Prognosis of underground structures deterioration based on in-situ measurements

The stability of the underground structure is very important not only from the point of view of the structure itself, but also from the point of view of other structures. Therefore, the evaluation of the process of deterioration can help us very much. In the first part of the paper the ageing of the structures in the scope of their life cycle will be described. The whole process of deterioration is important but limited to certain time intervals and is able to give signals about changes in macro-scale. The second part of the paper is focused on the adaptation of new methods: micro technology of monitoring - such as MEMS (Micro Electrical Mechanical Systems) and wireless technologies for data transfer. It is obvious that such new technologies have to be assessed for the ability to deliver data continuously and for their safety and solidity. At the end of the paper the application of the measurements on the Prague metro's lining is mentioned. © 2007 Taylor & Francis Group.