Cross comparison feasibility monitoring studies in 'test-to-destruction' trial on concrete footbridge

我们目前的许多基础设施都是用混凝土等现代材料建造的，即使在其设计寿命的较短时间内使用，也需要进行大规模的维修。目前，仅英国每年就花费约6亿美元用于混凝土基础设施的维修和维护，这一数字在发达国家翻了好几倍。服务性和整个寿命性能对于有效使用至关重要，对此类结构的长期监测对于确保充分的结构能力和最大限度地减少对公众的风险以及实现物有所值至关重要。例如，轻质、耐用材料的进步被视为未来可持续发展的关键，使用高度耐用的轻质、低能耗混凝土，可用于新型柔性混凝土拱和其他预制产品，并在其中纳入先进的监测系统。然而，为了更充分地理解使用这种材料为未来创造更好的结构的需求和挑战（并允许在其使用寿命期间更好地评估现有结构），需要开发和广泛使用可以安装和使用的有效监测系统，以提供可靠和信息丰富的数据，具有行业信心。因此，该项目被设计为一个简短的，12个月的真正的跨学科研究，交叉比较周围的安装，使用，数据采集和性能评估的几个补充技术结构监测的问题。独特的应用程序和时间尺度是由一组机会主义的情况下，允许一个“测试到破坏”的人行桥上的国家物理实验室（NPL）的网站在泰丁顿，作为其重建的一部分。这非常有利地使得能够不受阻碍地进入待调查的桥梁，而不会给公众带来不便，或者例如在改变交通路线或前往远程地点并在远程地点安装设备方面的显著成本。计划的工作涉及NPL工作人员之间的密切合作，由国家测量系统和DIUS与城市大学的学者合作资助，并得到相关行业的支持和建议，包括建筑业和光纤传感器制造商。这项计划的工作将与工业，大学和技能部（DIUS /DTI的继任者）支持的一个重大项目合作进行：项目AM 14：启用下一代结构健康监测（SHM）：演示器，验证和最佳实践，扩大整个研究的范围，包括城市大学的投入及其在光纤传感器方面的专业知识。这方面并没有包括在最初的DIUS资助计划中，而这样做的理由来自NPL和城市大学的工作人员最近的机会接触。因此，向EPSRC提出的这一具体申请是为总体计划工作的一小部分提供资金支持/为学术界参与该项目的直接额外费用提供资金支持。应该强调的是，这是一项申请，如果目前不支持，则不能在六个月内重新提交：进行这些测试的机会将不复存在，因为届时，根据拆除时间表，工程的时间表将已过。

Much of our current infrastructure, built of modern materials such as concrete, has required extensive repair after being in service for even a relatively short period of its design life. Currently ~600M pa is spent annually on the repair and maintenance of concrete infrastructure the UK alone, a figure that is multiplied many times across the developed nations. Serviceability and whole life performance is critical to effective use and the long-term monitoring of such structures is invaluable to ensure full structural capability and to minimize risk to the public and give value for money. For example, the advancement of lightweight, durable materials is seen as essential to future sustainable development, using highly durable lightweight, low energy concrete which can be used in a novel flexible concrete arch and other pre-cast products, incorporating within it advanced monitoring systems. However, in order to understand more fully the needs and challenges of creating better structures for the future using such materials (and allowing for better assessment of existing structures during their service lifetime) effective monitoring systems that can be installed and used to give reliable and informative data, having the confidence of industry need to be developed and used widely. Thus this project has been designed as a short, 12-month truly interdisciplinary study, to cross compare the issues surrounding the installation, use, data capture and evaluation of performance of several complementary techniques for structural monitoring. Uniquely the application and time scale is set by an opportunistic set of circumstances which allows for a 'test-to-destruction' of a footbridge on the National Physical Laboratory (NPL) site at Teddington, as part of its redevelopment. This very advantageously gives unhindered access to the bridge to be investigated without inconvenience to the public or, for example, significant costs in rerouting traffic or travel to and installation of equipment at a remote site. The work planned involves close cooperation between staff at NPL, funded by the National Measurement System and by the DIUS working in conjunction with academics at City University and supported and advised by relevant industries, involving both the construction industry and a fibre optic sensor manufacturer. This work planned is to be carried out in collaboration with a major project supported by the Department of Industry, Universities and Skills (DIUS / the successor to DTI): Project AM14: Enabling the Next Generation of Structural Health Monitoring (SHM): Demonstrator, Validation and Best Practice by widening the scope of the entire study to include the input from City University and its expertise on fibre optic sensors. This aspect had not been included in the original DIUS-funded programme and the raison-d'tre for so doing arose from a recent opportunistic contact between staff at NPL and City University. Thus this specific application to EPSRC is for funding support for a small part of the planned work overall / for the direct, additional costs of the academic involvement in the project. It should be stressed that this is an application which if not supported at this time cannot be resubmitted in six months time: the opportunity to carry out these tests will have gone as by then the timescale for the work, in light of the demolition schedule, will have passed.