Abstract
Electrical Impedance Tomography (EIT) is an imaging method that works by reconstructing a distribution of the electrical conductivity of an object from voltage measurements taken on the object surface. In cases where conductivity variations can be reliably correlated with types of feature, the conductivity distribution gives a good idea of what is inside the object.Concrete is a near-ubiquitous building material and its production accounts for a substantial proportion of global CO2 emissions. By improving the resilience of concrete to deterioration and finding methods for assessing the risks posed by cracking and damage, the amount of wasted concrete and thus CO2 emissions can be reduced.
This project was aimed at developing EIT techniques for the practical problem of imaging of voids and cracks in concrete, to provide a means for assessing those risks as well as for validating the performance of self-healing concrete.
Matured concrete is a good insulator of electricity and applying EIT to it without high-voltage equipment is very di cult. This project investigated the creation of less resistive concrete by adding conductive additions to mortars, and a methodology for applying EIT to this less resistive mortar was developed.
A lot of development remains before EIT can be accepted as a method for assessment of in-use structures, but this work will be of use for anyone attempting to apply EIT to concrete and cementitious materials, as well as reducing the resistivity of those materials.
| Date of Award | 26 May 2021 |
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| Original language | English |
| Awarding Institution |
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| Supervisor | Kevin Paine (Supervisor) & Manuchehr Soleimani (Supervisor) |
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- Standard