytical methods.
The assessment of the study is then biased based on the equipment, regardless of the actual quality of the study.
In many regions of the world the urbanisation process is accelerating dramatically. This puts pressure on urban planners but also politics to develop strategies for sustainable city growth. With the rapidly increasing demand for living space in urban areas, cities typically grow vertically. This is largely driven by real estate markets and sometimes also by the desire for status symbols.
Certainly, vertical urban growth makes sense, when horizontal growth destroys important flora and Fauna (e.g. in rain forest regions), but in many cases vertical growth is result of real-estate business and Expansion limitation due to state or country borders. However, economics and borders are made by humans. They follow human-made rules. Gravity does not. Therefore, from a point of view of sustainable materials and resourceuse, the trending vertical growth of cities may come under scrutiny.
The following aspects should be considered, when a decision is taken between a new quarter with limited number of storeys or a new skyscraper.
Sustainability means meeting the needs of today without compromising the needs of the next generations. How can we meet the needs of the next generations, if we do not even know what these needs are? If we do not listen to the next generation and learn from them? Do we even meet the needs of today for everyone on earth?
Modern wind turbine rotor blades consist of sandwich shell segments made from glass fiber reinforced polymers. During manufacturing, defects can arise which could lead to failure of the whole component under dynamic mechanical and thermal loads. Hence during operation defects can arise which, if detected, can be repaired locally and in-situ by applying repair patches instead of taking the whole rotor blade down and repair it remotely. This method is much more time and cost effective, since the shut-down time of the energy converter is limited to a minimum. These repair patches can, however, also lead to new defects if not applied optimally. Therefore, it is necessary to control the quality of the repair patches to ensure the best possible restoration of structural integrity of the component. As a rotor blade is an object with a large aspect ratio, X-ray laminography is predestined to provide 3D information of the objective volume. To enhance the amount of information gained from laminographic reconstruction, we use in this study a photon counting and energy discriminating X-ray detector and apply a material decomposition algorithm to the data. By inherently separating the incident spectra within the detection process into two distinct energy bins, the basis material decomposition can provide material resolved images. Choosing glass and epoxy resin as basis materials and numerically solving the inverse dual-energy equation system, the reconstructed laminographic datasets contain highly valuable information about the distribution of the basis materials within the structure. Furthermore, cross- artifacts arising from the limited angle of the projection data can be reduced by this method which allows to investigate structures that were hidden underneath the artefacts.
Localized patches are a cost- and time-effective method for repairing fiber-reinforced polymer (FRP) sandwich wind turbine rotor blade shells. To increase the understanding of their effect on the fatigue of the blades, this study examines the effect of various layup methods of localized repair patches on the structural integrity of composite sandwich structures. Manufactured with the vacuum-assisted resin infusion (VARI) process, the shell test specimens are produced as a curved structure with glass fiber reinforced polymer (GFRP) sandwiching a polyvinyl chloride (PVC) foam core. Patch repairs are then introduced with varying layup techniques, and material properties are examined with cyclic fatigue tests. The transition region between patch and parent material is studied in greater detail with finite element method (FEM) simulations, with a focus on the effect of fiber orientation mismatch. Damage onset, crack development, and eventual failure are monitored with in-situ non-destructive testing methods to develop a robust understanding of the effects of repair concepts on material stiffness and strength.
Superplasticizer and Shrinkage Reducing Admixture Dosages for Microfine Cement in Grout Systems
(2019)
Grouts have numerous applications including crack repair as maintenance in construction industries. Microfine cements are intensively used for high strength mortar and grout products. They are ideal for injection grouting in structural repair. Such grouts should have suitable rheological properties to be injectable, especially those used in repair and rehabilitation. The use of superplasticizers (SP) in these products is thus becoming increasingly crucial to achieve favorable workability and viscosity properties. A difficulty in such grouts is the plastic shrinkage due to finer particles used. It is thus necessary to determine optimum SP and shrinkage reducing admixture (SRA) dosages for a microfine cement based grout. In this study, a saturation dosage was decided from two Polycarboxylate ether (PCE) based SPs in relation to neat cement using slump flow and rheological parameters. A range of grout mixtures was formulated containing micro silica (MS) and fly ash (FA), and tested for suitable rheological and mechanical parameters. Based on the results, a grout mixture with MS and FA was selected to determine optimum SRA content. According to the results, a SP dosage of 3% by weight of neat cement is sufficient to achieve saturation. The grout material including MS and FA can produce comparable properties to neat cement grout. MS is found to improve compressive strength within the range considered, whereas a higher FA content provides favourable rheological properties. Finally, a SRA dosage of 4%, which could reduce the shrinkage by about 43% after 28d days, is determined for the grout system.
High-throughput fire tests and weathering-induced degradation behaviour of intumescent coatings
(2018)
In this work, the weathering-induced degradation of intumescent coatings was investigated by a systematic and comprehensive approach. A mechanism is revealed that is proposed to be responsible for the loss of function of intumescent coatings induced by weathering.
First, the thermal decomposition of artificially weathered intumescent coatings was examined. To get a better understanding of the weathering and ageing phenomena, the degradation behaviour of the single ingredients during the weathering process was investigated, as well as their chemical and physical interactions. For the systematic approach, the materials that are essential for intumescence (ammonium polyphosphate, pentaerythritol, titanium dioxide, melamine and the binder) are treated with moisture, elevated temperature and UV radiation.
Thermogravimetry (TG) and IR spectroscopy were used to compare the initial samples with their different grades of weathering. We demonstrate that ammonium polyphosphate, melamine and the binder are mainly responsible for the ageing process. Further, it was demonstrated that TG and IR spectroscopy are suitable measuring methods to detect the effects of weathering on intumescent coatings.
Finally, a small-scale fire test procedure is introduced. Based on the reduction of the sample size, up to 50 samples can be tested in a single fire test. The results of this fire test have the same quality as the results from standard intermediate fire tests corresponding to DIN 4102-8.
Laser-Metal-Deposition (LMD) and Plasma-Transferred-Arc (PTA) are well known Technologies which can be used for cladding purposes. The prime objective in combining LMD and PTA as a Hybrid Metal Deposition-Technology (HMD) is to achieve high Deposition rates at low thermal Impact. Possible applications are coatings for wear protection or repair welding for components made of steel. The two energy sources (laser and Plasma arc) build a Joint process Zone and are configurated to constitute a stable process at laser powers between 0.4-1 kW (defocused) and Plasma currents between 75-200 A. Stainless steel 316L serves as filler material. For this HMD process, a Plasma Cu-nozzle is designed and produced by powder bed based Selective Laser Melting. The potential of the HMD Technology is investigated and discussed considering existing process. This paper demonstrates how the interaction of the two energy sources effects the following application-relevant properties: Deposition rate, powder Efficiency and energy Input.
Reliability assessment of existing bridge constructions based on results of non-destructive testing
(2018)
The non-destructive testing methods available for civil engineering (NDT-CE) enable the measurements of quantitative parameters, which realistically describe the characteristics of existing buildings. In the past, methods for quality evaluation and concepts for validation expanded into NDT-CE to improve the objectivity of measured data. Thereby, a metrological foundation was developed to collect statistically sound and structurally relevant information about the inner construction of structures without destructive interventions. More recently, the demand for recalculations of structural safety was identified. This paper summarizes a basic research study on structural analyses of bridges in combination with NDT. The aim is to use measurement data of nondestructive testing methods as stochastic quantities in static calculations. Therefore, a methodical interface between the guide to the expression of uncertainty in measurement and probabilistic approximation procedures (e.g. FORM) has been proven to be suitable. The motivation is to relate the scientific approach of the structural analysis with real information coming from existing structures and not with those found in the literature. A case study about the probabilistic bending proof of a reinforced concrete bridge with statistically verified data from ultrasonic measurements shows that the measuring results fulfil the requirements concerning precision, trueness, objectivity and reliability.
Common air-coupled transducers for non-destructive testing consist of a piezocomposite material and several matching layers. Better acoustical matching to air is achieved by transducers based on charged cellular polypropylene (PP). This material has about hundred times lower acoustic impedance than any piezocomposite, having about the same piezoelectric coefficient. The piezoelectric properties of cellular PP are caused by the polarization of air cells. Alternatively, a ferroelectret receiver can be understood as a capacitive microphone with internal polarization creating permanent internal voltage. The sensitivity of the receiver can be increased by applying additional bias voltage. We present an ultrasonic receiver based on cellular PP including a high-voltage module providing bias voltage up to 2 kV. The application of bias voltage increased the signal by 12 to 15 dB with only 1 dB increase of the noise.
This receiver was combined with a cellular PP transmitter in through transmission to inspect several test specimens consisting of glass-fiber-reinforced polymer face sheets and a porous closed-cell PVC core. These test specimens were inspected before and after load. Fatigue cracks in the porous PVC core and some fatigue damage in the face sheets were detected. These test specimens were originally developed to emulate a rotor blade segment of a wind power plant. Similar composite materials are used in lightweight aircrafts for the general aviation. The other inspected test specimen was a composite consisted of glass-fiber-reinforced polymer face sheets and a wooden core. The structure of the wooden core could be detected only with cellular PP transducers, while commercial air-coupled transducers lacked the necessary sensitivity. Measured on a 4-mm thick carbon-fiber-reinforced polymer plate, cellular PP transducers with additional bias voltage achieved a 32 dB higher signal-to-noise ratio than commercial air-coupled transducers.
Pipe steels suitable for carbon capture and storage technology (CCS) require resistance against the corrosive environment of a potential CCS-site, e.g. heat, pressure, salinity of the aquifer, CO2-partial pressure. Samples of different mild and high alloyed stainless injection-pipe steels partially heat treated: 42CrMo4, X20Cr13, X46Cr13, X35CrMo4 as well as X5CrNiCuNb16-4 were kept at T=60 °C and ambient pressure as well as p=100 bar for 700 h - 8000 h in a CO2-saturated synthetic aquifer environment similar to possible geological on-shore CCS-sites in the northern German Basin. Main corrosion products are FeCO3 and FeOOH. Corrosion rates obtained at 100 bar are generally much lower than those measured at ambient pressure. Highest surface corrosion rates are 0.8 mm/year for 42CrMo4 and lowest 0.01 mm/year for X5CrNiCuNb16-4 in the vapour phase at ambient pressure. At 100 bar the highest corrosion rates are 0.01 mm/year for 42CrMo4, X20Cr13 (liquid phase), X46Cr13 and less than 0.01 mm/year for X35CrMo4 and X5CrNiCuNb16-4 after 8000 h of exposure with no regard to atmosphere. Martensitic microstructure offers good corrosion resistance.
The performance and safety of welded high-strength low-alloyed steel (HSLA) components are substantially affected by the stresses occurring during and after welding fabrication, especially if welding shrinkage and distortion are severely restrained. The surrounding structure of the whole component affects loads in the far-field superimposing with welding stresses in the near-field of the weld. In this study a unique testing facility was used to restrain shrinkage and bending while analyse multiaxial far-field loads (max. 2 MN) during assembly of thick-walled component. A novel approach for the assessment of the in-situ-measured far-field data in combination with the actual weld geometry was elaborated. For the first time, analyses of the global bending moments of restrained welds based on the neutral axis of the actual weld load bearing section were achieved. Hence, far-field measurements offered the possibility to determine critical near-field stresses of the weld crosssections for the entire joining process. This work presents the approach for far-to-near field in-situ determination of stresses in detail for the 2-MN-testing system based on an extensive experimental work on HSLA steel welds, which demonstrates sources and consequences of these high local welding stresses. Thus, it was clarified, why the first weld beads are crucial regarding welding stresses and cold cracking, which is well known, but has never been measured so far. Accompanying analyses using X-ray diffraction (XRD) after welding show effects on local residual stress distributions. These analyses indicated viable prospects for stress reduction during assembly of thick-walled HSLA steel components.
Modern and energy-efficient materials are essential for innovative designs for aerospace and automotive industries. Current technologies for rapid manufacturing such as additive manufacturing and liquid composite moulding by polymer Extrusion allow innovative ways of creating robust and lightweight constructions. Commercially available printing devices often use polylactide (PLA) or acrylonitrile butadiene styrene (ABS) as raw material. Therefore, parameters like the infill ratio, influencing the ability to resist mechanical stress, may have a beneficial impact on the lifetime of components.
These manufacturing technologies require a good knowledge about materials and even adapted non-destructive testing technologies and methods. Airborne ultrasonic testing has beneficial advantages for testing those lightweight constructions. It is a contact-free testing method, which does not require a liquid couplant. Therefore, it allows fast test cycles without any unwanted alternations of the material properties due to interactions with any coupling liquid. This contribution deals with the characterisation of printed specimens based on PLA by using airborne ultrasound and presents the current edge of non-destructive testing and evaluation using airborne ultrasonic transducers. The specimens, manufactured by polymer extrusion, are printed as thin plates. The infill ratio, as well as the material thickness, were varied to model density imperfections with different geometric shapes and properties. For better understanding of the limits of airborne ultrasonic testing in transmission, we compared own-developed transducers based on different physical principles: on ferroelectrets, on the thermoacoustic effect, as well as a new type of transducers based on gas discharges.
Grouting is a universal repair and strengthening technique, which is constantly used for structural remediation of concrete components, trenches, mine subsidence, dam joints, restoration of masonry structures, and geological stabilizations. Having an extremely small particle size of only few microns, ultrafine cements are ideal for grouting applications due to their superior permeability and compressive strength properties of the hardened cement paste compared to that of the less-expensive, but coarser ordinary Portland cements. Supplementary cementitious materials (SCMs) are often used to replace ultrafine cement in order to modify certain properties and to reduce costs. The aim of this experimental study is to investigate the effect of three supplementary materials: microsilica (MS), fly ash (FA), and metakaolin (MK) on the workability, and mechanical properties of an ultrafine cement based grout with a constant water-binder ratio and constant superplasticizer content. Maximum percentages of replacement with ultrafine cement were 6% by volume of cement for MS and 16% for FA, and MK. In general, results suggest that the workability is improved by addition of FA, whereas is reduced, when modified with MS and MK. The compressive strength of grout after cement replacement remains comparable to that of pure cement grout. However, there is a tendency of the MS to positively affect the compressive strength opposite to FA, whereas flexural strength is positively affected by FA. Based on the results, it is evident that grouts with Hägerman cone flow more than 500 mm and compressive strength of more than 90 MPa after 28 days can be produced.
Alkali-activated fly ash mortars were studied with regard to durability-relevant transport coefficients and the electrochemical behaviour of embedded carbon steel bars on exposure of the mortars to leaching, carbonation and chloride penetration environments. The transport coefficients differed considerably between different formulations, being lowest for a mortar with BFS addition, but still acceptable for one of the purely fly ash-based mortars. Leaching over a period of ~300 days in de-ionized water did not lead to observable corrosion of the embedded steel, as shown by the electrochemical data and visual inspection of the steel. Exposure to 100 % CO2 atmosphere caused steel depassivation within approx. two weeks; in addition, indications of a deterioration of the mortar were observed. The results are discussed in the context of the different reaction products expected in high- and low-Ca alkali-activated binders, and the alterations caused by leaching and carbonation.
Validation of artificial defects for non-destructive testing measurements on a reference structure
(2018)
Non-destructive testing was established over the last decades as an important tool for assessing damages, material characterization and quality assurance in civil engineering. For example, Ground Penetrating Radar (GPR) can be used to scan large areas of concrete structures to determine the spatial position of the reinforcement. With the ultrasonic echo method, the thickness of concrete structures can be easily determined even if a high density of reinforcement is given. Various methods and processes have been developed for the validation of NDT procedures aiming at ensuring the quality of measurements in practical use. The Probability of Detection (POD) for example, is an available method to compare different technical devices with each other quantitatively regarding their performance. With this method, the best suited testing device for a specific inspection task under defined boundary conditions can be selected. By using the Guide to the Expression of Uncertainty in Measurement (GUM), it is possible to quantify the measurement uncertainty of an inspection procedure for a specific task. Another important aspect to improve the acceptance of Non-destructive testing methods is the development of reference specimens.
Reference specimens serve for the calibration and further development of NDT methods under realistic conditions in different laboratories under the same conditions. A particular challenge here is the most realistic representation of a damage that can occur at building sites. Possible damages include for example horizontal and vertical cracks or honeycombs in concrete. Such a reference structure was built for the development of a new design of power plant constructions. Comparative studies on the manufacturing of realistic honeycombs and delaminations were carried out in advance on a test specimen. The results of this study are presented here.
Airborne ultrasonic testing of lightweight, structured composite materials enables fast and contact-free non-destructive testing in aerospace and avoids material degradation due to contact with a coupling liquid. Established resonant air-coupled transducers consist of piezocomposite materials and several matching layers or more advanced materials like charged cellular polypropylene. The relaxation time and the specific frequency of such mechanical ultrasound emitters limit the spectrum of applications for each device. A short pulse length is key for reliable defect detection and each component at test can be best characterized at material- and geometry-specific frequencies. Here we show that focused thermoacoustic transducers are suited for testing lightweight, structured composite plates. Since the ultrasound is generated in air, these transducers show no resonance behavior and emit a broadband acoustic spectrum between 1.2 kHz and 1 MHz. Composite specimens of 3 mm to 9 mm thickness made of polylactide with a honeycomb structure were tested. Flat bottom holes were introduced to quantify the spatial resolution of the imaging method inside the strongly anisotropic specimen. As no broadband receivers are available yet, cellular polypropylene transducers were used as receivers, which limits the bandwidth of the method towards the bandwidth of the receiver. Nevertheless, we demonstrate the competitiveness of the thermoacoustic transducer compared to mechanical emitters at their respective resonance frequencies. Because a thermoacoustic transmitter features a nearly ideal pulse width, a single transmitter can be coupled with receivers with different resonance frequencies. With the development of broadband ultrasound receivers, air-coupled ultrasound spectroscopy will likely be possible in the near future. The analysed transducer holds the potential to speed up testing during production and maintenance in aerospace and automotives. Its combination with a broadband receiver could also expand the application field of air-coupled ultrasonic testing from a qualitative error detection towards a quantitative, spatially resolved analysis of mechanical material properties.
Additive Manufacturing (AM) through the Selective Laser Melting (SLM) route offers ample scope for producing geometrically complex parts compared to the conventional subtractive manufacturing strategies. Nevertheless, the residual stresses which develop during the fabrication can limit application of the SLM components by reducing the load bearing capacity and by inducing unwanted distortion, depending on the boundary conditions specified during manufacturing. The present study aims at characterizing the residual stress states in the SLM parts using different diffraction methods. The material used is the nickel based superalloy Inconel 718. Microstructure as well as the surface and bulk residual stresses were characterized. For the residual stress analysis, X-ray, synchrotron and neutron diffraction methods were used. The measurements were performed at BAM, at the EDDI beamline of -BESSY II synchrotronand the E3 line -BER II neutron reactor- of the Helmholtz-Zentrum für Materialien und Energie (HZB) Berlin. The results reveal significant differences in the residual stress states for the different characterization techniques employed, which indicates the dependence of the residual state on the penetration depth in the sample. For the surface residual stresses, longitudinal and transverse stress components from X-ray and synchrotron agree well and the obtained values were around the yield strength of the material. Furthermore, synchrotron mapping disclosed gradients along the width and length of the sample for the longitudinal and transverse stress components. On the other hand, lower residual stresses were found in the bulk of the material measured using neutron diffraction. The longitudinal component was tensile and decreased towards the boundary of the sample. In contrast, the normal component was nearly constant and compressive in nature. The transversal component was almost negligible. The results indicate that a stress re-distribution takes place during the deposition of the consecutive layers. Further investigations are planned to study the phenomenon in detail.
Submerged arc welded (SAW) components of creep-resistant low-alloyed Cr-Mo-V steels are used for thick-walled heavy petrochemical reactors (wall-thickness up to 475 mm) as well as employed in construction of modern high-efficient fossil fired power plants. These large components are accompanied by significant restraints during welding fabrication, especially at positions of different thicknesses like welding of nozzles. As a result, residual stresses occur, playing a domi-nant role concerning so-called stress relief cracking (SRC) typically during post weld heat treat-ment (PWHT). Besides specific metallurgical factors (like secondary hardening due to re-precipitation), high tensile residual stresses are a considerable influence factor on SRC. For the assessment of SRC susceptibility of certain materials mostly mechanical tests are applied which are isolated from the welding process. Conclusions regarding the influence of mechanical factors are rare so far. The present research follows an approach to reproduce loads, which occur during welding of real thick-walled components scaled to laboratory conditions by using tests designed on different measures. A large-scale slit specimen giving a high restraint in 3 dimensions by high stiffness was compared to a medium-scale multi-pass welding U-profile specimen showing a high degree of restraint in longitudinal direction and a small-scale TIG-re-melted specimen. The small-scale specimens were additionally subjected to mechanical bending to induce loads that are found during fabrication on the real-scale in heavy components. Results show for all three cases compa-rable high tensile residual stresses up to yield strength with high gradients in the weld metal and the heat affected zone. Those high tensile stresses can be significant for cracking during further PWHT.
Fibre-reinforced plastics (FRP) especially carbon-fibre-reinforced polymer (CFRP) and glass-fibre-reinforced polymer (GFRP) are commonly used materials in high pressure vessels and storage units for automotive and aerospace purposes. Optical fibres are suitable to be integrated or directly applied to the surface of FRP components. Using optical fibres it is possible to monitor the distributed strain profiles and changes within the fatigue life of a pressure vessel to ensure the operational safety. Within artificial ageing experiments we used swept wavelength interferometry (SWI) based distributed strain sensing for the monitoring of commercial high-pressure composite cylinder. This artificial ageing was performed using test conditions of 503bar pressure load (service pressure 300 bar) and 89 °C for 100 h. The polyimide coated optical fibres were glued to the surface externally in circumferential and axial direction. Using distributed strain sensing (DSS) material expansion of over 0.5% were monitored with sub-centimetre spatial resolution. Within the circumferential direction we observed up to 10 % local fluctuation compared to the median strain caused by inhomogeneous material expansion, which could cause local material fatigue. In addition, we determined material degradation manifested itself as localized remaining material expansion and/or contraction. Results have been validated by other non-destructive methods like digital strip projection.
In this paper, a nonlinear three-dimensional finite element (FE) model was developed and validated to study the effect of seismic damage location on the response of concrete filled tube (CFT) columns at fire after earthquakes. Three analyses were conducted consecutively in the modelling, namely, cyclic, thermal and structural. Results of the cyclic loading analysis comprising residual deformations were applied as the Initial condition to the thermal-stress model, replicating the seismic performance of column.
Following, a nonlinear sequentially coupled-thermal stress Analysis was carried out to investigate the fire response of CFT columns after the seismic event. Three damage scenarios were contemplated, considering any possible potential damages that could be generated by the earthquake loading on CFT columns. The accuracy of the proposed FE model was examined by comparing the numerical results with that of available tests on fire and cyclic loading. By means of the validated model, the performance of damaged CFT columns was then investigated under fire after earthquakes. The level of damage was assumed as a high damage level, presuming that the column reached 50% of ist lateral resistance while still maintaining its overall stability after the earthquake. The results were presented broadly, including the axial deformation history as well as the fire resistance time for CFT columns. To have a comprehensive insight on the influence of damage location in columns, the fire response of damaged specimens was compared with that of an intact one.
Investigations on weldability often deal with hot cracking as one of the most prevalent failure mechanisms during weld fabrication. The modified varestraint transvarestraint hot cracking test (MVT) is well known to assess the hot cracking susceptibility of materials. The shortcoming of this approach is that the information is only from the very near surface region which inhibits access to the characteristic of the hot crack network in the bulk. Here, we report about an alternative approach to monitor the entire 3D hot crack network after welding by means of microfocus X-ray computer tomography (µCT). However, to provide sufficient high spatial resolution small samples must be sectioned from the MVT-welded joint. The sampling is accompanied by local relaxation of the residual stress distributions that are induced by welding, which can have an impact on the crack volumes prior to the sampling. The studies were carried out to investigate the hot cracking susceptibility of low transformation temperature filler materials (LTT). As high compression residual stresses up to -600 MPa in the area of the crack networks were determined by means of the contour method, stress relaxation caused by sectioning for µCT sample extraction can affect the detectability of the cracks later on. X-ray diffraction studies revealed surface residual stress relaxations up to about 400 MPa due to cutting. To investigate this effect, the specimens with hot cracks were subjected to a load test with known stress states. The results clearly show that local stress relaxations will have a strong impact on the volume images reconstructed from tomography analysis. This effect must be considered during hot crack assessment on basis of µCT data.
Additive manufacturing (AM) offers a range of novel applications. However, the manufacturing process is complex and the production of defect-free parts with high reliability and durability is still a challenge. Thermography is a valuable tool for process surveillance, especially in metal AM processes. The high process temperatures allow one to use cameras usually operating in the visible spectral range. Here, we compare the results of measurements during the manufacturing process of a commercial laser metal deposition setup using a mid-wavelength-IR camera with those from a visual spectrum high-speed camera with band pass filter in the near-IR range.
Quantification of impact damages in CFRP and GFRP structures with thermography and ultrasonics
(2018)
The extent of damage caused by impacts in fibre reinforced composites depends on the energy of the impacts, on the velocity and the shape of the impacting body, on the material and structure of the composite and on the geometry of the structure. Here, mainly the thickness of the component is essential. The non-destructive evaluation of these damages can be carried out using both ultrasound and active thermography methods. A comparison of the detection sensitivity of these methods for the different damages is carried out in this paper depending on the fibre composite material used (CFRP and GFRP), the thickness of the material and the impact energy. The NDT methods used after the damage are supplemented by thermographic measurements with high temporal resolution, which were already recorded during the impact.
The Scaled Boundary Finite Element Method (SBFEM) is a semi-analytical method that shows promising results in modelling of guided ultrasonic waves. Efficiency and low computational cost of the method are achieved by a discretisation of the boundary of a computational domain only, whereas for the domain itself the analytical solution is used. By means of the SBFEM different types of defects, e.g. cracks, pores, delamination, corrosion, integrated into a structure consisting of anisotropic and isotropic materials can be modelled.
In this contribution, the SBFEM is used to analyse the propagation of guided waves in a structure consisting of an isotropic metal bonded to anisotropic carbon fibre reinforced material. The method allows appropriate wave types (modes) to be identified and to analyse their interaction with different defects. Results obtained are used to develop a structural health monitoring system for composite pressure vessels used in automotive and aerospace industries.
Using an infrared camera for radiometric imaging allows the contactless temperature measurement of multiple surface pixels simultaneously. From the measured surface data, a sub-surface structure, embedded inside a sample or tissue, can be reconstructed and imaged when heated by an excitation light pulse. The main drawback in radiometric imaging is the degradation of the spatial resolution with increasing depth, which results in blurred images for deeper lying structures. We circumvent this degradation with blind structured illumination, combined with a non-linear joint sparsity reconstruction algorithm. The ground-breaking concept of super-resolution can be transferred from optics to thermographic imaging.
Optical lock-in thermography is a completely contactless and very sensitive NDT technique. As an optical source of energy, incandescent lamps are most commonly used because they are relatively inexpensive and offer high irradiances at the test specimen. However, they are strongly restricted by their low modulation bandwidth with a maximum modulation frequency of only about 1 Hz. The use of high-power kilowattclass laser sources, e.g. diode laser arrays, pushes this constraint beyond 100 Hz. This allows for the exploration of the near-surface region of metals and layer systems with better and more accurate penetration depth and depth resolution. Moreover, these lasers are virtually free of any additional thermal radiation that could interfere with the “true” thermal response emitted from the heated sample. In turn, they can be easily used in a one-sided test configuration. We present current activities with kilowatt-class highpower laser sources for advanced lock-in thermography and focus on the application of laser arrays that offer a very high irradiation strength over a large sample area beyond the mentioned advantages.
3D structural investigations are described by X-ray laminography studies of sandwich shell segments, made of a PVC foam core, covered by non-crimp fabric glass fibre composite lay-ups processed by vacuum assisted resin infusion of epoxy. The specific scope of this study is to image transversal flaws within the foam core (joints) and of single ply overlaps. Test flaws were purposely implemented in order to simulate typical failure under cyclic load. In a dedicated test rig for shell structures, the flaw evolution/propagation is monitored by thermography and optical 3D inspection of deformation. Due to the unfavourable preconditions for classical computed tomography as of large aspect ratio, the samples were investigated by coplanar translational laminography. Its limited range of observation angles of ± 45°, results in anisotropic artefacts about the normal to the sample surface, but the typical flaws are well visualized in the as-prepared state, in a state of early damage, and in the repaired state.
Additively manufactured test specimens made of polyamide 12 (PA 12) by Laser Sintering (LS) as well as of acrylnitril-butadien-styrol (ABS) by Fused Layer Modeling (FLM), were tested with active thermography. For this, two different excitation methods (flash and impulse excitation) were used and compared, regarding the suitability for the detection of constructed and imprinted defects. To increase the quality of the thermograms, data processing methods like thermal signal reconstruction (TSR) and Fourier-Transformation were applied. Furthermore, the long-term stability of the probes towards environmental stress, like UV-radiation, heat, water contact and frost is being investigated in the presented project with artificial weathering tests.
Systematic errors in the evaluation of uncorrected data from thermographic lock-in measurements
(2018)
Lock-in thermography (LT) is based on the correct evaluation of phase differences between the temperature oscillations at different surface regions of the object under test during periodic heating. Since the usual heating procedures contain a DC component, the actual heating pattern achieved is not harmonic. This causes systematic deviations when phase differences are determined by means of harmonic analysis, e.g. with FFT analysis. The resulting errors depend clearly on the ratio between DC and AC amplitude, which is demonstrated at simulated and experimentally recorded temperature transients. Further experimental LT data obtained by different oscillating energy inputs showed a variety of possible shapes of transients with different DC components.