Collaborative Research: TC3 - Triboluminescent Crack Categorization Coating

该项目的目标是开发以涂料形式应用于桥梁损伤检测的新材料。这些涂料的独特之处在于，当裂缝穿过它们时，它们会发出可见光信号。这使检查员能够在目视检查桥梁和其他民用基础设施时识别和监测活动裂缝。该项目结合了发光涂料的开发和加工，以及这些材料作为民用基础设施裂缝检测和分类传感器的测试。涂料将通过实验室实验的组合进行研究，其中包括设计新的材料成分，以及在现役和退役桥梁上对涂料进行现场测试，这将允许制定使用这些材料的现场协议。重点是系统地优化基本材料的处理和行为，这将导致在现场使用过程中增强信号强度，并开发一个模型来描述各种材料的发光响应，用于裂纹检测。该项目分为两个部分：(1)开发发光粉末，并将其掺入浆料中，形成可应用于结构的油漆混合物；(2)在现实条件下测试这些材料，以评估其对结构健康监测的有效性，特别是疲劳裂纹的检测和分类。如果成功的话，这项研究的好处将是开发出独特的涂料，可以在视觉上检测桥梁的活动裂缝，提高视觉检查的有效性和修复策略的及时性。随着许多州和联邦机构为老化的基础设施制定替代和修复战略，这是一个整合创新传感方法的好时机，利用所有可用的材料进步。一种创新的监测工具可以提供实时信息，不需要电源，而且是可视化的，这将是疲劳裂纹检测领域的重大进步。该工具可以在实际检查或修复桥梁结构时集成。

The goal of this project is to develop new materials, applied in the form of paints, for damage detection in bridges. These paints are unique in that they emit a visible light signal as cracks propagate through them. This allows an inspector to identify and monitor active cracks during visual inspection of bridges and other civil infrastructure. The project combines the development and processing of luminescent paints with the testing of these materials as sensors for crack detection and categorization in civil infrastructures. The paints will be studied by a combination of laboratory experiments, which includes the design of new material compositions, and the field-testing of the paints on both in-service and decommissioned bridges, which will allow development of field protocols for use of these materials. The emphasis is on systematically optimizing basic materials processing and behavior that will result in enhanced signal strength during field use and developing a model that describes the luminescent response of a variety of materials for crack detection. The project is divided into two parts: (1) the development of luminescent powders and their incorporation into slurries to form a paint mixture that can be applied to structures and (2) the testing of these materials under realistic conditions for assessment of their effectiveness for structural health monitoring, specifically detection and categorization of fatigue cracks. If successful, the benefit of this research will be the development of unique paints that can visually detect active cracks in bridges, increasing the effectiveness of the visual inspection and the timeliness of repair strategies. As many state and federal agencies develop a replacement and rehabilitation strategy for aging infrastructure, this is an opportune time to integrate an innovative sensing methodology that exploits all available material advancements. An innovative monitoring tool that provides real-time information, does not require a power source, and is visual, would be a significant advancement in the area of fatigue crack detection. This tool could be integrated during hands-on inspection or during rehabilitation of bridge structures.