Use of Non-Destructive Tests for Reinforced Concrete Damage Assessment

Worldwide, the debilitation of structures over the last few decades has been a cause for concern. This has led to the need to create awareness among engineers, and home owners about the different ways in which a structure can be checked for structural safety. To assess the behavior of new and existing buildings to varying loads over time, numerous methods have been developed and a major breakthrough for concrete and steel structures is the introduction of Non-destructive tests. This project was aimed at highlighting the common methods while also giving an in-depth investigation into the use of Non-destructive tests in Nigeria as well as their efficiency in the determination of building properties. The widely used methods in Nigeria includes: Schmidt hammer test, Ultrasonic pulse velocity test and the Rebar locator test and the properties the tests considered include: strength, surface hardness, homogeneity, reinforcement location and bar size. After successful execution of the tests, it was discovered that the Schmidt hammer is capable of giving an estimate of concrete strength not too far from the strength obtained from carrying out destructive tests on the same sample. From the pulse velocity test, it was observed that the method is not a reliable test of strength but rather, a determinant for uniformity and homogeneity in the tested samples. Thus, it can be concluded that in carrying out assessments of structures, the Schmidt hammer, ultrasonic velocity tester and the rebar locator should simultaneously be used to give a proper assessment on the structural integrity of structures. (paper)