Structurally embedded gradient index lens for guided wave amplification in polymers

Abstract

Guided wave inspection is a commonly used technique in structural health monitoring, yet there are challenges associated with ultrasonic inspection of polymeric structures due to high material damping resulting in wave attenuation. In this work, we present a structurally embedded gradient-index phononic crystal (GRIN-PC) lens for elastic wave amplification in polyvinyl chloride (PVC) structures to overcome the attenuation problem in long-range guided wave inspection. The GRIN-PC lens is made up of cylindrical brass stubs of varying heights or diameters embedded in the PVC base structure, providing a hyperbolic secant profile of refractive index distribution transverse to the wave propagation direction. We first demonstrate flexural wave focusing in a PVC plate by implementing the embedded lens design via numerical simulations and experiments. Then, the embedded GRIN-PC lens concept is implemented to PVC pipe for multi-mode wave focusing using a single lens design which is studied through numerical simulations. The proposed GRIN-PC lens design reduces the amplitude decay due to material damping by amplifying the wave energy at the focal regions of the lens. The embedded lens concept developed for polymers can also benefit other applications requiring the transmission of wave energy in structures with high material damping.