The civil structures are prone to damage processes during continuous and uncontrollable life cycle. These processes are attributed to damage to poor maintenance and aging. To improve security, we need a continuous monitoring system. Several screening methods are available to assess the condition of civil structures, however, are often used infrequently because of the high cost and time constraints.
In a feasibility study published in the International Journal of Materials and Structural Integrity, the researchers suggest that nanotechnology and wireless systems could be the answer.
As a proof of concept, researchers have developed and tested two types of wireless devices for remote monitoring of concrete structures. The devices are sensors based on microelectromechanical systems, MEMS, and were designed to monitor temperature and humidity in the concrete.
Nanotube sensors were used to detect cracks in the feasibility study. MEMS, and nanosensors have been used in a wide range of engineering and science fields as transportation, communication, military and medicine. Its use in the civil engineering is a new application with great potential.
Such devices could collect and transmit information about the health of a structure to detect the early formation of small cracks and measuring the rate of key parameters such as levels of temperature, humidity, chloride, acid and carbon dioxide, each of which could reflect a decrease in structural integrity.
