Speakers
Description
Many researchers focus on developing faster and more cost-effective non-destructive testing (NDT) methods while improving the accuracy of estimating concrete mechanical properties, particularly compressive strength. NDT is often preferred due to its non-invasive nature, despite destructive testing (DT) providing more precise results. However, DT is typically limited by the invasive nature of extracting concrete cores, which reduces the availability of sufficient data for thorough analysis and reliable conclusions. Additionally, concrete strength can vary even within the same structural element, making it challenging to obtain a representative sample. DT also struggles to accurately quantify internal defects in concrete, such as cracks, delaminations, or voids, as coring usually avoids these areas. This paper aims to further evaluate a proposed method using a new set of concrete cores extracted from a multistorey building to validate its accuracy and reliability. The approach relies exclusively on ultrasonic pulse velocity (UPV) testing to provide data on key parameters, including air-dry density, dynamic modulus of elasticity, and static modulus of elasticity, which are used to estimate concrete compressive strength. In determining the dynamic modulus of elasticity, the dynamic Poisson’s ratio was derived from values in the technical literature rather than experimental measurements for this stage of the investigation.
