Smart Bonding Health Monitoring

 

Intelligent Structural Health Monitoring of Adhesive Joints in Facade Construction

The layers of the sample prototype Copyright: © SLA

The so-called Structural Sealant Glazing describes the employment of load-bearing glas facades. As grand transparent surfaces in facade construction are increasingly popular, Structural Sealant Glazing is applied often in the modern building industry. Due to their favorable damping characteristics and the evenly load transfer, specially tailored silicon gluing is used to join exterior glas elements with the support frame behind.

However, the long-term behaviour of these adhesive joints is still subject to high uncertainties. As a result, only underpinned systems, where the dead load of the glas is transfered not via the adhesive joints, but via a mechanical fail-safe, are authorized in Germany.

The project Smart Bonding Health Monitoring researches the integration of a textile-based sensor technology (so-called measuring textile) into the glue joint. Given the new ability to perceive structural changes, defects in the glue joint can be detected and evaluated early. This helps lower the cost caused by inspections and preventive maintenance measures. The mid- to long-term aim is to reduce conservative mechanisms, such as security-factors and additional mechanical fail-safes, in a controlled manner.

Funded by the Excellence Initiative of the German federal and state governments

 

Glass facade: layers of the sample

Sample of the glass facade Copyright: © SLA
 
 

Project partnerships

  • ICE - Institute for Communication Technologies and Embedded Systems: The ICE is responsible for the sensor technology and the processing of the sensor signal.
  • ISF - Welding and Joining Institute: The ISF is concerned with adhesive joints to the measuring textile
  • STB - Institute of Steel Construction: The STB is in charge of designing load-carrying glas facades and of conducting the experiments
  • SLA - Institute of Structural Mechanics and Lighweight Design: The SLA works on the development of structural damage indicators and is responsible for numerical simulations
  • ITA - Institut für Textiltechnik: The ITA in charge of developing the measuring textile.