Analytical and finite element prediction of Lamb wave scattering at delaminations in quasi-isotropic composite laminates

This paper presents a theoretical and finite element (FE) investigation of the scattering characteristics of the fundamental anti-symmetric (A₀) Lamb wave at delaminations in a quasi-isotropic (QI) composite laminate. Analytical models based on the Mindlin plate theory and Born approximation are presented to predict the A₀ Lamb wave scattering at a delamination, which is modelled as an inhomogeneity, in an equivalent isotropic model of the QI composite laminate. The results are compared with FE predictions, in which the delamination is modelled as a volume split. The equivalent isotropic model and QI composite laminate are used to investigate the feasibility of the common theoretical approach of modelling the delamination as the inhomogeneity. A good correlation is observed between the theoretical solutions and FE results in the forward scattering amplitudes, but there exists a larger discrepancy in the backward scattering amplitudes. The FE results also show that the fibre direction of the outer laminae has a pronounced influence on the forward and backward scattering amplitudes, which is not predicted by the analytical models.     

Rapid computation of acoustic impulse scattering for rough penetrable surfaces

Chu’s theory for the impulse response of a point source to an isovelocity density contrast wedge [Chu D. Impulse response of density contrast wedge using normal coordinates. J Acoust Soc Am 1989;86:1883-96] enables wedge-assemblage rough surface scattering models to be extended to a broad range of penetrable seafloors, but is computationally intensive since it necessitates finding the multifold roots of a characteristic eigenvalue equation, and summing a power series, for each wedge apex. This present work considers the properties and relationships of the direct, reflected, and diffracted field components of a density contrast wedge. In particular, an analysis of the physical origin and behavior of diffractions associated with specular reflections of the source in the wedge faces leads to a simple extension of the Biot-Tolstoy theory [Biot MA, Tolstoy I. Formulation of wave propagation in infinite media by normal coordinates with an application to diffraction. J Acoust Soc Am 1957;29:381-91] to density contrast wedges with reflectivity ∣R∣ < 1, for wedge angles within the range 150 ? θ_w ? 210°, where the diffractions are predominantly associated with a single reflection in each wedge face. This facilitates rapid time domain calculations of acoustic bottom scattering and penetration for complex multilayered seafloors.     

Experimental study of the A0 and S0 Lamb waves interaction with symmetrical notches

The aim of this work is to study the fundamental Lamb modes interaction with defects in isotropic plates. For these experimental investigations, symmetrical notches with various depths milled in aluminum plates are considered. Moreover, the incident Lamb wave of a specific mode is generated by means of two identical thin piezoceramic transducers placed at the opposite sides of the plate. The waves scattered by the notch are recorded with conventional transducers located on the plate surface in front and behind the defect. The selection of the A₀ or the S₀ modes is obtained by exciting the transducers with anti-phased or in-phased signals, respectively. Furthermore, a calibration process is investigated to correct errors caused by the presence of the receiver between the emitters and the defects. The power reflection and transmission coefficients are then obtained and the power balance is verified. Finally, these measurements are compared successfully with those obtained by a numerical method using the finite-element modeling described in a previous work.     

Lamb waves propagation in elastic plane layers with a joint strip

The Lamb waves are used for the ultrasonic characterization of welds because of their relative long-range propagation. In this paper, a simplified model of a weld-strip between two identical semi-infinite elastic layers is investigated. The reflected and transmitted ultrasonic fields are expressed by modal series whose coefficients are obtained by application of orthogonality relation. Comparisons with solutions obtained by finite elements wave propagation simulations are made. The energy balance between the incident and the scattered waves is also used to verify the accuracy of the obtained modal amplitudes.     

Mode selection of Lamb waves for the evaluation of solid plates with liquid loading

This paper studies the mode selection of Lamb waves for evaluating solid plates with liquid loading. For this purpose, the Lamb wave selected should have the features such as zero normal displacement components at the plate surface in contact with liquid, small dispersion, and maximum group velocity. It is found that when the phase velocity of Lamb wave is equal to the longitudinal wave velocity of the plate material, its normal displacement at the plate surface is always zero. Through the numerical analyses, the specific S₂ Lamb wave that has zero normal displacement component at the plate surface, small dispersion and maximum group velocity compared with the other Lamb waves has been found. With respect to the specific S₂ Lamb wave, some experimental examinations have been carried out. It is found that the liquid loading on the plate surface has less influence on the specific S₂ Lamb wave signal but it can effectively eliminate the other signals. Moreover, the specific S₂ Lamb wave selected exhibits the capability of detecting multiple defects in the solid plate with the liquid loading. It can be concluded that the specific S₂ Lamb wave selected is suitable for the evaluation of solid plates with liquid loading.     

Negative refraction imaging of solid acoustic waves by two-dimensional three-component phononic crystal

By using of the multiple scattering methods, we study the negative refraction imaging effect of solid acoustic waves by two-dimensional three-component phononic crystals composed of coated solid inclusions placed in solid matrix. We show that localized resonance mechanism brings on a group of flat single-mode bands in low-frequency region, which provides two equivalent frequency surfaces (EFS) close to circular. The two constant frequency surfaces correspond to two Bloch modes, a right-handed and a left-handed, whose leading mode are respectively transverse (T) and longitudinal (L) modes. The negative refraction behaviors of the two kinds of modes have been demonstrated by simulation of a Gaussian beam through a finite system. High-quality far-field imaging by a planar lens for transverse or longitudinal waves has been realized separately. This three-component phononic crystal may thus serve as a mode selector in negative refraction imaging of solid acoustic waves.     

Scattering characteristics of Lamb waves from debondings at structural features in composite laminates

This article investigates the scattering characteristics of Lamb waves from a debonding at a structural feature in a composite laminate. This study specifically focuses on the use of the low frequency fundamental antisymmetric (A(0)) Lamb wave as the incident wave for debonding detection. Three-dimensional finite element (FE) simulations and experimental measurements are used to investigate the scattering phenomena. Good agreement is obtained between the FE simulations and experimental results. Detailed parameter studies are carried out to further investigate the relationship between the scattering amplitudes and debonding sizes. The results show that the amplitude of the scattered A(0) Lamb wave is sensitive to the debonding size, which indicates the potential of using the low frequency A(0) Lamb wave as the interrogating wave for debonding detection and monitoring. The findings of the study provide improved physical insights into the scattering phenomena, which are important to further advance damage detection techniques and optimize transducer networks.     

A new boundary method for electromagnetic scattering from inhomogeneous bodies

A new numerical method for scattering from inhomogeneous bodies is presented. In particular, the 2D case of a TM-polarizated incident wave scattered by an infinite cylinder is considered. The scattered field is sought in two different domains. The first one is a bounded region inside the scattering body with an inhomogeneous permittivity ε(x,y). The second one is an unbounded homogeneous region outside the scatterer. An approximate solution for the scattered field inside the scatterer is sought by applying the QTSM technique. The method of discrete sources is used to approximate the scattered field in the unbounded region outside the scattering body. A comparison of the numerical solution with an analytic solution is performed.     

Magnetoelastic waves in an in-plane magnetized ferromagnetic plate

The spectrum of magnetoelastic waves propagating along the magnetic field in an in-plane magnetized ferromagnetic plate is numerically investigated in the exchangeless approximation. No restrictions are imposed either on the field pattern of backward volume magnetostatic waves (BVMSWs) or elastic waves supported by a plate of a given geometry across the plate or on the relationship between the sound velocity v _S and the phase velocity of the magnetoelastic waves v=ω/q (ω is the frequency, q is the wave number). The resonance interaction of the BVMSWs and elastic waves is accompanied, as a rule, by the formation of “stop” bands δω that are proportional to the magnetoelastic coupling constant b. When the BVMSWs are in resonance with Lamb and shear elastic modes the values of the magnetoelastic gaps δω at v≈v _S turn out to be of the same order. For v≫v _S , the efficiency of the interaction between the BVMSWs and transverse Lamb modes is almost one order of magnitude higher. If the frequency spacing Δω between the elastic modes is smaller than the mag-netoelastic gap in the spectrum (Δω≤δω), which takes place, particularly, in the region of crowding the elastic mode spectrum (v≈v _S), the resonant interaction results in mixing the dispersion laws for the elastic modes. Namely, a surface mode may transform into a volume one and a shear mode, into the Lamb mode or into a shear mode with another number. The resonance interaction of the shear and Lamb elastic modes not only forms the magnetoelastic gaps δω∼b ² but also changes the efficiency of elastic wave coupling with the magnetic subsystem. This may show up as the coexistence of the effects of “repulsing” both the dispersion laws and the damping decrements of the elastic waves at the resonance frequency. It is shown that magnetostriction splits the cutoff frequencies of both transverse Lamb modes and shear modes, as well as the long-wave (q → 0) frequency limits f ₀ of the BVMSW modes. This may cause the resonance interaction between BVMSW modes of equal evenness in a narrow frequency band Δ∼b near f ₀.     

Three-Dimensional Scattering of an Incident Plane Shear Horizontal Guided Wave by a Partly through-Thickness Hole in a Plate

We investigate the three-dimensional(3D) scattering problem of an incident plane shear horizontal wave by a partly through-thickness hole in an isotropic plate,in which the Lamb wave modes are also included due to the mode conversions by the scattering obstacle in the 3D problem.An analytical model is presented such that the wave fields are expanded in all of propagating and evanescent SH modes and Lamb modes,and the scattered far-fields of three fundamental guided wave modes are analyzed numerically for different sizes of the holes and frequencies.The numerical results are verified by comparing with those obtained by using the approximate Poisson/Mindlin plate model for small hole radius and low frequency.It is also found that the scattering patterns are different from those of the SO wave incidence.Our work is useful for quantitative evaluation of the plate-like structure by ultrasonic guided waves.     

Wave propagation in non-homogeneous magneto-electro-elastic hollow cylinders

A dynamic solution is presented for the propagation of harmonic waves in imhomogeneous (functionally graded) magneto-electro-elastic hollow cylinders composed of piezoelectric BaTiO₃ and magnetostrictive CoFe₂O₄. The materials properties are assumed to vary in the direction of the thickness according to a known variation law. The Legendre orthogonal polynomial series expansion approach is employed to determine the wave propagating characteristics in the hollow cylinders. The dispersion curves of the imhomogeneous piezoelectric-piezomagnetic hollow cylinder and the corresponding non-piezoelectric and non-piezomagnetic hollow cylinders are calculated to show the influence of the piezoelectricity and piezomagnetism. Electric potential and magnetic potential distributions are obtained to illustrate the different influences of the piezoelectricity and piezomagnetism and the different influences of the piezoelectric effect and piezomagnetic effect on longitudinal modes and torsional modes. For the radial polarizing piezoelectric-piezomagnetic hollow cylinder, the piezoelectric effect and piezomagnetic effect take mostly on the longitudinal mode. Finally, a hollow cylinder at different ratio of radius to thickness is calculated to show the influence of the ratio on the piezoelectric effect and piezomagnetic effect.     

The fixed scatterer approximation and nucleon deuteron scattering

A method of solving the Schroedinger Equation for the scattering from two fixed local potentials is presented. The solutions are used within the framework of the fixed scatterer approximation to perform model calculations of N-D scattering using both effective range theory potentials and a “semi-realistic” potential with a strong repulsive core. For smooth potentials approximate solutions to the fixed scatterer problem are proposed and found to be quite accurate.Other procedures for calculating elastic scattering were compared with the exact fixed scatterer approximation. The results show that the neglect of longitudinal momentum transfer in the Glauber multiple diffraction theory is a severe effect except in the forward direction. For small angle scattering the Glauber prediction for the double scattering amplitude is quite accurate, and does not depend strongly upon either the extent of potential overlap, or the ratio $\text{V}\text{E}$. Comparisons with the Agassi and Gal results for nonoverlapping potentials indicate that the effects of potential overlap are important, at least for the lowest partial waves. Conclusions about the overall importance of off-energy shell effects in nucleon-deuteron scattering, and about the interference of these effects with the determination of the correlation structure of nuclei are not free from ambiguities.     

Correlation between helical surface waves and guided modes of an infinite immersed elastic cylinder

Scattering of obliquely incident plane acoustic waves from immersed infinite solid elastic cylinders is a complex phenomenon that involves generation of various types of surface waves on the body of the cylinder. Mitri [F.G. Mitri, Acoustic backscattering enhancement resulting from the interaction of an obliquely incident plane wave with an infinite cylinder, Ultrasonics 50 (2010) 675-682] recently showed that for a solid aluminum cylinder, there exist acoustic backscattering enhancements at a normalized frequency of ka?0.1. The incidence angle α_c at which these enhancements are observed lies between the first (longitudinal) and second (shear) coupling angles of the cylinder. He also confirmed the observations previously reported by the authors that there exist backscattering enhancements of the dipole mode at large angles of incidence where no wave penetration into the cylinder is expected. In this paper, physical explanations are provided for the aforementioned observations by establishing a correlation between helical surface waves generated by oblique insonification of an immersed infinite solid elastic cylinder and the longitudinal and flexural guided modes that can propagate along the cylinder. In particular, it is shown that the backscattering enhancement observed at ka?0.1 is due to the excitation of the first longitudinal guided mode travelling at the bar velocity along the cylinder. It is also demonstrated that the dipole resonance mode observed at incidence angles larger than the Rayleigh coupling angle is associated with the first flexural guided mode of the cylinder. The correlation established between the scattering and propagation problems can be used in both numerical and experimental studies of interaction of mechanical waves with cylinders.     

Effect of misalignment of air-coupled probes on Ao Lamb mode propagating in a metal plate

Proper alignment of air-coupled ultrasonic transducers for generation and reception of Lamb waves is vital in order to acquire a high amplitude wave group. Any misalignment with either the transmitter or the receiver or both adversely influences the amplitude of a Lamb mode. This paper reports a systematic attempt to quantify the reduction in the amplitude of the fundamental anti-symmetric Lamb mode (A_o) in a metal plate caused by misalignments in air-coupled probes. Three different types of misalignments – linear, orientation and synchronised orientation were deliberately introduced in the transducers, and experiments were performed on a 6 mm thick aluminium plate. Amplitudes of A_o mode measured at various configurations were normalised with that of A_o mode, captured in a reference configuration. Suitable curves fitted over the experimental data points revealed that Gaussian curves represent appropriately the variations in normalised amplitudes of A_o mode. Moreover, analytical expressions were derived to predict the difference in arrival times of Lamb mode(s) due to orientation and synchronised orientation misalignments.     

Reflection and transmission coefficients for guided waves reflected by defects in viscoelastic material plates

The paper presents a Fourier transform-based signal processing procedure for quantifying the reflection and transmission coefficients and mode conversion of guided waves diffracted by defects in plates made of viscoelastic materials. The case of the S(0) Lamb wave mode incident on a notch in a Perspex plate is considered. The procedure is applied to numerical data produced by a finite element code that simulates the propagation of attenuated guided modes and their diffraction by the notch, including mode conversion. Its validity and precision are checked by the way of the energy balance computation and by comparison with results obtained using an orthogonality relation-based processing method.     

Ultrasonic sizing of short surface cracks

This paper presents a method for ultrasonic sizing of surface cracks based on time domain and frequency domain Rayleigh wave near-field analysis. The procedure allows for the entire range of ratio of crack depth to Rayleigh wavelength a/λ to be covered with one single measurement. In the time domain the time-of-flight method was extended to cracks smaller than the wavelength by correlation of the time delay of the transmitted Rayleigh wave with the crack depth. In the frequency domain, the inverse scattering problem was solved by comparison of the measured scattering coefficients and central frequencies of the reflected and transmitted Rayleigh waves with theoretical curves. The sizing procedure was demonstrated experimentally with narrow slots and real fatigue cracks. The out-of-plane displacement component was measured pointwise in the scattered near field by means of laser interferometry. The determination of the scattering parameters in the near field was enabled by a procedure that allows for the Rayleigh wave to be separated from the other modes scattered at the defect. The experimental results showed good accuracy and repeatability down to the smallest available ratio of crack depth to Rayleigh wavelength a/λ = 0.15.     

铝板中Lamb波检测的实验研究

Lamb波在传播过程中具有频散及多模态特性,若相关参数选择不当,会导致在实际应用中信号相互叠加而无法识别。本文基于Lamb波的频散曲线是其频散方程实数解分布的特点,采用二分法绘制了铝板中Lamb波的频散曲线、波结构曲线和入射角曲线。根据曲线选择S0模态的Lamb波对1mm厚铝板中不同类型的缺陷进行检测。实验结果表明,S0模态的Lamb波对裂纹型缺陷和贯穿型缺陷十分敏感,但对于裂纹型缺陷,其幅值变化并不与缺陷大小成线性关系,并且S0模态Lamb波的声场指向性十分集中,在偏离声束轴线时无法检测到缺陷。     

An oscillator using high order Lamb wave modes

An oscillator using high order Lamb wave modes is presented. Due to the multimode property of Lamb waves, high frequency oscillators using high order mode Lamb waves can be fabricated. To select the operating mode of the Lamb wave oscillator, a high order mode selector is inserted into the feedback loop. An oscillator using the 13th antisymmetric mode (a₁₃) in Lamb wave is achieved in experiments and the oscillating frequency is 5.30 times higher than that of the a₀ mode excited by the interdigital transducer.     

A concise and efficient scattering matrix formalism for stable analysis of elastic wave propagation in multilayered anisotropic solids

This paper presents a concise and efficient scattering matrix formalism for stable analysis of elastic wave propagation in multilayered anisotropic solids. The formalism is capable of resolving completely the numerical instability problems associated with transfer matrix method, thereby obviating the extensive reformulation in its modified versions based on delta operator technique. In contrast to the earlier reflection matrix formalisms, all scattering matrices are obtained in a direct manner without invoking wave-propagator or scatterer operator concepts. Both local and global reflection and transmission matrices corresponding to scatterings in two and more layers are derived. The derivation of global scattering matrices in terms of the local ones is carried out concisely based on physical arguments to provide better insights into scattering mechanism. Another formulation which is even more succinct is also devised for obtaining the global scattering matrices directly from eigensolutions. The resultant expressions and algorithm are terse, efficient and convenient for implementation.     

A combined finite element and modal decomposition method to study the interaction of Lamb modes with micro-defects

This paper presents a combined finite element and modal decomposition method to study the interaction of Lamb waves with damaged area. The finite element mesh is used to describe the region around the defects. On the contrary to other hybrid models already developed, the interaction between Lamb waves and defects is computed in the temporal domain. Then, the modal decomposition method permits to determine the wave reflected and transmitted by the damaged area. Modal analysis allows also identifying the mode conversions induced by the defects. These numerical results agree with previous finite element results concerning the interaction of Lamb modes with a notch. Experiments, carried out with gauged defects on an aluminum plate, are also compared to numerical predictions to validate the simulation. Compared to classical techniques of simulation, this new method allows us to investigate the interaction of Lamb modes generated at high frequency-thickness product with micro-defects as corrosion pitting.