Carbon Nanotube-Based Sensing Composites: A Novel Distributed Sensing Approach for Structural Health Monitoring

该项目拟研究和开发用于结构健康监测（SHM）的碳纳米管/聚合物浸渍织物。这个想法是将织物附着在建筑物和桥梁的结构构件上，以连续监测构件的变形和裂缝，并在超过某个临界水平时触发警报。由于织物是连续的，因此可以在应用织物的所有表面上测量变形和裂纹。如果这一开发成功，将成为可持续建筑和结构的重大进步。我们特别努力从代表性不足的群体和工程女性 (WIE) 项目中招募有才华的学生。大学/行业之间存在密切的互动，这将促进基础科学和技术应用之间的快速技术转移。该研究重点是将基于碳纳米管的传感技术集成到土木结构和建筑物的结构健康监测（SHM）系统中。碳纳米管传感层由导电网络结构组成，可实现类似神经的分布式传感功能。该传感概念基于利用集成到纺织复合材料的聚合物基体中的导电碳纳米管网络。与应变计、加速度计或位移传感器等传统 SHM 传感器相比，基于碳纳米管的传感器具有许多独特的特性，并且非常适合分布式传感。初步工作表明，这种新型传感器（1）对应变和微损伤极其敏感，（2）适用于广泛的几何形状，（3）在非线性结构行为中具有良好的鲁棒性和功能性。将进行传感器处理、表征和建模、传感器响应和数据分析以及组件和完整结构的模型测试方面的研究。拟议的研究是一项多学科合作，建立在两位研究人员在结构健康监测和结构力学以及纳米结构复合材料和传感器方面的优势之上。

The project proposes to investigate and develop carbon nanotube/polymer-impregnated fabric for structural health monitoring (SHM). The idea is to attach the fabric to a structural member in buildings and bridges to monitor deformations and cracks in the member continuously and trigger an alarm when they exceed a certain critical level. Because the fabric is continuous, the deformations and cracks can be measured on all the surfaces where the fabric is applied. This development, if successful, can be a significant advancement toward sustainable buildings and structures. A particular effort is aimed at recruiting talented students from underrepresented groups and Women in Engineering (WIE) programs. There is a close university/industry interaction which will facilitate rapid technology transfer between basic science and technological applications.The research focuses on the integration of carbon nanotube-based sensing technology into structural health monitoring (SHM) systems for civil structures and buildings. Carbon nanotube sensing layers consist of a conductive network structure that enables nerve-like distributed sensing capabilities. The sensing concept is based on utilizing electrically conductive carbon nanotube networks integrated into the polymer matrix of a textile composite. Carbon nanotube-based sensors have a number of unique characteristics as compared to traditional SHM sensors, such as strain gages, accelerometers, or displacement sensors, and are extremely well suited for distributed sensing. Preliminary work by has shown that the novel sensor is (1) extremely sensitive to strain and micro-damage, (2) applicable to a wide range of geometries, and (3) robust and functional well into the non-linear structural behavior. Research in sensor processing, characterization and modeling, sensor response and data analysis, and model testing of components as well as complete structures will be performed. The proposed research is a multidisciplinary collaboration and builds upon the strengths of the two investigators in structural health monitoring and structural mechanics and in nanostructured composites and sensors.