The recent use of materials, such as 5xxx-series aluminum in new ships is posing new challenges in inspection for the Navy; as future performance of these materials over time is not as well known. Current state of the art off the shelf techniques have not proven to be viable options for monitoring these newly implemented materials and structures. FBS is proposing to investigate both guided wave computed tomography and phased array sensor systems to monitor large areas of the structure for corrosion damage. FBS also proposes the use of a new and novel Magnetostrictive sensor for large area shear wave tomographic imaging. The newly designed sensors are thin, light weight, cost effective, and rugged, while also being powerful and having excellent mode control. Lastly, FBS has received support from both a prime manufacturer of ships and also a prime manufacturer of NDT equipment to strengthen the commercialization potential of the final product.
Benefit: Guided waves are inherently a good choice for the inspection of large areas and hidden structures. The use of tomography or phased array can enhance the capabilities of an already powerful sensor. With the advent of new shear sensors with mode control, the feature extraction possibilities increase and so should sensitivity. The ability to develop systems for looking at thicker structures and larger areas than previously investigated will enhance the technology and allow it to be applicable to more types of structures, such as large pressure vessels and tanks. The developed technology should also be applicable to steel ships and containers.
Keywords: Structural Health Monitoring (SHM), Structural Health Monitoring (SHM), Nondestructive Evaluation (NDE), ultrasonic, Guided waves, Damage Analysis
