Monitoring the integrity of massive aluminum structures using PZT transducers and the technique of impedance

Rosalba da Costa; Joaquim M. Maia; Amauri A. Assef; Sergio F. Pichorim; Eduardo T. Costa; Vera L. S. N. Button

doi:10.1117/12.2084397

1 April 2015 Monitoring the integrity of massive aluminum structures using PZT transducers and the technique of impedance

Rosalba da Costa, Joaquim M. Maia, Amauri A. Assef, Sergio F. Pichorim, Eduardo T. Costa, Vera L. S. N. Button

Author Affiliations +

Proceedings Volume 9437, Structural Health Monitoring and Inspection of Advanced Materials, Aerospace, and Civil Infrastructure 2015; 943728 (2015) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.2084397
Event: SPIE Smart Structures and Materials + Nondestructive Evaluation and Health Monitoring, 2015, San Diego, California, United States

Abstract

Safety, performance, economy and durability are essential items to qualify materials for the manufacturing of structures used in different areas. Generally, the materials used for this purpose are formed by composites and sometimes they can present failure during the manufacturing process. Such failures can also occur during use due to fatigue and wear, causing damage often difficult to be visually detected. In these cases, the use of non destructive testing (NDT) has proven to be a good choice for assessing the materials quality. The objective of this work was the electromechanical impedance evaluation of massive aluminum structures using ultrasonic transducers to detect discontinuities in the material. The tests have been done using an impedance analyzer (Agilent 4294A), an ultrasound transducer (1.6 MHz of central frequency), two types of PZT ceramics (0.267 mm and 1 mm thickness) and four aluminum samples (250 x 50 x 50 mm) with the transducer placed at three different regions. One sample was kept intact (reference) and the others were drilled in three positions with different sizes of holes (5 mm. 8 mm and 11 mm). The electromechanical impedance was recorded for each sample. The root mean square deviation index (RMSD) between the impedance magnitude of the reference and damaged samples was calculated and it was observed an increase in the RMSD due to the increase of the diameter of the holes (failures) in the samples completely drilled. The results show that the proposed methodology is suitable for monitoring the integrity of aluminum samples. The technique may be evaluated in characterizing other materials to be used in the construction of prostheses and orthoses.

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Rosalba da Costa, Joaquim M. Maia, Amauri A. Assef, Sergio F. Pichorim, Eduardo T. Costa, and Vera L. S. N. Button "Monitoring the integrity of massive aluminum structures using PZT transducers and the technique of impedance", Proc. SPIE 9437, Structural Health Monitoring and Inspection of Advanced Materials, Aerospace, and Civil Infrastructure 2015, 943728 (1 April 2015); https://doi.org/10.1117/12.2084397

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