Structural Health Monitoring of Aluminum based In-service Structures using Electromagnetic Acoustic Transducers (EMAT)

Efficient Crack detection system for Aluminum based in-service structures has been increasing becoming critical with revolutionary concepts of Industry 4.0. EMATs (Electromagnetic Acoustic Transducers) can be used to detect cracks in such structures using less time and more reliability having added advantage of being non-contact. Ultrasonic signal because of Lorentz Force in these sensors pass through the structure is disturbed in the presence of any flaw. This research uses artificial small holes machined on Al Alloy plate. The response shows delay in signal reception as well as decreased signal amplitude of Rayleigh Wave in the presence of defect. The inspection system being non-contact in nature can efficiently detect defects with minimal setup time making this system an effective solution for health monitoring of structures in Aerospace, Maritime and industries having large in-service Aluminum parts.