Bridge Inspection and Condition

Assessment in Europe
Rosemarie Helmerich, Ernst Niederleithinger, Daniel Algernon,
Doreen Streicher, and Herbert Wiggenhauser

The European infrastructure asset has developed historically and is through their life is less and less meeting the demands of a growing
characterized by nation-specific construction processes. Inspection, con- bridge stock.
dition assessment, and maintenance procedures differ from country to Inspection, maintenance management, and planning are given
country. Because of historical and political circumstances, national higher importance, to optimize the life-cycle costs of the traffic infra-
infrastructure assets are maintained at different levels, too. Since the structure, which affects a considerable number of the general public’s
budget for maintaining the bridge infrastructure less and less meets households. Besides basic traffic data and traffic distribution, the
the demands of a growing bridge stock, bridge inspection, maintenance, current structural condition is needed to estimate resistance of the
and life-cycle considerations gain higher importance. The need exists to structure for calculation of the current and future serviceability.
develop effective diagnosis tools for early detection of construction
faults, defects, and deterioration processes during inspection, to keep
the bridge infrastructure at an acceptable level, from structural safety MANAGEMENT STRATEGIES
and economic viewpoints. An overview on the latest research projects
and integrated bridge management systems in Europe is given. The The new European Union, consisting of 27 member states, faces a
potentials of nondestructive testing (NDT) are presented, with special challenge in transnational traffic demands within the next few decades.
focus on technical advances of NDT applications to reinforced concrete The European Transport Policy currently supports the development
(RC) and posttensioned concrete bridges. Although NDT is not regularly of optimized maintenance strategies in sustainable surface transport.
integrated in these processes, the application brings valuable information The European Construction Technology Platform (ECTP), AG
on the current condition of the inner structure in called-in special inspec- Networks, began to organize and structure the European strategic
tions. NDT-automation and the application of imaging echo methods, research needs and specific visions up to 2030. A statement was
combined with advanced data processing, produce a surprising level of “Moreover the capacity of the infrastructure will have to meet the
information about the inner structure of massive RC slabs up to a depth demand for mobility (volume and weights) thus existing assets have
of about 60 cm. Detected inhomogeneity and scatterers of acoustic or to be upgraded and new constructions planned, connected and made
electromagnetic waves can be visualized in vertical or horizontal slices interoperable” (1).
through the structure or animations. The fusion of different three- The European Road Transport Research Advisory Council
dimensional data sets of processed data improves the interpretability (ERTRAC) and the European Rail Research Advisory Council
and accuracy of the results. (ERRAC) support decision making at the European level from the
owners’ viewpoint. Both councils developed a specific vision and
strategic research agenda for the European road and railway sector,
The European infrastructure asset has developed historically and beginning with preparation of the Seventh Framework Programme
is characterized by national construction types and processes, dif- of the European Commission (FP7).
ferent inspection procedures, and condition assessment. Maintenance So that traffic infrastructures may be preserved, their conditions
procedures and maintenance level differ from country to country. must be known and predictable for the future. This means the opti-
Some of them, especially in Italy, France, and the United Kingdom, mization of inspection and condition assessment procedures as
were built centuries ago. They exist in the bridge stock parallel to well as life-cycle cost considerations and performance-based main-
modern wide spanning structures. Due to historical and political tenance planning. Such requirements include the need to develop
circumstances, some national infrastructure assets in Europe are effective diagnosis tools for early detection of construction faults
maintained at high levels; some others, on a regional level, have and deterioration processes.
a barely acceptable level. Additionally, it is a common truth for
most owners: The budget for maintaining the bridge infrastructure
Needs of Infrastructure Owners
R. Helmerich, E. Niederleithinger, D. Streicher, and H. Wiggenhauser, Federal
Institute for Materials Research and Testing, Unter den Eichen 87, D-12205, Berlin, Generally, requirements for maintaining the bridge infrastructure
Germany. D. Algernon, Department of Civil and Coastal Engineering, 365 Weill Hall, asset at an acceptable level with optimum of economic effort are
University of Florida, Gainesville, FL 32611. Corresponding author: R. Helmerich, almost the same for all European countries and different types of
[email protected]. traffic. However, infrastructure owners usually have their own estab-
lished procedures for inspection and condition assessment. In the
Transportation Research Record: Journal of the Transportation Research Board,
No. 2044, Transportation Research Board of the National Academies, Washington, past, many European projects have focused on exchange of knowl-
D.C., 2008, pp. 31–38. edge, and intensified cooperative research in the construction sector
DOI: 10.3141/2044-04 has been done in previous Framework Programmes.

31
32 Transportation Research Record 2044

European highway and railway networks represent a considerable arches as a contribution to bridge management systems and asset
asset value. The function of these networks has a direct impact on management in the United Kingdom.
the increasing transnational exchange of passenger and goods. It
is expected that mobility in Europe will increase in passenger and Contecvet This was a manual on simplified and detailed assessment
freight transport at a rate of 4% to 5% a year (2). Railway bridges, of reinforced concrete (RC) structures suffering from corrosion.
for example, have to meet future traffic demands for higher axle
loads up to 33 tons in freight traffic and faster passenger trains with Lifecon (FP5, 2002 to 2005) Lifecon addresses the rapidly
speed above 300 km/h. increasing need of maintenance, repair, and modernization of aging
Because the environmental impact on the one hand and operational European civil infrastructures, such as bridges, harbors, tunnels, power
demands on the other cause faster deterioration rates to the bridges plants, and off-shore structures, as well as building stock. The objec-
than assumed during design, the effectiveness of maintenance strate- tive of the Lifecon project was to develop and validate an open and
gies needs to be optimized. Such requirements include the following: generic European model of an integrated and predictive life-cycle
maintenance and management planning system (Lifecon LMS).
• Optimization of the inspection and condition assessment The main novelty of the Lifecon LMS is predictivity, meaning that
processes for evaluation of the current conditions of bridges, including the functional and performance quality of infrastructure facilities
the use of enhanced nondestructive methods; will be predicted for a planning and design period of the facility with
• Enhancement of load and resistance assessment methods for integrated performance analysis (5).
bridges;
• Development of advanced and cheaper measurement and
Rehabcon (FP4, 2001 to 2004) This project focused on the
monitoring techniques; and strategy for maintenance and rehabilitation in RC structures. It
• Development of effective repair and strengthening methods.
divides typical bridge defects into defect groups and defect types, to
Based on the state of the art and a detailed investigation of the define repair and maintenance strategies. For each cause and defect,
needs of European railway network owners, research on the aforemen- the project proposes basic repair principles and the most widely
tioned topics was performed, for example, in the European project applicable repair principles.
Sustainable Bridges.
Structural Assessment, Monitoring, and Control Known as
SAMCO, this is a European Union project in FP5, with focus on
Infrastructure Research in Europe structural assessment, monitoring, and control of structures. The
chapter on condition assessment analyzes different available methods
and State of the Art
for structural monitoring. It does not describe regular inspection or
Previous Projects condition rating. This project also identified the lack of unified terms
on monitoring and presents a monitoring, a guideline a glossary for
Within the past decade, the European Commission acknowledged monitoring tasks (6).
the need for technical research in this field and supported different
European projects on infrastructure assessment of existing bridges Union Internationale des Chemins de Fer Masonry The inter-
for both highway infrastructure and railway infrastructure. The national railway organization, Union Internationale des Chemins
following list gives an overview of European research projects, de Fer (UIC), has focused on optimization of masonry arch bridge
carried out in the previous years during the European Commission assessment in one of the latest projects. Its principle objective is to
Framework Programmes (FPs). Results of the following projects collect and develop tools that help optimizing the life-cycle manage-
significantly contributed to initiating or enhancing development ment of masonry arch bridges, help reduce maintenance costs, and
of national integrated bridge management systems or at least their promote an effective exchange of good practice between the railways.
relevant components. Assessment rules are available in a few railway organizations only,
for example, in the German railways.
Bridge Management in Europe (FP4, 1998 to 1999) The The project is also aimed at dissemination of best practice to
topic of Bridge Management in Europe (BRIME) was the develop- the railways, implementation of new techniques, optimization of the
ment of bridge management systems for the European highway maintenance process to expand the life time, and helping life-cycle
authorities. Research results influenced, for example, development management of masonry bridges. These goals will be reached by
of the highway advice notes by the U.K. Transport Research Labo- effective policy making and by providing easy access to appropriate
ratory, the Slovenian National Building and Civil Engineering Insti- information, literature, software, and problem-solving platform.
tute, and the German Strasseninformationsbank (SIB)-Bauwerke (3). This project contributes results to revise and extend the existing UIC
SIB-Bauwerke uses the Federal Institute for Materials and Testing Code 778-3R recommendations for assessment of the load carrying
(BAM)-NDT compendium providing a comprehensive survey on capacity of existing masonry and mass-concrete arch bridges.
nondestructive testing (NDT) methods (4).
Sustainable Bridges (FP6, 2003 to 2007) A recently com-
European Cooperation in the Field of Scientific and Technical pleted European project, Sustainable Bridges, has improved assess-
Research 345 (FP4, 1999 to 2002) Known as COST, this ment tools and repair and strengthening methods (2). The European
details procedures required for assessment of highway safety structures railway network owners need to increase the capacity and durability
WG 2 and WG 3 focused on condition assessment and inspection, of their bridge stock, in increasing the speed for passenger trains,
not on the role of NDT. axle load in freight traffic, and life span. The European Commission
funded the integrated research project Sustainable Bridges, a consor-
CIRIA C656 (United Kingdom, 2006) The British national tium of 32 partners from 12 European countries. Better inspection
research project was on masonry arch bridges integrating NDT, tools, assessment procedures, and modern repair and strengthening
inspection requirements, and laboratory testing in the field of masonry methods using advanced materials were developed. Research results
Helmerich, Niederleithinger, Algernon, Streicher, and Wiggenhauser 33

are made available to railway owners and engineers engaged in DANBRO is a Windows-based computer program for all phases of
the assessment process, through workshops for railway personnel the service life of a structure. All inspection data are digitally stored
and an international conference in October 2007. Four guidelines in the system. Repair strategies, price lists, required measures,
were developed to support railway infrastructure departments and and all economic tasks, including gadgets and allocations can be
responsible engineers with technical background information in the added additionally to technical data if needed. The output is condition
following fields: reports, maintenance plans, and economic consequences including,
for example, indirect costs for road closure or reduced traffic.
• Inspection and condition assessment of railway bridges,
including NDT; KUBA In 1995, the master concept of the Swiss bridge manage-
• Load and resistance assessment of railway bridges; ment system for guidance of all subsequent work was released. The
• Monitoring of railway bridges; and preservation model in KUBA-MS includes condition assessment
• Repair and strengthening of railway bridges. and condition forecast, specification of technically plausible actions,
The project was guided and reviewed by six major European and elaboration of working programs. Swiss railways propose, in their
railway companies. This move ensured that the scientific effort guidelines, appropriate NDT methods for assessment of existing
was spent on problems of real interest. One of the work packages railway bridges made of steel.
was aimed at improving the condition assessment procedure, with
a focus on NDT methods. Improvement of techniques, automation, SIB-Bauwerke The SIB structure (3) was developed and continu-
and data processing is an important task, reported on later in this ously upgraded by the German Highway Administration (BASt) on
paper (2). behalf of the Ministry of Transport. The system follows the national
standard DIN 1076 and uses links for the following:

• Bridges sheets from the road information data base with the
Integrated Bridge Management Tools in Europe
system of the structural bridge data (ASB-Ing) (3),
Because inspections and their recordings are more and more imple- • Guide RI-EBW_PRUF (3), and
mented in full digital communicating networks, integrated in Bridge • BASt-Compendium (link between the database with typical
Management Systems (BMS), the advanced systems of the highways highway bridge defects and appropriate NDT methods).
and railways are presented as examples.
Different knowledge-based databases form the background of the
During FP4, the BRIME project especially enhanced the devel-
system:
opment of inspection and condition assessment systems of highway
bridges. Since then, the inspection and condition assessment systems • Database of drawings with structural details,
for some European infrastructure networks, for example, in Germany, • Database with typical defects,
the United Kingdom, and Slovenia, were advanced and integrated • Database with deviation from required parameters as basis for
in the bridge maintenance planning and asset management strategies. the condition factor,
For highway agencies applying an integrated digital management • Three categories for evaluation—structural safety, traffic
system, BRIME covers all major tasks for the network owner. The safety, and durability, and
digital management tool contains documentation and all information • Database with available NDT methods related to the defect to
about the bridge. investigate.
Data networks for bridge management include design drawings,
calculations, delivery protocols, all former inspection protocols, The system SIB-Bauwerke weights each defect in regard to
special investigations, material data, repair and strengthening mea- structural safety (stability), S; traffic safety, V; and durability, D.
sures, and even all available photographic documentation from The defect evaluation depends significantly on the influence of a
“cradle to grave.” defect on S, V, and D to either only an element (redundancy) or to
The best-known software-based digital bridge management systems the whole bridge. The defect catalog attempts to cover all types of
in Europe are the following: possible defects. It is possible to add information on defects to
regular maintenance updates of the system.
Bridge and Tunnel Management System Known as BaTMan, Components of the digital inspection and condition assessment
this is the Swedish management system of the road administrations. systems are linked with the databases. The system can thus also be used
Other users of this digital system are the Swedish Railway Department for asset management and maintenance planning as an integrated
and several city and harbor authorities. BaTMan includes all admin- BMS. It is available in German and open to all interested clients for
istrative data, technical data of the object, load capacity data, and all a relatively low price. In addition to the highway administration,
inspection records. All information is given on repair, strengthening, all German federal states and some major cities are applying SIB-
and maintenance, including their costs. Bauwerke voluntarily. In the case of doubts about the structural
integrity of the bridge after inspection, an object-related damage
BAUT The Austrian bridge database uses the software BAUT to analysis applying nondestructive testing is recommended in SIB-
manage the road bridge infrastructure and to minimize the mainte- Bauwerke.
nance costs. The application sets up on a modular database system.
Various modules have been realized relevant to daily business of run- Structures Condition Marking Index The Structures Condition
ning and maintaining a road network. BAUT collects every structural Marking Index (SCMI) of the United Kingdom’s national Network
item along the main and secondary road network in Austria. Rail collects data from inspections on forms. The aim is to express
the condition of a bridge on a scale between 0 and 100. The SCMI
DANBRO and DANBRO2 This program in Denmark was devel- is not a safety index and does not reflect the structural adequacy.
oped for the road administration; additional users are cities and harbors. The bridge is divided into segments, and the severity (A, B, C . . .)
34 Transportation Research Record 2044

and extent (1, 2, 3 . . .) of the worst visible defects are described. past few decades [for example, see Helmerich et al. (8)], there is still
Records of the bridge examiner are imported into a database, where no European standard for reassessment of existing bridges. Usually,
an algorithm processes the data. engineers refer to Eurocodes or national guides in the reassessment
Notes from British highway agencies’ advice recommend the of existing bridges. The Eurocodes provide assessment procedures
application of NDT and present informative hints and case studies with partial safety factors whose results can be compared with
related to the main applicable methods for RC structures. defined limit states for ultimate strength, durability, and serviceabil-
ity. Assessment tools for existing bridges are seldom organized under
the responsibility of the infrastructure asset owner. Only a few rail-
ADVANCES IN INSPECTION ways have guidelines for assessment of existing structures, such as
AND CONDITION ASSESSMENT the Swiss federal railways, SBB, and the German railways, DB AG.
Standardization for inspection is regularly made at a network level.
In Europe, bridge inspection is organized on a network level to
ensure that a structure is safe (structural reliability) and serviceable
(serviceability) for the given traffic load mix. For most bridges, it is Nondestructive Testing
adequate to perform regular inspections. Usually, inspections are
organized at fixed intervals. Currently, France classifies the railway The bridge inspection and maintenance process needs effective and
lines with respect to importance in their railway network and risk condition-related organization. NDT is not an integral part of most
to public users and owners, to introduce more flexible inspection inspection procedures. Within the past few years, NDT has been given
intervals with optimized maintenance planning. more importance for quality control of the workmanship after comple-
Increasing traffic demands, heavy deterioration, and severe damage, tion of the construction process and as a nondisruptive tool for periodic
as might be caused by truck, ship, or environmental impact, may cause evaluation of the condition during the service life of the bridge.
doubts about the structural integrity or durability of a bridge and Advances in technology and calculation methods have enabled
require a reassessment of the bridges. The project Sustainable Bridges scientists to make considerable progress in basic research of NDT
supports and specifies a procedure of steps for further reassessment procedures for use in concrete bridge inspection and condition assess-
of railway bridges. The general procedure was developed and first ment. Within the past decade, NDT has been enhanced to a level where
internal conditions of RC can be investigated in a much better way.
published by the International Association for Bridges and Struc-
Only a few destructive samples are needed for verification and val-
tural Engineering in 1997 (7 ). The project extended the scope and
idation of the result. Condition assessment of the inner structure can
specified the phases for the assessment of different bridge types and
localize, quite quickly, hidden construction defects and determine
materials (see Figure 1).
the extent of damage caused by external impact or deterioration.
The heterogeneous structure of RC consisting of aggregates, cement
Standardization in Europe matrix, and reinforcement requires efforts in the development process
with concentration on physical potentials and limitations of the
The unification of the standardization in Eurocodes for new construc- method, material properties, damping, penetration depth, signal to
tions is almost complete now. The Eurocodes 2 (concrete), 3 (steel), noise ratio, vertical and horizontal resolution, and accuracy.
and 4 (composite structures)—part 2 in each—focus on the assess- Knowledge about NDT methods for steel bridges can be transferred
ment of new bridges. Although many proposals were made within the from industrial research. Extensive research has been carried out in

Regular inspection following national rules

- survey (1 year)
- intermediate inspection (three years after main inspection)
- main inspection, first after completing the bridge

Database
- Part of the management system

Doubts: terminology
higher axle load, higher train
frequency, heavy defects
Condition assessment
- Input from inspections
- Use of the databases

Database
defects
Reassessment in phases

Phase 1 Database
NDT toolbox

Phase 2

Phase 3

Phase 4: Decision making/

Repair/Strengthening/Demolition

FIGURE 1 Inspection and assessment process (2, 7).

Helmerich, Niederleithinger, Algernon, Streicher, and Wiggenhauser 35

the military or pressure vessels industry, easily applicable to steel ment of massive concrete structures (10). The ultrasonic array allows
bridges. A European guideline assessment of existing steel bridges on one to more comfortably use dry ceramic point contact transducers.
fatigue-related issues includes the most important NDT applications It substitutes sensors with large diameter requiring gel or water as
and is almost finished (8). coupling agent. The development of automated scanning systems for
At each level, either in inspections or during the stepwise assess- application of NDT sensing techniques on site provided a method for
ment (see Figure 1), special inspections can be called in to investigate localization and determination of reinforcement due to the possible
special tasks. For special problems, a holistic multitask investiga- dense measurement grid.
tion is needed. NDT is often applied, for example, as proposed for The following tasks can be solved during special called-in
bridges (2, 3) and for foundations (9). inspections:
According to tasks to be solved, the following general approach
needs to be followed when applying NDT: • Localization of simple reinforcement,
• Localization of tendon ducts,
• Study of all available information of the bridge (inspection • Investigation of grouting faults in metal tendon ducts,
protocols, drawings, repair measures); • Detection of inhomogeneity or structural defects in the inner
• Clarify required information and define the scope; structure of massive concrete,
• Definition of requirements in detectability (allowable risk, • Estimation of the thickness of massive concrete structures
maximum allowable failure and defect size); accessible from one side, and
• Choice of appropriate methods for the given task; • Detection of humid areas.
• Validation of method for the given material with respect to
accessibility; New scanning systems can be applied to vertical, inclined, or
• Analysis of factors influencing the result, such as humidity, salt horizontal surfaces underneath bridge slabs or on pavements (10).
content, and deterioration of the structural material (if possible); A predefined grid width guarantees a perfect geometrical correlation
• Use of fast measuring techniques in a first approach of larger between several measurements with different sensors on the same sur-
areas; face. Human factors, causing inaccuracy, when acting with handhold
• Refining investigation in a second phase using time-intensive tools or sensors, are eliminated. Scanning devices are available for line
methods; scan or a two-dimensional surface scan. A rail system allows prolon-
• Calibration and verification of NDT results by minor destructive gation of the scanning area along a bridge, such as 10 m or longer. The
testing, for example, core drilling; and automated scanning allows fast measurement with a dense measure-
• Advanced data processing. ment grid. Examples are ultrasonic echo and impact echo, 1 m2/h at
0.02-m point grid; and impulse radar, 15 m2/h at 0.05-m line grid.
The aforementioned project, Sustainable Bridges, focuses on bet- Two arrays, mounted at the same time to the scanner head, can
ter assessment rules, including NDT, whenever possible to reduce shorten the time expenditure to only 50% of the time needed with a
partial safety factors, for example, for materials characteristics, esti- single array.
mated geometrical deviations, or structural issues. These values can Figure 2 shows the latest generation of scanning system with
be measured directly during inspections and or measurements for vacuum feet: a vacuum-mounted scanning system. Two persons can
a better prediction of the structural performance. Reliability related manage to fix the scanner to the area of interest from a jack lift.
optimization of inspection procedures or probabilistic based damage Depending on the task to be solved, different echo sensors scan the
tolerant reassessment is not commonly used for RC structures. surface.

Automation of NDT on Site Impulse Echo Methods

A considerable step forward was made with automation and the NDT methods at work with the echo principle are appropriate for
introduction of ultrasonic transducers in array arrangement for assess- investigation of the inner structure of massive concrete elements.

Scan area: 1.70 m ×

1.70 m
Time consumption for
data acquisition: US+IE
or two US-sensors, 2 m²/h
(at 50–mm point grid)
Radar: 0.5 m²/min
(continuous lines, 50–mm
grid)
Scanning range: 20–
50 mm
No drilling into the
surface, fixing only with
vacuum.

FIGURE 2 Latest generation of the scanning system—fast applicable vacuum scanner for
NDT sensors.
36 Transportation Research Record 2044

Electromagnetic methods [e.g., impulse radar (11)] and acoustic

methods [e.g., ultrasonic echo, impact echo (12)] use the reflection
of emitted waves from internal (reinforcement, tendons ducts, or
voids) or external reflectors (boundaries as the back wall). Signals are
emitted from antennae or transmitters on the surface with constant
distance to the receivers. Receivers, which are positioned on the
same side of the element, collect the reflected signals over time.

Ultrasonic Echo Sensing in Array Arrangement

Ultrasonic waves can penetrate thin metals. Thus, they are suitable
for detection of boundaries between different materials or air inclu-
sions in tendon ducts with metal ducts (∼0.6 mm). For the automated
measurements, arrays with dry coupling point contact transducers
are used. Figure 3 shows the application of a scanning system to
a railway bridge slab from inside a box girder beneath the track and
the localized tendon ducts in a depth of 150 mm. In the image in
Figure 4, tendon ducts are visualized in a depth of 150 mm parallel
to the surface.
The latest research results used automated measurements performed
with dry point contact transducers to allow the specialist to detect FIGURE 4 Visualization of tendon ducts in the slab in
insufficient grouting. The analysis of ultrasonic reflections from a depth of ~150 mm parallel to the surface (C-scan).
interfaces between concrete and air inclusions or concrete and steel Data acquisition by ultrasonic echo (2).
showed a significant difference of the phase information of the
synthetic aperture focusing technique (SAFT) reconstructed reflected
signals. That means the phase analysis of processed ultrasonic sig- versal and longitudinal waves were recorded by experiment and
nals can be used to clearly distinguish between steel or air reflectors compared with modeling from the elastodynamic finite integration
embedded in concrete (12, 13); see Reinhardt et al. (14) for a sum- technique.
mary. Detection of grouting faults in shadowed tendon ducts behind
dense reinforcement and behind other ducts cannot be guaranteed.
Investigation of the condition of plastic tendon ducts is new and can Impact Echo
be a topic of future research.
In BAM Berlin, the functionality of an ultrasonic phased array for By using automated scanning in field testing, it was possible to visu-
concrete was verified by visualization of the wave propagation (12). alize the wave propagation through concrete and even to reveal the
As used only for steel structures in the past, the principle of time- interaction with interfaces. A clear reflection of the stress waves at
controlled phased array for deflecting and focusing of sound beams the tendon ducts was hardly visible, a situation that matches the
is applicable to the investigation of concrete inhomogeneity, too. experience from experiments.
Laser vibrometer measurements visualized the functionality recently Impact echo measurements in transmission arrangement proved
by point-wise recording of the particle velocity in a given measurement the presence of obvious geometry effects even at the back wall. The
field on a surface. The wave propagation of low frequency trans- advantage of the transmission arrangement is that surface waves do
not influence the result of data measured on the opposite side of the
investigated wall. The disadvantage is the accessibility from both
sides. Using an impactor fixed to the test object and a transducer
mounted on a scanning system, it was possible to visualize the oscil-
lation for each point on the specimen after the impact excitation. In
this way, the wave propagation along the surfaces becomes apparent.
For analysis of impact echo data besides wavelet analysis, a Hilbert
Huang transformation was used (12).

Ground-Penetrating Radar

Depending on the required penetration depth, impulse radar antennas

with frequencies between 900 Hz and 1.5 GHz are used. Higher
frequencies enable higher resolution, but with lower depth informa-
tion. In ground-penetrating radar (GPR), the radar antenna is moved
over the surface along a grid, sending and receiving electromagnetic
waves with a high repetition rate. Propagation of the electromagnetic
waves, which are completely reflected from metal surfaces, is used
FIGURE 3 Scanning of a box girder slab with acoustic and to locate reinforcement or tendon ducts. Because the different ori-
electromagnetic echo methods (2). entation of the electric field vector influences the detectability of the
Helmerich, Niederleithinger, Algernon, Streicher, and Wiggenhauser 37

FIGURE 5 SAFT scan of a vertical box girder wall. Radar data sets obtained with different antenna polarization and frequencies
parallel to the surface in a depth of 7.5 cm (10).

reinforcement, it is advisable to make two measurements, perpen- so simple visual inspection is not possible, except inspecting the
dicular to each other. An example for fusion of different radar data upper part by digging. The only direct visual indication for foundation
sets is given in Figure 5. failure is settlement.
In addition, the substructure of railway bridges is often much
older than the superstructure. Foundations and abutments are often
Combination of NDT Echo Methods reused in case of bridge slab replacement.
A European Commission-funded project has compiled a hand-
Data Processing book (9) on the reuse of foundations, including recommendations
on the assessment of old foundations, including NDT.
Sophisticated data processing techniques such as the SAFT are used The most common problems in regard to foundations are
to reconstruct the approximate position and shape of reflectors. For
better imaging, the raw data sets (hyperbolas from crossing the sur- • Differential settlements;
face above the reinforcement) are reconstructed, that is, transferred • Scour, being high for bridges with abutments or piers in or
to their original geometry, to the original geometry in the final image. close to rivers;
Systematic research has been carried out in a German national • Decay of wooden piles; and
research project (12, 14). • Groundwater.

Current inspection techniques are based on visual inspection of

Fusion of Radar Data the uppermost parts of the foundation only. In addition, certain
and Ultrasonic Echo Data Sets types of bridge damages may give clues about possible foundation
failure. Today, NDT use is mainly limited to measurement of pile
The combination of impulse radar and acoustic echo methods, length and integrity. The most used methods are low-strain pile
especially ultrasonic echo, increases the accuracy of the final result.
Fusion is a superposition of three-dimensional (3-D) data sets obtained
with different echo methods or different configurations of the radar
antenna on the same structural element, leading to improved relia-
bility in defect detection and reinforcement localisation. The data
fusion principle used at BAM uses the superposition of pixel-by-pixel
preprocessed data from echo methods. Preprocessing means that
data are reconstructed by back tracing the signal to the original geo-
metrical shape, by band-pass filtering, signal amplification, or use
of defined data format. Probability-based considerations result in the
final evidence. After the method was developed and applied to RC
specimens in the laboratory (see Figures 6 and 7), 3-D data sets were
collected in critical areas of road and railway bridges, for example,
in regions with an unknown number of tendons, unknown position
of reinforcement, or humid areas.

Foundations

Failure of a foundation system leads to failure of the entire bridge. FIGURE 6 Reinforcement and tendon in a laboratory specimen
Foundations and the surrounding soil are not visible from the surface, before casting (12, 13).
38 Transportation Research Record 2044

of measurements. Application of automated scanning systems allows

measurements with NDT methods on large areas and with a high
density of measurement points.
New tools of data processing and visualization are used to improve
the interpretability of measurements on the posttensioned concrete
structures. NDT took an essential step forward within the past years,
supported by national European infrastructure projects.

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

The European Commission has partly funded the presented work

within the project Sustainable Bridges under the auspices of the Sixth
Framework Programme. The national German Research Foundation
funded the basic research of NDT. The authors kindly acknowledge
the support. The collaboration with and input by partners in both
projects are greatly appreciated.

FIGURE 7 Visualization of 3-D SAFT-reconstructed and fused REFERENCES

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2. Sustainable Bridges, 2003–2007. www.sustainablebridges.net. Accessed
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Advanced tools, especially for nondestructive evaluation during
called-in special inspections, reached a higher level with automation The Structures Maintenance Committee sponsored publication of this paper.