Services
iCAMMTM Inspection Platform
iCAMM inspection tool.
The patented iCAMMTM inspection system reduces the uncertainty and subjectivity associated with visual inspections, and provides critical information about the structural condition for quantitative, risk-informed infrastructure asset management.
The patented Infrastructure Condition Assessment Magnetic Method (iCAMMTM) scanning and analysis software system uses the magnetic properties of ferromagnetic objects to identify not only the extent and location of degradation and defects, but also the distribution of stress within the specimen. Because materials such as concrete are non-ferromagnetic, the technology can readily be used to detect corrosion and cracking of the reinforcement steel below the concrete surface, or identify and locate the degradation of underground pipelines (i.e., soil is non-ferromagnetic).
The method can also be used to detect internal defects, such as flaws in railway tracks, and the corrosion and pitting of piping or plates under surface coverings, such as coatings or insulation.
The equipment consists of a simple handheld scanner and datalogger, and associated analysis software.
Technological Advantages
Completely non-destructive (in-situ measurement of asset condition)
Passive method (no externally applied electric current or magnetic fields)
No special surface preparation required
Not impacted by surface coverings (e.g., concrete, insulation, coatings, or cladding) or roughness
Not affected by moisture, temperature, salt, or any other environmental conditions
No seasonal impacts or limitations in repeatability
Inspection speed: 1 metre/minute
Also provides stress and load distribution mapping
Main Benefits
Screen large areas quickly to identify critical areas for more detailed investigations
Detection of both external and internal defects
Continuous results in a single pass
Reduced asset unavailability
Provides quantitative results for engineering analysis
Better prediction of the deterioration progression prior to adverse consequences
More effective decision making on cost-benefit-time basis (i.e., Quantitative Risk Management)
Reduce uncertainty in structural assessments and increase public safety
Reinforced Concrete Inspection
Inspection of a concrete culvert in Markham, Ontario.
InspecTerra's patented iCAMMTM technology is used to non-destructively quantify the condition (e.g., corrosion and defects) of reinforcing steel in its natural environment.
Reinforced concrete is used extensively in the construction of civil infrastructure, such as buildings, bridges, parking garages, dams, and retailing walls. The most common cause of degradation is the corrosion of the reinforcement steel (rebar) by the ingress of chloride e.g., from exposure to road deicing salts or seawater. Rebar corrosion leads not only to the loss of steel cross-sectional area, but also to corrosion induced cracking and spalling of the surrounding concrete, which has a negative impact on the durability and service life of the structure.
Conventional non-destructive testing (NDT) methods have difficulty characterizing the condition of the rebar, due to accessibility issues, non-homogeneous properties of the concrete, and other environmental factors.
InspecTerra's patented iCAMMTM inspection technology is not impacted by these limitations, and can readily distinguish between intact and corroded locations and detect the presence and extent of general corrosion, local pitting, longitudinal defects, and cracks in the rebar.
Inspection of a reinforced concrete parking garage.
Tool Application
The iCAMMTM reinforced concrete inspection tool has an optimal rebar detection depth of 3 to 10 cm, according to the ASTM standard thickness range. The tool has been used for the inspection of rebar on the underside (or soffit) of bridges, during detailed bridge deck condition surveys. The analysis software provides a deck survey map, illustrating not only the cross-sectional loss of reinforcement, but also the location of critical areas with the most severe degradation and defects that may require more detailed destructive testing (e.g., coring) and rigorous monitoring over time.
The results can also be combined with ultrasonic data of the concrete condition to quantify the overall remaining structural capacity of the section.
Corrosion Mapping of Steel Structures
Rapid measurement and mapping of wall thickness loss in a steam boiler.
InspecTerra's iCAMMTM technology can also be used to map the wall thickness loss caused by corrosion in steel structures such as beams, plates, frames, tanks, etc.
Corrosion can compromise the structural capacity and safety of many steel structures, such as bridges, storage tanks, pipelines, offshore facilities, etc. Conventional NDT inspection is often hindered by the requirement for extensive surface preparation, and the presence of moisture and salt (particularly in marine environments). InspecTerra's iCAMMTM technology is free from these limitations, and provides rapid and reliable mapping of section loss in critical elements.
Technology Comparison
To demonstrate the advantages of the technology, both iCAMMTM and UT were used to measure the wall thickness across a small 2 x 3 foot test section of a steam boiler. The boiler shell had a nominal thickness of 18 mm.
While the UT inspection was significantly impacted by the surface roughness, the iCAMMTM inspection
- did not require any surface preparation,
- had a much faster inspection time, and
- provided more detailed results.
It took considerable time and effort to obtain the sparse grid of point values using the conventional UT technology, while iCAMMTM allowed the continuous scanning of the entire area in a very short period of time.
Comparison of steam boiler wall thickness inspection using iCAMM and the conventional ultrasound inspection method.
Concrete Strength Evaluation
Assessing the strength of a reinforced concrete slab using the ultrasonic guided wave method.
InspecTerra has developed its own testing and software system to evaluate the concrete strength in reinforced concrete structures using the Ultrasonic Guided Wave method.
The multi-channel analysis of surface waves (MASW) is a non-destructive and non-invasive method which can be used for the condition assessment of reinforced concrete structures. This inspection technique is also known as the Ultrasonic Guided Wave method.
In case of a medium defined by two parallel boundaries, such as bridge decks (consisting of two layers: asphalt and concrete), the surface waves are guided through the deck. These type of waves are known as Rayleigh-Lamb waves. Lamb waves are frequently used in ultrasonic NDT because they can travel long distances with little energy loss.
The guided waves are generated using hammer impacts and detected using multiple receivers. Multi-channel signal analysis is then used to estimate the spatial variability of compressive strength across the concrete deck.
Multi-channel spatial analysis of the ultrasonic guided waves using multiple receivers.
UT Guided Wave Advantages
Avoid the need for destructive testing (i.e., concrete coring and lab testing)
Provides a quantitative estimate of concrete strength across the structure
Results can be used for monitoring the progression of deterioration
Results can be used in conjunction with iCAMM inspections for a comprehensive assessment of the structure’s condition
Risk Assessment
Overlaying different information and calculating the level of risk in GeoIME.
The results from iCAMMTM can be integrated with visual modelling and cloud based geospatial solutions in the GeoIME distributed software platform to perform quantitative, risk-informed infrastructure asset management.
Prudent asset management and financial valuation of individual, subset, or a network of infrastructure assets, such as bridges, requires not only reliable and quantitative information about the asset's condition, but also a framework for managing and analyzing the potentially large amount of data.
InspecTerra Inc. has partnered with GeoIME to develop a distributed software platform that can be used to manage the inspection data from infrastructure condition assessments and other engineering evaluations. The GeoIME system integrates data from multiple sources, including geological, social and environmental data, to determine the vulnerability of infrastructure assets and estimate the risk over time.
The cloud based solution allows the data and results to be accessed from multiple devices, facilitating greater communication and effective decision making not only within individual organizations, but also between various stakeholders. The geospatial mapping capability simplifies the screening and evaluation process, and provides a visual confirmation of both the input data and assessment results.
GeoIME (http://georvs.ca) is a risk assessment software company working on innovative geospatial and 3D visualization solutions with international experts from academia and industry since 2007.