Fiber optic sensors for subsea structural health monitoring

Subsea structures operate in very harsh conditions and their operation and lifetime may be compromised by natural or manmade hazards and accelerated aging processes. Access to these structures for maintenance or repair purposes is difficult, expensive and requires trained personnel and sophisticated equipment. Structural Health Monitoring is a process that can provide important information about structural conditions and help increase safety and optimize maintenance and repair activities. Fiber optic technology has enabled reliable, stable, and robust sensors that can operate in subsea environment in long terms. This chapter presents the main fiber optic sensors (FOS) principles, the methods of their implementation, and their potential in subsea applications.