Global methodology for damage detection and localization in civil engineering structures.

The Structural Health Monitoring (SHM) in civil engineering faces several challenges. The main issue lies in defining a reliable and precise methodology of damage detection and localization in order to allow preventive maintenance or to enable the definition of repair actions. In this paper, a new methodology of SHM is proposed. Using Vibration-Based Damage Detection Methods (VBDDM), a damage detection and localization algorithm is elaborated and tested on a Finite Element Model (FEM) of an existing building. In a first case, the damage is introduced artificially by a local reduction of stiffness, while in the second case, the damage is calculated according to a real seismic signal from the italian L’Aquila earthquake. The advantages and disadvantages of each dynamic monitoring technique are discussed and the usefulness of the algorithm is highlighted. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]