• Journal of the Korean Society for Nondestructive Testing
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• v.20 no.6
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• pp.501-510
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• 2000

Recently, advanced signal analysis which is called "time-frequency analysis" has been used widely in nondestructive evaluation applications. Wavelet transform(WT) and Wigner Distribution are the most advanced techniques for processing signals with time-varying spectra. Wavelet analysis method is an attractive technique for evaluation of material characterization nondestructively. Wavelet transform is applied to the time-frequency analysis of ultrasonic echo waveform obtained by an ultrasonic pulse-echo technique. In this study, the feasibility of noise suppression of ultrasonic flaw signal and frequency-dependent ultrasonic group velocity and attenuation coefficient using wavelet analysis of ultrasonic echo waveform have been verified experimentally. The Gabor function is adopted the analyzing wavelet. The wavelet analysis shows that the variations of ultrasonic group velocity and attenuation coefficient due to the change of material characterization can be evaluated at each frequency. Furthermore, to assure the enhancement of detectability and naw sizing performance, both computer simulated results and experimental measurements using wavelet signal processing are used to demonstrate the effectiveness of the noise suppression of ultrasonic flaw signal obtained from austenitic stainless steel weld including EDM notch.

• Electrical & Electronic Materials
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• v.9 no.10
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• pp.1053-1059
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• 1996

The pulse-echo response of the piezoceramics PZT-polymer 3-3 type composite transducers with various PVA additions were investigated. The PZT powder was prepared by the molten salt synthesis method. The porous PZT specimens will be used as a filler to make 3-3 type comosite were prepared from a mixture of PZT and polyvinylalcohol(PVA) sphere by utilizing BURPS(Bumout Plastic Sphere) technique. It was shown that the transmitting and receiving sensitivity of 3-3 type piezoelectric composite transducers could be improved than that of solid PZT transducers. The reason is that 3-3 type piezoelectric composite have low dielectric constant, density and acoustic impedance. The distance between transducer and reflector was in good agreement with the distance calculated from the longitudinal velocity of the specimens and receiving time observed pulse-echo responses on the ultrasonic transducer analyzer.

• Proceedings of the Korean Institute of Building Construction Conference
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• 2016.10a
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• pp.124-125
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• 2016

The various size and shape of cracks in concrete induce deterioration of reinforced concrete structures including nuclear power plants. The wider and deeper the crack is, the concrete structures are more vulnerable to carbonization. Thus, it is essential to develop a reliable measurement technique of cracks inside concrete. In this study, an ultrasonic test method is applied to the crack measurements. The results can be used for evaluation of existing reinforced concrete structures.

• Journal of Sensor Science and Technology
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• v.15 no.6
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• pp.442-448
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• 2006

Ultrasonic anemometers using pulse envelope detection-based method are standard instruments in most meteorological studies. In this paper, a new phase measurement method is tried to achieve the enhanced resolution without changing dimensions. The measurement sensitivity, dynamic range, and measurement speed of the new instrument are 0.2 mm/s, 13.3 m/s, and 13 measurements/sec, respectively. A graphic user interface is added to show the velocity and direction of the wind with the speed of sound and temperature of the wind in the 3 dimensional space. The new anemometer could be useful for the measurement of the air speed, the flow of fluids, and even air flow inside the downtown buildings.

• Structural Engineering and Mechanics
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• v.52 no.4
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• pp.701-721
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• 2014

In the assessment of existing RC buildings, the reliable appraisal of the compressive strength of in-situ concrete is a fundamental step. Unfortunately, the data that can be obtained by the available testing methods are typically affected by a high level of uncertainty. Moreover, in order to derive indications about the degradation and ageing of the materials by on site tests, it is necessary to have the proper terms of comparison, that is to say, to know the reference data measured during the construction phases, that are often unavailable when the building is old. In the cases when such a comparison can be done, the in situ strength values typically turn out to be lower than the reference strength values (tests performed on taken samples during the construction). At this point, it is crucial to discern and quantify the specific effect induced by different factors: ageing of the materials; poor quality of the placement, consolidation or cure of the concrete during the construction phases; damage due to drilling. This paper presents a procedure for correlating the destructive compressive tests and non-destructive tests (ultrasonic pulse velocity tests) with the data documenting the compressive strength tested during the construction phases. The research work is aimed at identifying the factors that induce the difference between the in-situ strength and cubes taken from the concrete casting, and providing, so, useful information for the assessment procedure of the building.

• Journal of the Korean Society for Nondestructive Testing
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• v.33 no.4
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• pp.361-367
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• 2013

Many of the nuclear power plant pipe is used in high temperature and high pressure environment. Wall thinning frequently caused by the corrosion. These wall thinning in pipe is expected gradually increase as nuclear power become superannuated. Therefore there is need to evaluate wall thinning in pipe and corrosion defect by non-destructive method to prevent the accident of the nuclear power facility due to pipe corrosion. Especially for real-time assessment of the wall thinning that occurs in nuclear power plant pipe, the laser ultrasonic technology can be measured even in hard-to-reach areas, beyond the limits of earlier existing contact methods. In this study, the optical method using laser was applied for non-destructive and non-contact evaluation. Ultrasonic signals was acquired through generating ultrasonic by pulse laser and using laser interferometer. First the ultrasonic signal was detected in no wall thinning in pipe, then a longitudinal wave velocity was measured inside of pipe. Artificial wall thinning specimen compared to 20, 30, 40 and 50% of thickness of the pipe was produced and the longitudinal wave velocity was measured. It was possible to evaluate quantitatively the wall thinning area(internal defect depth) cause it was able to calculate the thickness of each specimen using measured longitudinal wave velocity.

• Journal of the Korea Institute of Building Construction
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• v.16 no.3
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• pp.229-235
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• 2016

In construction field, it used various technique for concrete formwork. Part of them, non-destructive test has been conducted to estimate a compressive strength of concrete easily such as rebound method and ultrasonic pulse velocity method etc. Former research has recommend proposed equation based on experimental data to investigate strength of concrete but it was sometimes deferent actual value of that from in field because of the few of data in case of early strength concrete. In this study, an experiment was conducted to analyze strength properties for early strength concrete using cylinder mold and $1,000mm{\times}1,000mm{\times}200mm$ rectangular specimen. And compressive strength of concrete was tested by non-destructive test, and calculated by the equation proposed former research. As a result, the non-destructive test results showed approximately 70 percent of the failure test value for all conditions, and worse reliability was obtained for high strength concrete samples when the ultrasonic pulse velocity method was used. Based on the scope of this study, the experimental equation for estimating compressive strength of early strength concrete from 24MPa to 60MPa was proposed.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Marine Environment & Safety
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• v.26 no.2
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• pp.219-226
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• 2020

Nondestructive testing is one of the most commonly used quality inspection methods for evaluating ship structures. However, accurate evaluation is dif icult because various composite materials, such as reinforcements, resin, and fiber-reinforced plastics (FRPs), are used in hulls, and manufacturing quality differences are likely to exist owing to the fabrication environment and the skill level of workers. This possibility is especially true for FRP ships because they are significantly thicker than other structures, such as automobiles and aircraft, and are mainly manufactured using the hand lay-up method. Because the density of a material is a critical condition for ultrasonic inspection, in this study, a hull plate was selected from a vessel manufactured using e-glass fiber, which is widely used in the manufacture of FRP vessels with the weight fraction of the glass content generally considered. The most suitable ultrasonic testing conditions for the glass FRP hull plate were investigated using a pulse-echo ultrasonic gauge. A-scans were performed with three probes (1.00, 2.25, and 5.00 MHz), and the results were compared with those of the hull plate thickness measured using a Vernier caliper. It was found that when the probe frequency was higher, the eco-pulse velocity of the receiver had to be lowered to obtain accurate measurement results, whereas fewer errors occurred at a relatively low probe frequency.

• Journal of the Korea Concrete Institute
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• v.14 no.6
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• pp.973-981
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• 2002

Recently, the use of high strength concrete (HSC) has increased dramatically md however, few studies have been conducted on the early-age properties of HSC such as setting. The penetration resistance test (specified by KS F 2436) that is the standard test method for determining initial and final setting times of concrete, may not be appropriate for HSC because of the high viscosity of the mortar mixture. To address this issue, an ultrasonic pulse velocity (UPV) monitoring system was used to investigate the setting behavior of mortar and concrete. The experimental study was carried out to measure the UPV's of mortars and concretes having various water/binder ratios (W/B) and various fly ash replacement levels, during the first 24 hours of testing. Test results showed that the UPV in concrete was developed faster than that of mortar with the same W/B, and that of ordinary concrete was greater than that of fly ash concrete. Typical values of UPV were suggested that correspond to the initial and final setting times, based on following criteria: (1) the penetration resistance method; (2) the instant when the UPV begins to develop; and (3) the instant when the UPV development rate is maximum. The method and UPV monitoring device used in this study is promising for the setting assessment of concrete, particularly for HSC.

• Journal of the Korea institute for structural maintenance and inspection
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• v.23 no.6
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• pp.132-140
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• 2019

In this study, a specimen composed of columns, walls, beams, and slabs was fabricated to investigate the estimated reliability using nondestructive test method for the location of structural members of reinforced concrete single layer structures. And for accurate analysis in the comparison process with the existing estimation formula, we try to analyze the reliability through statistical approach by using error rate comparison and Confidence interval estimation. As a result, The average error rate of the core test was 18.8% compared with the result of estimating the compressive strength using the ultrasonic pulse velocity method. The average error rate of the core test results compared with the result of estimating the compressive strength using the rebound hardness method was 20.1%, confirming the field applicability. it is judged that the reliability of the compressive strength estimation can be derived from the wall member to make a quick and efficient structure safety diagnosis using the ultrasonic pulse velocity method. In addition, it is judged that the reliability of the compressive strength estimation can be derived from the beam member to make a quick and efficient structure safety diagnosis using the rebound hardness method.