Structural health monitoring of historic masonry monuments

Structural Health Monitoring (SHM) is a well-accepted diagnostic technique being used to evaluate modern structures. This method involves monitoring the vibration response of a structure to detect changes in its structural state. The primary intention of this thesis is to address two practical and technical difficulties encountered in deploying SHM on historic masonry monuments: (i) the selection of suitable low dimensional vibration response features that are highly sensitive to the presence and extent of damage, while having low sensitivity to extraneous noise and (ii) the selection of optimal sensor locations for efficient system identification applied to Gothic Cathedrals. Both of the features of this thesis achieve reduction in the size of the raw data to be analyzed leading to reduced computational as well as monetary effort. Compression of the raw vibration response data acquired from the vibration tests on structures is vital from the standpoint of faster real time monitoring of historic structures.;This thesis is composed of two manuscripts. The first manuscript illustrates the concepts of feature assimilation and noise sensitivity on an arch-like structure using both numerical and experimental analysis. The second study is focused on finding optimal sensor locations for vibration testing of Gothic Cathedrals. A modified version of the Effective Independence Method is used for this purpose. This thesis aims to develop a best-practices guide for effective application of SHM for the use of professionals involved in assessing, preserving and maintaining cultural monuments.