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The stress state is critical to the reliability of structures, but existing ultrasonic methods are challenging to measure local stress. In this paper, zero-group-velocity (ZGV) Lamb mode was proposed to measure the local stress field in thin aluminum plates. The Lamb wave's dispersive characteristics under initial stress were analyzed based on the Floquet-Bloch theory with Murnaghan hyperelastic material model. The obtained dispersion curves show that higher-order Lamb wave modes near the cut-off frequencies are sensitive to applied stress across the plate, indicating that the S1-ZGV mode has a rather high sensitivity to stress. Similar to conventional ultrasonic stress measurement, it is found that the frequency of the S1-ZGV mode changes near-linearly with the amplitude of applied stress. Numerical experiments were conducted to illustrate the feasibility of local stress measurement in a thin aluminum plate based on the S1-ZGV mode. Single and multiple localized stress fields were evaluated with the S1-ZGV method, and reconstructed results matched well with actual stress fields, proving that the ZGV Lamb wave method is a sensitive stress measurement technique in thin plates. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The stress state is critical to the reliability of structures, but existing ultrasonic methods are challenging to measure local stress. In this paper, zero-group-velocity (ZGV) Lamb mode was proposed to measure the local stress field in thin aluminum plates. The Lamb wave's dispersive characteristics under initial stress were analyzed based on the Floquet-Bloch theory with Murnaghan hyperelastic material model. The obtained dispersion curves show that higher-order Lamb wave modes near the cut-off frequencies are sensitive to applied stress across the plate, indicating that the S1-ZGV mode has a rather high sensitivity to stress. Similar to conventional ultrasonic stress measurement, it is found that the frequency of the S1-ZGV mode changes near-linearly with the amplitude of applied stress. Numerical experiments were conducted to illustrate the feasibility of local stress measurement in a thin aluminum plate based on the S1-ZGV mode. Single and multiple localized stress fields were evaluated with the S1-ZGV method, and reconstructed results matched well with actual stress fields, proving that the ZGV Lamb wave method is a sensitive stress measurement technique in thin plates. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Transcranial focused ultrasound (tFUS) is increasingly used in experimental neuroscience due to its neuromodulatory effectiveness in animal studies. However, achieving multitarget tFUS in small animals is typically limited by transducer size, energy transfer efficiency, and brain volume. The objective of this work was to construct an ultrasound system for multitarget neuromodulation in small animals. First, a miniaturized high-powered 2-D array transducer was developed. The phase delay of each array element was calculated based on the multifocal time-reversal method, generating multiple foci simultaneously in a 3-D field. The effects of the axial focal length, interfocus spacing (lateral distance between the two focal centers), and the number of foci on the focal properties of the pressure field were examined through numerical simulations. In-vitro ultrasonic measurements and transcranial simulations on a rat skull were conducted. The minimum interfocus spacing separating two −6-dB foci and the peak full-width at half-maximum were positively correlated with axial focal length; the relative relationship between the interfocus spacing and pressure field properties was similar for each axial focal length. The maximum acoustic pressure and spatial average intensity at focus in deionized water were 2.21 MPa and 133 W/cm2, respectively. The simulated and experimental results were compared, demonstrating agreement in both peak position and focus shape. The ultrasound system can provide a neuroscientific platform for evaluating the feasibility of multitarget ultrasound stimulation treatment protocols, thus improving the understanding of functional neuroanatomy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Transcranial ultrasound therapy has become a noninvasive method for treating neurological and psychiatric disorders, and studies have further demonstrated that multitarget transcranial ultrasound therapy is a better solution. At present, multitarget transcranial ultrasound therapy in small animals can only be achieved by the multitransducer or phased array. However, multiple transducers may cause spatial interference, and the phased array system is complicated, expensive, and especially unsuitable for small animals. This study is the first to design and fabricate a miniature acoustic holography lens for multitarget transcranial ultrasound therapy in rats. The acoustic holographic lens, working at a frequency of 1.0 MHz, with a size of 10.08 mm $\times10.08$ mm and a pixel resolution of 0.72 mm, was designed, optimized, and fabricated. The dual-focus transcranial ultrasound generated based on the lens was measured; the full-width at half-maximum (FWHM) of the focal spots in the ${y}$ -direction was 2.15 and 2.27 mm and in the ${z}$ -direction was 2.3 and 2.36 mm. The focal length was 5.4 mm, and the distance between the two focuses was 5.6 mm, close to the desired values of 5.4 and 6.0 mm. Finally, the multiple-target blood–brain barrier opening in rats’ bilateral secondary visual cortex (mediolateral area, V2ML) was demonstrated using the transcranial ultrasound therapy system based on the lens. These results demonstrate the good performance of the multitarget transcranial ultrasound therapy system for small animals, including high spatial resolution, small size, and low cost. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Featured Application: Nondestructive testing and structural health monitoring for complex-shaped parts with a high resolution. Ultrasonic methods have been extensively developed in nondestructive testing for various materials and components. However, accurately extracting quantitative information about defects still remains challenging, especially for complex structures. Although the immersion technique is commonly used for complex-shaped parts, the large mismatch of acoustic impedance between water and metal prevents effective ultrasonic transmission and leads to a low signal-to-noise ratio(SNR). In this paper, a quantitative imaging method is proposed for complex-shaped parts based on an ice-coupled full waveform inversion (FWI) method. Numerical experiments were carried out to quantitatively inspect the various defects in a turbine blade. Firstly, the k-space pseudospectral method was applied to simulate ice-coupled ultrasonic testing for the turbine blade. The recorded full wavefields were then applied for a frequency-domain FWI based on the Limited-memory Broyden–Fletcher–Goldfarb–Shanno (L-BFGS) method. With a carefully selected iterative number and frequency, a successive-frequency FWI can well detect half wavelength defects. Extended studies on an open notch with different orientations and multiple adjacent defects proved its capability to detect different types of defects. Finally, an uncertainty analysis was conducted with inaccurate initial velocity models with a relative error of ±2%, demonstrating its robustness even with a certain inaccuracy. This study demonstrates that the proposed method has a high potential to inspect complex-shaped structures with an excellent resolution. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Ultrasonic guided wave (UGW) has shown great potential in the field of structural health monitoring of rail tracks due to its long-range capability and full cross section coverage. However, the practical application of UGW has been hindered by the complicated signal interpretation because of the natures of multiple modes and dispersion. Therefore, it is desirable that the effective UGW modes with high excitability and least dispersion can be identified and extracted for practical applications. In this paper, a numerical study on the guided wave propagation was carried out on a standard rail with 56E1 profile. Firstly, Floquet-Bloch theory was applied to obtain the dispersion curves of guided wave in a rail. Then, a 3D FE model was built to investigate the UGW propagation along the rail within the frequency range of 0–120 kHz. Wavenumber-frequency analysis method was applied to decompose and identify the propagating UGW modes. With a carefully designed 2D bandpass filter, a specific mode W0 was extracted in the wavenumber-frequency domain. Finally, a frequency band sweep technique was also proposed to get the optimal frequency band to achieve a pure and least-dispersive UGW mode along the rail web. The proposed method provides an effective way to extract efficient UGW modes to assess the integrity of the rail track, as well as other waveguides with complex geometry. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Elevator wire ropes with polymer cores hold and hoist heavy fluctuating loads in a corrosive environment. Such working condition causes metal fatigue, which together with abrasion around pulleys leads to progressive loss of the metallic cross section. This can be seen in the forms of a roughened and pitted surface of the ropes, reduction in diameter, and broken wires. Therefore, their deterioration must be monitored so that any unexpected damage or corrosion can be detected before it causes a fatal accident. Ultrasonic-guided wave-based inspection, which has proved its capability in nondestructive testing of platelike structures such as tubes and pipes, can monitor the cross section of wire ropes in their entire length from a single point. However, guided waves have drawn less attention for defect detection purposes in wire ropes. This article reports the condition monitoring of a steel wire rope from a hoisting elevator with broken wires as a result of corrosive environment and fatigue. Finite element analysis was conducted as a baseline to study guided wave propagation in wire ropes and plot dispersion curves. Guided wave propagation in wire ropes was experimentally investigated on a newly built cable stretching machine equipped with a load sensor under different amount of tensile loading. To expose the indication of broken wires, the recorded signals were analyzed by tailor-made continuous wavelet transform called tone burst wavelet. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Fiber Bragg gratings (FBGs) have being seen for a growing application in the field of structural health monitoring (SHM) because of their lightweight features. This letter introduces an adaptive SHM sensing system based on the ultrasonic guided wave (UGW) and FBG sensor technology. First, the capability of the proposed SHM sensing system used to detect UGW is demonstrated by the frequency detection of Rayleigh wave that is generated by the piezoelectric transducers with a function generator. Furthermore, a nanosecond pulse laser is utilized to generate Lamb wave on an aluminum plate, while the SHM sensing system is employed to detect the wave in a long distance. Finally, the SHM sensing system is used to locate the source of Rayleigh wave that is created by a pulsed laser. The experiment results show the proposed SHM sensing system is capable of localizing and monitoring the UGW by using four FBG cascaded on a loaded aluminum plate. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Non-linear interaction of waves with contact interfaces has been widely applied in non-destructive evaluation fields such as bonding quality evaluation, and the detection of closed microcracks and composite delamination. This paper proposes an absolute measurement of the ultrasonic non-linearity parameter using a piezoelectric detection method for two aluminum alloy blocks of different lengths. The results of a two-dimensional finite element method model verified by models for hard and soft contact interfaces, depending on the interface property, were compared with the measured non-linearity parameter. The measured values show good agreement with the modelled results, indicating good potential for measuring the non-linearity parameter at interfaces experimentally and numerically. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

The excitation and propagation of an electromagnetic field is a very complex problem in Stratified conductive structures (SCS) because of their complicated physical properties. In single air-cored coil above multilayered conductive structures, the impedance of an eddy-current coil is calculated based on the electromagnetic field. This paper provides insight into eddy current models for stratified conductive structures using three types of analytical approaches, including Cheng's matrix method, Truncated region eigenfunction expansion (TREE) method, and the innovative method based on the reflection and transmission theory of the electromagnetic waves. The analytical expressions of the three models are discussed and compared. Numerical simulation of an FEM model is performed, and the experimental results verify the developed models. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The anti-corrosive metal coatings on ferromagnetic tubes are the important components in power plants and need non-destructive evaluation (NDE) techniques to measure their thickness precisely. The objective of this research is to develop pulsed eddy current (PEC) technique for measuring the coating thickness accurately. PEC signals are investigated for the evaluation of coating thickness using a differential PEC probe, which consists of a driving coil and two pickup coils. The characteristics of PEC signals for coating thickness variations show that the related features, such as the time-to-peak and peak value, change linearly with thickness change. A new feature, called as time to the rising point, related to the propagation time of electromagnetic field in conductive metals is adopted for coating thickness measurement. These features can be used to inspect the coating thickness within the accuracy of 0.02 mm. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A number of interesting phenomena at fluid-solid interfaces can be observed when the incident angle approaches the Rayleigh angle, including Schoch displacement and leaky Rayleigh waves. Besides the experimental and theoretical research on these problems, numerical tools have been more and more widely used for these complex problems. Based on previous experimental and numerical researches, a 2D finite element model has been built to reproduce the Schoch effects. With the same model, the minimum reflection profile is investigated for the feasibility of material characterization, especially for residual stress evaluation. Residual stress is one of the important properties for structures, and its measurement is a popular research topic in nondestructive evaluation. However, it is not possible to put the residual stress into the numerical model directly. According to the relation of residual stress with mechanical properties, the material damping and wave speed have been alternatively adopted in this work. The influence of minimum reflection profile by residual stress has been shown by the change of wave speed and damping factor. Simulation results show that the minimum reflection profile is a potential method for residual stress evaluation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper proposes an analytical approach that can describe the Pulsed Eddy Current Testing (PECT) of stratified conductive structures by a single air-coil used for detecting and sizing of metal loss due to interlayer corrosion. Specifically for a single air-cored coil above a multilayered conductive structure, the coil impendance response of the cylindrical eddy-current probe is calculated based on the truncated region eigenfunction expansion (TREE) method using the generalized matrix coefficients in series form. Analytical modeling of pulsed eddy current is developed using the Fourier series for multilayered conductive structures. A simulation study is carried out for demonstrating the capability of the proposed approach for sizing the metal loss in a two-layer specimen. Furthermore, the experiment is set up to confirm the simulating results of the analytical model for multilayered steels. Good agreement between the theoretical results and measured signals is observed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Ultrasonic is one of the well-known methods for surface roughness measurement, but small roughness will only lead to a subtle variation of transmission or reflection. To explore sensitive techniques for surfaces with small roughness, nonlinear ultrasonic measurement in through-transmission and pulse-echo modes was proposed and studied based on an effective unit-cell finite element (FE) model. Higher harmonic generation in solids was realized by applying the Murnaghan hyperelastic material model. This FE model was verified by comparing the absolute value of the nonlinearity parameter with the analytical solution. Then, random surfaces with different roughness values ranging from 0 μm to 200 μm were repeatedly generated and studied in the two modes. The through-transmission mode is very suitable to measure the surfaces with roughness as small as 3% of the wavelength. The pulse-echo mode is sensitive and effective to measure the surface roughness ranging from 0.78% to 5.47% of the wavelength. This study offers a potential nondestructive testing and monitoring method for the interfaces or inner surfaces of the in-service structures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A decrease of piezoelectric properties in the fabrication of ultra-small Pb(Mg1/3Nb2/3)–x%PbTiO3 (PMN–x%PT) for high-frequency (>20 MHz) ultrasonic array transducers remains an urgent problem. Here, PMN–31%PT with micron-sized kerfs and high piezoelectric performance was micromachined using a 355 nm laser. We studied the kerf profile as a function of laser parameters, revealing that micron-sized kerfs with designated profiles and fewer micro-cracks can be obtained by optimizing the laser parameters. The domain morphology of micromachined PMN–31%PT was thoroughly analyzed to validate the superior piezoelectric performance maintained near the kerfs. A high piezoresponse of the samples after micromachining was also successfully demonstrated by determining the effective piezoelectric coefficient (d33*~1200 pm/V). Our results are promising for fabricating superior PMN–31%PT and other piezoelectric high-frequency (>20 MHz) ultrasonic array transducers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]