A SURVEY OF DEVELOPMENTS IN ULTRASONIC NDE OF CONCRETE

The goal of this paper is to develop an understanding of the current s tate of ultrasonic nondestructive evaluation in the concrete community . Methods supplemental to the less than satisfactory proceedure specif ied in ASTM C-597 are discussed. It is hoped that such an understandin g, in conjuntion with a feeling for the nature of reinforced concrete as a material, will promote research interest in this important field. Following an introductory problem statement, a literature review conc erning the existing use of stress waves for the nondestructive evaluat ion of concrete is presented. An examination of current practice is of fered. Next, new approaches are selected and reviewed from the current literature. In all cases, these are approaches that have been success ful in applications to advanced engineering materials other than concr ete. Where appropriate, potential benefits and pitfalls of each new te chnique, as applied to concrete, will be discussed.