Defect Identification and Acceptance of FRP and FRCM Masonry Reinforcement by Infrared Thermography Survey

Abstract

Masonry structures, both historic and newly built, often need reinforcement interventions to meet new or increased loads or in the case of adjustment against seismic actions. The result of this type of intervention must be verified or tested to ensure the correspondence between what was originally designed and what was realized. In addition to numerous destructive and semi-destructive techniques, infrared thermography (IRT) is a contactless diagnostic technique which can rapidly provide information about the success of such reinforcement interventions, even on masonry structures. In the present work an experimental campaign to evaluate the effectiveness of IRT in identifying different types of defects that can be found on different reinforcement systems (FRP, Fibre-reinforced plastic, or FRCM, Fibre Reinforced Cementitious Matrix) for masonry structures has been performed. A thermographic survey was repeated even after repair works on the defects in order to identify a procedure of acceptance that can also be used on areas subject to total or partial repair.