Crack monitoring in shape memory alloy/cement composite materials using water-dispersed quantum dots

Abstract

Highly luminescent, heterostructurally engineered CdZnSeS@ZnS quantum dot (QD) materials are surface-modified through ligand exchange from hydrophobicity to hydrophilicity, by which the QD surface becomes compatible with the cementitious materials fabricated from a water-based constituent. Facile structural health monitoring tools are proposed based on aqueous QD material applied to mechanical defects encountered in cement-based materials and similar massive infrastructure. Unlike the pre-existing materials approach, the current work employed water as the dispersion medium, which is compatible with the pre-existing structural environment, thus facilitating infiltration of the aqueous solution into the porous or cracked cement-based systems. The aqueous QD solutions are proven to be suitable for crack monitoring in cement-based materials.