Utilizing Infrared technologies as a non-destructive evaluation for maintenance of concrete structures

Abstract

The aging of road infrastructure is becoming a serious problem worldwide. Although the number of aged structures is increasing rapidly, inspection and maintenance for them cannot catch up with the speed due to the limited budget. Under these circumstances, infrared thermography method has been developed as one of non-destructive evaluation methods to implement inspections efficiently and effectively. This study is focusing on exploring enhancing the usability of infrared method as a viable non-destructive evaluation technology. In this research, infrared technology was applied to existing structures to prove the reliability and usability as a non-destructive inspection, and an experimental study was conducted to determine the most thriving time window to collect useful data from an object by using an infrared camera. Three infrared cameras with different specifications were also utilized both in a lab test and on an existing bridge. The results have shown that infrared thermography could detect subsurface anomalies in an existing bridge, and also indicated that night time was a better option to gather data from an object. The results of camera comparison showed the efficiency of the infrared thermography technique for bridge inspection although there were some discrepancies due to different camera types.