Condition Assessment Of Concrete Bridge Decks Research Articles

Concrete bridge deck condition assessment using IR Thermography and Ground Penetrating Radar technologies

Abstract The current practice of bridge inspection relies heavily on visual inspection, which suffers from several limitations, including the safety of the inspection team, the accuracy of subsurface defects detection, and subjectivity. In visual inspection, data collection is time consuming and the collected data is typically documented by completing standard inspection reports. These reports do not provide sufficient visualization of locations and/or the extent of defects. Emerging combinations of non-destructive testing (NDT) technologies and Geographic Information Systems (GIS) have the potential to circumvent some of these limitations. More research is still needed to assess the potential of these technologies to be applied in the field and to address the challenges in deploying them. The challenges include data acquisition and processing, data interpretation to identify the location and extent of defects, and the integration of results obtained from multiple technologies. This research introduces an integrated method utilizing Infrared (IR) Thermography and Ground Penetrating Radar (GPR) technologies to enhance the detection of concrete bridge defects. Integrating results can improve confidence in defect detection and quantification, and as a result can enhance the reliability of the bridge condition rating process. The integrated system is implemented in a case study of a concrete bridge deck in the city of Laval, Quebec, Canada. The obtained results are compared to detailed and visual inspection results conducted on the bridge before its demolition. The study analyzes potential, limitations, and challenges of using the proposed integrated method. In addition, the study demonstrates the feasibility of integrating the collected data in ArcGIS for enhanced visualization of the inspection results.

Application of ultrasonic surface wave techniques for concrete bridge deck condition assessment

Ultrasonic surface wave (USW) is a well-established technique for the performance monitoring of concrete structures. In order to investigate the capability and reliability of this technique for concrete bridge deck condition assessment, a portable seismic property analyzer (PSPA) with USW capabilities was used to assess the condition of a reinforced concrete bridge deck exhibiting visible evidence of significant deterioration. After the investigation was completed, variable thicknesses of concrete were removed from upper surface of the concrete deck by milling and hydrodemolition, with greater thickness being removed where the concrete was more deteriorated. The thickness of removed concrete during the hydrodemolition process was mapped by Light Detection and Ranging (LiDAR). A comparison of the thickness of concrete removed and the USW data indicates that there is a qualitative correlation between the USW results at each test location and the thickness of concrete removed at those same test locations. Results suggest that the PSPA, and comparable USW techniques, could be potentially effective for estimating the thicknesses of concrete that would be removed during milling and hydrodemolition, although more work is needed to study the relationship between USW and removal thickness data in order to be used for quantity estimations.

Data acquisition and processing parameters for concrete bridge deck condition assessment using ground-coupled ground penetrating radar: Some considerations

Ground penetrating radar (GPR) is a non-destructive geophysical technique that is widely used to determine the relative condition of reinforced concrete. This paper presents case studies from Missouri, USA, where a ground-coupled GPR system was used to assess the condition of eleven concrete bridge decks. The main goal of this paper is to develop appropriate acquisition and processing parameters in order to conduct rapid, efficient, and cost-effective assessment of bridge decks. To accomplish this goal, the GPR data sets were collected with slightly different acquisition parameters and processed using different parameters. The quality of the results and the time required for each bridge deck survey are analyzed. Additionally, several experimental data sets were collected across a 12th concrete bridge deck to examine the influence of weather conditions on reflection amplitude values, since amplitude analysis is used in this study. Based on the authors' experience and findings, appropriate GPR acquisition and processing parameters are suggested and described for use of the ground-coupled GPR method for bridge deck assessment.

Combined Imaging Technologies for Concrete Bridge Deck Condition Assessment

Evaluating the condition of concrete bridge decks is an increasingly important challenge for transportation agencies and bridge inspection teams. Closing the bridge to traffic, safety, and time consuming data collection are some of the major issues during a visual or in-depth bridge inspection. To date, several nondestructive testing technologies have shown promise in detecting subsurface deteriorations. However, the main challenge is to develop a data acquisition and analysis system to obtain and integrate both surface and subsurface bridge health indicators at higher speeds. Recent developments in imaging technologies for bridge decks and higher-end cameras allow for faster image collection while driving over the bridge deck. This paper will focus on deploying nondestructive imaging technologies such as the three-dimensional (3D) optical bridge evaluation system (3DOBS) and thermal infrared (IR) imagery on a bridge deck to yield both surface and subsurface indicators of condition, respectively. Spall and delamination maps were generated from the optical and thermal IR images. Integration of the maps into ArcGIS, a professional geographic information system (GIS), allowed for a streamlined analysis that included integrating and combining the results of the complimentary technologies. Finally, ground truth information was gathered through coring several locations on a bridge deck to validate the results obtained by nondestructive evaluation. This study confirms the feasibility of combining the bridge inspection results in ArcGIS and provides additional evidence to suggest that thermal infrared imagery provides similar results to chain dragging for bridge inspection.

Concrete bridge deck condition assessment with automated multisensor techniques

Early and accurate detection, location and assessment of damage in reinforced concrete bridge decks may be beneficial in the scheduling and performance of maintenance and rehabilitation activities. This article presents the results of a multiple sensor study of the condition of the reinforced concrete deck of the Van Buren Road Bridge in Dumfries, VA. The tests compared the following five different methods: (1) visual inspection and photographic recording; (2) half-cell electrochemical potential; (3) impulse type multipoint scanning ground penetrating radar; (4) chain drag and (5) impact echo. The bridge was tested on two separate occasions. The results of the tests were that each instrument nominally performed and collected data as expected, but that the condition assessments did not necessarily agree. The data are registered, overlaid and compared. The potential for developing automated multisensor systems that fuse data for efficient and effective bridge deck measurements is discussed.