Ultrasonic Guided Wave for Long Range Monitoring and Nondestructive Evaluation (NDE) of Corrosion Induced Defects in Shipboard Piping with Complex Geometry Navy STTR FY2005 Sol No.: Navy STTR FY2005 Topic No.: N05-T032 Topic Title: Ultrasonic Guided Wave for Long Range Monitoring and Nondestructive Evaluation (NDE) of Corrosion Induced Defects in Shipboard Piping with Complex Geometry Proposal No.: N054-032-0281 Firm: Solers Corporation 1611 N. Kent St. Suite 700 Arlington, Virginia 22209 Contact: Kevin Leonard Phone: (703) 243-4711 Web Site: solers.com Abstract: Although various technologies exist for piping NDI, the complexities that exist in Navy piping systems make the task of inspecting these structures more difficult than their civilian counterparts. Navy vessels consist of pipes of various sizes that transport fuel, water, and sanitation, and are often within cramped spaces, pass through bulkheads, and filled tanks that are inaccessible to inspectors. They also often have elbows, bends, twists and branches, but current inspection technology has only been truly successful on straight featureless pipes. We have demonstrated previously the ability to extract information about multiple modes from guided wave signals using the dynamic wavelet fingerprinting (DWFP) technique. We propose here a different inspection technique that uses normal incidence transducers to generate feature-rich multi-mode signals as opposed to single axisymmetric or flexural modes. A large portion of this work will be focused on numerically and analytically exploring the complicated scattering and propagation of the guided waves past bends, different types of corrosive flaws, and other structural complexities. Then, with the DWFP multi-mode detection technique and knowledge gained from the numerical and analytical studies, individual modes can be monitored and any changes can be used to detect and localize flaws in complex piping systems. Benefits: The successful completion of this Phase I project will provide us with the necessary background and technical results to proceed with the development of a transitionable multi-mode guided wave piping inspection system for complex geometries. The advanced capabilities of the final commercial product will make it cost-efficient, robust and easy-to-use. Furthermore, it will find previously hard-to-detect corrosive faults in piping systems with bends, twists, fluid-loading, welds, and branches. For both the military and civilian applications, the cost of corrosion is extremely high. One report has the cost of corrosion for the Department of Defense at $20 billion. Furthermore, there are over 350,000 miles of natural gas transmission lines and over 150,000 miles of liquid pipelines in the United States. Therefore, the proposed multi-mode pipe inspection system has commercial applications not only throughout the DoD, but also for the DOT, the DOE, and other commercial industries such as drinking water and sewage systems, ship building companies, oil and gas companies, and chemical, petrochemical, and pharmaceutical companies. Return