Comparison Study of Ultrasonic and Surface Wave Methods for Crack Depth Detection in Concrete Panels

Abstract

This paper studies the accuracy comparison between ultrasonic and surface wave methods for crack depth detection. A concrete panel with a thickness of 10 cm, located in a 112 km long water conveyance channel, was used as the object for crack depth detection. A total of 114 cracks were detected using both ultrasonic and surface wave methods, and the results show that the detection values of ultrasonic method are smaller than those of surface wave method. In addition, the data of 9 cracks that penetrated the concrete panel were compared and analyzed, and the results show that the detection error of ultrasonic method is between -22% and 41%, while that of surface wave method is between -7% and 27%. Based on the comprehensive analysis of experimental results, the following conclusions are drawn: (1) Both ultrasonic and surface wave methods can effectively detect crack depth; (2) The detection values of both methods are smaller than the actual crack depth; (3) Compared with ultrasonic method, surface wave method has higher detection accuracy and its detection results are closer to the actual crack depth.