GROUND PENETRATING RADAR

Course objectives

KNOWLEDGE AND UNDERSTANDING. The main goal of this interdisciplinary course is to provide students with theoretical and practical knowledge necessary for a safe, effective and advanced use of Ground-Penetrating Radar (GPR) technique in a wide range of application areas. Successful Students will gain a wide up-to-date perspective on GPR technology and methodology. CAPABILITY TO APPLY KNOWLEDGE AND UNDERSTANDING. Successful Students will be able to use GPR instrumentation in several application areas. They will also be able to use electromagnetic modelling and data processing software tools. MAKING AUTONOMOUS JUDGEMENTS. Successful Students will be able to properly choose GPR equipment, design a survey and acquire reliable data in different application areas. They will know how to model GPR scenarios, process and interpret radargrams, besides having understood how GPR can be associated to complementary non-invasive approaches. COMMUNICATE SKILLS. Successful Students will be able to share knowledge about what they learnt in both academia and industry environments. LEARNING SKILLS. Successful Students will be ready to study more in depth the topics covered by this course.

Channel 1
LARA PAJEWSKI Lecturers' profile

Program - Frequency - Exams

Course program
GPR BASIC PRINCIPLES L1: Introduction to GPR and theoretical background. L2: Overview of GPR applications. L3: Electromagnetic properties of media. GPR limits. L4: Comprehension test and exercises (CTE). GPR SYSTEMS AND ANTENNAS L5: Overview of radar systems. L6: GPR systems and antennas. L7: CTE. CIVIL-ENGINEERING APPLICATIONS OF GPR L8: Positioning. Survey planning and data acquisition. System performance compliance. L9: GPR applied to roads: methodology - guidelines - case studies. L10: Experimental session with advanced GPR instrumentation. L11: CTE. L12: GPR applied to utilities: methodology - guidelines - case studies. L13: Experimental session with advanced GPR instrumentation. L14: CTE. L15-L16-L17: GPR applied to bridges and tunnels. GPR applied to railways. GPR applied to buildings. L18: CTE. APPLICATIONS IN OTHER AREAS L19: GPR for archaeology and cultural-heritage management. L20-21: Experimental sessions with advanced GPR instrumentation. L22: Humanitarian applications: Forensics. UXO detection. Localisation of people trapped under debris and avalanches. L23: Environmental applications: Agriculture. Polluted sites. Trees. L24: Planetary exploration. Holographic radar. DATA PROCESSING AND INTERPRETATION L25-26: Data-processing techniques. L27: Examples: roads and utilities. L28: Electromagnetic modelling of GPR. Finite-Difference Time-Domain method. L29-30: Open-source electromagnetic simulator gprMax. L31-32: Examples: Historical bridges. IFSTTAR test-site. COMPLEMENTARY TECHNIQUES L33-34: Electrical resistivity tomography. Rapid near-surface resistivity. Electrical conductivity. Passive seismics. Thermography. Radar interferometry. Ultrasounds. Gravity gradiometry. Gravimetry. Load tests. ADDITIONAL TOPICS History of GPR. Recommendations for the safety of people and equipment during GPR prospecting. Urban remote sensing and GPR surveys from UAV. Some parts of the program may be deepened and others eliminated, also based on the interest of the students and their study path.
Prerequisites
There are no prerequisites to attend this course.
Books
[1] TU1208 Education Pack: a multimedia educational package on Ground Penetrating Radar, developed by Members of COST (European COoperation in Science and Technology) Action TU1208. Available in open access on www.GPRadar.eu. [2] gprMax user guide. Available in open access on www.gprmax.com. [3] matGPR user guide. Available in open access on http://users.uoa.gr/~atzanis/matgpr/matgpr.html. [4] Further didactical material provided by the teacher (slides, reports)
Frequency
Attending the lectures is not mandatory for this course, but it is strongly recommended, for a better understanding of the subject.
Exam mode
Written exam tests and development of a project. Optional oral test.
Bibliography
[5] A. Benedetto & L. Pajewski (2015), “Civil engineering applications of Ground Penetrating Radar.” Springer. Book Series: “Springer Transactions in Civil and Environmental Engineering.” ISBN: e-book 978-3-319-04813-0, hardcover 978-3-319-04812-3; doi: 10.1007/978-3-319-04813-0. [6] D. Daniels (2004), “Ground Penetrating Radar.” Inspec/Iee. Book Series: “Iee Radar, Sonar, Navigation and Avionics.” ISBN-10: 0863413609. ISBN-13: 978-0863413605.
Lesson mode
Lessons are held in the classroom.
  • Lesson code1056086
  • Academic year2025/2026
  • CourseElectronics Engineering
  • CurriculumElectronics Engineering (percorso valido anche ai fini del conseguimento del doppio titolo italo-statunitense o italo-francese) - in lingua inglese
  • Year1st year
  • Semester2nd semester
  • SSDING-INF/02
  • CFU6