West Lafayette, Ind. – Wavelogix today announces the product launch of the REBELTM Concrete Strength Sensing System. The sensor’s patented technology is first of its kind in the industry relying upon piezoelectric technology and an AI-guided signal processing algorithm to deliver a cutting-edge solution to a century-old problem. The REBELTM sensors determine the mechanical properties of concrete based upon acoustic signals received from the concrete structure of interest. “Our Machine-Learning algorithm, then, derives, in real-time, accurate in-place concrete strength values for determining the optimal timing for opening traffic, pulling post-tensioning tendons, and removing vertical formwork with absolutely no concrete sampling or destructive testing (no “breaks”) and without regard to concrete mixtures or weather during a project”, said Dr. Luna Lu, Founder and CEO of Wavelogix, Inc.

What Makes the REBELTM System Different from other Concrete Testing Systems?

Our BREAK-FREETM solution. The construction industry needs accurate, real-time data regarding the strength of concrete structures at multiple time intervals – up to 28 days and beyond. Exposing concrete structures to traffic or adding vertical layers of a concrete structure too soon, before the strength of the concrete has reached certain levels, can cause premature failure and deterioration of the quality and lifespan of the structure. At the same time, curing concrete structures beyond required thresholds causes delays in construction, prolonged traffic congestion, wasted human capital, and cost overruns.

In addition, REBELTM sensors can deliver strength data for as long as it is wanted – at 1 day, 3 days, 7 days, 14 days, 28 days, and any time in between or thereafter – all in real-time and delivered directly to the user’s cell phone or other device. This enables our product to be used not only for construction schedule acceleration but also, with the adoption of new building code standards, acceptance testing – something that is not possible for maturity sensors and is only possible for destructive testing so long as enough cylinders have been created to support all the necessary timepoints.

Easy to Install: Current concrete strength testing methods are labor intensive in an industry that is facing labor shortages. Given its ease of use, our technology will help alleviate challenges with labor shortages by eliminating the need for additional skilled labor to conduct concrete strength testing, as is required by current methods. REBELTM can be installed and monitored by virtually anyone on the jobsite.

Environmental Benefits. Our technology also offers significant environmental benefits over current concrete strength testing methods. While demand for concrete continues to increase, there is also a push to reduce the negative environmental impact of the concrete industry. The demolition and disposal of concrete structures and pavements constitutes a major environmental burden as construction debris contributes a large fraction of the world’s solid waste disposal problem, and concrete constitutes the largest single component of that waste. In the coming decades, the United States and China, alone, will spend trillions of dollars replacing and disposing of concrete laid down in the past generation. In addition to the environmental waste generated from deteriorated concrete structures, we waste a considerable amount of concrete through the creation of concrete samples for destructive strength testing. The industry also currently tends to over-design concrete structures – that is, more cement is added to the concrete mix than is necessary – to prevent “bad breaks” and to best ensure that concrete sample testing meets required strength thresholds (regardless of the impact of the excess cement on the actual concrete structure itself). This over-design and overuse of cementitious materials results in an estimated 10-15% excess use of cement. Cement, with its energy-intensive manufacturing process, produces as much as 8% of the world’s carbon footprint (National Academy of Sciences, 2019).

Key Features: Not only will the REBELTM Concrete Strength Sensing System reduce, and potentially eventually eliminate, destructive concrete testing but it will enable the collection, management, and analysis of large volumes of reliable, physics-based data – that is not subject to quality control issues, inter-user variability or manipulation – to build confidence across the construction industry regarding actual in-place concrete strength. This, over time, will result in an improvement in the quality, integrity, and longevity of concrete structures by reducing the industry’s tendency to over-design those structures and by better informing the industry regarding mix designs in general. Sensors start at $250. Test kits immediately available to trial any application.

About:

Dr. Na (Luna) Lu, Founder and Chief Executive Officer. Dr. Luna Lu is the ACPA Professor at the Lyles School of Civil Engineering and (by courtesy appointment) the School of Materials Engineering at Purdue University. Dr. Lu is an internationally recognized expert in nanomaterials and devices for IoT sensing and energy harvesting. She has published two books, six book chapters and over 100 articles in this area. Her work is recognized by numerous scientific awards, including an NSF CAREER award (2014), the Indiana Disease Diagnostic Inventor Award (2018), a Purdue University Faculty Scholar award (2019), a Rising Star Professorship award (2019), an ASCE GameChanger award (2021), and Purdue’s Most Impactful Faculty Innovator Award (2021), among others. Dr. Lu has collaborated with industry many times throughout her career and has transferred several technologies to the private sector.

Contact:

Joseph A Turek, President

Email: joe.t@wavelogix.tech

Tel: 630-854-0269

Website: www.wavelogix.tech