Fiber optic acoustic emission sensors and detection

Optical fiber sensors are rapidly emerging as viable alternatives to piezoelectric devices as effective means of detecting and quantifying acoustic emission(AE). Compared to traditional piezoelectric-based sensors, optical fiber sensors offer much smaller size, reduced weight, ability to operate at temperatures up to 2000 degrees C, immunity to electromagnetic interference, resistance to corrosive environments, inherent safety within flammable environments, and the ability to multiplex multiple sensors on a single fiber. The authors have investigated low-profile fiber optic-based AE sensors for non-destructive evaluation (NDE) systems. In particular, broadband optical fiber sensors were developed for monitoring acoustic emission for NDE of pressurized composite vessels. The authors conducted experiments by surface attaching sensors to aluminum compact tension specimens using a piezoelectric transducer as a reference sensor. Both the fiber optic and piezoelectric sensors accurately measured a representative acoustic event. The response of the fiber optic AE sensors were also compared to existing piezoelectric sensors during pencil lead break tests on an aluminum panel. The results indicate that optical fiber AE sensors can be used as highly sensitive transducers in many applications where conventional piezoelectric transducers are not suited.