Structural Damage Identification in Stiffened Plate Fatigue Specimens Using Piezoelectric Active Sensing

This paper presents a guided wave structural health monitoring (SHM) technique, based on the use of piezoelectric active-sensors, used to determine the structural integrity of stiffened aluminum plates. For damage detection, the transmitted power between piezoelectric transducers used for Lamb wave propagation is utilized to analyze the extent of damage in the structure. Damage initiation and propagation were successfully monitored with the guided wave technique. Overall, these methods yielded sufficient damage detection capability to warrant further investigation into field deployment. This paper summarizes considerations needed to design such SHM systems, experimental procedures and results, and recommendations that can be used as guidelines for future investigations.