Detecting of the Longitudinal Grouting Quality in Prestressed Curved Tendon Duct Using Piezoceramic Transducers

Area of Science:

• Civil Engineering
• Materials Science
• Non-destructive Testing

Background:

• Longitudinal grouting quality is crucial for the integrity of prestressed concrete structures.
• Effective methods are needed to monitor grouting progression in curved tendon ducts.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop and validate a stress wave-based active sensing method for evaluating longitudinal grouting quality.
• To investigate the characteristics of stress wave propagation during the grouting process in curved tendon ducts.

Main Methods:

• Utilized piezoceramic transducers (lead zirconate titanate - PZT) as actuators and sensors.
• Monitored stress wave responses at different grouting stages (0% to 100%).
• Analyzed voltage signals, power spectral density (PSD) energy, and wavelet packet energy.

Main Results:

• Signal amplitudes remained low until 90% grouting, increasing significantly at 100% completion.
• Sensor signal variations were influenced by distance, grouting hole position, and material fluidity.
• The difference in received signals effectively indicated longitudinal grouting quality.

Conclusions:

• The stress wave-based active sensing method reliably evaluates longitudinal grouting quality in prestressed curved tendon ducts.
• The technique shows practical application value for non-destructive testing in civil engineering.