Elastic Wave Mechanics in Damaged Metallic Plates

Abstract

Human health monitoring (HHM) is essential for continued daily task execution, as is structural health monitoring (SHM) for structures to ensure the continual performance of their designed tasks with optimal efficiency. The existence of damage in a structure affects its optimal use through stiffness deterioration. Damage of different forms could occur in a structure but have the singular objective of material degradation, leading to its underuse for a task. Guided wave ultrasonics has shown strength in detecting sundry damage in structures, but most of the damage monitored and detected is unfilled with substances. However, some damage could trap and accumulate substances that could hasten material degradation through corrosion activities under favorable conditions, especially in the oil and gas industry. This study used the ultrasonic-guided waves’ pitch–catch inspection technique to identify damage filled with different materials. The assessment was based on the RMSD of the dominant Lamb wave mode’s average maximum amplitude and the response signals’ transmission coefficient (TC). A five-cycle tone burst of excitation signals of different frequencies was created to generate propagating Lamb waves in the structure. The fundamental antisymmetric mode was found to be more sensitive than the fundamental symmetric mode when detecting damage filled with various substances. At 80 kHz, the deviation of the current response signals from the baseline response signals due to different filled substances in the damage was distinct and decreased with increased fluid viscosity. Given that structures in the oil and gas sector are particularly susceptible to substance-induced damage, the outcomes of this study are paramount.