Journal of Applied Geophysics 150 (2018) 182–194

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Journal of Applied Geophysics

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Comparison of performance of inclinometer casing and TDR technique

S.M. Fatemi Aghda a,⁎, K. Ganjalipour a, K. Nabiollahi b
a
Department of Applied Geology, Faculty of Geological Science, Kharazmi University, Tehran, Iran
b
Department of Soil Science and Engineering, Faculty of Agricultural Science, Kurdestan University, Sanandaj, Iran

a r t i c l e i n f o a b s t r a c t

Article history: TDR (Time Domain Reflectometry) and GPR (Ground Penetrating Radar) are two of the electromagnetic methods
Received 22 March 2017 in applied geophysics, which using them for various applications are developing. The Time Domain Reflectometry
Received in revised form 22 December 2017 is a remote sensing method that has been used for years to determine the nature of the materials and spatial
Accepted 20 January 2018
location. The use of TDR system has led to innovative applications of it and comparing it with previous measuring
techniques, since it has developed. In this study, not only a summary of the basics of TDR application for
Keywords:
TDR
monitoring of ground deformation is offered, but also a comparison of this technology with other measurement
Reflection coefficient techniques (inclinometer casing) is provided. Actually, this paper presents a case study in which the opportunity
RG59/U arose to compare these two technologies in detecting subsurface deformation in slopes. A TDR system includes a
Slide plane radar wave receiver & generator, a transmission line and a waveguide. The generated electro-magnetic pulse
Algorithm moves toward the waveguide within the conductor cable and enters the test environment. For this study, slopes
overlooking the Darian dam bottom outlet, power house and spillway were instrumented with RG59/U coaxial
cables for TDR monitoring and slope inclinometer. Coaxial cables - as a TDR sensor - and inclinometer casings
were installed in a same bore hole where coaxial cable was attached to the inclinometer casing. Shear and tensile
deformations of the cable, which is caused by ground movements, significantly impacts on cable reflection coef-
ficient. In Darian dam boreholes, the cable points subject to the shear and stretch were correlated with deforma-
tion points of the inclinometer casings in incremental displacement graphs. This study shows that TDR technique
is more sensitive than inclinometer casing for small movement in the slide planes. Because manual processing of
TDR data is hard and need experienced personnel, the authors have designed an algorithm to compare the shape
of the new TDR waveforms with the base reading waveform in order to monitor the subsurface deformations.
© 2018 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

1. Introduction
Time Domain Reflectometry (TDR) is an electrical measurement
technique used to determine the degree and location of cable deforma-
tion. In concept, it is similar to radar along a cable. In TDR, the pulse gen-
erator transmits the electromagnetic pulses through the waveguides
that can be a coaxial cable. When the pulse gets the point in the cable
that its electrical properties have been changed, a part of the emitted
pulse is reflected to the generating source (Nissen and Moldrup,
1995). The reflected pulse provides useful information about the
environment or the position of the target (cable fault location, water
level, etc.). In such applications of TDR techniques, the distance to the
target point can be calculated knowing the propagation velocity of the
signal and the pulse travel time from the target point to the receiver.
Therefore, the location of the changes in electrical properties of cable
can be determined by the send and receive time of the electromagnetic
pulse.
⁎ Corresponding author.
E-mail address: fatemi@khu.ac.ir (S.M.F. Aghda).
TDR technology has also been updated for other applications today.
Various types of measuring instruments have been designed and devel-
oped for specific applications. TDR applications, includes evaluation of
dielectric and spectroscopic properties of materials (Cataldo et al.,
2007; Hager III, 1994; Moradi and Abdipour, 2007; Nozaki and Bose,
1990), qualitative and quantitative control of liquids (Cataldo et al.,
2009, 2009, 2009; Piuzzi et al., 2009) vegetable oils experiment
(Cataldo et al., 2010; Cataldo et al., 2009, 2009, 2009), measuring the
impedance (Bishop et al., 2011), cable diagnosis (Schuet et al., 2011;
Grifiths et al., 2006), measurement of soil moisture (O'Connor and
Dowding, 1999; Cataldo et al., 2009, 2009, 2009; Cataldo et al., 2008),
etc.
The geotechnical properties of the material depend on the pulse
transmission speed in the waveguides. The waveguides used for
geotechnical applications are divided into three categories:
1- Crimp waveguide which is used for monitoring and detecting the
location of the shear deformations points
2- Interface waveguide which is used to determine the liquids level
3- Dielectric waveguide which is used to determine the soil moisture
and its other properties such as electric conductivity, salinity, etc.

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jappgeo.2018.01.022
0926-9851/© 2018 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
 S.M.F. Aghda et al. / Journal of Applied Geophysics 150 (2018) 182–194 183

Fig. 1. Components of TDR system for slope monitoring (Singer et al., 2006).

The use of TDR technology to determine the interface level of air- 2. Research literature
water returns back to the beginning of the 1970's (O'Connor and
Dowding, 1999). Using the method for field evaluations was conducted Based on O'Connor and Dowding researches, TDR system for monitor-
by Dowding and O'Connor (2000). Dowding et al. (1996) compared the ing of slope stability consists of components shown in Fig. 1. A coaxial
use of twisted pair cables and hollow coaxial cables as TDR waveguide. cable is installed in a borehole and backfilled with cement grout. Coaxial
As well, the works performed by the Army Corps of Engineers Water-
ways Experiment Station, reviewed the use of TDR method to measure
the water level (Nicholson et al., 1997). Cataldo et al. (2012, 2012, 2013)
conducted a series of experiments to validate the ability of TDR method
for detecting water leakage points in underground pipes. Kane and Beck
(1996), Mikkelsen (1996), and O'Connor and Dowding (1999) used the
Time Domain Reflectometry for monitoring of slide plane. As shown in
Fig. 1, rock or soil movement shears the grout and deforms the cable.
The electromagnetics pulses are reflected to the pulse transmitter
source from the damaged point. The sweep duration and the speed of
the pulse in the cable are used to determine the location of the slide
plane.
In this study, the authors conducted a series of experimental and
field studies on RG95/U coaxial cable as the waveguide. They used this
technique for monitoring of the ground movements at three potential
landslide locations in Darian Dam site.

Fig. 3. Comparison of reflection signatures produced by increasing deformation of cables

that are extended and sheared. Inset shows differences in the cable shape at failure for
Fig. 2. Responses from an open, short, and impedances NZ0 and bZ0. the two conditions. (Based on Dowding and O'Connor, 2000).
184 S.M.F. Aghda et al. / Journal of Applied Geophysics 150 (2018) 182–194

RG59 / U Probable
IN SL-01 IN SL-02
slide zone
Inner
conductor

Outer
conductor

Fig. 4. TDR Moisture meter device manufactured by Soil Moisture Company and RG59/U
coaxial cable.

cable provides a single path for propagation of an electromagnetic wave.

Fig. 6. Site A: the radiolarite rock mass overlooking the bottom outlet of Darian Dam and
This wave is generated by a short pulse of voltage. As shown in Figs. 1 position of inclinometers.
and 3, the coaxial cable consists of an inner and an outer conductor that
is separated by a known insulation material (usually known as dielectric).
Propagation of the electromagnetic wave is analyzed by assuming coefficient is defined as the ratio of reflected voltage to incident voltage,
that the governing differential equation takes the form of the well- and is expressed with millirho units:
known wave equation for a voltage pulse V as a function of distance x
and time t: Vr
ρ¼ ð2Þ
Vi
2 2
∂ v ∂ v
¼ ðLC Þ 2 ð1Þ
∂x∂t ∂t The reflection observed with TDR cable tester depends on various
factors, including type of cable fault. The most important benefit of
The cable tester provides a graphic solution for Eq. (1) as a plot of TDR is that the location of the fault and the type of it can be diagnosed
reflection coefficient (ρ) versus distance along the cable (x). Reflection using the transmission time and reflection properties, respectively.

Fig. 5. Possible installation setups for a TDR coaxial cable into a borehole with and without an inclinometer (Singer et al., 2006).
 S.M.F. Aghda et al. / Journal of Applied Geophysics 150 (2018) 182–194 185

IN SP 02 with TDR
IN-01 sensor

POWER HOUSE
Darian
arian fault
fa

Site ; B Site ; C

Fig. 7. Site B: limestone rock mass overlooking the power house of Darian Dam and position of IN-01 inclinometer, Site C: position of IN SP 02 and Darian fault.

One of the most important parameter of cable is impedance (Zo) that The reflection of TDR pulse is shown for different impedance
is defined as a function of inductance and capacitance: mismatches in Fig. 2. For coaxial cable, the characteristic impedance
rffiffiffi depends on the cable geometry.
L
Z0 ¼ ð3Þ rffiffiffi
C
L 1 arffiffiffi
μ
ffi
Z¼ ¼ ln ð5Þ
C 2π b ∈
Basically, the faults led to a change in the transmission line properties
(L, R, and C), and in impedance that are detectable by TDR system.
According to the linear transport theory, we can know that: where a and b are the radius of inner and outer conductor. μ and ∈ are
magnetic permeability and dielectric permittivity, respectively.
Z 1 −Z 0 Changes in ρ caused by shear appear as sharp downward spikes in
ρ¼ ð4Þ
Z1 þ Z0 the TDR waveform, and the amplitude of the spike increases in direct
proportion to the magnitude of shear deformation. The changes in ρ
Z1 = characteristic impedance on the deformed section of cable. caused by the tensile deformation can be seen as a subtle, trough-like
Z0 = the characteristic impedance of the non-deformed cable. depression in the cable signature and their diagnosis is much more

RG59/U COAXIAL
CABLE

TREMIE PIPE LINE

Fig. 8. Installing the TDR cable and inclinometer in the slopes overlooking the Darian Dam bottom outlet.
186 S.M.F. Aghda et al. / Journal of Applied Geophysics 150 (2018) 182–194

??

Fig. 9. TDR sensor cross-section and inclinometer casing in a same borehole.

difficult, than the signal resulting from the shear. (O'Connor and
Dowding, 1999).
Laboratory tests by Su (1987) show that the cables respond differ-
ently to extension and shear. So grouted cables into pipes, which were
later cut, and either pulled (extended) or sheared until first the uncut
grout and then the cable failed. Reflection signatures in Fig. 3 produced
at increasingly larger extension (3a) and shear (3b) displacements
show that extension failure produces a broader, smaller amplitude re-
flection. Shearing produces a narrower, larger amplitude reflection.
The insets show the differences in the geometry at the failed ends of
the cable. Extension does not produce as severe a change in the distance
between the inner and outer conductor of the coaxial cable. This Fig. 11. Comparison between incremental displacement graph and incremental TDR
observation is consistent with the smaller reflected signal associated waveform in INSL01.
with extension failure.

3. Methods and equipment
Test equipment of this research consists of a TDR measuring device
manufactured by Soil Moisture Company and RG-95/U coaxial cable.
TDR device generates 120 ps rise-time pulses with 1.5 V amplitude.
The output of the device is a BNC port and its output impedance is 50 Ω
(Fig. 4).
4. Installation method
For landslide monitoring the coaxial cable is installed into a borehole
and connected to the rock mass with grout. There are three different
installation methods (Fig. 5):
1- The TDR cable installed parallel to an inclinometer within the same
borehole
2- The coaxial cable is installed into sheared inclinometer casing,
therefore extending the lifespan of an inclinometer borehole
3- The coaxial cable is installed into its own borehole.

The installation parallel to an inclinometer in the same borehole is

primarily for research purposes, since a direct comparison of inclinom-
eter measurements with the TDR readings is made possible. For this
reason, this method will be a main part of ongoing research.

Table 1
Comparison between incremental displacements and magnitudes of reflection coefficient
in INSL01.

Depth Slope of Displacement Reflection Rate

inclinometer (mm) coefficient (mrho/mm)
1 m measurement
interval %

21 1.4 14 −23 1.6

30 2.2 22 −38 1.72
32.5 3.1 31 −45 1.45
36 3.3 33 −61 1.84
38 1.6 16 −58 3.62
40 1.2 12 −45 3.75
47 2.1 21 −40 1.9
58 1 10 −51 5.1
66.5 1.2 12 −29 2.41
70 1.6 16 −27 1.65
Fig. 10. Comparison between installed and non-installed cable waveforms.
 S.M.F. Aghda et al. / Journal of Applied Geophysics 150 (2018) 182–194 187

In this study, Cables and inclinometer casings were installed at three

potential landslide locations in Darian Dam site (location A, B & C).
These locations are shown in Figs. 6 and 7. The study stages in this
research are as follows:
Four boreholes with a diameter of 116 mm were drilled for
installation of TDR cables (Fig. 8). These boreholes backfilled with
bentonite-cement grout after installing the cables and inclinometer
casings (Fig. 9). In site A, as shown in Fig. 6, the frequency of radiolarite
and limestone layers have made a potential to slide in Darian dam bot-
tom outlet. In this site, inclinometer casing was installed in boreholes IN
SL01 and INSL02 on 2015/09/15 and 2015/11/29 respectively. In site B,
as shown in Fig. 7, the inclinometer casing was installed in the borehole
IN 01 on 2015/09/20, in order to monitor the limestone rock masses
situated near the powerhouse. In site C, inclinometer casing was
installed in the borehole IN SP 01 on 2015/10/20 to monitor the
displacement of spillway main fault.
The authors used RG-59/U coaxial cable as TDR sensor in this
research (Fig. 8). With respect to cable type, various researchers have
reported mixed results with the use of RG-59/U in field applications.
Kane and Beck (1996), considering the very clear and distinctive
changes observed in the waveforms of TDR in RG-59/U cable installed
in some of the boreholes of earth dam, provided a very positive report.
Researchers at Northwestern University showed that RG-59/U and sim-
ilar flexible cables with such a small diameter are not reliable enough,
compared to various type of larger- diameter stiffer cable (Dowding
and O'Connor, 2000). But, given the very low prices and easy access to
this type of cables, authors decided to use them as TDR sensor.

5. Result of measurements

In this study, reading of inclinometer casings was started just after

the installation, but reading of the TDR data conducted with delay be-
cause of lack of TDR apparatus. Two TDR readings were recorded on
2016/08/05 and 2016/09/25. The authors, in order to cover the lack of
base reading, got the waveform of non-installed cable and used it as
zero reading. The waveform of non-installed cable and the waveform
of all installed cables are shown in Fig. 10. Comparison of installed
cable waveforms with non-installed cable waveform represent changes
in the geometry of the installed cables as the effect of shear and stretch
(Fig. 10). Fig. 12. Comparison between incremental displacement graph and incremental TDR
waveform in INSL02.
Inclinometer shows the incremental displacement data in two axes
that are perpendicular to each other. These are known as axes A and B
at Darian Dam site. Because in TDR system, the direction of the displace- TDR waveform represent the change of cable geometry in the shear
ment is not important and any displacement in any direction will affect zones with different thicknesses (Fig. 11). As seen in Fig. 11, a wide con-
the cable; therefore, the sum of incremental displacement vectors A and cavity in the TDR waveform has been occurred at depth of 30–40 m. This
B were calculated in any depths and the resultant displacement graph
were drawn. Finally, they were compared with the incremental TDR
waveform. Table 2
As seen in Fig. 11, the deformation points identified in the incremen- Comparison between incremental displacements and magnitude of reflection coefficient
tal TDR waveform in INSL01 is correlated with the displacement in INSL02.
recorded by the inclinometer, and almost all deformations in the Depth Slope of Displacement Reflection Rate
inclinometer casing are observed in the TDR waveform. However, the inclinometer (mm) coefficient (mrho/mm)
magnitude of deformations recorded by these two methods is not % 1 m measurement (mrho)
interval
equal and this depends on many factors discussed in this study.
Measurement accuracy in inclinometer casing is dependent on the 2.4 1.9 19 −2 0.11
length of the probe, which is usually about 500 mm. However, since 6.2 1.8 18.04 −3 0.17
7.5 1.69 16.9 −7 0.41
measurement intervals are 1 m, the inclinometer measurement accu- 12.9 0.95 9.5 −8 0.84
racy in this study is a function of measurement intervals. Based on 15.2 1.45 14.5 −11 0.76
Table 1, the ratio of shear displacement to the measuring length 21.4 0.59 5.9 −16 2.71
(shear distortion) in the inclinometer casings of INSL01 varies from 1% 23.8 0.59 5.9 −23 3.90
29.5 1.04 10.4 −17 1.63
to 3.3%. Based on Fig. 11, the reflection coefficient values vary from a
33.2 0.72 7.2 −26 3.61
few mrho to 58 mrho. The changes in reflection coefficient and the 41.2 0.13 13 −37 2.85
shear distortions always comply with bedding planes, joints, and 45.1 0.96 9.6 −34 3.54
contact between units with contrasting stiffness. Rock masses in the lo- 50.2 0.73 7.3 −14 1.92
cation of INSL01 consist of relatively thin-layer limestone and thin-layer 56.7 0.52 5.2 −26 5.00
58.9 0.85 8.5 −22 2.59
radiolaritic limestone. Reflection coefficient changes in the incremental
188 S.M.F. Aghda et al. / Journal of Applied Geophysics 150 (2018) 182–194

Several non-localized
displacement zones

Fig. 13. Comparison between displacement graphs of inclinometer and incremental TDR waveform in IN01.

Fig. 14. Features of TDR waveforms for the different thicknesses of shear zones; A. localized shear, B. non-localized shear zone with a cable bending, and C. large shear zone (O'Connor and
Dowding, 1999).
 S.M.F. Aghda et al. / Journal of Applied Geophysics 150 (2018) 182–194 189

type of deformation shows that the coaxial cable is under tensile stress
within a shear zone.
Table 1 displays the amount of displacements and its related
reflection coefficient for INSL01. As shown in Table 1, the conversion
rate of reflection coefficient to displacement in this borehole varies
from 1.45 (mrho/mm) up to about 5.1 (mrho/mm). These results indi-
cate that there is no linear relation between horizontal displacements
and reflection coefficient; i.e., at a depth of 36 m, with reflection
coefficient about −60 mrho, the amount of horizontal displacement is
33 mm; however, at a depth of 58 m, with reflection coefficient up to
nearly −50 mrho, the amount of horizontal displacement is 10 mm.
The most important point about the TDR waveform in this borehole
has been observed in the depth of less than 10 m, in which, despite
the displacement of more than 40 mm, TDR waveform did not remark-
ably changes.
Comparing the incremental displacement graph with TDR waveform
in the boxes shown in Fig. 12 reveals that in IN SL02, both methods are
greatly able to identify deformation points. In IN-SL02, the effect of
displacement along bedding planes of the thin-layer limestone and
radiolaritic limestone are seen in incremental displacements graph
and TDR waveform. Shear distortion of inclinometer casings in this
borehole changes from 0.13% to 1.9% (Table 2). In Table 2, the amount
of displacement and related reflection coefficient is shown for INSL02.
The largest displacement was 18–19 mm at depths of 2.4 and 6.2 m,
while the reflection coefficient in these points were approximately
−3 mrho. The largest reflection coefficient was between −34 to
−37 mrho that has occurred in the depths of 41.2 and 45.2 m. In
other words, in INSL02, the conversion rate of reflection coefficient to
the displacement, varies from 0.11 mrho/mm to 5 mrho/mm, that
represents the lack of linear relationship between the amount of
reflection coefficient and horizontal displacements (Table 2).
The incremental displacement graph and the TDR waveform for
IN01 are shown in Fig. 13. The borehole was divided into two parts
based on these graphs, in which the TDR cable response to ground dis-
placements is different in these sections. The first part starts from the
beginning of the borehole to a depth of 20 m, and the second parts starts
from the depth of 20 m to the end of the borehole.
Based on Fig. 13, the incremental displacement in all of the second
part, is less than 1 mm, and in the first part, a number of shearing
zones are observed with a displacement of 2–6 mm. Based on the
results of study conducted by O'Connor and Dowding (1999) that
is shown in the Fig. 14, it can be concluded that the first section (first
20 m) of the TDR waveform in IN01, indicates the presence of multiple
non-localized shear zones with cable bending, but the second part of the Fig. 15. Comparison between incremental displacement graph and incremental TDR
waveform in INSP01.
TDR waveform indicates large shear zones with small displacements in
the shear boundaries. The cumulative displacement data confirm the
existence of these zones (Fig. 13). Generally, the incremental TDR wave-
form in IN01 greatly correlated with the displacement recorded by the 25.5 m. A relatively large change in the reflection coefficient is observed
inclinometer. in distance 0–9 m. The features of the waveform in this depth indicate
O'Connor and Dowding (1999) evaluated different modes of failure relatively thick shear zones, but the incremental displacements graph
to assess the interaction of soil, cable and grout. They showed that the does not show any specific changes. Among the boreholes, there is
localized and non-localized shears, impact differently on the TDR the least amount of conformance between the results of TDR and
waveforms, which are detectable through the features of the waveform inclinometer in IN SP01.
(Fig. 14). Non-localized shear represents a general shear of rock masses
and soils. Non-localized shears fracture the grout around the cable, but
these failures are not localized enough to make the cable locally 6. Processing procedure of TDR data
sheared, and, thereby, create a detectable reflection (Fig. 14).
The graph of incremental displacement in IN SP01 shows that the in- In this study, using residual data technique and using one of MATLAB
cremental displacements along the entire borehole length are less than software toolboxes naming “curve fitting toolbox,” the authors made
6 mm. Since the measurement intervals are 1 m, the shear distortion is some graphs, which are the result of deduction of base reading from
less than 0.6% (Fig. 15). new reading, and represent the amount of changes of reflection
Comparison of the TDR waveform of IN SP01 with the non-installed coefficient of any specified point in relation to base reading. Residual
cable waveform shows deformations at two depths of 20–30 m and 0– in this research is defined as the difference between a new reading
10 m (Fig. 15). In Fig. 15, two localized shear zones are detectable at and base reading data. (See Fig. 16)
depths of 28 m and 10 m using the TDR waveform, and there is also a Residual reflection coefficient = new reflection coefficient data −
non-localized shear zone with cable bending at the depths of 24 to extracted data from fitted curve on base reading data
190 S.M.F. Aghda et al. / Journal of Applied Geophysics 150 (2018) 182–194

Removal of unnecessary data and selecng the data between top of the
hole and end of the cable as required data for processing,

Drawing the best fied curve on raw data

Residual Analysis
r=y–

Converng travel me data to distance as meter using the wave velocity
factor of cable ( ),

Draw the residual data graph and idenfy the deformaon points
Idenfying the subsurface deformaon point and slide planes

Fig. 16. General principles of the designed algorithm.

In terms of mathematics, Residual is defined as the difference
between the response values and predicted values for a response in a
system of estimation and prediction.
^
r ¼ y−y
where y is response values and ŷ is the predicted values.
In this study, this work was done with a toolbox of MATLAB software
called Curve Fitting Toolbox. The general principles of the algorithm
designed by the authors are as follows (Fig. 17):
1. Removing unnecessary data and selecting the data between the top
of the hole and the end of the cable as required data for processing,
2. Drawing the best fitted curve on the raw data,
3. Residual analysis,
4. Converting travel time data into distance (as meters) using the wave
velocity factor (Vρ),
5. Drawing the residual graph and identifying the deformation points in
the cable as the effect of shearing, stretching,
6. Identifying the subsurface deformation point and slide planes.
Fig. 17 shows the steps of the designed algorithm for TDR cable in
INSL01 and IN 01. Part A in this figure includes removal of unnecessary
data and drawing the best-fitted curve on the raw data. This step pre-
pares the data for residual analysis. In Fig. 17, Part B is residual analysis
step. Deformation point and slide planes based on residual reflection co-
efficient can be identified better than row data of part A. This step (part
B) is more important because the user can observe the amount of
changes in the reflection coefficient in comparison with the base
reading. The graphs in this figure are approximately equivalent to the
inclinometer incremental displacement graphs. The authors created a
computer program based on the above algorithm. The residual graph
is the output of this program. The authors believe using these graphs fa-
cilitates identifying the deformation points in the cable.
In this study, due to the lack of base reading, the reading of non-
installed cable has been considered as base reading.
7. Discussion
ð6Þ
As previously mentioned, in INSL01 and INSL02, both techniques
(TDR and inclinometer pipes) are able to identify the underground
deformations, but the maximum and minimum points of the TDR
waveform are not necessarily identical to the maximum and minimum
points of incremental displacement, and the conversion rate of reflec-
tion coefficient to the displacement along the borehole is very varied.
In other words, in some cases, relatively large displacement recorded
in the inclinometer casings causes a weak reflection in TDR cable, and
vice versa. For example, the displacements at depth of 6–8 m in
INSL01 do not cause any specified clear change in the TDR waveform.
These different performances can be because of many reasons from
which the most notable one is different thickness of shearing zones
and attachment of coaxial cable to the inclinometer casings. In IN01
and INSP01, features of the TDR waveform confirm that there are
shearing zones with different thicknesses. When the shear zone is so lo-
calized, the ratio of the shear zone thickness to the shear displacement is
very small and the cable shears locally, but when this ratio becomes
larger; i.e., when the thickness of the shear zone increases, the cable
does not shear locally.
Fig. 18 shows deformation of the TDR cable in a relatively thin shear
zone and relatively thick shear zone. In a specific displacement, the ratio
of the thickness of the shear zone to displacement is smaller in a thin
shear zone than a thick shear zone.
Assuming the cable is fixed at the boundaries of the shear zone, the
length of cable within the shear zone elongates as shear displacement
progresses. The change in length is a function of the magnitude
of shear zone thickness and displacement. Fig. 19 illustrates that cable
extension increases as the shear zone displaces for several thickness of
shear zone. For a given shear displacement, the magnitude of cable
 S.M.F. Aghda et al. / Journal of Applied Geophysics 150 (2018) 182–194
Part B: Part A:
Incremental TDR Row TDR data
graph
IN SL01
Fig. 17. An example of processing steps of TDR data (in these graphs, due to the lack of base reading, the reading of the non-installed cable is considered as base reading).
extension decreases with zone thickness. For example, a cable in a
10 mm-zone that displaces 10 mm will theoretically extend more
than 4 mm. More than likely, the cable would fail prior to reaching
this magnitude of cable extension. However, the same shear displace-
ment in a 50 mm zone would only extend the cable about 1 mm.
Thicker shear zones would induce even smaller changes in cable length
(Pierce et al., 2001).
Peterson (1993) found that sensitivity (conversion rate of mrho to
mm) declined by a factor of 2 when the distance between clamps -
used in a laboratory direct shear test - was increased from 1 mm to
40 mm. Sensitivity declined by a factor of 20 for clamp spacing greater
than 80 mm. These results indicate that cable-grout composites respond
optimally to localized shear across zones less than 40 mm wide
(e.g., shear strain of 1 mm/40 mm or 2.5%).
191
Part B: Part A:
Incremental TDR Row TDR data
graph
IN 01
Based on the above contents, the authors made the RG59/U coaxial
cable under the stretch in two separate tests, and the TDR waveform
was recorded in each step of the tests. In the first test, the coaxial
cable was stretched in a 100 mm zone, and the cable was torn after
33 mm extending. In the next test, the cable was put under stretch in
a zone of 50 mm, and was torn after 22 mm extending. Based on
Fig. 19, when the cable is extended 10 mm, the maximum reflection
coefficient for stretching zone of 50 mm is −166 mrho and for the
stretching zone of 100 mm is about −123 mrho. In other words, as
displayed in Fig. 20b, when the shear zone is larger, cable gives a weaker
response to shear displacement.
Dowding and O'Connor (2000) found that inclinometer incremental
displacement under-represents localized shear while TDR under-
represents general shear. This difference results from the span
192 S.M.F. Aghda et al. / Journal of Applied Geophysics 150 (2018) 182–194

Cable Cable

Thin shear
zone
Thick shear
zone

L
L= given displacement

Fig. 18. Deformation of TDR cable in a relatively thin shear zone and relatively thick shear zone (based on Pierce et al., 2001).

over which relative displacement is measured. Slope inclinometer in-
cremental displacement is the change in angle over a base length of
500 mm, the wheel-base of the standard probe. Thus, a slope inclinom-
eter incremental displacement of 1 mm over 500 mm is a shear strain of
0.2%. This shear strain is averaged over the base length which is fairly
large when compared to localized shearing along rock fractures (that
may be less than 2 cm in width), or along thin shear zones in soil.
Thus, these data could be interpreted to imply that the TDR sensor
responded optimally to localize shear zones with thickness of 1/100 to
1/10 times the gage length of an inclinometer.
Therefore, according to what noted, we can assert that attachment of
coaxial cables to the inclinometer casings causes, in most cases, the co-
axial cable to show behavior similar to non-localize shears when it
comes to localized shear, which results the cable response weaken to
the potential localized shear displacement. Based on the study of Pierce
et al., when the cable confronts with bending, the first reflection occurs
while the radius of cable bending is smaller than the allowed minimum
bending radius. The minimum bending radius is usually one of the cable
properties. When an inclinometer casing bends in a shear zone, the
radius of casing bending is definitely greater than the bending radius
of cable. Nevertheless, the bending of the inclinometer casing fractures
the grout and causes the stretching of cable instead of shear. The
relationship between the amounts of theoretical cable extension with
Poly. (5 mm -zone)
20
Poly. (10 mm -zone)
18
16 Poly. (20 mm - zone)
CABLE EXTENSIONS, MM
displacement in the shear zones with varying thickness is shown in
Fig. 19. Fig. 20 shows the effect of two stretching zones with different
thicknesses on the reflection coefficient in RG59/U coaxial cable. The re-
sults of the above studies and tests represent the decreasing effect of the
thickness increase of shear zone (stretch zone) on the reflection
coefficient.
There are other factors causing limitations of TDR performance and
creating error in measurements, which briefly are:
1- Type of materials used in the back fill of the borehole
2- The distance of the cable to the tester device (studying the cases
where the monitoring of the slopes is conducted through TDR
method shows that this effect is negligible for distances less than
100 m).
3- Penetration of water into the cable
4- The presence of voids in the grout (Peterson, 1993), etc.
Each of the above factors has been studied in details by different
researchers.
8. Conclusion
The TDR technology is used to detect ground deformation in Darian
Dam. By using this method, the human error interferences in measure-
ment decreases. In this study, the authors used RG59/U coaxial cables to
examine the ability of TDR technology in detection of subsurface ground
deformations. Despite the contrasting results in relation to this type of
cables, the authors decided to use it in this project because of two
reasons: cheapness and availability.

14 Poly. (30 mm- zone)

In INSL01 and INSL02, the ground deformation points in inclinome-
12 Poly. (50 mm - zone) ter graphs and TDR waveform are well identifiable. However, the
thickness of shear zones affects the graphs of these two methods
10 Poly. (100 mm - zone) differently. The shear zones with different thicknesses are recognizable
8 in both boreholes. The displacements occurred in the result of shear
6 movements along bedding planes of thin layer limestone and
radiolaritic limestone-rock masses. Also in INSP01 and IN01, the TDR
4
graphs are capable of recognizing susceptible situations for localized
2 and non-localized shear zones.
In this study, two reading of TDR data were obtained that are not dif-
0
0 5 10 15 20 25 30 ferent from each other remarkably, but by passing time and by gradual
SHEAR ZONE DISPLACEMENT MM increase of the ground deformation, cable damage increase leading to
increase in waveform deformation, or new deformation points are
Fig. 19. Theoretical cable extension as a function of shear zone displacement and added to the waveform. Thus, the TDR waveforms obtained in different
thickness. times must always be compared with the first TDR waveform (base
 S.M.F. Aghda et al. / Journal of Applied Geophysics 150 (2018) 182–194 193

240

210

180
Reflecon coefficient (mrho)

150

120

90
Poly. (50 mm zone)
60
Poly. (100 mm zone)
30

0
0 5 10 15 20 25
Cable extentsions (mm)

Fig. 20. A) Stretching test of RG59/U coaxial cable, B) the effect of the stretch zone thickness on reflection coefficient in RG59/U coaxial cable.

reading). Considering this, the authors developed an algorithm to
conduct the above-mentioned comparison quicker and easier.
In this study, the conversion rate of reflection coefficient to the
displacement was very different in all boreholes. The most important
factors for this difference are as follows:
1. The difference between the thickness of shear zone, and the different
performance of inclinometer casings and the coaxial cables in these
zones.
2. The attachment of coaxial cable to the inclinometer casings.
Both inclinometers and TDR cables will indicate the location and
magnitude (TDR technique shows the magnitude of deformation
qualitatively) of subsurface shear strain. TDR cables are especially
sensitive to shear in rock, or in soil at locations of highly localized
shear strains. On the other hand, inclinometers are especially sensitive
to gradual, general shear and respond to early stages of plastic deforma-
tion in soils and rocks undergoing general shear. These differences do
not imply that either technology is more correct; rather, the two
techniques respond optimally under different conditions.
The main results of this study are summarized as follows:
TDR can be used as an economical alternative to inclinometers in
Darian dam. It is less expensive to install and data collection is more
rapid. TDR has proven an economical way to locate shear planes in ac-
tive slides of both soil and rock masses. Movement of a sliding plane
that causes a crimp or kink in the cable is sufficient to change the imped-
ance, enabling the TDR cable tester to detect the location of the move-
ment. The authors provided a new algorithm in this study to calculate
the amount of reflection coefficient changes. They created a computer
program based on the provided algorithm, which facilitates the quick
194 S.M.F. Aghda et al. / Journal of Applied Geophysics 150 (2018) 182–194
comparison of new TDR readings with the base readings (residual
graph). The residual graph is the output of the above program. The
authors believe using these graphs facilitates identifying the deforma-
tion points in the cable.
Since most of the existing TDR units have multiplexing ability or it
can be provided with this capability, TDR method can continuously re-
cord information. The use of this method and the designed algorithm
means to use a cheap method as a replacement for the inclinometer
casing. In this case, researchers are able to monitor the slides using
distributed TDR sensors (in TDR system, the whole length of the cable
is a measurement sensor), while doing the same project using inclinom-
eter casing requires installing several expensive tilt meter inside the
boreholes (in-place inclinometer). Data gathered from in-place
inclinometers using the central readings system can be recorded contin-
uously, but the data gathered from them are single point. As the authors
believe, although the TDR cannot record the movement direction, but
the above-mentioned benefits can be incentive for researchers and
engineers to use it.
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