A joint thermal and electromagnetic diagnostics approach for the inspection of thick walls

Abstract. In this study, we present an inversion approach to detect and localize inclusions in thick walls under natural solicitations. The approach is based on a preliminary analysis of surface temperature field evolution with time (for instance acquired by infrared thermography); subsequently, this analysis is improved by taking advantage of a priori information provided by ground-penetrating radar reconstruction of the structure under investigation. In this way, it is possible to improve the accuracy of the images achievable with the stand-alone thermal reconstruction method in the case of quasi-periodic natural excitation.