Ground penetrating radar utilization in exploring inadequate concrete covers in a new bridge deck

• A GPR based procedure for measuring concrete cover of newly constructed bridge deck is discussed.
• Critical issue of concrete dielectric constant estimation is addressed.
• To increase accuracy, a combination of ground truth and migration approaches must be used.

The reinforced concrete cast in place four span deck of a concrete bridge near Roanoke, Texas, was recently completed. Due to possible construction errors, it was suspected that the concrete covers in the deck did not conform to drawings and specifications. A full scale non-destructive evaluation of the concrete covers was carried out using ground penetrating radar (GPR) equipment. Cover values were determined from the radargram generated from the scan. The estimated covers were plotted on contour maps. Migration data can substitute the drilling based ground truth data without compromising the concrete cover estimations, except for areas with very high cover values. Areas with high water content may result in inaccurate concrete dielectric constants. Based on the results, significant retrofitting of the bridge deck, such as additional overlay, was recommended.