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Structural Engineering and Mechanics Volume 65, Number 2, January25 2018 , pages 129-139 DOI: https://doi.org/10.12989/sem.2018.65.2.129 |
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Detection of tension force reduction in a post-tensioning tendon using pulsed-eddy-current measurement |
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Ji-Min Kim, Jun Lee and Hoon Sohn
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| Abstract | ||
| Post-tensioning (PT) tendons are commonly used for the assembly of modularized concrete members, and tension is applied to the tendons during construction to facilitate the integrated behavior of the members. However, the tension in a PT tendon decreases over time due to steel corrosion and concrete creep, and consequently, the stress on the anchor head that secures the PT tendon also diminishes. This study proposes an automatic detection system to identify tension reduction in a PT tendon using pulsed-eddy-current (PEC) measurement. An eddy-current sensor is installed on the surface of the steel anchor head. The sensor creates a pulsed excitation to the driving coil and measures the resulting PEC response using the pick-up coil. The basic premise is that the tension reduction of a PT tendon results in stress reduction on the anchor head surface and a change in the PEC intensity measured by the pick-up coil. Thus, PEC measurement is used to detect the reduction of the anchor head stress and consequently the reduction of the PT tendon force below a certain threshold value. The advantages of the proposed PEC-based tension-reduction-detection (PTRD) system are (1) a low-cost (< $ 30), low-power (< 2 Watts) sensor, (2) a short inspection time (< 10 seconds), (3) high reliability and (4) the potential for embedded sensing. A 3.3 m long full-scale monostrand PT tendon was used to evaluate the performance of the proposed PTRD system. The PT tendon was tensioned to 180 kN using a custom universal tensile machine, and the tension was decreased to 0 kN at 20 kN intervals. At each tension, the PEC responses were measured, and tension reduction was successfully detected. | ||
| Key Words | ||
| post-tensioning tendon; tension reduction detection; pulsed-eddy-current measurement; post-tensioned concrete; nondestructive testing and evaluation | ||
| Address | ||
| Ji-Min Kim, Jun Lee and Hoon Sohn: Department of Civil Engineering, Korean Advanced Institute for Science and Technology, 291 Daehak-ro, Yuseong-gu, Daejeon 34141, Republic of Korea | ||