Fracture Characterization of Plain and Reinforced Concrete Beams Using Acoustic Emission Technique

Abstract

Formation of cracks is a major cause of damage in reinforced concrete (RC) structures which adversely affects the durability along-with appearance of structures. Hence, to understand the behavior of RC structural element under different stresses, it is necessary to obtain significant data describing the characteristics of fracture such as types of cracks, its propagation, failure pattern etc. which may help in control and prevention of failure in RC structures. Acoustic emission (AE) technique is one of the effective non-destructive techniques used for identification and characterization of cracks. The fracture mode of cracking in concrete normally changes from tensile mode to shear mode at impending failure which can be identified by AE data analysis. The aim of present work is to identify and characterize the fracture in plain as well as RC beams using parameter based AE analysis. The experimental work investigated failure of plain and RC beams with and without notch subjected to flexural loading using AE technique. The results show dissimilarity in failure patterns of these beams which is well identified and analyzed by parametric analysis of AE technique. Thus, it is concluded that, continuous AE monitoring is an effective tool for diagnosis and characterization of cracks in concrete.