Novel nanocomposite sensors for structural health monitoring
At LMSSC, Paris, February 12th 2025, 2.30 p.m.
Samuel da Silva
Associate Professor, Mechanical Engineering Department (DEM), Structural Health Monitoring Laboratory (SHM Lab),
São Paulo State University (UNESP), Ilha Solteira, Brazil
One of the most significant challenges in developing accessible methods for structural health monitoring (SHM) is creating new sensors, particularly those that operate passively without requiring active inputs or extensive post-processing to enable quick responses. In this context, our research group at UNESP is developing two innovative sensors made from nanocomposites for SHM purposes based on the resistivity effect.
The first sensor comprises natural rubber filled with carbon black and carbon nanotubes, tested for detecting torque variations in bolted joints. The second sensor is a nanocomposite incorporating Indium Tin Oxide (ITO) nanowires, which has shown excellent results in identifying crack propagation stages in test samples. Both sensors have undergone comprehensive characterization to assess their conductivity, electrical behavior under cyclic tensile loading, and the effects of temperature and humidity. Their ability to reliably detect damage with low false alarm rates highlights their potential for SHM applications.
Biography:
Samuel da Silva is an Associate Professor in the Mechanical Engineering Department at São Paulo State University - UNESP (Ilha Solteira, Brasil) and a Research Fellow of the National Council for Scientific and Technological Development (CNPq, Brazil). He earned his B.S.E. and M.S. degrees in Mechanical Engineering from UNESP - Ilha Solteira in 2002 and 2005, respectively, where a FAPESP Graduate Research Fellowship supported him.
In 2008, he obtained his Ph.D. in Mechanical Engineering from the State University of Campinas (UNICAMP), with a Sandwich Doctorate scholarship at Université de Franche-Comté (Besançon, France) in 2007. From 2019 to 2020, he was a Visiting Researcher at Arts et Métiers (Paris, France) with a fellowship from the São Paulo Research Foundation (FAPESP).
Currently, he serves on the editorial board of the Journal of the Brazilian Society of Mechanical Sciences and Engineering. His research interests include Structural Health Monitoring, System Identification and Signal Processing, Nonlinear Dynamics, and Applied Mechanics. He has supervised the completion of 12 Ph.D. dissertations in Mechanical Engineering and has published more than 80 journal papers in these areas.
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