Cementitious sensors with acoustic stopbands using carbon nanotubes

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-12019048-B2
Application number	US-201917270836-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Aug 23, 2019
Priority date	Aug 24, 2018
Publication date	Jun 25, 2024
Grant date	Jun 25, 2024

Abstract

A sensor having one or more stopbands and method of using the same for detecting damage, cracking and debonding in a cement structure comprising a cementitious material and a plurality of periodic structures located in the cementitious material.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A sensor for detecting damage, cracking and debonding in a cement structure comprising:
a cementitious material;
a plurality of periodic structures located in said cementitious material; and said periodic structures having an acoustic stopband.

2. The sensor of claim 1 wherein said periodic structures have more than one acoustic stopband.

3. The sensor of claim 1 wherein said cementitious material is made of Portland cement, calcium silicate hydrate, type G cement, microfine cement, foam cement, geopolymer cement, polymer modified cement, and combinations thereof.

4. The sensor of claim 1 wherein said plurality of periodic structures are made of high modulus nanomaterials including carbon nanotubes, aluminum nanoparticles, graphene nanoparticles, metallic nanoparticles, other high modulus nanoparticles.

5. The sensor of claim 1 wherein said plurality of periodic structures are multi-walled carbon nanotubes.

6. The sensor of claim 5 wherein a filling fraction of said multi-walled carbon nanotubes in said cementitious material has a range of between 0.25 and 0.8.

7. The sensor of claim 6 wherein said multi-walled carbon nanotubes produce a wide stopband width in the range of 0.5-5 MHz.

8. The sensor of claim 6 wherein the filling fraction of said multi-walled carbon nanotubes in said cementitious material is 0.6 at the micrometer scale.

9. The sensor of claim 1 wherein said plurality of periodic structures are carbon nanotubes (CNTs).

10. The sensor of claim 5 having said multi-walled carbon nanotubes in said cementitious material at a plurality of filling fractions to produce a different stopband for each filling fraction.

11. The sensor of claim 1 wherein said periodic structures have different shapes configured to maximize the acoustic contrast and to enable blending of the sensor into the cement structure.

12. A method for detecting damage, cracking and debonding in a cement structure comprising the following steps:
locating in the structure a plurality of sensors;
said sensors comprised of a cementitious material, a plurality of periodic structures located in said cementitious material, and said periodic structures having an acoustic stopband;
generating acoustic signals in said structure and analyzing said signals for detecting damage, cracking and debonding in the structure; and
wherein said periodic structures is deposited predetermined sensor geometry or sensor array having a predetermined pattern.

13. The method of claim 12 wherein said periodic structures have more than one acoustic stopband.

14. The method of claim 12 wherein said cementitious material is made of Portland cement, calcium silicate hydrate, type G cement, microfine cement, foam cement, geopolymer cement, polymer modified cement, and combinations thereof.

15. The method of claim 12 wherein said plurality of periodic structures are made of high modulus nanomaterials including carbon nanotubes, aluminum nanoparticles, graphene nanoparticles, metallic nanoparticles, other high modulus nanoparticles.

16. The method of claim 12 wherein said plurality of periodic structures are multi-walled carbon nanotubes.

17. The method of claim 16 wherein a filling fraction of said multi-walled carbon nanotubes in said cementitious material has a range of between 0.25 and 0.8.

18. The method of claim 17 said multi-walled carbon nanotubes produce a wide stopband width in the range of 0.5-5 MHz.

19. The method of claim 17 wherein the filling fraction of said multi-walled carbon nanotubes in said cementitious material is 0.6 at the micrometer scale.

20. The method of claim 16 having said multi-walled carbon nanotubes in said cementitious material at a plurality of filling fractions to produce a different stopband for each filling fraction.

21. The method of claim 12 wherein said periodic structures have different shapes configured to maximize the acoustic contrast and to enable blending of the sensor into the cement structure.

Assignees

• STC Rainforest Innovations
• Unm Rainforest Innovations

Inventors

• Taha Mahmoud Reda
• Han Sang M
• Stormont John
• Dewers Thomas
• Pyrak-Nolte Laura L
• Vemuganti Shreya

Classifications

• G01N2291/0289

  Internal structure, e.g. defects, grain size, texture · CPC title

• G01N2291/0232

  Glass, ceramics, concrete or stone · CPC title

• G01N29/2475

  Embedded probes, i.e. probes incorporated in objects to be inspected · CPC title

• C09K2208/10

  Nanoparticle-containing well treatment fluids · CPC title

• C04B40/0096

  Provisions for indicating condition of the compositions or the final products, e.g. degree of homogeneous mixing, degree of wear · CPC title