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When dealing in ultrasonic testing with inhomogeneous and anisotropic material structure such as
diverse types of components made from austenitic or nickel based cast, which are currently used
for modern power plant concepts, data interpretation is quite difficult. For better understanding of
the complex interaction between the sound field and the component under test, the mathematical
modeling of sound propagation in solids is a substantial task to increase the probability of
detection of relevant defects.
First we present a mathematical approach for modeling the three dimensional transient
particle displacement as a function of time in each point in a half space excited by an impulsive
point load at the surface. The transient ultrasonic field of a rectangular array element is calculated
with this approach by a point source synthesis. Based on this solution we model the wave
propagation of a phased array transducer by time delayed superposition of the wave field of the
transducer elements.
Next we use an electrodynamic technique to visualize the grazing sound field at the surface
of a test block radiated by a phased array probe. By detecting the grazing beam at the samples
surface with a small electrodynamic probe, we measured the particle displacement as a function of
time. It allows for measuring the displacement in all three spatial directions. This comprises the
detection of the horizontal and vertical particle displacement with respect to the surface and thus
also the detection of longitudinal and shear waves is possible.
The calculated and measured wave fields will be compared for different delay laws in
isotropic and transversely isotropic media. The results support the theoretical activities to model
the wave propagation and to find optimal testing parameters for different components and
configurations.
This paper describes the investigations, carried out during the ongoing European Project WOLAXIM. It presents the development of the non-destructive testing system for hollow axle inspection. The phased array probe is designed, the inspection parameters are determined and the required test equipment is planned according to the specifications.
As a part of the probe design, a detailed model to calculate the sound field of the conical phased array is developed. With this model the optimal geometric parameters for bore diameters from 30mm up to 70mm are determined. The first design of a conical probe with forty-eight elements is realised. Based on this design a mock-up with ten elements is produced. The first practical tests with the calculated delay laws show high sensitivity for small test flaws and offer good agreement with the modelling results. The effectiveness as well as the sensitivity with a good signal to noise ratio is verified.
The parameters for a short inspection time less than five minutes per axle are determined. A raw scanning with 1.5° circumferential and 2mm axial resolution is feasible within two minutes. That is significantly faster than comparable mechanically rotated probe systems. The remaining three minutes are sufficient for the other steps in the inspection process. The required features will be fulfilled by the COMPAS® phased array device.
The feasibility of the ultrasonic system is shown. The specification and the theoretical probe design are complete and sufficient knowledge is present that the system will be viable. The results of the modelling and first practical tests show a good agreement with the objectives. The determined probe parameters satisfy the requirements.
Ultrasonic phased array NDE has been applied to ensure the integrity of canisters for encapsulation of spent nuclear fuel. The performance of the NDE system is evaluated by the POD analysis. The POD analysis using a common method, â versus a, has been modified for the phased array ultrasonic inspections by two approaches: to take more influencing parameters into a, and to use a more sophisticated quantity as â. The POD with new a allows more detailed interpretation of POD for each parameter, and the new â gives more realistic POD. The methods are discussed and demonstrated with experimental data. In addition, an investigation of human factors is being planned and the plan is discussed.
Within a know-how transfer project funded by the government conventional ultrasonic
technique was replaced by phased array technique for automated round-bar testing. Instead of
applying a great number of conventional probes to achieve acceptable volume coverage we used
curved linear arrays. The benefits of phased array technique such as programmable skew angles,
beamforming and beam positions, led not only to a significant decrease in inspection time, but also the
number of probes could be substantially reduced . Finally, the testing parameters for a large range of
bar-diameters could be adapted by software control instead of time-consuming mechanical
replacement. The probe-design was carried out by a proprietary modelling program. Both the
theoretical calculations as well as the latter experimental verifications revealed significant advantages
of curved arrays versus the planar types. A radial oriented probe offers perfect adaption to the
cylindrical shape of the specimen allowing wide variations of the sound field. Thus beam direction,
beam size and beam position could be optimized with respect to a minimum of inspection cycles, as
inspections have to be executed in-line during the production. A number of laboratory tests were
carried out on special test components. In order to achieve an optimal performance of the reference
rod we implemented three different types of reference reflectors: (i) flat-bottom-holes with diameters
of 0.8 mm and 1.2 mm, (ii) side-drilled-holes with a diameter of 0.7 mm for the detection of
volumetric flaws, and (iii) notches with a depth of 0.2 mm and 0.5 mm for the detection of surfaceoriented
defects. All laboratory tests were carried out with the COMPAS-XXL inspection system, a
proprietary development of BAM.
Lamb waves travel in plates and hollow cylinders over large distances and propagate with multiple mode shapes. Therefore the waves can be used for integrity tests of large scale structures. Each propagating wave mode has a unique dispersive character and a frequency dependent vibration pattern. Therefore, by interacting with flaws each mode is assumed to generate an individual reflection pattern depending on the flaw type, flaw orientation and size. To extract this information a frequency as well as wave number dependent mode excitation is required ensuring a single mode excitation. The challenge, however, is to control the selective mode excitation electronically to allow a sequence of consecutive tests with different wave modes to collect the data. A method is proposed using phased array wedge transducers with fluid coupling for normal force excitation of Lamb wave modes. The excitation principle is investigated analytically on plates by modelling the wave generation in the wedge and the coupling between wedge and structure. The analytical results of the excitation principle are validated by corresponding experiments where the field patterns on the wedge surface and on the plate were scanned using a laser vibrometer. The directivity of the radiated field is investigated together with the direction dependent analysis of the mode content.
Validation of novel ultrasonic phased array borehole probe by using simulation and measurement
(2022)
Low-frequency ultrasonic testing is a well-established non-destructive testing (NDT) method in civil engineering for material characterization and the localization of cracks, reinforcing bars and delamination. A novel ultrasonic borehole probe is developed for in situ quality assurance of sealing structures in radioactive waste repositories using existing research boreholes. The aim is to examine the sealing structures made of salt concrete for any possible cracks and delamination and to localize built-in components. A prototype has been developed using 12 individual horizontal dry point contact (DPC) shear wave transducers separated by equidistant transmitter/receiver arrays. The probe is equipped with a commercially available portable ultrasonic flaw detector used in the NDT civil engineering industry. To increase the sound pressure generated, the number of transducers in the novel probe is increased to 32 transducers. In addition, the timed excitation of each transducer directs a focused beam of sound to a specific angle and distance based on the previously calculated delay time. This narrows the sensitivity of test volume and improves the signal-to-noise ratio of the received signals. In this paper, the newly designed phased array borehole probe is validated by beam computation in the CIVA software and experimental investigations on a half-cylindrical test specimen to investigate the directional characteristics. In combination with geophysical reconstruction methods, it is expected that an optimised radiation pattern of the probe will improve the signal quality and thus increase the reliability of the imaging results. This is an important consideration for the construction of safe sealing structures for the safe disposal of radioactive or toxic waste.