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。     

用于储罐底板缺陷检测的超声兰姆波模式研究

从超声兰姆波的声场方程出发,得到板材表面离面位移(法向位移)为零的条件,即当超声兰姆波的相速度等于板材介质的纵波声速时,在板材表面的离面位移为零。在给定适当频厚积的条件下,分别数值模拟了仅有切向位移而无离面位移的A1、S1、A2和S2兰姆波模式在有液体负载的单层钢板中的传播情形。结果表明:离面位移为零的S2模式频散较小且对板中缺陷更为敏感。     

超声Lamb波二次谐波发生效率分析与模式选择

在导波模式展开分析方法的基础上,提出激发效率参量来定量表征超声Lamb波积累二次谐波的发生效率。以P92钢板为例,理论计算得到了与频散曲线对应的理论激发效率参量分布图谱,从图谱中选择理论激发效率参量大小不同的两种基频Lamb波模式:纵波型S1模式和交点型A2/S2模式,分别测量这两种基频Lamb波模式在钢板中传播时产生的二次谐波信号。理论计算和实验测量结果表明,这两种基频Lamb波模式的理论和实验激发效率参量的比值基本一致,且激发效率参量较大的纵波型S1模式能激发出效率更高的二次谐波信号。研究结果表明激发效率参量可以有效的用于Lamb波二次谐波发生效率的表征及模式选择。     

On the crossing points of the Lamb modes and the maxima and minima of displacements observed at the surface

This article elaborates on the crossing points of the frequency–wavenumber branches for the symmetric and anti-symmetric Lamb modes in a homogeneous plate. It is shown both theoretically as well as experimentally that at these crossing points either the normal or the longitudinal components of modal displacement attain an extreme value, i.e. a maximum or it vanishes. This behavior is assessed herein using a method due to Mindlin, who showed that the dispersion curves for a plate with mixed boundary conditions – which are associated with uncoupled shear and dilatational modes – provide bounds to the spectral lines of the free plate. Therefore, a subset of the crossing points of the symmetric and antisymmetric Lamb modes for a free plate coincide with the crossing points for a plate with mixed boundary conditions.     

Wideband low frequency generation and detection of Lamb and Rayleigh waves using electromagnetic acoustic transducers (EMATs)

This paper describes a new type of non-contact electromagnetic transducer (EMAT) that can be used to generate both Lamb and Rayleigh waves on metal samples. The generated waves are wideband and low frequency with a dominant frequency content centred at approximately 200 kHz extending to around 500 kHz. The transducers have been used on both aluminium and steel, but operate more efficiently on aluminium due to its lower electrical resistance and density when compared to steel.     

多通道超声兰姆波检测板状结构中的裂纹

超声兰姆(Lamb)波在结构缺陷检测方面愈来愈受到重视,但目前Lamb波的应用局限于单信号源激励,单通道接收的方法,容易受到噪声干扰,其后续的信号分析处理也比较复杂。本文旨在采用多通道Lamb波对板状结构中的裂纹进行定量分析与诊断。在铝板的表面凿刻出不同深度的凹槽作为裂纹,通过线阵换能器采集在一定传播距离内的多通道Lamb波信号,并采用二维傅里叶变换分析在不同深度的裂纹下,Lamb波模式能量的变化规律。结果表明,相对于完好铝板中的Lamb波信号,裂纹的存在会使Lamb波发生模式转换现象,并且转换模式能量百分比随裂纹深度的增加而线性增加。其结果为Lamb波评价板状结构中的裂纹状况提供了一种可能的方法。     

窄频带Lamb波频散特性研究

利用连续小波变换对从铝合金板结构中俘获的Lamb波信号进行分析,获得波信号在时间-尺度域的等高线和等高线脊线.根据Lamb波的频散特征、时间-尺度域等高线脊线的斜率和波在不同尺度下的到达时间,识别了Lamb波信号中各信息包的模式,并匹配出基础阶模式窄频带Lamb波在铝合金板结构中传播的实际频散曲线.对试验的Lamb波信号分析的结果表明该方法对于研究和应用窄频带Lamb波的频散特性是有效的. 关键词： 连续小波变换 Lamb波 频散     

Lamb waves in two-dimensional phononic crystal plate with anisotropic inclusions

An analysis is given to the band structure of the two-dimensional phononic crystal plate constituted of a square array of elastic anisotropic, circular Pb cylinders embedded in elastic isotropic epoxy. The numerical results show that the band gap can be tuned by rotating the anisotropic material orientation. It is found that the influence of anisotropy on band gap of Lamb wave is clearly different from that on the band gap of bulk waves. The thickness of the system under study is a sensitive parameter to affect the influence of anisotropic materials on the normalized gap width.     

Detection of kissing bonds by Lamb waves

Closed cracks under compressive normal stresses are difficult to detect by the conventional ultrasonic techniques. When the crack surfaces stay in very close contact with each other then the bond between the two surfaces of the crack is called a ‘kissing bond’. This is a very dangerous bond. Catastrophic failures can result if the system is subjected to crack opening normal stresses or shear stresses. When the crack surfaces are smooth then kissing bonds cannot transmit shear stress very well but can carry compressive normal stress, these bonds are called ‘slip bonds’. Conventional P-wave scans (C-scan or A-scan) are based on the assumptions that P-waves are reflected by the defective interface. However, an interface subjected to a large compressive stress cannot reflect P-waves effectively, hence these bonds remain invisible to the conventional P-wave based C-scan or A-scan techniques. In this paper it is shown that the kissing bonds can be effectively detected by some leaky Lamb mode. Theoretical and experimental results are presented to show that using the Lamb waves is an effective way of detecting kissing bonds.     

Active fiber composites for the generation of Lamb waves

Active fiber composites (AFC) are thin and conformable transducer elements with orthotropic material properties, since they are made of one layer of piezoelectric ceramic fibers. They are suitable for applications in structural health monitoring systems (SHM) with acoustic non-destructive testing methods (NDT). In the presented work the transfer behavior of an AFC as an emitter of transient elastic waves in plate-like structures is investigated. The wave field emitted by an AFC surface bonded on an isotropic plate was simulated with the finite-difference method. The model includes the piezoelectric element and the plate and allows the simulation of the elastic wave propagation. For comparison with the model experiments using a laser interferometer for non-contact measurements of particle velocities at different points around the AFC on the surface of the plate were performed. Transfer functions defined as the ratio of the electric voltage excitation signal and the resulting surface velocity at a specific point are separately determined for the two fundamental Lamb wave modes. In order to take the orthotropic behavior of the AFC into account the transfer functions are determined for several points around the AFC. Results show that the AFC is capable to excite the fundamental symmetric and antisymmetric Lamb wave mode. The antisymmetric mode is mainly radiated in the direction of the piezoelectric fibers, while the symmetric mode is spread over a larger angle. The amplitudes of the emitted waves depend on the frequency of the excitation as well as on the geometric dimensions of the transducer.     

The effect of surface stress on the propagation of Lamb waves

This work investigates the possibility of the propagation of Lamb waves in thin solid layers with external traction free surfaces, in the presence of surface elasticity, inertia and residual stress. It is demonstrated that such waves do exist and that their characteristics can be quite different from their classical counterparts. The governing equations with non-classical boundary conditions involving the bulk and surface stress are solved exactly in the frequency-wavenumber domain. This solution is utilized to compute the Lamb wave modes for different layer thicknesses. An efficient strategy to capture all the modes of Lamb waves within a given frequency window is outlined. It is shown that the effect of surface elasticity and inertia becomes significant with increasing frequency and decreasing layer thickness, where the number of modes participating within a given frequency window is more than that permitted by the classical theory. Further, it is observed that the nature of the Lamb wave modes (in terms of negative dispersion) in the presence of surface stress is similar to what predicted by the nonlocal theory and microstructure based continuum theory.     

Experimental study of ultrasonic beam sectors for energy conversion into Lamb waves and Rayleigh waves

When a bounded beam is incident on an immersed plate Lamb waves or Rayleigh waves can be generated. Because the amplitude of a bounded beam is not constant along its wave front, a specific beam profile is formed that influences the local efficiency of energy conversion of incident sound into Lamb waves or Rayleigh waves. Understanding this phenomenon is important for ultrasonic immersion experiments of objects because the quality of such experiments highly depends on the amount of energy transmitted into the object. This paper shows by means of experiments based on monochromatic Schlieren photography that the area within the bounded beam responsible for Lamb wave generation differs from that responsible for Rayleigh wave generation. Furthermore it provides experimental verification of an earlier numerical study concerning Rayleigh wave generation.     

Scattering matrices of Lamb waves at irregular surface and void defects

Time-harmonic solution of Lamb wave scattering in a plane-strain waveguide with irregular thickness is investigated based on stair-step discretization and stepwise mode matching. The transfer relations of the transmission matrices and reflection matrices are derived in both directions of the waveguide. With these, an explicit expression of the scattering matrix is derived. When the scattering region of an inner irregular defect is geometrically divided into several parts composed of sub-waveguides with variable thicknesses and void regions with vertical free edges corresponding to the plate surfaces, the scattering matrix of the whole region could then be derived by modal matching along the artificial boundaries, as explicit functions of all the scattering matrices of the sub-waveguides and reflection matrices of the free edges. The effectiveness of the formulation is examined by numerical examples; the calculated scattering coefficients are in good accordance with those obtained from numerical simulation models.     

Cumulative second-harmonic generation of Lamb waves propagating in a two-layered solid plate

The physical process of cumulative second-harmonic generation of Lamb waves propagating in a two-layered solid plate is presented by using the second-order perturbation and the technique of nonlinear reflection of acoustic waves at an interface. In general, the cumulative second-harmonic generation of a dispersive guided wave propagation does not occur. However, the present paper shows that the second-harmonic of Lamb wave propagation arising from the nonlinear interaction of the partial bulk acoustic waves and the restriction of the three boundaries of the solid plates does have a cumulative growth effect if some conditions are satisfied. Through boundary condition and initial condition of excitation, the analytical expression of cumulative second-harmonic of Lamb waves propagation is determined. Numerical results show the cumulative effect of Lamb waves on second-harmonic field patterns.     

Tomographic reconstruction of damage images in hollow cylinders using Lamb waves

Lamb wave tomography (LWT) is a potential and efficient technique for non-destructive tomographic reconstruction of damage images in structural components or materials. A two-stage inverse algorithm proposed by the authors for quickly reconstructing the damage images was applied to hollow cylinders. An aluminum hollow cylinder with an internal surface pit and a Carbon Fiber Reinforced Plastic (CFRP) laminated hollow cylinder with an artificial internal surface damage were used to validate the proposed method. The results show that the present method is capable of successfully reconstructing the images of the above damages in a larger inspection area with much less experimental data compared to some conventional ultrasonic tomography techniques.     

Focusing and waveguiding of Lamb waves in micro-fabricated piezoelectric phononic plates

This paper presents results on the numerical and experimental studies of focusing and waveguiding of the lowest anti-symmetric Lamb wave in micro-fabricated piezoelectric phononic plates. The phononic structure was based on an AT-cut quartz plate and consisted of a gradient-index phononic crystal (GRIN PC) lens and a linear phononic plate waveguide. The band structures of the square-latticed AT-cut quartz phononic crystal plates with different filling ratios were analyzed using the finite element method. The design of a GRIN PC plate lens which is attached with a linear phononic plate waveguide is proposed. In designing the waveguide, propagation modes in square-latticed PC plates with different waveguide widths were studied and the results were served for the experimental design. In the micro-fabrication, deep reactive ion etching (Deep-RIE) process with a laboratory-made etcher was utilized to fabricate both the GRIN PC plate lens and the linear phononic waveguide on an 80 μm thick AT-cut quartz plate. Interdigital transducers were fabricated directly on the quartz plate to generate the lowest anti-symmetric Lamb waves. A vibro-meter was used to detect the wave fields and the measured results on the focusing and waveguiding of the piezoelectric GRIN PC lens and waveguide are in good accordance with the numerical predictions. The results of this study may serve as a basis for developing an active micro plate lens and related devices.     

Analysis of multiple wavelengths of Lamb waves generated by meander-line coil EMATs

The electromagnetic acoustic transducers (EMATs) with a meander-line coil possess the capability of generating Lamb waves carrying multiple wavelengths, and the characteristics of multiple wavelengths is analyzed by developing a spatial transversal filter model for the EMAT. It is shown that the characteristics is due to the wavelength spectrum of the EMATs, which is a wavelength-domain representation of information about the wavelength components, and the magnitude of each components is modulated by an envelope which depends on the geometric pattern of the meander-line coil. The characteristics of multiple wavelengths might cause the multi-modes phenomenon, therefore a method for removing the effect of multiple wavelengths is proposed. It is shown that the effect can be removed by designing an EMAT which can produce a special envelop to suppress the harmonic wavelengths. Experiments are set up to study the characteristics of multiple wavelengths and verify the validity of the proposed method.     

Selective generation of ultrasonic Lamb waves by electromagnetic acoustic transducers

In this paper, we describe a modal expansion approach for the analysis of the selective generation of ultrasonic Lamb waves by electromagnetic acoustic transducers(EMATs). With the modal expansion approach for waveguide excitation, an analytical expression of the Lamb wave's mode expansion coefficient is deduced, which is related to the driving frequency and the geometrical parameters of the EMAT's meander coil, and lays a theoretical foundation for exactly analyzing the selective generation of Lamb waves with EMATs. The influences of the driving frequency on the mode expansion coefficient of ultrasonic Lamb waves are analyzed when the EMAT's geometrical parameters are given. The numerical simulations and experimental examinations show that the ultrasonic Lamb wave modes can be effectively regulated(strengthened or restrained) by choosing an appropriate driving frequency of EMAT, with the geometrical parameters given. This result provides a theoretical and experimental basis for selectively generating a single and pure Lamb wave mode with EMATs.     

板状材料上加强筋的几何形状对兰姆波透射特性的影响

为研究板状材料上加强筋结构对兰姆波透射特性的影响,通过有限元仿真和实验的方法,结合兰姆波频散曲线和二维傅里叶变换分析方法,研究了不同几何形状的加强筋结构对兰姆波垂直入射时的透射特性。仿真与实验的结果表明:加强筋结构会对兰姆波产生梳状滤波器效应,即同一几何形状的加强筋对不同频率的兰姆波透射程度不同;梳状滤波器的通带带宽和通带个数受到加强筋几何形状的影响;随着加强筋高度的增加,梳状滤波器的通带带宽变小且通带个数增加;随着加强筋厚度的增加,梳状滤波器的通带带宽和个数并不呈现单调变化;对于同一高厚比的加强筋,随着加强筋体积的变大,梳状滤波器的通带宽变小且通带个数增加。该研究结果可用于指导利用兰姆波对具有加强筋结构的板状材料进行结构健康监测和无损检测时兰姆波有效频率的选择,从而提高兰姆波能量的利用率和信号的信噪比。     

基于空耦超声Lamb波的金属板状结构内部缺陷检测方法

针对接触式超声检测方法在金属板结构内部缺陷实际工程检测中存在的环境要求高、效率低、操作难度高等问题,提出了空耦超声Lamb波检测方法,该方法能更好地适应现场应用环境,提高检测效率,减少传感器数量。通过有限元仿真和实验分析比较了空耦超声检测与接触式超声检测两种方法接收到的信号和成像效果。结果表明:有限元仿真和实验中,空耦超声检测方法对缺陷位置的定位误差分别为2 mm和3.6 mm,接触式检测方法对缺陷位置的定位误差分别为2 mm和11.3 mm,空耦检测具有较高的定位精度;单侧激励条件下,适合采用A0模态Lamb波对板内缺陷进行检测;空耦超声检测可以通过调整信号接收角度接收单一模态Lamb波,避免伪像产生。该方法为后续金属板状结构内部缺陷的空耦超声检测提供参考。