Exploiting Ground-Penetrating Radar Signal Enhancements by Water-Saturated Bulb Surrounding Defective Waterpipes for Leak Detection

Abstract

The detection of water leakage along its transportation network has important societal impacts, such as avoiding a large volume of water wasted along the waterways or preventing water-related chemical or physical surrounding media deterioration. Among the vast domain of destructive techniques, Ground-Penetrating Radar (GPR) is a common and efficient tool used for detection in many near-surface contexts, and it is particularly efficient in civil engineering cases, such as utility detection, due to its fine resolution and the ease of data acquisition. A peculiar form of signal enhancement appears in GPR profiles recorded over spheres and cylinders where velocity contrasts exist between the body’s material and the surrounding medium. We used this enhancement to detect potential water leakages in water pipes. After exhibiting the signal enhancement effect in a laboratory sandbox experiment using a spherical glass ball, we verified the results with numerical experiments with varied sphere and cylinder sizes and dielectric properties. We then investigated field and numerical experiments of GPR transects above a “real life” water-leaking PVC pipe. Our results show that the water cylinder and water infiltration bulb produced a characteristic signal that could be used for detecting water leakages along water pipes. The largest amplitude in the GPR signal is caused by a bottom pipe reflection enhanced by the water bulb and not by the top of the pipe. We stress the risk of miscalculating the pipe’s depth during velocity estimation when amplitude enhancement conditions are met. Beyond civil-engineering impacts, knowledge on signal amplification phenomena can help GPR data interpretations in sedimentology and hydrogeology studies.