Obtaining flaw images that take the effect of multiple ultrasonic pulse reflections from the boundaries of a test object into account

The problem of obtaining flaw images from echo signals multiply reflected from the boundaries of a test object and modifications of the FT-SAFT and SAFT algorithms for obtaining flaw images in a test object with plane-parallel boundaries are considered. The reason that a transducer operating on transverse waves in the transceiver mode cannot yield information on flaw location depth is stated. It is shown that the detecting signals in the double-scanning mode, obtaining a set of partial images by the SAFT method, and combining them into a final image allow one to solve this problem. To obtain a combined image, the moduli of partial images were summed and their median was calculated. Because of difficulties in determining the velocity of sound and the thickness of a particular object, the coherent summation, which is potentially the most efficient combining technique among the considered ones, does not allow one to obtain a high-quality image. The results of a numerical simulation of the procedure of obtaining images of point defects are presented. The results of model experiments aimed at obtaining an image of a 1-mm-deep groove in a 20-mm-thick metal slab are presented as well. It is shown that measuring echo signals in the double-scanning mode and obtaining images by the DS-M-SAFT method make it possible to determine the flaw location depth.     

Imaging of flaws with allowance for multiple reflections of ultrasonic pulses from plane-parallel boundaries of a tested object

The possibility of applying coherent methods to imaging of flaws in objects with plane-parallel boundaries during ultrasonic inspection is considered. A version of the SAFT method for obtaining flaw images on the basis of one or several echo signals measured in the transceiver mode and the correlation imaging method are considered. A variant of using the maximum-entropy method for obtaining flaw images from measured echo signals is proposed. A substantial advantage of the maximum-entropy method over the SAFT and correlation methods is demonstrated. The results of numerical experiments in which images were obtained with the use of the aforementioned methods are presented. It is shown that the obtainment of high-quality flaw images requires knowledge of the velocity of ultrasound propagation and the object thickness with a low error (no worse than 0.5%). For this purpose, additional measurements must be performed, e.g., in the dual-probe operating mode, which will allow determination of the velocity of sound and the thickness of the tested object. The results of using these methods for obtaining images in model experiments are presented     

Obtaining flaw images by the SAFT method taking the variable velocity of sound in a test object into account

A modification of the SAFT method for obtaining flaw images in test objects containing three regions with different velocities of sound (SV) is proposed. Complex composite welded joints and repair welds are classified as objects in which the SV in a welded joint may differ from the velocity in a parent metal by >5%; therefore, a high-quality image of flaws can be obtained by taking different SVs into account. To solve this problem, a method for obtaining a test object with three regions with different SVs is proposed. The delays of propagating ultrasonic pulses were calculated using the Fermat principle. The results of reconstructing flaw images in a 300 welded joint from echo signals obtained as a result of numerical simulation by the finite-element method are presented. The images obtained by the SAFT method without taking different SVs into account are displaced from their true position, thus they do not allow determination of their coordinates and location. Consideration of different SVs allows one to obtain unshifted reflections of flaw images and, hence, evaluate the types and dimensions of flaws more accurately.     

Reconstruction of flaw images by the C-SAFT method from echo signals measured by an antenna array in the triple-scanning mode

The application of antenna matrices (AMs) for obtaining flaw images during automated nondestructive ultrasonic testing is considered. The conventional technique of using an AM as a phased AM (PAM) has a number of drawbacks. One of them is related to the small number of AM elements and consists in a low frontal resolution of the thus-formed images. Scanning with an AM operating in the double scanning mode, viz., the so-called triple-scanning mode, allows coherent summation of partial images for each position and obtaining a resulting image with a frontal resolution that cannot be attained with a PAM. In order to test the serviceability of the proposed algorithm in the CIVA program, echo signals reflected from a crack model with a height of 6 mm and a length of 30 mm in a tested object, which simulated a welded joint of a pipeline with a conventional diameter of 800 mm (дy800), were calculated. The results of the reconstruction of images of model objects in the form of a drilled side hole with a diameter of 6 mm at a depth of 15 mm in a CO-2 specimen and a fatigue crack in a welded joint of a д y800 pipeline are presented. To reduce the influence of reverberation noise, a B-type median template was subtracted from echo signals. The flaw images that were reconstructed in numerical and model experiments demonstrate the efficiency of the proposed algorithm.     

SAFT imaging of flaws in the rail base blade with consideration of multiple reflections of an ultrasonic pulse from the boundaries of a test object

The possibility of obtaining images of type-69 flaws in blades of the railroad rail base is considered. For this purpose, a modification of the SAFT algorithm is proposed, in which, during the calculation of echo-signal delays, multiple reflections of an ultrasonic pulse from the rail boundaries are taken into account. The Fermat principle is used to calculate the delay times. Typical acoustic schemes, each of which can be used to obtain partial flaw images, are determined. Combining the partial images in a final image allows the detection of type-69 flaws. It is shown that the proposed algorithm can be applied for obtaining type-69 images in P65 railroad rails.     

Application of linear interpolation for improving the quality of flaw images obtained by the spectral projection method during ultrasonic nondestructive testing

The possibility of applying the linear interpolation of a 2D spatial spectrum during reconstruction of flaw images by the Fourier transform synthetic aperture focusing technique (FT-SAFT) from the data of ultrasonic nondestructive testing is considered. Different interpolation algorithms are analyzed. The results of numerical and model experiments in which images were obtained with and without interpolation are presented. The efficiency of applying the algorithm proposed for improving the quality of images obtained by the FT-SAFT method is shown.     

Restoring the image of reflectors using the C-SAFT method during multiple reflection of echo signals from the boundaries of a cylindrical inspection object

A modified method of combined SAFT (C-SAFT) for restoring the images of reflectors is considered; it allows the multiple reflection of a pulse from the boundaries of the wall of a cylindrical inspection object. To verify the efficiency of the proposed algorithm, images of a crack were restored from echo signals that were calculated using the CIVA software package, which is intended for modeling the propagation and scattering of ultrasonic pulses. It was shown in a model experiment that the consideration of changes in the pulse phase during reflection from the inspection-object boundaries at various incident angles of an S-wave in the image-restoration algorithm increases the frontal resolution by more than two times. The consideration of five reflections from the inspection-object boundaries made it possible to obtain images of reflectors by the M-C-SAFT method using many acoustic schemes. The images allow one to determine the type of defects, as well as their dimensions and location in the depth of the wall of a pipeline that is 720 mm in diameter.     

Determination of the profile of the surface of a test object during automated nondestructive ultrasonic testing in the immersion mode and reconstruction of flaw images using the SAFT method

The problem of using an elastic organosilicon polymer (??aquapolymer??) as an immersion medium for providing a stable acoustic contact between a test object and a piezoprobe in the process of automated ultrasonic testing of objects with rough surfaces is considered. The use of an ??aquapolymer?? allows one to decrease the consumption of water during ultrasonic testing. Flaw images were reconstructed using a modification of the SAFT method, which takes the profile of a test object into account; this allows improvement of the image quality. An algorithm for obtaining information on the profile of the surface of a test object and taking this profile into account during reconstruction of flaw images with the SAFT method is proposed. Model experiments yielded flaw images with the refraction of beams on a rough surface taken into account.     

Simultaneous measurement of the velocity of an ultrasonic shear wave and the thickness of a test object with plane-parallel boundaries using two antenna arrays

Methods for the determination of the unknown velocity of the propagation of shear US waves and the unknown thickness of a test object were considered. Two antenna arrays working in the double-scanning mode, where echo signals are recorded, which were emitted and received by all pairs of antenna-array elements, were suggested. Antenna arrays on prisms were mounted on the test-object surface towards each other. An algorithm for the treatment of measured echo signals was designed using a method that is similar to the least-squares method. The use of the algorithm enables one to simultaneously determine the sound velocity and thickness of a test object with plane-parallel boundaries with an exactness greater than 0.5%. In this article, the factors were studied that affect the exactness of measurements and methods of their elimination or minimization. The results of numerical experiments and the use of the method on three samples relative to measurements using an IN-5101A instrument are given.     

Reconstruction of images of reflectors using the correlation method at an arbitrary number of reflections of an ultrasonic pulse from the boundary of a test object that consists of regions with different acoustic properties

An algorithm for reconstructing images of reflectors from echo signals that propagate in a test object, which consists of several regions with different acoustic properties, is considered. The ray trajectories are calculated using the method of direct construction of the family of rays that escape from the point where a transmitter is located but not the Fermat variational principle. After the family of rays is constructed, their belonging to a certain acoustic scheme can be analyzed and the approximation of the calculated delays on the spatial mesh of the image reconstruction region (IRR) can be performed. This will allow the reconstruction of both the pulse travel time from the transmitter to any point in the IRR and back to the receiver and the attenuation of the pulse amplitude caused by the divergence, reflection, and refraction effects at the boundaries of the regions that constitute the test object. Numerical and model experiments show the working capacity of the proposed algorithm for reconstructing reflector images.     

Application of the TANDEM scheme for reconstructing flaw images by the SAFT method

The question of applying the TANDEM scheme for reconstructing flaw images by the SAFT method is considered. When the reflection of rays from a bottom is taken into account, it becomes possible to reconstruct the image of a boundary of a vertically oriented planar flaw. Formulas are proposed for calculating the optimal parameters of the scanning scheme for data collection according to the TANDEM scheme and the resolution is estimated. It is shown that the depth resolution for images obtained taking into account the reflection from the bottom is much worse than that for a direct beam. To increase the resolution, it is necessary to use coherent summation of images obtained for the same test object at different bases. This is confirmed by model experiments.     

Application of an ultrasonic antenna array for registering echo signals by the double-scanning method for obtaining flaw images

The prospects for applying the double-scanning mode in ultrasonic nondestructive testing for recording echo signals are considered. A variant of implementing the double-scanning mode using a phased antenna array is proposed. Algorithms for reconstructing flaw images by the method of projection in the spectral space and the combined SAFT (C-SAFT) method are presented. It is shown that, to obtain high-quality flaw images, the ultrasound propagation velocity in a tested object must be known to within a high accuracy (at least 0.5%). The results of numerical and model experiments in which images were obtained by these methods are presented.     

The use of an ultrasonic flaw detector with a phased antenna array for the recording of echo signals to reconstruct the images of reflectors by the method of projection in the spectral space

A method of automated ultrasonic testing based on the use of a PAA flaw detector for the recording of echo signals followed by the reconstruction of the image of reflectors by applying the 3D variant of the method of projection in the spectral space (3D-PSS) is considered. Customized setting of the PAA flaw detector makes it possible to simulate the operation of many single-element transducers with different angles of incidence. This approach allows one to obtain the images of reflectors with a high resolution and a high signal-to-noise ratio at a depth of more than 100 mm. A procedure for the calibration of an antenna array on a prism operating in the mode of emulation of several piezoelectric transducers with different angles of incidence is discussed. The results of a testing a fragment of the support billet for the ITER diverter when obtaining the images by the classical PAA method and with the use of 3D processing, which demonstrate the efficiency of the developed testing technology, are presented.     

Determining the distance between antenna arrays and the speed of longitudinal waves in a test object when reconstructing the profile image of the bottom of a weld in ultrasonic testing

A method is considered for determining the distance between two wedges and the speed of longitudinal ultrasonic waves in a test object when measuring the profile of the surface of pipelines under the bead of a weld. The method makes it possible to reduce the error in determining the profile of the bottom of a pipeline in the course of testing by refining the distance between the wedges and the speed of sound using head-wave pulses. Results of numerical experiments are provided for the processing of echo signals calculated by the finite-difference method in the time domain. The efficiency of the proposed technique is demonstrated with some model experiments.     

A method for obtaining 3D images of a sample by detecting scattered X rays with a pinhole camera

A method for studying the internal structure of a sample by detecting scattered synchrotron radiation using a pinhole camera is considered. The beam for imaging is shaped like a plane that intersects the sample. The characteristic spatial resolution of the method is 100 μm. Examples of the obtaining of images are presented, and the differences of this method from traditional techniques are discussed.     

Development of a nondestructive method for testing the strength of concrete with a faulted structure based on the phenomenon of mechanoelectric transformations

An algorithm for nondestructive testing of concrete strength based on the parameters of an electric response to elastic impact excitation has been developed based on experimental studies. The error in determining the strength using the proposed algorithm is 9% for heavy-weight concrete.     

Scattering of flexural wave in a thin plate with multiple circular inclusions by using the multipole method

The multipole method is presented to analytically solve the scattering of flexural wave by multiple circular inclusions in an infinite thin plate. The near-field dynamic moment concentration factor (DMCF) and the far-field scattering pattern are both investigated in this paper. The former has a connection with the fatigue failures and the defects in plate-like structures can be detected by the latter. Owing to the addition theorem, the multipole expansion for the multiple scattering fields can be transformed into one coordinate system centered at one circle where continuity conditions are required. In this way, a coupled infinite linear algebraic system is derived as an analytical model for an infinite thin plate with multiple circular inclusions subject to an incident flexural wave. The convergence analysis is conducted to provide the guideline of usage for the proposed method. The effects of the size and thickness of the flexible inclusion, and the central distance between inclusions on the near-field DMCF and the far-field scattering pattern are investigated in the numerical experiments. It shows that the scattering pattern correlates closely with the size and thickness of weakness, indicating the importance of the scattering pattern to detect the various defects. In addition, the DMCF of two corrosion defects is larger than that of one. Therefore, it is essential to evaluate structural safety when multiple circular defects are very close to each other. The effect of the space between the inclusions on the near-field DMCF is different from that on the far-field scattering pattern.     

CHSD-1型超声波换能器电源的设计与实现

介绍了一种应用单片机产生SPWM信号、由IPM智能功率模块组成大功率超声波换能器电源系统的构成、工作原理和软件设计思想.