Ultrasonic imaging of defects in concrete pipelines

This paper describes the first stage of a research project to develop an automated vehicle for inspecting the structural integrity of concrete sewer pipelines. We have developed an innovative interrogation and signal processing algorithm for detecting and sizing defects in concrete media, irrespective of the composition of the concrete—a crucial factor for realizing an in-line inspection process for concrete pipes. We have simulated concrete pipeline inspection by fabricating concrete specimens of diverse compositions embedded with rectangular defects of varying depths immersed in synthetic wastewater of varying density. We present ultrasonic C-scans and their corresponding defect characterization profiles.