Abstract
This research proposes a damage identification approach for storage tanks that is based on adding virtual masses. First, the frequency response function of a structure with additional virtual masses is deduced based on the Virtual Distortion Method (VDM). Subsequently, a Finite Element (FE) model of a storage tank is established to verify the proposed method; the relation between the added virtual masses and the sensitivity of the virtual structure is analyzed to determine the optimal mass and the corresponding frequency with the highest sensitivity with respect to potential damages. Thereupon, the damage can be localized and quantified by comparing the damage factors of substructures. Finally, an experimental study is conducted on a storage tank. The results confirm that the proposed method is feasible and practical, and that it can be applied for damage identification of storage tanks.
Highlights
With recent advances in structure health monitoring [1,2,3,4,5] and damage detection [6,7,8,9,10], new technologies and methods has been proposed and developed
The natural frequencies of the virtual structures that were obtained in the previous section are called experimental frequencies, and the counterpart frequencies of the finite element model of the tank with added masses are called numerical frequencies
The elastic modulus of steel is given in the Finite Element (FE) model, but the assumed value is uncertain due to different kinds of steel that could be used for the tank
Summary
With recent advances in structure health monitoring [1,2,3,4,5] and damage detection [6,7,8,9,10], new technologies and methods has been proposed and developed. Actual storage tanks are cylindrical and usually circumferentially symmetrical, so that various similar damages at different locations (at the same height) may result in exactly the same modal change Such problems increase the difficulty of damage identification of tank structures and limit the scope of application of the modal-based methods. Dackermann et al [34] add physical masses to a two-story framed structure to stimulate frequency changes due to structure damage Based on this methodology, Suwala et al [35] present a model-free method for off-line identification of structural mass modifications and verify it experimentally. The damages of the substructures with additional virtual masses are quantified based on the response sensitivity, and the effectiveness of the method is verified through the tank model
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