Abstract:

Timber remains a prevalent construction material for structures in the marine environment throughout the United States, spanning over rivers, lakes, and streams, as well as stabilizing and creating platforms along our coastlines (e.g., bridges, piers, wharves, and bulkheads). The extent of deterioration within structural timber can be difficult to detect during a standard visual inspection. Traditionally, the probing and sounding of timber is aided by destructive testing, which typically involves extracting core samples. These samples are often taken using either a small-diameter increment borer (e.g., 0.2 to 0.5 inch) or a larger 2-inch-diameter core plug. Resistance drilling, which provides a highly repeatable and unbiased process, has recently been adapted for underwater applications and is becoming an increasingly popular tool for assessing timber deterioration. This presentation will introduce the resistance drilling technique, the underwater application, the data generated, and how that data is analyzed to inform decision-makers responsible for maintaining timber infrastructure.

Brief Description:

the presentation addresses the challenge of detecting internal deterioration in common marine timber structures (like bridges, piers, wharves, bulkheads, etc.), which is difficult to assess through standard visual inspection or traditional destructive core sampling.

The focus of the presentation is on resistance drilling, a modern, non-destructive technique that has been adapted for underwater applications. The presentation will introduce this tool, detail the repeatable and unbiased data it generates, and demonstrate how this analytical data can be used to inform maintenance decisions for critical timber infrastructure.