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No description available.

No description available.

Machine learning techniques are being applied to many data-intensive problems because they can accurately provide classification of complex data using appropriate training. Often, the performance of machine learning can exceed the performance of traditional techniques because machine learning can take advantage of higher dimensionality than traditional algorithms. In this work, acoustic data sets taken using a rapid scanning technique on concrete bridge decks provided an opportunity to both apply machine learning algorithms to improve detection performance and also to investigate the ways that training of neural networks can be aided by data augmentation approaches. Early detection and repair can enhance safety and performance as well as reduce long-term maintenance costs of concrete bridges. In order to inspect for non-visible internal cracking (called delaminations) of concrete bridges, a rapid inspection method is needed. A six-channel acoustic impact-echo sounding apparatus is used to generate large acoustic data sets on concrete bridge decks at high speeds. A machine learning data processing architecture is described to accurately detect and map delaminations based on the acoustic responses. The machine learning approach achieves accurate results at speeds between 25 and 45 km/h across a bridge deck and successfully demonstrates the use of neural networks to analyze this type of acoustic data. In order to obtain excellent performance, model training generally requires large data sets. However, in many potentially interesting cases, such as bridge deck defect detection, acquiring enough data for training can be difficult. Data augmentation can be used to increase the effective size of the training data set. Acoustic signal data augmentation is demonstrated in conjunction with a machine learning model for acoustic defect detection on bridge decks. Four different augmentation methods are applied to data using two different augmentation strategies. This work demonstrates that a "goldilocks" data augmentation approach can be used to increase machine learning performance when only a limited data set is available. The major technical contributions of this work include application of machine learning to acoustic data sets relevant to bridge deck inspection, solving an important problem in the field of nondestructive evaluation, and a more generalized approach to data augmentation of limited acoustic data sets to expand the classes of acoustic problems that machine learning can successfully address.

Concrete bridge decks in Utah are experiencing observable deterioration due primarily to freeze-thaw cycles and the routine application of deicing salts during winter maintenance activities. Given the need for increasingly cost-effective strategies for bridge deck maintenance, rehabilitation, and replacement (MR&R), the Utah Department of Transportation (UDOT) initiated this research to ultimately develop a protocol offering guidance as to whether deteriorated bridge decks should be rehabilitated or replaced. While threshold values for various non-destructive condition assessment methods were proposed in earlier UDOT research, this work focused on implementing the recommended test criteria. Twelve bridges were identified by UDOT engineers for inclusion in the study, and data were collected from each deck to determine whether the bridge decks warranted rehabilitation or replacement based on the proposed threshold values. Several evaluation techniques were employed to assess concrete bridge deck condition, including visual inspection, hammer sounding and chaining, dielectric measurements, ground-penetrating radar imaging, resistivity testing, half-cell potential testing, and chloride concentration testing. The condition assessment testing confirmed that chloride-induced corrosion of reinforcing steel is the primary mechanism of deck deterioration and that inadequate cover over the upper steel mat facilitated accelerated corrosion damage in many instances. The bridge deck condition analyses produced from the results of non-destructive testing were compared to the visual inspection ratings assigned to each deck by UDOT. Concrete bridge deck condition data should be collected regularly through inspection and monitoring programs to facilitate prioritization of MR&R strategies for individual bridges and to evaluate the impact of such strategies on the overall condition of the network. Performance indices based on selected condition assessment parameters should be developed for use in bridge management activities, and mathematical deterioration models should be calibrated in order to forecast both network-level and project-level conditions and predict funding requirements for various possible MR&R strategies. Further research, including statistical analyses of the data presented in this report, should be completed to develop relevant mathematical deterioration models for predicting the service lives of concrete bridge decks in Utah.

Composite laminates are an important subject of modern technology and engineering. The most common mode of failure in these materials is probably interlaminar fracture (delamination). Delamination growth under applied fatigue loads usually leads to structural integrity loss of the composite laminate, and hence its catastrophic failure. It is known that several parameters can affect the fatigue fracture performance of laminates. These include the constituent material properties, composite geometry, fatigue load variables or environmental factors. The knowledge about effects of these parameters on fatigue delamination growth can lead to a better understanding of composite fatigue fracture behaviour. Effects of some of these parameters can be elucidated by undertaking appropriate sensitivity analysis combined with the finite element method (FEM) and related software. The purpose of this work was three-fold. The first goal was the elaboration and computational implementation of FEM-based numerical strategies for the sensitivity analysis of interface fatigue crack propagation in elastic composite laminates. The second goal of this work was the numerical determination and investigation of displacement and stress fields near the crack tip, contact pressures along crack surfaces, mixed mode angle, energy release rate and the number of cumulative fatigue cycles. The third aim of the present study was to use the developed strategies to evaluate numerically the sensitivity gradients of the total energy release rate and fatigue life with respect to design variables of the curved boron/epoxy-aluminium (B/Ep-Al) composite laminate in two different material configurations under cyclic shear of constant amplitude. This study provided novel strategies for undertaking sensitivity analysis of the delamination growth under fatigue loads for elastic composite laminates using the package ANSYS. The numerical results of the work shed more light on mechanisms of interfacial crack propagation under cyclic shear in the case of a curved B/Ep-Al composite laminate. Moreover, the outcome of the sensitivity gradients demonstrated some advantages for using the sensitivity analysis to pinpoint directions for the optimisation of fatigue fracture performance of elastic laminates. The strategies proposed in this work can be used to study the sensitivity of the interface fatigue crack propagation in other elastic laminates, if the crack propagates at the interface between the elastic and isotropic components. However, the strategies can be potentially extended to composites with interfacial cracks propagating between two non-isotropic constituents under a constant amplitude fatigue load. Finally, the strategies can also be used to undertake the sensitivity analysis of composite fatigue life with respect to variables of fatigue load.

Caracterizar propriedades de resistência à propagação de trinca em materiais dúcteis é um elemento central em métodos de avaliação de integridade estrutural de dutos destinados ao transporte de gás, petróleo e seus derivados que utilizam os aços ARBL. Sendo assim, o objetivo deste trabalho foi estudar as propriedades de fratura dúctil do aço API 5L X80, através da obtenção da curva de resistência à propagação estável de defeitos (curvas J-R) do material. O ensaio de tenacidade à fratura para obtenção da curva J-R foi conduzido utilizando a técnica do corpo-de-prova único (single specimen) empregando o método da flexibilidade no descarregamento (unloading compliance), segundo a norma de ensaios ASTM E1820-96. Os corpos-de-prova compactos C(T) apresentaram espessura B=15mm, largura W=2B e uma relação aproximada entre o tamanho de trinca (a) e a largura, a/W=0,6. O ensaio foi conduzido numa máquina universal de ensaios (MTS) servo-controlada e capacidade máxima de 250kN. Adicionalmente, foram conduzidos ensaios convencionais de tração (limite de escoamento – 550MPa, limite de resistência – 676MPa e alongamento total em 50mm – 27%), ensaios de impacto Charpy (energia absorvida de 220J à 0ºC – sentido longitudinal) e análises metalográficas (microestrutura refinada composta por ferrita, colônias de perlita e presença do constituinte MA). Tais caracterizações permitirão uma maior precisão na comparação da curva J-R do aço API 5L X80 em estudo com estudos futuros de tenacidade à fratura. / Assessments of crack growth resistance in ductile materials play a key role in structural integrity procedures for high strength, low alloy (HSLA) pipeline steels commonly employed in gas and petroleum trasmission systems. This work presents an investigation of the ductile tearing properties for an API 5L X80 pipeline steel using experimentally measured crack growth resistance curves (J-R curves) for the material. Testing of the X80 pipeline steel employed compact tension (C(T)) fracture specimens to determine the J-R curves based upon the unloading compliance method using a single specimen technique in accordance with the ASTM E1820 standard procedure. The C(T) specimens have thickness B=15mm, width W=2B and a ratio between crack size (a) and width, a/W=0,6. The experimental tests utilized a 250 kN MTS universal machine. Conventional tensile tests were also performed to determine the tensile properties for the tested material: yield strength of 550MPa, tensile strength of 676MPa and elongation of 27% (gage length of 50 mm). The Charpy V-notch impact tests also provided and absorbed energy of 220J at 0ºC. The metallographic analysis showed colonies of perlite and MA constituent islands in a ferrite matrix. This experimental characterization provides additional toughness and mechanical data against which the general behavior of X80 class pipeline steel can be compared.

Caracterizar propriedades de resistência à propagação de trinca em materiais dúcteis é um elemento central em métodos de avaliação de integridade estrutural de dutos destinados ao transporte de gás, petróleo e seus derivados que utilizam os aços ARBL. Sendo assim, o objetivo deste trabalho foi estudar as propriedades de fratura dúctil do aço API 5L X80, através da obtenção da curva de resistência à propagação estável de defeitos (curvas J-R) do material. O ensaio de tenacidade à fratura para obtenção da curva J-R foi conduzido utilizando a técnica do corpo-de-prova único (single specimen) empregando o método da flexibilidade no descarregamento (unloading compliance), segundo a norma de ensaios ASTM E1820-96. Os corpos-de-prova compactos C(T) apresentaram espessura B=15mm, largura W=2B e uma relação aproximada entre o tamanho de trinca (a) e a largura, a/W=0,6. O ensaio foi conduzido numa máquina universal de ensaios (MTS) servo-controlada e capacidade máxima de 250kN. Adicionalmente, foram conduzidos ensaios convencionais de tração (limite de escoamento – 550MPa, limite de resistência – 676MPa e alongamento total em 50mm – 27%), ensaios de impacto Charpy (energia absorvida de 220J à 0ºC – sentido longitudinal) e análises metalográficas (microestrutura refinada composta por ferrita, colônias de perlita e presença do constituinte MA). Tais caracterizações permitirão uma maior precisão na comparação da curva J-R do aço API 5L X80 em estudo com estudos futuros de tenacidade à fratura. / Assessments of crack growth resistance in ductile materials play a key role in structural integrity procedures for high strength, low alloy (HSLA) pipeline steels commonly employed in gas and petroleum trasmission systems. This work presents an investigation of the ductile tearing properties for an API 5L X80 pipeline steel using experimentally measured crack growth resistance curves (J-R curves) for the material. Testing of the X80 pipeline steel employed compact tension (C(T)) fracture specimens to determine the J-R curves based upon the unloading compliance method using a single specimen technique in accordance with the ASTM E1820 standard procedure. The C(T) specimens have thickness B=15mm, width W=2B and a ratio between crack size (a) and width, a/W=0,6. The experimental tests utilized a 250 kN MTS universal machine. Conventional tensile tests were also performed to determine the tensile properties for the tested material: yield strength of 550MPa, tensile strength of 676MPa and elongation of 27% (gage length of 50 mm). The Charpy V-notch impact tests also provided and absorbed energy of 220J at 0ºC. The metallographic analysis showed colonies of perlite and MA constituent islands in a ferrite matrix. This experimental characterization provides additional toughness and mechanical data against which the general behavior of X80 class pipeline steel can be compared.

Composite laminates are an important subject of modern technology and engineering. The most common mode of failure in these materials is probably interlaminar fracture (delamination). Delamination growth under applied fatigue loads usually leads to structural integrity loss of the composite laminate, and hence its catastrophic failure. It is known that several parameters can affect the fatigue fracture performance of laminates. These include the constituent material properties, composite geometry, fatigue load variables or environmental factors. The knowledge about effects of these parameters on fatigue delamination growth can lead to a better understanding of composite fatigue fracture behaviour. Effects of some of these parameters can be elucidated by undertaking appropriate sensitivity analysis combined with the finite element method (FEM) and related software. The purpose of this work was three-fold. The first goal was the elaboration and computational implementation of FEM-based numerical strategies for the sensitivity analysis of interface fatigue crack propagation in elastic composite laminates. The second goal of this work was the numerical determination and investigation of displacement and stress fields near the crack tip, contact pressures along crack surfaces, mixed mode angle, energy release rate and the number of cumulative fatigue cycles. The third aim of the present study was to use the developed strategies to evaluate numerically the sensitivity gradients of the total energy release rate and fatigue life with respect to design variables of the curved boron/epoxy-aluminium (B/Ep-Al) composite laminate in two different material configurations under cyclic shear of constant amplitude. This study provided novel strategies for undertaking sensitivity analysis of the delamination growth under fatigue loads for elastic composite laminates using the package ANSYS. The numerical results of the work shed more light on mechanisms of interfacial crack propagation under cyclic shear in the case of a curved B/Ep-Al composite laminate. Moreover, the outcome of the sensitivity gradients demonstrated some advantages for using the sensitivity analysis to pinpoint directions for the optimisation of fatigue fracture performance of elastic laminates. The strategies proposed in this work can be used to study the sensitivity of the interface fatigue crack propagation in other elastic laminates, if the crack propagates at the interface between the elastic and isotropic components. However, the strategies can be potentially extended to composites with interfacial cracks propagating between two non-isotropic constituents under a constant amplitude fatigue load. Finally, the strategies can also be used to undertake the sensitivity analysis of composite fatigue life with respect to variables of fatigue load.

Dans une aviation où la sécurité des vols est au cœur des préoccupations des constructeurs, le contrôle de santé des structures est l'un des nouveaux pôles majeurs de recherche et développement engagé par la communauté aéronautique depuis ces dix dernières années. Un système SHM (structural Heath monitoring) intégré aux structures avioniques (tels que le sont déjà les systèmes de monitoring des moteurs) permettrait de : - rendre l’aviation plus sûre et éviterait certains des accidents aériens ; - réduire les coûts de maintenance ; - alléger, à terme, le poids total car cela permettrait de d’éviter les sur-renforcements structuraux actuels. Le travail développé durant cette thèse, dans le cadre d'un projet industriel, concerne le développement de solutions exploitant l'utilisation de nœuds piezoélectriques au sein de microsystèmes reconfigurables dédiés à la détection de défauts dans des éléments de structure d'avion. L'exploitation de données issues de la génération/capture d'ondes de Lamb ainsi que des techniques se basant sur l'étude de l'impédance électromécanique du capteur ont été développées et étudiées sur différents types de défauts identifiés tels que cracks, corrosion, délaminages etc... La méthode proposée repose sur la comparaison et l'évolution dans le temps de signatures de réseaux de capteurs utilisant l’effet piezoélectrique et placés sur des éléments choisis de structures avions. L'interface capteur-matériau a été spécialement étudiée afin de garantir le couplage le plus efficace possible. Les techniques de « monitoring » ainsi développées ont été testées sur des structures aéronautiques métalliques et des structures en matériaux composites simples/sandwichs extraites d’avions Airbus et ATR. Différentes solutions d’intégration de ces capteurs et nœuds ont été passées en revue et une démarche a été proposée, allant de l’architecture des effecteurs au conditionnement et à la transmission des signaux et informations d’intéret. Une nouvelle vision de l’électronique de détection de défauts, permettant de développer une instrumentation « universelle » de capteurs à travers une combinaison de circuits numériques/analogiques reconfigurables à entrées/sorties versatiles, a été implémentée et testée avec succès / Structural health monitoring (SHM) is certainly one of the key technologies required to provide the safety and the reliability of future aviation. Based on non-destructive testing, current on the ground periodical structural integrity inspections showed their limit as evidenced by the Columbia tragedy. For the time being, structural health monitoring technology has reached a good technology readiness level (TRL). However, the integration of these solutions into future aerospace vehicle will require advanced and innovative system architecture. Further, improved SHM techniques and alleged assessment algorithm will be necessary to ensure an embedded integration, as well as to fully exploit their sensing capability. For now, most of high critical embedded systems are based on federate architectures, where each calculator is dedicated to a specific function and to a unique kind of sensor. By consequence, the integration on the field of conventional SHM solutions is highly difficult due to the scale and the weight of the global electronics systems. Based on a fully reconfigurable micro-system, I propose in this thesis, a novel SHM approach that combines into a unique System on Chip: • Sensors instrumentation and interfacing using reconfigurable analog circuits• Signal management and conditioning using reconfigurable digital electronics • Heath diagnostic assessment algorithms using an embedded CPUBased on elastic guided waves and electromechanical impedance analysis, the presented solution is capable through piezoelectric sensors to detect different kinds of abnormal events such as impacts. Moreover, using advanced wavelet transform and signature comparison algorithms, the system is also capable to detect mechanical damages such as corrosion, cracks or delaminations ; no matter if the probed structure is in simple composite, honeycomb composite or metallic alloy. The feasibility was proven using multiples specimens directly extracted from Airbus and ATR airplanes. To cover large areas, the system is fully scalable and accepts a hardware upgrade through multiple communication ports and protocols. Moreover, the versatility of inputs/outputs interface allows the exploitation of multiple sensors in order to locate and triangulate flaws