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Identification of Cracking Mechanisms in Scaled FRP Reinforced Concrete Beams using Acoustic Emission

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Abstract

Acoustic emission was used to monitor the cracking mechanisms leading to the failure of scaled concrete beams having Glass Fiber Reinforced Polymer (GFRP) longitudinal reinforcement and no shear reinforcement. Dimensional scaling included that of the effective depth of the cross section, which is a key parameter associated with the scaling of shear strength; and maximum aggregate size, which affects the shear-resisting mechanism of aggregate interlock along shear (inclined) cracks. Five GFRP reinforced concrete (RC) beams with effective depth up to 290 mm and constant shear span-to-effective depth ratio of 3.1 were load tested under four-point bending. Two types of failures were observed: flexural, due to rupture of the GFRP reinforcement in the constant moment region; and shear, due to inclined cracking in either constant shear region through the entire section depth. Acoustic emission (AE) analyses were performed to classify crack types occurring at different points in the load history. The results of this study indicate that appropriate AE parameters can be used to discriminate between developing flexural and shear cracks irrespective of scale, and provide warning of impending failure irrespective of the failure mode (flexural and shear). In addition, AE source location enabled to accurately map crack growth and identify areas of significant damage activity. These outcomes attest to the potential of AE as a viable technique for structural health monitoring and prognosis systems and techniques.

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Acknowledgements

The authors gratefully acknowledge the joint support of the University of South Carolina (Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering), the Politecnico di Milano (Department of Mechanical Engineering), and the U.S. Department of Commerce, National Institute of Standards and Technology, Technology Innovation Program, Cooperative Agreement Number 70NANB9H9007. Special thanks are extended to Hughes Brothers, Inc. for having donated the GFRP bars and to Mr. Edward Deaver (Holcim US, Inc.) and the personnel of the USC Structures and Materials Laboratory for the technical assistance provided.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. University of South Carolina, 300 Main Street, Columbia, SC, 29208, USA

    M. K. ElBatanouny, A. Larosche, P. H. Ziehl & F. Matta

  2. Politecnico di Milano, via La Masa, 1, Milan, 20156, Italy

    P. Mazzoleni & E. Zappa

Authors
  1. M. K. ElBatanouny
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  2. A. Larosche
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  3. P. Mazzoleni
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  4. P. H. Ziehl
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  5. F. Matta
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  6. E. Zappa
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to P. H. Ziehl.

Appendix A

Appendix A

Relevant terminology related to Acoustic Emission [40]

Each of the below listed parameters were calculated and given by the data acquisition program.

  • Amplitude: The largest voltage peak in the AE signal waveform; customarily expressed in decibels relative to 1 μV at the preamplifier input (dB) assuming a 40 dB preamp.

  • dB: A unit of measurement for AE signal amplitude A, defined by A (dB) = 20 log V p ; where V p is the peak signal voltage in μV referred to the preamplifier input.

  • Duration: The time from the first threshold crossing to the end of the last threshold crossing of the AE signal from the AE threshold.

  • Signal Strength: The measured area of the rectified AE signal with units proportional to volt seconds (the proportionality constant is specified by the AE instrument manufacturer).

  • Rise time: The time from an AE signal’s first threshold crossing to its peak.

  • Counts: The number of times the AE signal crosses the detection threshold.

  • Peak Frequency: The point in the power spectrum at which the peak magnitude occurs. The peak frequency is a 2 byte value reported in kHz.

  • RMS: The root mean square is a measure of continuous varying AE voltage. It is defined as the rectified time averaged AE signal measured on a linear scale and reported in volts.

  • RA value: The ratio between rise time and maximum amplitude in Volts from an AE signal.

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ElBatanouny, M.K., Larosche, A., Mazzoleni, P. et al. Identification of Cracking Mechanisms in Scaled FRP Reinforced Concrete Beams using Acoustic Emission. Exp Mech 54, 69–82 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11340-012-9692-3

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