Predictive Modeling of Guided Wave Passive and Active Sensing in Composite Plates

This paper presents a numerical modeling study of guided wave passive and active sensing in anisotropic composite plates. Passive sensing refers to scenarios where waves are not actively generated during sensing, such as those involving natural acoustic emissions (AEs) or impacts. In contrast, guided wave active sensing evaluates structural health conditions in an active manner, typically generating tunable waves into the structure by piezoelectric transducers. This study aims to establish a comprehensive theoretical framework for predicting guided wave behavior in both passive and active sensing scenarios in composite plates. The semi-analytical finite element (SAFE) formulation is initially illustrated to model guided wave propagation in a composite plate. By incorporating a standard impact force signal, the impact responses for both S0 and A0 wave modes in a carbon fiber reinforced polymer (CFRP) composite plate are predicted, respectively. Subsequently, the entire guided wave active sensing procedure, including generation by a PZT transducer, propagation in the composite plate, and reception at a sensing point, is simulated using the SAFE approach. The paper finishes with discussion, concluding remarks, and suggestions for future work.