A fiber optics textile composite sensor for geotechnical applications

The fiber optics in structural health monitoring systems for civil engineering applications have been widely used. By integrating fiber optic sensing into a geotextile fabric, the TenCate GeoDetect® system is the first designed specifically for geotechnical applications. This monitoring solution embodies fiber optics on a geotextile fabric, e.g. a textile used into the soil, and combines the benefits of geotextile materials, such as high interface friction in contact with the soil, with the latest fiber optics sensing technologies. It aims to monitor geotechnical structure and to generate early warnings if it detects and localizes the early signs of malfunctioning, such as leaks or instability. This is a customizable solution: Fiber Bragg gratings, Brillouin and Raman scattering can be built into this system. These technologies measure both strain and temperature changes in soil structures. It can provide a leak and deformation location within accuracies resp. 1 l/min/m and 0.02%. The TenCate GeoDetect® solution provides objective, highly precise, and timely in-situ performance information, allowing the design professional and owner to understand system performance in addition to providing alerts for negative “geo-events” (subsidence) and other potentially deleterious events.