Abstract: A configuration and treatment for degrading porous material, e.g., concrete, brick, or other masonry material, via rapid, efficient electro-osmosis. One application carries dehydration to an extent that it weakens a structure for demolition by significantly dehydrating its structural material. A durable, dimensionally stable anode is affixed to the structure and attached to a wire from a DC power supply. The anode is composed of a valve metal substrate with a semiconductive coating of a precious metal, cement or ceramic. Connection to a cathode through the power supply completes the circuit. A DC voltage is applied to the concrete structure by cycling a pro-specified pulse train from the power supply. One pulse train consists of an initial positive pulse followed by a shorter duration negative pulse and ends with a short off period before the pulse train is reinitiated. The cycle continues until the porous material has been determined to be sufficiently degraded.

Abstract: A system and method for treating porous material, e.g., concrete, brick, or other masonry material, via electro-osmosis. One application carries dehydration to an extent that it weakens a structure for demolition by significantly dehydrating its structural material. A durable, dimensionally stable anode is affixed to the structure and attached to a wire from a DC power supply. The anode is composed of a valve metal substrate with a semiconductive coating of a precious metal, cermet or ceramic. Connection to a cathode through the power supply completes the circuit. A DC voltage is applied to the concrete structure by cycling a pre-specified pulse train from the power supply. One pulse train consists of an initial positive pulse followed by a shorter duration negative pulse and ends with a short off period before the pulse train is reinitiated. The cycle continues until the porous material has been determined to be sufficiently treated.

Abstract: A roof moisture sensing system includes (1) a radio frequency pulse transter, (2) a moisture sensor disposed on a roof, and (3) a radio receiver adapted to monitor resonance of the moisture sensor activated by a pulse transmitted by the pulse transmitter. The receiver is adapted to analyze the resonance of the sensor to determine the presence of moisture in the sensor. The transmitter and the receiver can be remote from the sensor and the roof.

Abstract: A pair of metal plates having a space therebetween are surrounded by a flexible enclosure which is waterproof and which is filled with a dry gas. A pair of electrical conductors connected to the plates extend through and are water-tight sealed to the enclosure. A water-deformable element which expands in the presence of moisture is disposed around the enclosure, and a rigid housing having holes therethrough is disposed around the water-deformable element so that moisture passing through the holes into the water-deformable element causes it to expand to move the enclosure and at least one plate so as to reduce the space between the plates to change the capacitance of the capacitor.

Abstract: An apparatus for detecting the presence, location, and extent of the moise in a roof using metallic time-domain reflectomerry (TDR) includes an electrical pulses, a transmission line embedded within the roof and connected with the pulse generator, and a signal analyzer which interprets the electrical pulses transmitted along the transmission line. When the transmission line is exposed to moisture, the dielectric constant of the transmission line changes, thereby causing a portion of the energy of the transmitted pulse to be reflected back toward the source and a portion to pass through to the end of transmission line. The distance from the source and the length of the dielectric discontinuity are determined by analyzing the round-trip travel time of the reflected pulse.

Abstract: A speed bump for use in connection with a roadway located in a climate wh a snow plow is used to clear a roadway, the bump is made from roadway construction materials extending across each lane of a roadway, the bump having a crown of fixed width running substantially the length of the bump; the right-side of the bump having a conventional profile portion, the left-side having a tapered ramp portion having an incline equalling about ten to thirty degrees, allowing a snow plow to lift smoothly over the bump, a plurality of bumps having the same shape can be aligned to manage multiple-lane, one-way and two-way traffic.

Abstract: A speed bump for use in connection with highways located in climates where snow plow is used to clear the highways includes a raised mass fabricated from highway construction material. The raised mass has a crown, a base where the raised mass meets a surface of the highway, and a slope of the raised mass between the crown and the base. The slope presents a profile in the area of the slope at which a snow plow is likely to encounter the speed bump such that the snow plow is lifted smoothly over the speed bump.