Comprehensive condition assessment of bridge decks by multimodal NDE

Nenad Gucunski; Ruediger Feldmann; Francisco Romero; Sabine Kruschwitz; Hooman Parvardeh

doi:10.1117/12.848704

8 April 2010 Comprehensive condition assessment of bridge decks by multimodal NDE

Nenad Gucunski, Ruediger Feldmann, Francisco Romero, Sabine Kruschwitz, Hooman Parvardeh

Proceedings Volume 7649, Nondestructive Characterization for Composite Materials, Aerospace Engineering, Civil Infrastructure, and Homeland Security 2010; 76491H (2010) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.848704
Event: SPIE Smart Structures and Materials + Nondestructive Evaluation and Health Monitoring, 2010, San Diego, California, United States

Abstract

Corrosion induced bridge deck delamination is a common problem in reinforced concrete decks. While condition assessment can be done using a number of traditional and NDE methods, the presented study concentrates on a complementary use of five NDE techniques: impact echo (IE), ground penetrating radar (GPR), half-cell potential (H-C), ultrasonic surface waves (USW) and electrical resistivity (ER). Each of the five techniques has its advantages and limitations. However, each of them can contribute to a more comprehensive assessment of the condition of a deck. For example, GPR can identify deteriorated bridge deck areas, while IE can accurately detect and characterize delaminations in the deck. USW, on the other hand, provides information about material degradation through a measurement of concrete elastic moduli. Finally, H-C will provide information about the likelihood for active corrosion, while ER will assess potential for corrosive environment. There are also secondary benefits of the use of the five techniques, like e.g. mapping of concrete cover from GPR surveys. A brief overview of the techniques and their complementary use illustrated by the results from deck testing on several bridges is presented. The presented surveys were conducted on both decks (typical thickness 7 to 9 inches) and slabs (typical thickness 14-20 inches), some with an additional PC overlay. Results include delamination maps from IE, attenuation maps from GPR, modulus distribution maps from USW, H-C potential maps, and resistivity maps from ER. Some of the results are validated through a series of "ground truth" measurements, like inspection of cores taken from the decks.

Citation Download Citation

Nenad Gucunski, Ruediger Feldmann, Francisco Romero, Sabine Kruschwitz, and Hooman Parvardeh "Comprehensive condition assessment of bridge decks by multimodal NDE", Proc. SPIE 7649, Nondestructive Characterization for Composite Materials, Aerospace Engineering, Civil Infrastructure, and Homeland Security 2010, 76491H (8 April 2010); https://doi.org/10.1117/12.848704

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