Linear-array systems for aerospace NDE

被引:0
作者
Smith, RA [1 ]
Willsher, SJ [1 ]
Bending, JM [1 ]
机构
[1] DERA, Struct Mat Ctr, Farnborough GU14 0LX, Hants, England
来源
NONDESTRUCTIVE CHARACTERIZATION OF MATERIALS IX | 1999年 / 497卷
关键词
D O I
暂无
中图分类号
TB3 [工程材料学];
学科分类号
0805 ; 080502 ;
摘要
Rapid large-area inspection of composite structures for impact damage and multi-layered aluminium skins for corrosion has been a recognised priority for several years in both military and civil aerospace applications. Approaches to this requirement have followed two clearly different routes: the development of novel large-area inspection systems, and the enhancement of current ultrasonic or eddy-current methods to reduce inspection times. Ultrasonic inspection is possible with standard flaw detection equipment bur the addition of a linear ultrasonic array could reduce inspection times considerably. In order to investigate their potential, 9-element and 17-element linear ultrasonic arrays for composites, and 64-element arrays for aluminium skins, have been developed to DERA specifications far use with the ANDSCAN(R) area scanning system. A 5 m(2) composite wing surface has been scanned with a scan resolution of approximately 3 mm in 6 hours. With subsequent software and hardware improvements all four composite wing surfaces (top/bottom, left/right) of a military fighter aircraft Mn potentially be inspected in less than a day. Array technology has been very widely used in the medical ultrasound field although rarely above 10 MHz, whereas lap-joint inspection requires a pulse centre-frequency of 12 to 20 MHz in order to resolve the separate interfaces in the lap joint. A 128 mm-long multi-element array of 5 mm x 2 mm ultrasonic elements for use with the ANDSCAN(R) scanning software was produced to a DERA specification by an NDT manufacturer with experience in the medical imaging field. This paper analyses the performance of the transducers that have been produced and evaluates their use in scanning systems of different configurations.
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页码:502 / 509
页数:8
相关论文
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[3]  
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[5]  
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