Simulation of ultrasonic phased array technique for imaging and sizing of defects using longitudinal waves

Millions of miles of pipes are being used for the transportation, distribution, and local use of petroleum products, gas, water, and chemicals. Most of the pipes are buried in soil, leading to the significance of the study on the subject of guided wave propagation in pipes with soil influence. Previous investigations of ultrasonic guided wave propagation in an elastic hollow cylinder and in an elastic hollow cylinder coated with a viscoelastic material have led to the development of inspection techniques for bare and coated pipes. However, the lack of investigation on guided wave propagation in hollow cylinders embedded in infinite media like soil has hindered the development of pipe inspection methods. Therefore the influence of infinite media on wave propagation is explored in this paper. Dispersion curves and wave structures of both axisymmetric and nonaxisymmetric wave modes are developed. Due to the importance of the convergence of numerical calculations, the requirements of thickness and element number of the finite soil layer between hollow cylinder and infinite element layer are discussed, and an optimal combination is obtained in this paper. Wave structures are used for the mode identification in the non-monotonic region caused by the viscoelastic properties of coating and infinite media.

Guided wave propagation in single and double layer hollow cylinders embedded in infinite media

New techniques developed using the array transducer, to image and size the bottom-surface and near-through-wall crack-like defects in thick carbon steel components are discussed. Three studies are reported here including (a) Optimal beam steering angle for focused and unfocused inspection using phased array method for bottom-surface crack sizing. (b) A front wall correction algorithm for sizing of near-through-wall crack-like defects. (c) A small aperture technique for sizing of near-through-wall crack-like defects. A Finite Difference Time Domain (FDTD) based simulation was used to study and verify the experimental observations. The application of time domain scheme relative arrival time technique (RATT), to measure the size of the near-through wall crack-like defects for the leak before break (LBB) criterion, was also investigated and found to be insufficient. A conventional SAFT algorithm was used for improving the sizing using the small aperture technique.

Sizing Cracks in Power Plant Components Using Array Based Ultrasonic Techniques

This paper reports experimental sizing of fatigue crack profiles that are initiated from artificially made circumferential starter notches in stainless steel pipes of 169 mm outer diameter and 14.33 mm thickness, which were subjected to cyclic bending loads in a four point bending load arrangement using two nondestractive evaluation (NDE) methods: (a) phased array ultrasonic technique and (b) alternating current potential drop technique. The crack growth estimated using the two NDE techniques were compared with the beach marks that were present in the fracture surface. A simulation study using the ray tracing method was carried out to model the ultrasonic wave propagation in the test specimen, and the results were compared with the experimental results.

Phased Array Ultrasonic Measurement of Fatigue Crack Growth Profiles in Stainless Steel Pipes

The non-destructive testing of small-sized (M12–M20) stainless steel bolts in servicing is always a technical problem. This article focuses on the simulation and experimental research of stainless steel bolts with an artificial defect reflector using ultrasonic phased array inspection. Based on the observation of the sound field distribution of stainless steel bolts in ultrasonic phased array as well as simulation modelling and analysis of the phased array probes' detection effects with various defect sizes, different artificial defect reflectors of M16 stainless steel bolts are machined in reference to the simulation results. Next, those bolts are tested using a 10-wafer phased array probe with 5 MHz. The test results finally prove that ultrasonic phased array can detect 1-mm cracks in diameter with different depths of M16 stainless steel bolts and a metal loss of Φ1 mm of through-hole bolts, which provides technical support for future non-destructive testing of stainless steel bolts in servicing.

Simulation and experiment for the inspection of stainless steel bolts in servicing using an ultrasonic phased array

This article reports simulation studies of ultrasonic wave generation and reception using the sector scan feature of a phased array transducer to image and size crack-like defects in large pipes, elbows, and tee sections. The simulations were based on a two-dimensional implementation of the Finite Difference Time Domain (FDTD) method. Experiments were conducted to validate modeling results for pulse-echo simulations of the phased array transducer on pipe samples with notches of three different sizes. The defects were imaged using the sector scan mode of the phased array and sized using the Absolute Arrival Time Technique (AATT). A 64 element, 5 MHz linear phased array transducer with the ultrasonic beam swept over an angular range of 10°–75° (refracted angles), directly in contact with the specimen, was used. Simulation and experimental studies were also conducted to image and size cracks in elbow and tee section pipes.

Finite Difference Time Domain Simulation of Ultrasonic Phased Array Sector Scan for Imaging Cracks in Large Pipes, Elbows, and Tee Sections

A simulation program SIMULTSONIC is under development at CNDE to help determine and/or help optimize ultrasonic probe locations for inspection of complex components. SIMULTSONIC provides a ray-trace based assessment for immersion and contact modes of inspection. The code written in Visual C++ operating in Microsoft Windows environment provides an interactive user interface. In this paper, a description of the various features of SIMULTSONIC is given followed by examples illustrating the capability of SIMULTSONIC to deal with inspection of canonical objects such as pipes. In particular, the use of SIMULTSONIC in the inspection of very thin-walled pipes (with 450 urn wall thickness) is described. Ray trace based assessment was done using SIMULTSONIC to determine the standoff distance and the angle of oblique incidence for an immersion mode focused transducer. A 3-cycle Hanning window pulse was chosen for simulations. Experiments were carried out to validate the simulations. The A-scans and the associated B-Scan images obtained through simulations show good correlation with experimental results, both with the arrival time of the signal as well as with the signal amplitudes.

A Simulation Tool for Ultrasonic Inspection

A laser pulse focused near the closed end of a glass capillary partially filled with water creates a vapor bubble and an associated pressure wave. The pressure wave travels through the liquid toward the meniscus where it is reflected, creating a fast, focused microjet. In this study, we selectively coat the hydrophilic glass capillaries with hydrophobic strips along the capillary. The result after filling the capillary is a static meniscus which has a curvature markedly different than an unmodified capillary. This tilting asymmetry in the static meniscus alters the trajectory of the ensuing jets. The hydrophobic strips also influence the advancing contact line and receding contact line as the vapor bubble expands and collapses. We present thirteen different permutations of this system which includes three geometries and four coating schemes. The combination of geometry and coatings influences the jet breakup, the resulting drop size distribution, the trajectory of the jet tip, and the consistency of jet characteristics across trials. The inclusion of hydrophobic strips promotes jetting in line with the channel axis, with the most effective arrangement dependent on channel size.

https://pubs.aip.org/aip/pof/article-pdf/doi/10.1063/5.0143223/16795611/032017_1_online.pdf

Cavitation-induced microjets tuned by channels with alternating wettability patterns

The 2006 ultrasonic benchmark problem involves pulse‐echo angle beam scanning of a notch located on an inclined planar back surface. The response from a side‐drilled hole is to be used as a reference. The models are to simulate (a) the peak‐to‐peak B‐scan P‐ and SV‐ responses of the slots normalized by the appropriate SDH response and (b) the maximum peak‐to‐peak corner response of the slots (either mode‐converted or not). At CNDE, several simulation tools are being developed to assess/predict UT response for various geometries. The Finite‐Difference‐Time‐Difference (FDTD) scheme is one such simulation tool that has been under development in 1D, 2D and 3D. The FDTD is an explicit time domain tool that can simulate pulse propagation characteristics in acoustic/elastic media. The computational domain is limited by implementing Perfectly Matched Layers (PMLs) at the domain boundaries. We present the results of calculations based on 2D FDTD to determine the response of rectangular shaped surface‐breaking defe...

K. V. Mohan

Papers

Finite Difference Time Domain Simulation of Ultrasonic Phased Array Sector Scan for Imaging Cracks in Large Pipes, Elbows, and Tee Sections

A Simulation Tool for Ultrasonic Inspection

Cavitation-induced microjets tuned by channels with alternating wettability patterns

The 2006 Ultrasonic Benchmark Problem — FDTD Simulations in 2D