Sub-surface damage quantification in mechanical structures

The research in this doctoral opportunity will empirically model the guided wave response passing through a damage in thin metal plates for the determination of crack shape and orientation.

Guided wave ultrasonic testing (GWUT) is a prominent technique to determine visible and sub-surface crack damage in mechanical structures. Its potential in determining the location and the size of crack has been addressed in the literature quite comprehensively. However, determining the orientation and the shape of the crack are still considered as a challenge. These two parameters are extremely significant when the severity of the crack is required to predict in a specific application such as pipe lines, rail tracks and aircraft wings.

In this research, empirical setup will be established by using GWU sensors and thin metal plates (using representative aerospace grade material). Artifical cracks of pre-set shapes and orientation will be crafted on these plates by using an appropriate manufacturing process. The measured data from UT sensors on a variety of metallic samples will be used to empirically relate it with the crack shape and the orientation.