Damage Detection in CFST Column by Simulation of Ultrasonic Waves Using STFT-Based Spectrogram and Welch Power Spectral Density Estimate

Structural health monitoring employs different tools and techniques to provide a prediction for damages that occur in various structures.Damages such as debond and cracks in concrete-filled steel tube column(CFST)are serious defects that threaten the integrity of the structural members.Ultrasonic waves monitoring applied to the CFST column is necessary to detect damages and quantify their size.However,without appropriate signal processing tools,the results of the monitoring process could not be crucial.In this research,a monitoring process based on a Multiphysics numerical simulation study was carried out.Two signal processing tools:short time Fourier transform(STFT)and Welch Power Spectral Density Estimate(PSD)were used to analyse the captured raw signals.The STFT spectrogram was effective in identifying the different size of damage based on a graphical interpretation.The results show that the increasing of frequency of the excited signal give a better results.The increase in peak magnitude values in Welch PSD was found to be proportionate to the change in damage length whereas the damage depth has a less effect.The results for the crack size identification were less promising than those of debond damage because of the different type of the signal’s propagation path.Simulation process conducted by COMSOL software has proved the validity of the adopted signal processing techniques in detecting such damages in CFST columns.

A Review on Prerequisites of a Set-Up for Particle Detection by Ultrasonic Waves in Aluminium Melts

In many applications in aluminium industry, the number of inclusion-critical products increases and the quality of those products depend on the inclusion concentration and size. In order to improve the quality of aluminium products and the effectiveness of the processes, a reliable and cheaper on-line detection method is needed. Ultrasonic detection has been used in steel industry, but relatively rare in aluminium industry, although it would theoretically allow for an online non-intrusive detection of the cleanliness of the melt. In this work, the current information on ultrasonic inclusion detection was gathered and recommendations were provided on the Prerequisites for a set-up for ultrasonic detection of non-metallic inclusions in aluminium as a contribution on previous works. It has been concluded that ultrasonic waves seem promising, and should be experimented more on an industrial level to have a clear view on the potentials of the method.

Comparison of Fuzzy Synthetic Evaluation and Field Measurement of Internal Defects in Assembled Concrete Detected by Ultrasonic Waves

Analyze and compare the basic principles of ultrasonic detection of voids in concrete,choose ZBL-U520/510 non-metallic ultrasonic detector,and use the opposite detection method to test the void size in the joints of prefabri-cated concrete structures.The results show that:ultrasonic method by testing the waveform,sound,and speed of sound analysis can effectively determine the position of the defect,and through the conversion formula can estimate the void size.Ultrasonic parameters are used to distinguish the internal defects of Assembly concrete.Sometimes there are diferent results with different para-meters.It is difficult for engineers to directly determine the internal de fects.Fuzzy comprehensive ev aluation can establish an overall evaluation of things or objects controlled by multiple factors by establishing membership functions.Through the inspection of engineering examples:the fuzzy comprehensive judgment method has no difference between the judgment of some good quality points and the judg-ment results of the original criteria,but for some abnormal points or points near the critical value,the advantages of fiuzzy criteria can be achieved.The judgment process will be more scientific by considering several parameters in a comprehen-sive manner and digtizing the original subjective judgments.

Propagation Characteristics of Ultrasonic Guided Waves in Grouted Rockbolt Systems with Bond Defects under Different Confining Conditions

A rockbolt acting in the rock mass is subjected to the combined action of the pull-out load and confining pressure, and the bond quality of the rockbolt directly affects the stability of the roadway and cavern. Therefore, in this study, confining pressure and pull-out load are applied to grouted rockbolt systems with bond defects by a numerical simulation method, and the rockbolt is detected by ultrasonic guided waves to study the propagation law of ultrasonic guided waves in defective rockbolt systems and the bond quality of rockbolts under the combined action of pull-out load and confining pressure. The numerical simulation results show that the length and location of bond defects can be detected by ultrasonic guided waves under the combined action of pull-out load and confining pressure. Under no pull-out load, with increasing confining pressure, the low-frequency part of the guided wave frequency in the rockbolt increases, the high-frequency part decreases, the weakening effect of the confining pressure on the guided wave propagation law increases, and the bond quality of the rockbolt increases. The existence of defects cannot change the strengthening effect of the confining pressure on the guided wave propagation law under the same pull-out load or the weakening effect of the pull-out load on the guided wave propagation law under the same confining pressure.

Detection of internal crack growth in polyethylene pipe using guided wave ultrasonic testing

Despite the success of guided wave ultrasonic inspection for internal defect detection in steel pipes,its application on polyethylene(PE)pipe remains relatively unexplored.The growth of internal cracks in PE pipe severely affects its pressure-holding capacity,hence the early detection of internal cracks is crucial for effective pipeline maintenance strategies.This study extends the scope of guided wave-based ultrasonic testing to detect the growth of internal cracks in a natural gas distribution PE pipe.Laboratory experiments and a finite element model were planned to study the wave-crack interaction at different stages of axially oriented internal crack growth with a piezoceramic transducer-based setup arranged in a pitch-catch configuration.Mode dispersion analysis supplemented with preliminary experiments was performed to isolate the optimal inspection frequency,leading to the selection of the T(0,1)mode at 50-kHz for the investigation.A transmission index based on the energy of the T(0,1)mode was developed to trace the extent of simulated crack growth.The findings revealed an inverse linear correlation between the transmission index and the crack depth for crack growth beyond 20%crack depth.

Evaluation of the cement bond quality through filtering the reflected ultrasonic waves

High cement bond quality is required to keep an oil well from hydraulic commu- nication between zones. In the cement bond evaluation, the ultrasonic echo method is widely used for its capability of channeling azimuth detection. Full waveforms reflected from the cased hole are simulated for different bonding conditions by the generalized transfer matrix method. Because of the high acoustic impedance of casing, the amplitudes of the reflected waves from the cement and the formation are small and cannot easily be used to evaluate the cementing condition. The wave that can propagate into the cement and the formation through the casing concentrates closely on the casing resonant frequency. To reduce the amplitude of the reflected wave from the casing inner surface and highlight the part of the reflected wave which carries the cementing quality information, the reflected full wave is filtered according to the casing resonant frequency. There are several wave packets in the filtered waveform. When the amplitude of the second wave packet is low, the cement bonds well with the casing, otherwise poorly. A low amplitude third wave packet is an indication of a good bond of the cement with the formation, otherwise poor. To reveal the sensitivity of the reflection wave amplitudes to the incident angle, reflected full waveform is modeled when an acoustic beam with finite width is incident on the casing. It is shown that the bond evaluation method based on filtered wave packets is valid for incident angle less than 5 degrees.

Study on the double transmission of ultrasonic waves through statistic rough surfaces

A model evaluating the signal loss of the double transmitted acoustic beams through random rough surfaces was established based on the Fresnel approximation and phase- screen approximation. A simple analytical solution was achieved using the exponential substi- tution approach to remove the nonlinear integral terms. The factors that affect the signal of double transmissions from random rough surfaces were analyzed. The research results demon- strated that the signal loss is not only related to the root-mean-squire height of the roughness, but also to the distance of wave traveling in the materials. The model can be very helpful for improving the reliability of NDT (Non-Destructive Testing).

Study of inhomogeneous and heterogeneous ultrasonic waves in kidney stones

Renal calculi are inhomogenous, heterogeneous and complex in nature. There is a large variation in their chemical composition due to food habits of patients and hence geography of the inhabitants in different parts of the world. Ultrasonic studies are made to investigate various physical and other constants of such renal calculi. A double-probe through transmission technique is used to study various propagation parameters. The ultrasonic waves displayed on cathode-ray oscilloscope are complex and complicated in nature. Complete analysis of such wave patterns is given in the present study. The data reported would help in the design of an u ltrasonic lithotripter.

Effects of Ultrasonic Seed Treatment on Rice Performances under the Seawater Irrigation

Irrigation with desalinated seawater is an effective way to use ocean resources and save freshwater resources.However,seawater irrigation would cause yield loss of rice.In order to explore the effects of ultrasonic seed treatment on rice performances under seawater irrigation,the present study was conducted with three irrigation treatments(fresh water(SW0),ten times diluted seawater(SW1%,0.34%salinity),and five times diluted seawater(SW2%,0.68%salinity))and two seed treatments(ultrasonic treated seeds(UT)and untreated seeds(CK)).Compared with SW0+CK treatment,SW1+CK and SW2+CK treatments significantly decreased grain yield by 56.19%and 66.69%,spikelets per panicle by 30.11%and 55.80%,seed-setting rate by 23.05%and 18.87%,and 1000-grain weight by 4.55%and 14.50%,respectively.Seawater irrigation also significantly increased malonaldehyde(MDA)and proline contents and the activities of superoxide dismutase(SOD)and peroxidase(POD).Ultrasonic seed treatment significantly increased the grain number per panicle,seed-setting rate,and grain yield of rice under seawater irrigation.Compared with CK,UT treatment substantially reduced MDA content,SOD activity,and POD activity in SW1 and SW2 conditions.Furthermore,UT treatment significantly increased proline content and down-regulated proline dehydrogenase activity under seawater irrigation.We deduced that ultrasonic seed treatment enhanced the salinity tolerance of rice by inducing the proline accmulation.Our findings indicated that ultrasonic seed treatment could an effective strategy to promote rice productivity under seawater irrigation.

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 Larnb 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.

Nonlinear inversion of ultrasonic guided waves for in vivo evaluation of cortical bone properties

Ultrasonic guided waves(UGWs),which propagate throughout the entire thickness of cortical bone,are attractive for the early diagnosis of osteoporosis.However,this is challenging due to the impact of soft tissue and the inherent difficulties related to multiparametric inversion of cortical bone quality factors,such as cortical thickness and bulk wave velocity.Therefore,in this research,a UGW-based multi-parameter inversion algorithm is developed to predict strength-related factors.In simulation,a free plate(cortical bone)and a bilayer plate(soft tissue and cortical bone)are used to validate the proposed method.The inversed cortical thickness(CTh),longitudinal velocity(V_(L))and transverse velocity(V_(T))are in accordance with the true values.Then four bovine cortical bone plates were used in in vitro experiments.Compared with the reference values,the relative errors for cortical thickness were 3.96%,0.83%,2.87%,and 4.25%,respectively.In the in vivo measurements,UGWs are collected from the tibias of 10 volunteers.The theoretical dispersion curves depicted by the estimated parameters(V_(T),V_(L),CTh)match well with the extracted experimental ones.In comparison with dual-energy x-ray absorptiometry,our results show that the estimated transverse velocity and cortical thickness are highly sensitive to osteoporosis.Therefore,these two parameters(CTh and V_(T))of long bones have potential to be used for diagnosis of bone status in clinical applications.

Review on second-harmonic generation of ultrasonic guided waves in solid media(Ⅰ): Theoretical analyses

Considering the high sensitivity of the nonlinear ultrasonic measurement technique and great advantages of the guided wave testing method, the use of nonlinear ultrasonic guided waves provides a promising means for evaluating and characterizing the hidden and/or inaccessible damage/degradation in solid media. Increasing attention on the development of the testing method based on nonlinear ultrasonic guided waves is largely attributed to the theoretical advances of nonlinear guided waves propagation in solid media. One of the typical acoustic nonlinear responses is the generation of second harmonics that can be used to effectively evaluate damage/degradation in materials/structures. In this paper, the theoretical progress of second-harmonic generation（SHG） of ultrasonic guided wave propagation in solid media is reviewed. The advances and developments of theoretical investigations on the effect of SHG of ultrasonic guided wave propagation in different structures are addressed. Some obscure understandings and the ideas in dispute are also discussed.

A comparative study for determining rock joint normal stiffness with destructive uniaxial compression and nondestructive ultrasonic wave testing

Rock joints are one of the vital discontinuities in a natural rock mass.How to accurately and conveniently determine joint normal stiffness is therefore significant in rock mechanics.Here,first,seven existing methods for determining joint normal stiffness were introduced and reviewed,among which MethodⅠ(the indirect measurement method),MethodⅡ(the direct determination method),MethodⅢ(the across-joint strain gauge measurement method)and MethodⅣ(the deformation measuring ring method)are via destructive uniaxial compression testing,while MethodⅤ(the best fitting method),MethodⅥ(the rapid evaluation method)and MethodⅦ(the effective modulus method)are through wave propagation principles and nondestructive ultrasonic testing.Subsequently,laboratory tests of intact and jointed sandstone specimens were conducted following the testing requirements and pro-cedures of those seven methods.A comparison among those methods was then performed.The results show that Method I,i.e.the benchmark method,is reliable and stable.MethodⅡhas a conceptual drawback,and its accuracy is acceptable at only very low stress levels.Relative errors in the results from MethodⅢare very large.With MethodⅣ,the testing results are sufficiently accurate despite the strict testing environment and complicated testing procedures.The results from MethodⅤare greatly unstable and significantly dependent on the natural frequency of the transducers.The joint normal stiffness determined with MethodⅥis stable and accurate,although data processing is complex.MethodⅦcould be adopted to determine the joint normal stiffness corresponding to the rock elastic deformation phase only.Consequently,it is suggested that MethodsⅠ,ⅣandⅥshould be adopted for the mea-surement of joint normal stiffness.The findings could be helpful in selecting an appropriate method to determine joint normal stiffness and,hence,to better solve discontinuous rock mass problems.

Study of Intelligent Approaches to Identify Impact of Environmental Temperature on Ultrasonic GWs Based SHM:A Review

Structural health monitoring(SHM)is considered an effective approach to analyze the efficient working of several mechanical components.For this purpose,ultrasonic guided waves can cover long-distance and assess large infrastructures in just a single test using a small number of transducers.However,the working of the SHM mechanism can be affected by some sources of variations(i.e.,environmental).To improve the final results of ultrasonic guided wave inspections,it is necessary to highlight and attenuate these environmental variations.The loading parameters,temperature and humidity have been recognized as the core environmental sources of variations that affect the SHM sensing mechanism.Environmental temperature has the most significant influence on SHM results.There is still a need for extensive research to develop such a damage inspection approach that should be insensitive to environmental temperature variations.In this framework,the current research study will not only illuminate the effect of environmental temperature through different intelligent approaches but also suggest the standard mechanism to attenuate it in actual ultrasonic guided wave based SHM.Hence,the work presented in this article addresses one of the open research challenges that are the identification of the effect of environmental and operating conditions in practical applications of ultrasonic guided waves and impedance-based SHM.

Effect of ultrasonic irradiation on particle size,reagents consumption,and feed ash content in coal flotation

Ultrasonic waves have a lot of use in the particle surface cleaning.As flotation is one of the methods associated with surface properties,this paper investigates the effect of these waves on performance,particle size,reagents,and feed ash content in coal flotation.To accomplish this goal,coal samples in three size fractions,including coarse(-800 to+400μm),medium(-400 to+100 μm)and fine(-100μm)with various feed ash content.The flotation experiments were evaluated by process indexes such as yield,combustible recovery,and selectivity index.The results indicated the increasing of yield.The increasing was significant in medium size.Furthermore,the results showed that in presence of ultrasonic waves,the collector and frother consumption decreased.And also,applying ultrasonic waves would result more combustible recovery and selectivity index.The ash selectivity index had the highest impact for high feed ash content.

Temperature Dependence of Ultrasonic Longitudinal Guided Wave Propagation in Long Range Steel Strands

Ultrasonic guided wave inspection is an effective non-destructive testing method which can be used for stress level evaluation in steel strands.Unfortunately the propagation velocity of ultrasonic guided waves changes due to temperature shift making the prestress measurement of steel strands inaccurate and even sometimes impossible.In the course of solving the problem,this paper reports on quantitative research on the temperature dependence of ultrasonic longitudinal guided wave propagation in long range steel strands.In order to achieve the generation and reception of a chosen longitudinal mode in a steel strand with a helical shaped surface,a new type of magnetostrictive transducer was developed,characterized by a group of thin clips and three identical permanent magnets.Excitation and reception of ultrasonic guided waves in a steel strand were performed experimentally.Experimental results shows that in the temperature range from-4 ℃ to 34 ℃,the propagation velocity of the L（0,1） mode at 160 kHz linearly decreased with increasing temperature and its temperature dependent coefficient was 0.90（m·s-1 ·（℃）-1） which is very close to the theoretical prediction.The effect of dimension deviation between the helical and center wires and the effect of the thermal expansion of the steel strand on ultrasonic longitudinal guided wave propagation were also analyzed.It was found that these effects could be ignored compared with the change in the material mechanical properties of the steel strands due to temperature shift.It was also observed that the longitudinal guided wave mode was somewhat more sensitive to temperature changes compared with conventional ultrasonic waves theoretically.Therefore,it is considered that the temperature effect on ultrasonic longitudinal guided wave propagation in order to improve the accuracy of stress measurement in prestressed steel strands.Quantitative research on the temperature dependence of ultrasonic guided wave propagation in steel strands provides an important basis for the compensation of temperature effects in stress measurement in steel strands by using ultrasonic guided wave inspection.

High Precision Ultrasonic Guided Wave Technique for Inspection of Power Transmission Line

Due to the merits of high inspection speed and long detecting distance, Ultrasonic Guided Wave（UGW） method has been commonly applied to the on-line maintenance of power transmission line. However, the guided wave propagation in this structure is very complicated, leading to the unfavorable defect localization accuracy. Aiming at this situation, a high precision UGW technique for inspection of local surface defect in power transmission line is proposed. The technique is realized by adopting a novel segmental piezoelectric ring transducer and transducer mounting scheme, combining with the comprehensive characterization of wave propagation and circumferential defect positioning with multiple piezoelectric elements. Firstly, the propagation path of guided waves in the multi-wires of transmission line under the proposed technique condition is investigated experimentally. Next, the wave velocities are calculated by dispersion curves and experiment test respectively, and from comparing of the two results, the guided wave mode propagated in transmission line is confirmed to be F（1,1） mode. Finally, the axial and circumferential positioning of local defective wires in transmission line are both achieved, by using multiple piezoelectric elements to surround the stands and send elastic waves into every single wire. The proposed research can play a role of guiding the development of highly effective UGW method and detecting system for multi-wire transmission line.

Degradation of acephate using combined ultrasonic and ozonation method

The degradation of acephate in aqueous solutions was investigated with the ultrasonic and ozonation methods, as well as a combination of both. An experimental facility was designed and operation parameters such as the ultrasonic power, temperature, and gas flow rate were strictly controlled at constant levels. The frequency of the ultrasonic wave was 160 kHz. The ultraviolet-visible （UV-Vis） spectroscopic and Raman spectroscopic techniques were used in the experiment. The UV-Vis spectroscopic results show that ultrasonication and ozonation have a syn- ergistic effect in the combined system. The degradation efficiency of acephate increases from 60.6% to 87.6% after the solution is irradiated by a 160 kHz ultrasonic wave for 60 min in the ozonation process, and it is higher with the combined method than the sum of the separated ultrasonic and ozonation methods. Raman spectra studies show that degradation via the combined ultrasonic/ozonation method is more thorough than photocatalysis. The oxidability of nitrogen atoms is promoted under ultrasonic waves. Changes of the inorganic ions and degradation pathway during the degradation process were investigated in this study. Most final products are innocuous to the environment.

EFFECT OF ULTRASONIC WAVE ON THE ELECTROPOLYMERIZATION OF PYRROLE

Electropolymerization of pyrrole under ultrasonic field at 20kHz was performed in a series of aqueous and propylene carbonate (PC) solutions. The ultrasonic wave with moderate intensity at the power of 44W, which is the power threshold of the ultrasonic generator used in this work to produce cavitation effect, enhance the conductivity and tensile strength of the polypyrrole films as prepared. However, too high intensity of the ultrasonic wave is harmful to the polymerization.

Non-contact evaluation of the resonant frequency of a microstructure using ultrasonic wave

This paper presents a novel non-contact method for evaluating the resonant frequency of a microstructure, Firstly, the microstructure under test is excited by ultrasonic waves. This excitation method does not impose any undefined load on the specimen like the electrostatic excitation and also this is the first actual use of ultrasonic wave for exciting a microstructure in the literature. Secondly, the amplitudes of the microstructure are determined by image edge detection using a Mexican hat wavelet transform on the vibrating images of the microstructure. The vibrating images are captured by a CCD camera when the microstructure is vibrated by ultrasonic waves at a series of discrete high frequencies （〉30 kHz）. Upon processing the vibrating images, the amplitudes at various excitation frequencies are obtained and an amplitude-frequency spectrum is obtained from which the resonant frequency is subsequently evaluated. A micro silicon structure consisting of a perforated plate （192 × 192 μm） and two cantilever beams （76 × 43 μm） which is about 4 μm thickness is tested. Since laser interferometry is not required, thermal effects on a test object can be avoided. Hence, the setup is relatively simple. Results show that the proposed method is a simple and effective approach for evaluating the dynamic characteristics of microstructures.