A multi-dimensional evaluation of wire breakage in bridge cable based on self-magnetic flux leakage signals

The wire breakage of bridge cable may result in potential bridge safety and durability problems. Therefore, it is urgent to develop an effective testing method for quantitatively evaluating wire breakage. In this paper, based on magnetic dipole theory, the dual defects magnetic dipole model of bridge cables was established to quantify the width of breakage. Then, the multi-dimensional self-magnetic flux leakage (SMFL) detection experiments were carried out for different wire breakage states of parallel steel wire bundles. The experimental results show that the distribution law of the theoretical model is consistent with the experimental results. Finally, a method was proposed to quantitatively characterize the axial wire breakage width of the cable using the Boltzmann fitting curve. In addition, a three-dimensional (3D) line graph was proposed to qualitatively evaluate the relative magnitude of the radial wire breakage depth. This study provides a theoretical basis for quantitatively evaluating bridge cables using the SMFL signals.

Automated summary

A dual defects magnetic dipole model of bridge cables was established in this study. The experimental results of self-magnetic flux leakage (SMFL) detection showed that the model is accurate. A method using the Boltzmann fitting curve was proposed to quantitatively characterize the axial wire breakage width, and a three-dimensional line graph was proposed to qualitatively evaluate the radial wire breakage depth.