Correlation between acoustic emission parameters and fracture behavior of repaired marble specimens

The present paper deals with the acoustic emission (AE) monitoring of fracture behavior of repaired marble specimens. Different types of specimens were ultrasonically interrogated. Subsequently, damage was induced to these specimens by three-point bending. The damaged specimens were repaired using a suitable epoxy agent; then they were mechanically loaded again. Apart from the well-known correlation of pulse velocity to strength for building materials, which also holds for the materials used in this study, AE provides a unique insight in the fracture behavior of the specimens. A statistical analysis of the experimental data has been performed to investigate the correlation between AE parameters and the strength of the specimens. This work discusses the passive monitoring of fracture in repaired marble specimens and shows that AE parameters, well-known to successfully characterize cementitious materials, also provide satisfactory results in characterizing monolithic materials such as marble. It is concluded that AE monitoring during a proof loading can provide good insight information of the materials and characterize their restoration.