Development of Wireless Smart Concrete Sensing Technology Using Carbon Nanofiber Aggregate

The focus of this research will be to develop a wireless smart concrete sensing technology by using Carbon Nanofiber Aggregates (CNFAs) which will be piezoelectric aggregates and that can respond uniquely to different multi-hazards. Since concrete is the most widely used construction material, this unique response makes this a sensor that is capable of being used in the Structural Health Monitoring (SHM) of civil infrastructures in each of the multi-hazards which produces a unique vibration pattern to the CNFA sensors. Alongside picking up unique stress levels and vibration patterns from various hazards, the CNFA will also be able to assess flooding by taking the total hydrostatic pressure into account that is applied on the surface of the CNFA. This hydrostatic pressure of structural stress produces equivalent stress in the CNFA which is derived from the strain generated in it. As a result, the CNFA based structural health monitoring system will be employed to determine the flood water depth around any concrete structures. Through the development of a wireless structural health monitoring system, the system can then alert and enable the humankind to assess the impacts remotely which are caused by various disasters. This system will continuously monitor the civil infrastructures and couple the historical data with real-time data for decision making, and wirelessly transmit the information to a central monitoring system to immediately guide operators and to provide hazard-specific damage assessment tools for post-disasters structural health analysis.