PSI - Issue 44

Andrea Meoni et al. / Procedia Structural Integrity 44 (2023) 1632–1639 Andrea Meoni et al. / Structural Integrity Procedia 00 (2022) 000–000

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Fig. 6. Time histories of the total electrical resistance and applied load obtained for each section of the samples subjected to three-point bending tests: (a) plain beam sample; (b) doped beam sample.

Fig. 7. Fracture opening plot on the frontal surface monitored by the DIC: (a) plain beam sample; (b) doped beam sample

Conclusion

The experimental laboratory campaigns reported in this work demonstrated that the novel smart construction composite, consisting of a mixture of earth, cement, and carbon conductive micro-fillers, possesses interesting features that make its use promising for the production of construction elements integrating smart-monitoring capabilities. Mechanical tests carried out on beam and cube samples pointed out the beneficial contribution that the carbon filler adds to the plain material, especially when the smart composite is stressed under compression. Sensing tests carried out on beam samples demonstrated that the addition of the carbon filler also improved the piezoresistive behavior of the plain material, hence its ability to detect applied compressive loads and to localize cracks/damages developed on portions of the smart material itself. Comparing the results from the electrical system and DIC applied on smart beams, it was clear a visible change in both graphs, related to the two different types of inspections, sign of a specific crack path propagation. This demonstrated the promising correlation between the two measurement approaches.