Fiber Bragg grating sensor fatigue crack real-time monitoring based on spectrum cross-correlation analysis

As one of the most critical tasks in structural damage monitoring, real-time fatigue crack monitoring plays an important role in improving the durability of a structure. In this paper, an online fatigue crack detection method is investigated based on the fiber Bragg grating (FBG) crack monitoring test bed (FBG-CMTB). Aiming at detecting ultrasonic spread in the structure when the crack is growing, the spectrum cross-correlation analysis algorithm and the cross-correlation function sequence are two methods that we will investigate in detail. Considering the singularity characteristic of the crack detecting signals when crack initiates, the wavelet packet analysis method is applied for feature extraction and two damage factors, crack initiation factor (CIF) and crack propagation factor (CPF), are constructed for damage initiation and propagation degree identification. To analyze the efficiency of this method, this paper presents the comparison tests based on different sensors array, FBG and acoustic emission (AE). Experimental results shows a satisfactory performance of the proposed spectrum cross-correlation analysis (SCCA) and damage feature factors on the fatigue crack online monitoring.