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Computationally Enabled 4D Visualizations Facilitate the Detection of Rock Fracture Patterns from Acoustic Emissions

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Abstract

Monitoring and predicting crack propagation in rock using acoustic emission (AE) technology is integral to a variety of sub-disciplines in the geosciences. The utility of existing AE data, however, is severely limited by prevailing visualization techniques, which suffer from problems of occlusion. Here, we introduce a novel approach to visualize 3D data through time (4D data) using unfiltered individual (AE) event data collected from a granite boulder for a period over 3 years. We implement a 3D extension of Ripley’s K function to evaluate the magnitude of clustering, and use the scale at which clustering is strongest to parameterize three-dimensional kernel density estimation (3DKDE) of AE events. We develop a parallel approach that features a load balancing technique to decrease the computational effort for 3DKDE and hence, reduce execution time. The results from the 3DKDE allow for comprehensible visualization of high AE density areas—best reflecting the actual location of subcritical cracking—and their changes through time, which is a substantial improvement over most existing methods. Our framework is scalable and portable to a variety of other disciplines such as epidemiology, ecology, and any point data by extension. Assumptions and limitations are identified as well as possible future research directions.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Geography and Earth Sciences, University of North Carolina at Charlotte, Charlotte, 28223, North Carolina, USA

    Alexander Hohl, Adam D. Griffith, Martha Cary Eppes & Eric Delmelle

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  1. Alexander Hohl
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  2. Adam D. Griffith
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  3. Martha Cary Eppes
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  4. Eric Delmelle
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Correspondence to Eric Delmelle.

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Hohl, A., D. Griffith, A., Eppes, M.C. et al. Computationally Enabled 4D Visualizations Facilitate the Detection of Rock Fracture Patterns from Acoustic Emissions. Rock Mech Rock Eng 51, 2733–2746 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00603-018-1488-z

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00603-018-1488-z

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