Evaluating the effect of post-grouting on long bored pile based on ultra-weak fiber Bragg grating array

Fiber optic sensing has been widely acknowledged as a dependable tool to monitor pile performance. However, its applicability is restricted by the limited multiplexing capacity of fiber Bragg gratings (FBG) or the high equipment cost and poor real-time performance of distributed fiber optic sensing systems. In this paper, a novel sensing cable and system were developed based on ultra-weak FBG array for strain measurement of large-scale engineering structures. Through the laboratory calibration and field test of a post-grouting pile, the good strain measurement performance of the sensing cable and system were confirmed. Based on the distributed strain data obtained by the UWFBG array, the strengthening mechanism of the pile was well explained. The UWFBG array and sensing system could realize distributed, high-precision, and real-time strain measurement with a spatial resolution of 1 m within 1.5 km, which has great potentials in the monitoring of geo-environment and engineering structures.