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Wind turbines are exposed to a high number of load cycles during their service lifetime. Therefore, the fatigue strength verification plays an important role in their design. In general, the nominal stress method is used for the fatigue verification of the most common used butt-welded joints. The Eurocode 3 part 1–9 is the current design standard for this field of application. This paper presents recent results of fatigue tests on small-scaled specimens and large components with transverse butt welds to discuss the validity of the FAT-class. Furthermore, results from numerical simulations for the verification with the effective notch stress and the crack propagation approach are used for comparison. Based on the consistency between the numerical results and the fatigue tests, the influence of the seam geometry on the fatigue resistance was investigated. Finally, a prediction of the fatigue strength of butt-welded joints with plate thicknesses up to 80 mm was carried out.
Acceleration sensors are vital for assessing engineering structures by measuring properties like natural frequencies. In practice, engineering structures often have low natural frequencies and face harsh environmental conditions. Understanding sensor behavior on such structures is crucial for reliable masurements. The research focus is on understanding the behavior of acceleration sensors in harsh environmental conditions within the low-frequency acceleration range. The main question is how to distinguish sensor behavior from structural influences to minimize errors in assessing engineering structure conditions. To investigate this, the sensors are tested using a long-stroke calibration unit under varying temperature and humidity conditions. Additionally, a mini-monitoring system configured with four IEPE sensors is applied to a small-scale support structure within a climate chamber. For the evaluation, a signal-energy approach is employed to distinguish sensor behavior from structural behavior. The findings show that IEPE sensors display temperature-dependent nonlinear transmission behavior within the low-frequency acceleration range, with humidity having negligible impact. To ensure accurate engineering structure assessment, it is crucial to separate sensor behavior from structural influences using signal energy in the time domain. This study underscores the need to compensate for systematic effects, preventing the underestimation of vibration energy at low temperatures and overestimation at higher temperatures when using IEPE sensors for engineering structure monitoring.
In this article, a partial selection of experiments on enhancing the impact resistance of structural components with non-metallic, textile-reinforced concrete is discussed. The focus is on the experimental investigations in which the impact resistance of thin, textile-reinforced concrete plates is characterized. The article discusses the materials, fabrics and test setup used. For the experimental work, a drop tower from the Otto Mohr Laboratory, which belongs to the Technische Universtät Dresden, was used. Furthermore, the experimental results are presented and evaluated using different methods. Based on the collected data, a suitable approach to determining the perforation velocity of an impactor through the investigated thin, textile-reinforced concrete plates is shown.
The vehicle–track interaction generates forces and consequently vibrations in the environment. The interaction has been analysed by the simultaneous measurements of vehicle, track and ground vibrations during test runs with varied train speeds. The special effects of the passage over a bridge and through a tunnel are studied and compared with the measurements on a conventional ballasted surface line. The maximum amplitudes, narrow band and one-third octave band spectra are presented for the axle-box accelerations and for the track, bridge and ground vibrations. The different frequencies and frequency bands are related to wheel out-of-roundness, track alignment errors, the sleeper passage and the wheelset–track resonance. An axle impulse component has been observed at the track, at the near-field soil and as a scattered version in the far field. Specific results can be found for the bridge track, where clearly speed-dependent bridge resonances occur due to the axle sequence of the train, and for the tunnel track where soft rail pads are responsible for a strong amplification around the wheelset–track resonance. On the other hand, the axle impulses are strongly reduced by the tunnel track, and the scattered axle impulse component is not as relevant as for the surface track. As a consequence, a strong mid-frequency amplitude reduction of the tunnel compared to the surface line has been measured for low and high train speeds by the Federal Institute of Material Research and Testing (BAM) and by other institutes.
The propagation of ground vibrations is theoretically analysed with frequency-wavenumber and simplified methods. Experimental methods are presented which can characterise the site-specific ground vibrations by wave velocities, stiffness and damping. Measurements with hammer and train excitation have been performed at several sites. The one-third octave spectra show the stiffness-dependent amplitudes and the low- and high-frequency filter effects due to the layering and the damping of the soil. Specific train effects, an additional high-frequency filter, the sleeper passage frequency, and an amplified mid-frequency component can be clearly found. The attenuation with distance is analysed in detail where the theoretical exponential and the empirical frequency-dependent power law are considered. Hammer and train excitation show the same site-specific effects which are mainly due to the stronger or weaker damping of the soil. The train attenuation is generally weaker than the hammer attenuation. The attenuation exponent of the power law, which is strongly dependent on the site and the frequency, is reduced for the train vibration by 0.3 to 0.5 in agreement with the theory. Reasons are discussed for the overall power law and for the dominating mid-frequency component.
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 (less than1 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. These effects are prominent in the meso-pore range and might significantly alter the effective diffusion coefficient.
Quenching and partitioning (Q&P) steels are characterized by an excellent combination of strength and ductility, opening up great potentials for advanced lightweight components. The Q&P treatment results in microstructures with a martensitic matrix being responsible for increased strength whereas interstitially enriched metastable retained austenite (RA) contributes to excellent ductility. Herein, a comprehensive experimental characterization of microstructure evolution and austenite stability is carried out on a 42CrSi steel being subjected to different Q&P treatments. The microstructure of both conditions is characterized by scanning electron microscopy as well as X‐ray diffraction (XRD) phase analysis. Besides macroscopic standard tensile tests, RA evolution under tensile loading is investigated by in situ XRD using synchrotron and laboratory methods. As a result of different quenching temperatures, the two conditions considered are characterized by different RA contents and morphologies, resulting in different strain hardening behaviors as well as strength and ductility values under tensile loading. In situ synchrotron measurements show differences in the transformation kinetics being rationalized by the different morphologies of the RA. Eventually, the evolution of the phase specific stresses can be explained by the well‐known Masing model.
The reduction in train-induced ground vibrations by different railway lines and by mitigation measures in the propagation path was analysed in a unified approach by two-dimensional finite element calculations. In general, there was no reduction at low frequencies, and the reduction be-came stronger with increasing frequencies. A maximum reduction of 0.1 at high frequencies was established with an open trench. Reductions between 0.7 and 0.2 have been found for the other sit-uations, filled trenches, walls, plates, and blocks, as well as for railway lines on dams, in cuts and in a tunnel. Bridges can produce amplifications due to their resonance frequencies, but also strong reductions due to massive bridge piers. The influence of some parameters has been analysed, such as the bridge span, the inclination of the dam and the cut, the stiffness of the soil, and the tunnel structure. The dynamic track stiffnesses of a surface, bridge, and tunnel track have been calculated using the 3D finite-element boundary-element method for comparison with corresponding meas-urements.
Using digital twins for decision making is a very promising concept which combines simulation models with corresponding experimental sensor data in order to support maintenance decisions or to investigate the reliability. The quality of the prognosis strongly depends on both the data quality and the quality of the digital twin. The latter comprises both the modeling assumptions as well as the correct parameters of these models. This article discusses the challenges when applying this concept to realmeasurement data for a demonstrator bridge in the lab, including the data management, the iterative development of the simulation model as well as the identification/updating procedure using Bayesian inference with a potentially large number of parameters. The investigated scenarios include both the iterative identification of the structural model parameters as well as scenarios related to a damage identification. In addition, the article aims at providing all models and data in a reproducibleway such that other researcher can use this setup to validate their methodologies.
Ground vibrations near railway lines are generated by the forces that are acting between wheel and rail. It seems to be a straight forward assumption that the vehicle dynamics are important for the level and the frequencies of the excitation forces. Different vehicle dynamics phenomena are analysed for their role in the excitation of ground vibrations: rigid body modes of the bogies, elastic (bending) modes of the car body, and elastic modes of the wheelset. The theoretical analyses use rigid body models, simplified elastic models, and detailed elastic models. Some of these problems are vehicle–track interaction problems where 3D finite‑element boundary‑element models have been used for the track and soil. It is shown that the rigid or flexible vehicle modes are well in the frequency range of ground vibrations (4 to 100 Hz). They have an influence on the excitation force but the additional forces are rather small and can be neglected in ground vibration prediction. The theoretical results are checked by experimental results of a simultaneous measurement of vehicle,
track, and ground vibrations.
Structural health monitoring is a promising technology to automatically detect structural changes based on permanently installed sensors. Vibration-based methods that evaluate the global system response to ambient excitation are suited to diagnose changes in boundary conditions, i.e., changes in member prestress or imposed displacements. In this paper, these changes are evaluated based on sensitivity-based statistical tests, which are capable of detecting and localizing parametric structural changes. The main contribution is the analytical calculation of sensitivity vectors for changes in boundary conditions (i.e., changes in prestress or support conditions) based on stress stiffening, and the combination with a numerically efficient algorithm, i.e., Nelson’s method. One of the main advantages of the employed damage diagnosis algorithm is that, although it uses physical models for damage detection, it considers the uncertainty in the data-driven features, which enables a reliabilitybased approach to determine the probability of detection. Moreover, the algorithm can be trained and the probability of detecting future damages can be predicted based on data and a model from the undamaged structure,
in an unsupervised learning mode, making it particularly relevant for unique structures, where no data from the damaged state is available. For proof of concept, a numerical case study is presented. The study assesses the loss of prestress in a two-span reinforced concrete beam and showcases suitable validation approaches for the sensitivity calculation.
block and mortar types is analysed with particular regard to the influence of varying relative humidity. The uniaxial compressive strength and deformation characteristics of unstabilised earth blocks and mortars as well as of unstabilised earth block masonry are studied in detail and compared to conventional masonry to evaluate whether the structural design can be made accordingly. An increase of 30 % points in relative humidity leads to a reduction of the masonry´s compressive strength between 33 % and 35 % whereas the Young´s modulus is reduced by 24–29 %. However, the ratio between the Young´s modulus and the characteristic compressive strength of earth block masonry ranges between E33/fk = 283–583 but is largely independent of the relative humidity. The results show that the mechanical properties of the investigated unstabilised earth block masonry are sufficient for load-bearing structures, yielding a masonry compressive strength between 2.3 MPa and 3.7 MPa throughout the range of moisture contents
investigated. In general, the design concept of conventional masonry can be adapted for unstabilised earth masonry provided that the rather low Young´s modulus as well as the moisture dependence of both, compressive strength and Young´s modulus, are sufficiently taken into
account.
The train passages over intact or damaged slab tracks on different soils have been calculated by two methods. The finite element method (FEM) uses a Winkler soil under the track model by adding a thin “soil layer”. The combined finite element boundary element method has a continuous soil model which is included by the boundary element method. The basic results are the distributions of the track (rail, track plate, and base layer) displacements along the track for a single axle laod. These solutions are superposed to a complete train load and transformed to time histories. The influence of track and soil parameters has been analysed. The main interest is the influence of the track damage. A gap between track plate and base layer of different lengths has been studied for changes in amplitudes and widths of deflection. A best fit to measured track displacements has been found so that the track damage can be identified and quantified. The FEM model with Winkler soil cannot be fitted to the amplitude and width with the same soil parameters. Therefore, the FEBEM model is preferable for these railway track problems.
Irregularities of the track are a main cause of train-induced ground vibration, and track maintenance is of great importance. Although geometric irregularities at the wheel-rail contact are widely used, other types of irregularities, such as stiffness irregularities, irregularities from different track positions and irregularities in the wave propagation, were analysed in the present study. The track behaviour was investigated by a multi-beam-on-soil model. This track model is coupled with a vehicle model to calculate the vehicle–track interaction. The track model was also used for the track filtering, which transfers a track support error to the equivalent rail irregularity or, conversely, the sharp axle pulse on the rail to a smoother pulse on the soil. In the case in which this filtering varies randomly along the track, the pulses of the moving static load induce a certain ground Vibration component (“the scatter of axle pulses”). This effect was calculated by the superposition of axle pulses in the frequency domain and by a stochastic simulation. Simultaneous vehicle, track and soil measurements at a certain site were used to evaluate the different excitation and ground Vibration components. The agreement between calculations and axle-box and soil measurements is good. The ground vibrations calculated from rail irregularities and corresponding dynamic loads, however, clearly underestimate the measured ground vibration amplitudes. Only the static load that is moving over a varying track support stiffness can produce the important mid-frequency ground Vibration component by the scatter of axle pulses.
The fatigue process of concrete under compressive cyclic loading is still not completely explored. The corresponding damage processes within the material structure are especially not entirely investigated. The application of acoustic measurement methods enables a better insight into the processes of the fatigue in concrete. Normal strength concrete was investigated under compressive cyclic loading with regard to the fatigue process by using acoustic methods in combination with other nondestructive measurement methods. Acoustic emission and ultrasonic signal measurements were applied together with measurements of strains, elastic modulus, and static strength. It was possible to determine the anisotropic character of the fatigue damage caused by uniaxial loading based on the ultrasonic measurements. Furthermore, it was observed that the fatigue damage seems to consist not exclusively of load parallel oriented crack structures. Rather, crack structures perpendicular to the load as well as local compacting are likely components of the fatigue damage. Additionally, the ultrasonic velocity appears to be a good indicator for fatigue damage beside the elastic modulus. It can be concluded that acoustic methods allow an observation of the fatigue process in concrete and a better understanding, especially in combination with further measurement methods.
A simple and fast prediction scheme is presented for train induced ground and building vibrations. Simple models such as (1-dimensional) transfer matrices are used for the vehicle-track-soil interaction and for the building-soil interaction. The wave propagation through layered soils is approximated by a frequency-dependent homogeneous half-space. The prediction is divided into the parts “emission” (excitation by railway traffic), “transmission” (wave propagation through the soil) and “immission” (transfer into a building). The link between the modules is made by the excitation force between emission and transmission, and by the free-field vibration between transmission and immission. All formula for the simple vehicle-track, soil and building models are given in this article. The behaviour of the models is demonstrated by typical examples, that is the mitigation of train vibrations by elastic track elements, the low- and high-frequency cut-offs characteristic for layered soils, and the interacting soil, wall and floor resonances of multi-storey buildings. It is shown that the results of the simple prediction models can well represent the behaviour of the more time-consuming detailed models, the finite-element boundary-element models of the track, the wavenumber integrals for the soil, and the three-dimensional finite-element models of the building. In addition, measurement examples are given for each part of the prediction confirming that the methods provide reasonable results. As the prediction models are fast in calculation, many predictions can be done, for example to assess the environmental effect along a new railway line. The simple models have the additional advantage that the user needs to know only a minimum of parameters. So, the prediction is fast and user-friendly, but also theoretically and experimentally well-founded.
Classic non-destructive fatigue crack detection methods reveal the state of the fatigue damage evolution at the moment of application, generally not under operational conditions. The here introduced crack luminescence method realizes a clear visibility of the occurred and growing crack in loaded components during operation. Different established experiments show that due to the sensitive coating a crack Formation can be detected even in early stage under the premise the crack reached the surface. The coating consists of two layers with different properties and functions. The bottom layer emits light as fluorescence under UV radiation. The top layer covers the fluorescing one and prevents the emitting of light in case of no damage at the surface. In case of surface crack occurrence, the luminescent light is clearly noticeable by visual observations and also by standard camera equipment which makes automated crack detection possible as well. It is expected that crack luminescence can increase structural safety as well as reduce costs and time for inspections and preventive maintenance.
This paper proposes a novel method to estimate the lateral displacement of high-rise structures under wind loads. The coefficient β(x) is firstly derived, reflecting the relation between the structural lateral dynamic displacement and the inclination angle at the height x of a structure. If the angle is small, it is the ratio between the structural fundamental mode shape and its first-order derivative without influence of external loads. Several dynamic experiments of structures are performed based on a laser remote sensing vibrometer and an inclinometer, which shows that the fundamental mode is dominated in the structural displacement response under different types of excitations. Once the coefficient β(x) is curve-fitted by measuring both the structural lateral dynamic displacement and the inclination angle synchronously, the real-time structural lateral displacement under operational conditions is estimated by multiplying the coefficient β(x) with the inclination angle. The advantage of the proposed method is that the coefficient β(x) can be identified by lateral dynamic displacement measured in high resolution by the remote sensing vibrometer, which is useful to reconstruct the displacement accurately by the inclination angle under operational conditions
A strain-based automated operational modal analysis algorithm is proposed to track the long-term dynamic behavior of a horizontal wind turbine under operational conditions.
This algorithm is firstly validated by a scaled wind turbine model, and then it is applied to the dynamic strain responses recorded from a 5 MW wind turbine system. We observed variations in the fundamental frequency and 1f, 3f excitation frequencies due to the mass imbalance of the blades and aerodynamic excitation by the tower dam or tower wake. Inspection of the Campbell diagram revealed that the adverse resonance phenomenon and Sommerfeld effect causing excessive vibrations of the wind tower.
This article deals with the relevance and practical feasibility of micromechanical simulations for their application to general geomechanical problems involving fluid-saturated granular assemblies, whether frictional or cohesive. A set of conceptual and numerical tools is here presented, advocating for a parallel computation using graphical processing units (GPUs) to treat large numbers of degrees of freedom with conventional Desktop computers. The fluid phase is here simulated with a particle-resolved approach in the frame of the Lattice Botzmann Method (LBM) while the granular solid phase is modelled as a collection of discrete particles from a Molecular Dynamics DEM perspective. The range of possible material behaviours for the solid granular phase is intended here to cover a broad spectrum from purely frictional to viscous cohesive materials with either brittle or transient debonding features. Specific details of the implementation and some validation cases are put forward.
Finally, some exemplary applications in the fields of soil erosion and geotechnical profile installation are provided along with a discussion on the parallel performance of the presented models. The results show that a micromechanical approach can be feasible and useful in practice, providing meaningful insights into complex engineering problems like the erosion kinetics of a soil under an impinging jet or the penetration resistance of a deep foundation in a layered soil profile.
Three measurement campaigns of train-induced ground vibrations are evaluated for the vehicle-track-soil interaction. Ground vibrations, track vibrations and vehicle vibrations have been measured for train passages and impulse excitation and compared with theoretical results.
The soil and the track-soil system are calculated by wavenumber integrals. The influence of the vehicle is introduced by a substructure method. By comparing theory and measurement the different components of excitation force and ground vibration can be analysed, the quasi-static excitation, track-alignment errors, the out-of-roundness of wheels, the wheel and rail roughness, and moreover, scattered axle impulses and ineffective high-frequency parts of the wheelset accelerations and forces.
Automated modal analysis for tracking structural change during construction and operation phases
(2019)
The automated modal analysis (AMA) technique has attracted significant interest over the last few years, because it can track variations in modal parameters and has the potential to detect structural changes. In this paper, an improved density-based spatial clustering of applications with noise (DBSCAN) is introduced to clean the abnormal poles in a stabilization diagram. Moreover, the optimal system model order is also discussed to obtain more stable poles. A numerical Simulation and a full-scale experiment of an arch bridge are carried out to validate the effectiveness of the proposed algorithm. Subsequently, the continuous dynamic monitoring system of the bridge and the proposed algorithm are implemented to track the structural changes during the construction phase. Finally, the artificial neural network (ANN) is used to remove the temperature effect on modal frequencies so that a health index can be constructed under operational conditions.
This work describes a vibration-based structural health monitoring of a prestressed-concrete box girder bridge on the A100 Highway in Berlin by applying statistical pattern recognition technique to a huge amount of data continuously collected by an integrated monitoring system during the period from 2000 to 2013. Firstly, the general condition and potential damage of the bridge is described. Then, the dynamic properties are extracted from 20 velocity sensors. Environmental variability captured by five thermal transducers and traffic intensity approximately estimated by strain measurements are also reported. Nonlinear influences of temperature on natural frequencies are observed. Subsequently, the measurements during the first year are used to build a baseline health index. The multiple linear regression (MLR) method is used to characterize the nonlinear relationship between natural frequencies and temperatures. The Euclidean distance of the residual errors is calculated to build a statistical health index. Finally, the indices extracted from the following years gradually deviate; which may indicate structural deterioration due to loss of prestress in the prestressed tendons.