Technical Solutions for the Distributed Monitoring of Long Hydraulic Structures

A large number of long hydraulic and civil structures have been built around the world. Over time, most ground and concrete structures naturally have several problems associated with material aging and changes in operating and natural conditions. The occurrence of these problems necessitates the monitoring of their evolution and assessment of the corresponding risks to the integrity of structures. However, the monitoring of such structures is complicated owing to their considerable length. The optimal solution to this problem is the use of distributed fiber-optic sensors, which have many undoubted advantages over their point-based counterparts. This article discusses the experience of using this technology in other countries, identifies the fields of its use, and presents recommendations on the use of distributed sensors on long structures in the Russian Federation. © 2023, Springer Science+Business Media, LLC, part of Springer Nature.