The inspection of prestressed concrete structures to the integrity of the tendons

The inspection of prestressed concrete structures to the integrity of the tendons. Bridges are exposed to an ever-increasing traffic load. The age structure, the stress situation and the condition of the bridges are different. More than 20000 bridges in Germany are made of prestressed concrete, whose stability depends essentially on the integrity of the tension reinforcement. Corrosion damages to the tension reinforcement are not visible from the surface. At the Technical University of Berlin, a mobile magnetic measurement system has been developed specifically for bridges. It analyzes the state of the tension wires. This system areas not require any removal of the bridge pavement. In the past ten years 14 prestressed concrete bridges have been studied, five of them in the USA/Canada. The process was evaluated at Lehigh University in Bethlehem (USA), as part of a worldwide comparative study in 2009 and 2010.