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GPR Expertise
Roadscanners is considered one of the leading global experts in traffic infrastructure Ground Penetrating Radar (GPR) surveys due to several key factors. With almost 30 years of experience in the field, Roadscanners staff has developed deep expertise in conducting GPR surveys, processing and analyzing the data, as well as using the results from maintenance and repair planning to asset management. Roadscanners COB Dr Timo Saarenketo started using GPR in road survey already in mid 1980’s and has written text books and numerous articles about various traffic infrastructure GPR applications. Vice-President Pekka Maijala wrote one of the first GPR data processing and interpretation software in mid 1990’s, that later became a foundation of the Road Doctor software family, a famous trade mark of Roadscanners. The whole Roadscanners team of skilled professionals is well-versed in interpreting complex GPR and other Non Destructive Testing (NDT) data and delivering actionable insights.
The principle of operation of GPR systems is to transmit (T) a tiny pulse of energy into a material via an antenna. The strength and time required for the return of any reflected signals are recorded by a receiver (R) and repeated to create a continuous profile. Subsurface variations will create reflections that are picked up by the system and stored on digital media. These reflections are produced by man-made objects, for example, pipes and wire, as well as by a variety of material such as geological structure differences.
Depending on the surveyed material and on the antenna frequency, depth of GPR penetration can vary. For instance, GPR will penetrate ice, rock, soil, and asphalt differently due to each material’s unique electrical properties. In general, lower frequency antennas penetrate deeper, but the loss in resolution with frequency drop should be considered.
GPR penetration also depends on soil conditions. Dry sandy soils with little salt content generally return excellent survey resolution, but heavy clay-based soils are difficult to penetrate with GPR. Depending on the situation, penetration depth may be limited to a few meters or less within clays, whereas pipes residing in sandy soils could be detected at depths up to 9 meters.
Find out more about GPR from this GSSI’s video.