The use of surface scanning waves to detect surface-opening cracks in concrete

The use of ultrasonic surface waves to locate surface-opening cracks in concrete is described. The system works in both transmit-receive and reflection modes. Laboratory results are presented to demonstrate the effectiveness of the system, and the advantages and possible applications of the technique are discussed.     

Noise analysis in air-coupled PVDF ultrasonic sensors

In this paper we analyze the noise generated in a piezo-polymer based sensor for low frequency ultrasound in air. The sensor includes two curved PVDF transducers for medium and short range applications. A lumped RLC equivalent circuit was derived from the measurement of the transducer's electrical admittance, in air, by taking into account both mechanical and dielectric losses, which we suppose are the major sources of noise in similar devices. The electrical model was used to study and optimize the noise performance of a 61 kHz transducer and to simulate the electrical behavior of the complete transmitter-receiver system. The validity of the overall electrical model with low noise was confirmed after verifying, with Pspice, agreement of the practical and theoretical results.     

Evaluation of surface cracks of bending concrete using a fully non-contact air-coupled nonlinear ultrasonic technique

In this paper, a fully non-contact second harmonic generation (SHG) technique using a pair of air-coupled ultrasonic transducers is developed and the feasibility of the technique is investigated through the evaluation of surface cracks of concrete beams subjected to the bending load. The reliability of developed technique is subsequently validated by comparing the non-contact nonlinear ultrasonic measurements with measurement results based on contact-type sensors, where the coefficient of variation of non-contact measurements is averagely about 46% of the contact measurements. The defined nonlinear parameter is found to have a monotonically increasing trend with the growth of concrete crack, and the nonlinear parameter corresponding to the largest crack increases about 7 times from its initial value corresponding to the sample in intact state. In contrast, the increase of linear parameter namely the time-of-flight of surface wave is only about 40%. The difference as high as one order of magnitude verifies the high sensitivity of developed air-coupled SHG technique. With consideration of the easily removable characteristic of air-coupled ultrasonic measurements, the developed SHG technique could be promising for the large scale quality control of concrete structures in engineering practice.     

Elliptical-Tukey chirp signal for high-resolution, air-coupled ultrasonic imaging

A new signal processing method, which uses a modified chirp signal for air-coupled ultrasonic imaging, is described. A combination of the elliptical and Tukey window functions has been shown to give a better performance than the Hanning windowing used in most pulse-compression algorithms for air-coupled applications. The elliptical-Tukey chirp signal provides an improvement in both the resolution of images and signal-to-noise ratios. In addition, this type of signal also reduces the level of signal voltages required to drive the source transducer while maintaining the performance of the system. This approach, thus, may have wide interest in all forms of wide bandwidth ultrasonic imaging.     

High-resolution, air-coupled ultrasonic imaging of thin materials

This paper describes the use of a focused air-coupled capacitance transducer combined with pulse compression techniques to form high-resolution images of thin materials in air. The focusing of the device is achieved by using an off-axis parabolic mirror. The lateral resolution of the focused transducer, operating over a bandwidth of 1.2 MHz, was found to be less than 0.5 mm. A combination of the focused transducer as a source and a planar receiver in through-transmission mode has been developed for the measurement of different features in paper products, with a lateral resolution in through-transmission imaging of /spl sim/0.4 mm. Images in air of thin samples such as bank notes, high-quality writing paper, stamps, and sealed joints were obtained without contact to the sample.     

Damage model for simulating chloride concentration in reinforced concrete with internal cracks

We present a method to simulate, in three dimensions, the concentration of chloride ions that penetrate into concrete with internal cracks. The method comprises the crack-propagation analysis of concrete and the diffusion analysis of chloride ions. A finite-element model with a damage model that is based on fracture mechanics for concrete was applied in the crack-propagation analysis, and we were able to reproduce the three-dimensional geometry of the internal cracks. Chloride-ion transfer through internal cracks was simulated by diffusion analysis with the simultaneous consideration of damage, and a diffusion coefficient that was expressed as a function of the damage variable obtained from crack-propagation analysis. We present a formulation of crack-propagation analysis by using the damage model and unsteady-diffusion analysis in consideration of damage. We also present a verification analysis of internal cracking in concrete to demonstrate that the crack width and the chloride concentration can be evaluated without mesh dependency. This is followed by a validation analysis. A comparison between the numerical and experimental results shows that the proposed method enables the high-accuracy simulation of chloride penetration into concrete with internal cracks.     

Wooden panel paintings investigation: an air-coupled ultrasonic imaging approach

In this paper, a method for the study of wooden panel paintings using air-coupled acoustical imaging is presented. In order to evaluate the advantages of the technique, several samples were made to mimic panel paintings along with their typical defects. These specimens were tested by means of both single-sided and through-transmission techniques using planar transducers. Image data were processed by means of a two-dimensional (2-D)-fast Fourier transform-based algorithm to increase the S/N ratio and 2-D representations (C-scans) were generated. The simulated defects were imaged using both configurations. Investigations were undertaken on four antique paintings from a private collection. The results presented and discussed in this investigation confirm both the robustness and the effectiveness of the technique in detecting defects such as delaminations and cracks in wooden panel paintings.     

New method for detecting cracks in concrete using fibre optics

Research on the use of optical fibres has reached an advanced stage in recent years, especially in telecommunications. The use of optical fibres as detectors of disorder (cracks, damage, etc.), for example in aeronautics, is much more recent. In this article we propose a new application of this method in the field of civil engineering.     

Reinforced concrete beam with short oblique cracks near supports

We present a brief historical survey of the problem and suggest two integral equations for its solution one of which is singular. The numerical solution of these equations is obtained by the method of mechanical quadratures. It is shown that the ultimate load nonlinearly decreases as the reinforcement becomes stronger and the same is also true for the critical size of oblique cracks located in the supporting parts of reinforced concrete beams. We determine the optimal sizes of reinforced beams. Karpenko Physicomechanical Institute, Ukrainian Academy of Sciences, L'viv. Translated from Fizyko-Khimichna Mekhanika Materialiv, Vol. 33, No. 2, pp. 49–54, March–April, 1997.     

Spectrally reconfigurable pixels for dual-color-mode imaging sensors

The use of full color-sensitive photodetectors with three electrically tunable spectral responses allows the design of sensors that can be real-time reconfigured for different color acquisition modes. All the (physically identical) pixels can be biased in the same way, each giving the same set of RGB spectral responses: in this situation the conversion from the sensor color space to a reference color space can be implemented as usual, giving typical color errors ΔE(a,b) in the order of 2-3. Alternatively, pixels can be biased in two different ways (e.g., row by row), forming pairs: by joining the information from adjacent pixels, the sensor has six spectral responses, with a reduced resolution. By exploiting this plurality of spectral responses, color reproduction accuracy can be increased. In this work, an improved design of the Transverse Field Detector, a filterless and tunable three-color pixel, is used as the experimental device to propose a dual-color-mode reconfigurable sensor.     

电视图像传感器检测平台的研制

为了准确、客观评价面阵CCD器件和整机多项性能参数,研制了电视图像传感器试验检测平台系统.整套系统装置采用组合式的设计理念,由两部分构成,电视图像传感器性能参数测试系统测量噪声、响应度、饱和照度、阈照度、动态范围、系统信噪比(SNR)、信号传递函数(SiTF)、均匀性等,其测试系统误差为4.28%;电视图像传感器成像系统组件定标与试验检测系统测量系统调制传递函数(MTF)、系统畸变、视场角与焦距、系统分辨率、系统光学同轴度等,其系统误差为4.48%.     

Digital electro-optical imaging sensors

A key source of digital images is the electro-optical imaging sensor. The basic characteristic that identifies a digital electro-optical sensor is conversion of reflected or emitted light from a scene or object into a digital image signal. Examples include television cameras with digital output, and scanning or staring cameras with digital output. We describe general system design techniques to derive optimum imaging sensor specifications, and we offer examples for two applications. One example application is for terrestrial thermal imaging of nearby objects, such as vehicles. The other example is a sensor to create a color image of small targets in low-light, such as an automobile license plate from a distance of several meters.©1993 John Wiley & Sons Inc     

用于钢筋混凝土梁的光纤光栅应变传感器

在变形测定器中,光纤Bragg光栅被粘贴于内管的两端,这两端的距离确定了传感器的量规长度。为了测量拉应变和压应变,该光纤光栅必须保持处于与可能的最大压应变相等的永久性拉应变。将光纤Bragg光栅贴于H154梁的混凝土表面和H158梁的钢筋表面,以分别检测拉应变和压应变。当钢筋混凝土梁受到千斤顶的加载时,它的应变可由光纤Bragg光栅的反射Bragg波长的偏移量获得。实验表明,作为一种绝对检测器件,光纤Bragg光栅为钢筋混凝土梁提供了有效监测,其中,拉应变~1000me,而压应变~1500me。     

Potentiometric thick-film sensors for measuring the pH of concrete

Concrete carbonation is one of the main triggers of the corrosion process and hence of the premature deterioration of concrete reinforcements. In order to monitor and control the carbonation process, a potentiometric sensor using thick-film technology was developed. This paper includes the results of the research carried out to characterise the pH sensor, including the materials, response time, sensitivity, detection limit, reproducibility, reversibility and the study of chloride interference. The sensors have been studied in pore solutions and concrete specimens. The study shows that the thick-film sensor has a potentiometric response to variations in pH and is capable of providing continuous, real-time information on the progress of the carbonation front.     

Automated target detection system for hyperspectral imaging sensors

Over the past several years, hyperspectral sensor technology has evolved to the point where real-time processing for operational applications is achievable. Algorithms supporting such sensors must be fully automated and robust. Our approach, for target detection applications, is to select signatures from a target reflectance library database and project them to the at-sensor and collection-specific radiance domain using the weather forecast or radiosonde data. This enables platform-based detection immediately following data acquisition without the need for further atmospheric compensation. One advantage of this method for reflective hyperspectral sensors is the ability to predict the radiance signatures of targets under multiple illumination conditions. A three-phase approach is implemented, where the library generation and data acquisition phases provide the necessary input for the automated detection phase. In addition to employing the target detector itself, this final phase includes a series of automated filters, adaptive thresholding, and confidence assignments to extract the optimal information from the detection scores for each spectral class. Our prototype software is applied to 50 reflective hyperspectral datacubes to measure detection performance over a range of targets, backgrounds, and environmental conditions.     

Long-range surface plasmon resonance imaging for bioaffinity sensors

A novel bioaffinity sensor based on surface plasmon resonance (SPR) imaging measurements of a multiple-layered structure that supports the generation of long-range surface plasmons (LRSPs) at the water-metal interface is reported. LRSPs possess longer surface propagation lengths, higher electric field strengths, and sharper angular resonance curves than conventional surface plasmons. LRSPR imaging is a version of SPR imaging that requires a symmetric dielectric arrangement around the gold thin film. This arrangement is created using an SF10 prism/Cytop/gold/water multilayer film structure where Cytop is an amorphous fluoropolymer with a refractive index very close to that of water. LRSPR imaging experiments are performed at a fixed incident angle and lead to an enhanced response for the detection of surface binding interactions. As an example, the hybridization adsorption of a 16-mer single-stranded DNA (ssDNA) onto a two-component ssDNA array was monitored with LRSPR imaging. The ssDNA array was created using a new fabrication technology appropriate for the LRSPR multilayers.     

Extension of FCM to plain concrete beams with vertical tortuous cracks

Fictitious crack model has been appropriately modified to make it applicable for plain concrete beams with vertical tortuous cracks. A number of tortuous cracks are generated considering the crack deviations as random variable based on the maximum aggregate size. Instead of a straight-line crack in FCM a number of simulated tortuous cracks are replaced to model the roughness of fracture surface of concrete. Plain concrete beams with such tortuous cracks are analyzed to study the effect of the tortuousity of the cracks on the various fracture parameters.     

Integrated semiconductor optical sensors for cellular and neural imaging

We review integrated optical sensors for functional brain imaging, localized index-of-refraction sensing as part of a lab-on-a-chip, and in vivo continuous monitoring of tumor and cancer stem cells. We present semiconductor-based sensors and imaging systems for these applications. Measured intrinsic optical signals and tissue optics simulations indicate the need for high dynamic range and low dark-current neural sensors. Simulated and measured reflectance spectra from our guided resonance filter demonstrate the capability for index-of-refraction sensing on cellular scales, compatible with integrated biosensors. Finally, we characterized a thermally evaporated emission filter that can be used to improve sensitivity for in vivo fluorescence sensing.     

Electrical characteristics of microdot sensors for X-ray imaging applications

In this paper, a recently interested radiation sensor operating in the gas proportional mode, the so-called microdot-typed radiation sensor, is described for inherently two-dimensional (2-D) readout capability. We present new observations and measurements realized with the microdot-typed sensor of a 50-/spl mu/m pitch, including gas gain, rate capability, aging effect, and insensitive zone. The intrinsically 2-D structure of this sensor makes it attractive for potential applications, such as X-ray imaging devices and tracking sensors, at colliders for the next-generation synchrotron radiation sources.