Lead zirconium titanate (PZT) has recently emerged as a low-cost material for non-destructive monitoring for civil structures. Despite the numerous studies employing PZT transducers for structural health monitoring, no studies have assessed the effects of both damage and repair on the electromechanical impedance response in cementitious materials. To this end, this study was conducted to assess the effects of the damage and repair of mortar samples on the electromechanical response of a surface-mounted PZT transducer. When damage was introduced to the specimen in stages, the resonance frequencies of the admittance signature were shifted to lower frequencies as the damage increased, and an increase in the peak amplitude was detected, indicating an increase in the damping and a reduction in the material stiffness properties. Also, increasing the damage in the material has been shown to decrease the sensitivity of the PZT to further damage. During the repair process, a noticeable difference between the after-damage and the after-repair admittance signatures was noted. The root-mean-square deviation (RMSD) showed a decreasing trend during the repair process, when compared to the before repair RMSD response which indicated a partial recovery for the material properties by decreasing the damping property in the material.
Keywords: PZT; damage detection; electromechanical impedance; mortar; structural health monitoring.