Damage evaluation of reinforced concrete beams with varying thickness using the acoustic emission technique

The aim of this study is to investigate the ability of the acoustic emission (AE) in order to test the effect of beam thickness on the damage mechanism of the RC beams under four-point bending. The results showed that as the level of damage increased, the values of all AE parameters increased except for average frequency; moreover, all AE parameters increased with increasing beam thickness, including the average frequency. Thus, it has been established in this work that AE can be effectively used in monitoring the behavior of RC beams with variable thickness.

► We had studied a comparison between the visual observation and AE technique.
► We had examined the changes in the depth of beam and level of damage associated with AE parameters values.
► We had observed that by increasing the degree of damage, AE parameters values had increased except for the average frequency.
► We had observed that by increasing the beam depth, AE parameters values had increased including the average frequency.
► The severity index value increased as the depth of the beams and level of damage increased.