Numerical Investigation of the Time-of-Flight and Wave Energy Dependent Hybrid Method for Structural Damage Detection

Abstract

BackgroundStructural damage can be caused by various factors such as aging, environmental conditions, and unexpected events like earthquakes. Early detection of damage is crucial to prevent further deterioration, avoid catastrophic failure, and reduce maintenance costs. Damage detection methods that use piezoelectric sensors have gained popularity due to their non-destructive and non-invasive nature. Despite the progress made in the field of damage detection using piezoelectric sensors, there is still a need to improve the accuracy and reliability of those methods.ObjectiveThis study aims to contribute to this by investigating the damage detection hybrid method, which uses the time-of-flight (ToF) criteria of acquired signals besides the energy loss damage index (DI) between damaged and intact states of a specimen, and exploring its possible improvements. The improvement potential in the investigated method regarding the signal processing details and the specification of the ToF used within the method, where the lack of information has been identified. Thus, the present study concentrates on those factors to get more benefit of the suggested method and extend its applicability.ResultsThe investigated factors play significant role in the accuracy and reliability of the method. By analyzing these criteria, this study contributes to the development of more advanced and reliable damage detection methods that can be applied to a wide range of structures, improving the ability to assess their structural health and safety. This study provides a better understanding of the hybrid method and contributes to the development of more accurate and reliable damage detection methods. The results of this study indicate that the proposed hybrid method effectively detects damage in the structural components under investigation with high accuracy and reliability.MethodsA 2D concrete plate is utilized to apply the proposed methodology. Hereby, various ToF criteria, truncation strategies of the signals, and the number of piezoelectric transducers used in the numerical experiment are examined to investigate their impact on the damage detection accuracy. ConclusionPerformance of the method was found to be significantly affected by selection of the investigated parameters, as well as of the number and placement of sensors. The findings suggest that a thorough analysis of these criteria can lead to further improvements in the accuracy and reliability of damage detection methods.