Since the optical fiber can be used as a sensor or the sensor can be directly written to the optical fiber, it can be remote and long time to get information about the health of a component or system. Some examples are:
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Embed the optical fiber in the power cable to find hot spots along the cable, which will indicate insulation failure or cable damage, and maximize the potential of the insulated power cable by allowing increased current flow to reach the temperature level of the cable.
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The fiber Bragg grating (FBG) is embedded in the wind turbine blade to monitor strain and calculate the number of elastic cycles to assess component fatigue.
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Radiation-resistant optical fibers are used in nuclear storage and operation facilities for communication and sensing (distributed temperature, strain, and point sensors).
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The fiber is embedded in the dam, and the leakage is monitored through distributed temperature sensing and strain monitoring (distributed strain monitoring through FBG or Brillouin scattering).
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At critical moments of the bridge, optical fibers are used to monitor movement and strain by using FBG or Brillouin scattering to perform distributed strain.
