CONTINUOUS ACOUSTIC MONITORING OF STEEL TENDONS AND CABLES IN BRIDGES

This paper describes laboratory trials and site installations of an acoustic monitoring system, developed in Canada, for detecting the fracture of stressed high-tensile steel wires in structures. The fracture of a stressed wire releases energy that can be detected as an acoustic event by surface mounted sensors. Characteristics of the event provide information on the position of the event and its cause. Trials at TRL have demonstrated that the system can reliably detect wire fractures in grouted post-tensioned structures and hanger cables, successfully rejecting other acoustic events. Installations on the Railway Viaduct in Huntingdon in the UK and the Bronx-Whitestone suspension bridge in the USA have shown the system to work in practice. Wire fractures can occur for a number of reasons. Acoustic monitoring is useful because the wires are often inaccessible for visual examination and fractures cannot generally be detected by non-destructive inspection techniques. For the covering abstract see ITRD E106406.

• Availability:
  • Find a library where document is available. Order URL: http://worldcat.org/isbn/0727728547
• Corporate Authors:

  Thomas Telford Limited

  London,   United Kingdom 
• Authors:
  • CULLINGTON, D W
  • BRADBURY, T
  • PAULSON, P O
• Conference:
  • BRIDGE MANAGEMENT 4 - INSPECTION, MAINTENANCE, ASSESSMENT AND REPAIR
• Publication Date: 2000

Language

• English

Media Info

• Features: References;
• Pagination: p. 112-9

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Audible warning devices; Bridges; Failure; Prestressing; Signals; Steel; Surveillance; Wire
• ITRD Terms: 585: Aural signal; 3455: Bridge; 5520: Failure; 4777: Prestressing; 4542: Steel; 9101: Surveillance; 4520: Wire
• Subject Areas: Bridges and other structures;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 00801545
• Record Type: Publication
• Source Agency: Transport Research Laboratory
• ISBN: 0-7277-2854-7
• Files: ITRD
• Created Date: Nov 8 2000 12:00AM