Cone Penetration Test–Based Ultrasonic Probe for P-Wave Reflection Imaging of Embedded Objects
Publication: Journal of Bridge Engineering
Volume 17, Issue 6
Abstract
An ultrasonic P-wave reflection imaging probe is developed and utilized to noninvasively image the geometry of a deep foundation supporting a bridge pier. The source ultrasonic transducer emits compressive waves into saturated soil that subsequently transmits to and reflects back from an embedded object, and the receiver transducer measures the reflections that are used to construct an image. The components of the system, including the custom transducer probe and data acquisition hardware, were integrated with the nees@UCLA cone penetration testing truck. Some fundamentals of propagation of ultrasonic waves in soil are presented first, including transducer directivity, effects of unsaturation, the size of the internal scale of the soil, and transducer coupling. The system components are then presented, followed by field testing. The probe successfully imaged a pile foundation in very soft saturated clay but not in stiffer and/or unsaturated soils. The probe could be very useful for nondestructive quality assurance of structural elements constructed in situ in soft saturated soils.
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Acknowledgments
The writers would like to thank Bill Owen and Yue Wu from the California Department of Transportation (Caltrans) for providing resources and technical oversight during the field explorations at the Carquinez Bridge site. Assistance by the nees@UCLA staff, particularly Robert Nigbor and Alberto Salamanca, is also gratefully acknowledged. Funding for this work was provided by UCLA and by Caltrans under Contract No. 59A0691. The CPT truck was utilized in collaboration with the nees@UCLA equipment site, which is funded by the George E. Brown, Jr., Network for Earthquake Engineering Simulation established by the National Science Foundation (NSF). This material is based upon research performed in a renovated collaboratory by the NSF under Grant No. 0963183, which is an award funded under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009.
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Information & Authors
Information
Published In
Journal of Bridge Engineering
Volume 17 • Issue 6 • November 2012
Pages: 940 - 950
Copyright
© 2012 American Society of Civil Engineers.
History
Received: May 26, 2011
Accepted: Oct 12, 2011
Published online: Oct 14, 2011
Published in print: Nov 1, 2012
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