Automatic determination of the coarse aggregate distribution in concrete based on the statistical characteristics of ground‐penetrating radar

Abstract

AbstractThe coarse aggregate distribution is an important factor that affects the mechanical properties of concrete. To detect the aggregate distribution in concrete, an automatic statistical method based on ground penetration radar (GPR) is proposed. First, a concrete segregation model was built to describe the coarse aggregate distribution, and the propagation characteristics of the electromagnetic (EM) wave in the coarse aggregate were analyzed. Then, the relationship between the echo of ground penetrating radar (GPR) and the distribution of coarse aggregate was revealed. A rising‐stable‐decaying three‐stage model of the GPR echo is proposed. In addition, the statistical characteristic of the stable stage is advocated as the evaluation index for concrete segregation. Finally, the feasibility of the proposed method for the detection of the coarse aggregate distribution was verified using a forward simulation and field experiment, and a reasonable number of sample traces were used for statistical analysis. The result indicated that this method could automatically detect the coarse aggregate distribution, and it is suitable for the detection of the aggregate distribution in plain concrete.