DEVELOPMENT OF COMPUTATIONAL TOOL FOR STATISTICAL ANALYSIS OF CONCRETE’S HOMOGENEITY BY DETERMINATION OF REBOUND HAMMER TEST’S RESULTS

Resumo

This paper presents the development of a computational tool that provides support to in-site
structural concrete integrity analysis through the determination of its homogeneity, parameter that is
directly related to fundamental aspects of the quoted material, such as resistance and durability. The
related homogeneity determination is made by statistical analysis of the results of rebound hammer tests,
which are non-destructive tests (that is, tests that does not compromise the integrity and functionality of
the measured structural element) that determinates the superficial toughness of concrete. The statistical
analysis is consisted in the computational implementation of comparative hypothesis tests associated to
a program logic that prioritizes the effectuation of the most statistically trustable, according to the sample
characteristics of the rebound hammer test’s indexes obtained during the tests. From the comparison
between the measured indexes in different regions of the same structural element, it is determined if
those are, or not, homogeneous. In addition to this, regions of different elements are also compared to
statistically determinate if those are (or not) of equal characteristics concretes. Regarding to the
programming language, the tool was written in Visual Basic for Applications (VBA) language linked to
Microsoft Excel applications, which provides the automatization of several processes inside Excel’s
spreadsheets and tables through the creation of personalized routines; Therefore, through the integration
with Microsoft Excel, an widely used software, it was possible to create an useful, trustable and easy to
access tool of health concrete evaluation and monitorization.