Effects of adhesive thickness on Lamb wave generation and sensing using bonded PWASs

This paper presents an analytical model that simulates ultrasound generation and sensing in a slender structure using bonded piezoelectric wafer active sensors (PWAS). To account for multi-mode ultrasound generation, both the longitudinal and flexural vibrations of the slender structure were considered. The effect of adhesive thickness on the ultrasound pitch-catch signals was investigated. The simulation results predict that there exists an optimal adhesive layer thickness for both ultrasound modes. Two types of experiments were carried out to validate the simulation predictions. Quantitative agreements between simulation and measurement results were achieved.