CONTINUOUS MONITORING OF THE HEALTH STATUS OF CEMENT-BASED STRUCTURES: ELECTRICAL IMPEDANCE MEASUREMENTS AND REMOTE MONITORING SOLUTIONS

Structural Health Monitoring (SHM) of cement-based structures is fundamental to guarantee optimal operating conditions and enabling prompt interventions, hence optimizing maintenance costs and service life [1]. Indeed, durability is affected by exposure conditions and is particularly threatened in case of aggressive environments rich in contaminants, such as chlorides and sulphates [2]. At present, periodic inspections of structures are generally foreseen, but the advantages of a continuous (remote) monitoring are evident. In this context, within the EnDurCrete project (GA no. 760639), a measurement system for continuous remote monitoring of the electrical impedance (Z) of concrete has been developed. Electrical impedance can indeed be considered a key variable in the assessment of the concrete health status [3]. Concrete composition, as well as presence of contaminants or water, which represents the main carrier of aggressive substances, highly affects Z [4]. This paper aims at presenting the architecture of a remote system for monitoring the health status of concrete through the monitoring of its electrical impedance. The general architecture of the system is presented at first, while some preliminary results from two application test cases are discussed afterwards.