Ground-Penetrating Radar for Inspection of In-Road Structures and Data Interpretation by Numerical Modeling
Publication: Journal of Construction Engineering and Management
Volume 139, Issue 6
Abstract
In recent decades, road inspections have increasingly relied on the use of nondestructive instrumentation for the evaluation of road conditions. This work aims to test a ground-penetrating radar system to provide insight into nonvisible subsurface engineering with respect to an underpass arch-shaped structure. One important structural parameter that affects the stability of the arch structure and must be monitored is the quantity and thickness of the backfill used to fill the structure until the road is level. Frequencies of 500 and 200 MHz were used to detect the different layers over an arch structure. However, the heterogeneity of the backfill over the arch hampered interpretation of the field data. Finite-difference time-domain modeling was used to understand the response of the radar wave and to assist in interpretation. More realistic models were created based on the accurate geometry provided by a mobile light detection and ranging (LiDAR) device. The methodology is not excessively time-consuming, with all of the procedures taking a total of approximately 7 h. With this system, the layers built and their thicknesses can be defined with a maximum error of 5%. Appropriate nondestructive testing of the subsurface structure is useful in facilitating structural analysis and the prediction of critical failures.
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Acknowledgments
This work was completed with the financial support of the Spanish Ministry of Science and Innovation (Grant No. BIA2009-08012), the Spanish Centre for Technological and Industrial Development (Grant No. IDI-20101770), and Xunta de Galicia (human resources grant IPP055 – EXP44). The authors also wish to thank the companies GOC SA and Extraco Construcciones y Proyectos SA for all of the help that made this research possible.
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Information & Authors
Information
Published In
Journal of Construction Engineering and Management
Volume 139 • Issue 6 • June 2013
Pages: 749 - 753
Copyright
© 2013 American Society of Civil Engineers.
History
Received: May 2, 2012
Accepted: Sep 25, 2012
Published online: Sep 27, 2012
Published in print: Jun 1, 2013
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