Acoustic emission testing of concrete frame during pseudo dynamic loading

Acoustic Emission (AE) monitoring was performed during Pseudo-Dynamic Testing of a torsionally unbalanced, two-storey, one-by-one bay reinforced concrete frame structure. The structure represented a 0.7-scale model of a real-size frame structure designed and detailed according to the standards prevailing in Greece in 60's, without engineered earthquake resistance. Real time monitoring of AE activity versus the complex applied load resulted in semi quantitative damage characterization as well as comparative evaluation of the damage evolution of the different size columns. Evolution of the AE energy rate per channel, as revealed from zonal location, and the energy rate of linearly located sources enabled the identification of damage areas and the forecast of crack locations before cracks were visible with naked eye. In addition to that, the results of post processing evaluation allowed for the verification of the witnessed damaged areas and formed the basis for quantitative assessment of damage criticality.