Wall Thickness Loss Estimation Based on Acoustic Emission in Steel Structures

Corrosion is a leading damage mechanisms in the degradation of marine assets. Acoustic emission (AE) monitoring has gained increasing interest as a technique for continuous monitoring of corrosion damage. This study numerically and experimentally investigates the feasibility of wall thickness loss estimation from the AE signals due to localized corrosion. The interaction of the elastic waves emitted due to the evolution of corrosion damage are influenced by the local thickness and material properties of the structure. A steel plate of (500 mm x 500 mm x 10 mm) with a localized wall thickness loss between 0 and 80% in the center of the plate was considered. The numerical investigation was conducted using a higher-order finite element model. Laboratory experiments were performed on a carbon steel specimen instrumented with 7 AE transducers ( 40 - 250 kHz). Corrosion damage was artificially introduced in the steel plate by progressively milling a pit in the center. At different stages of wall thickness loss, simulated AE sources were generated. The response of the structure was evaluated based on signal characteristics such as amplitude, rise-time, frequency content, and waveform. A correlation between the signal amplitudes and the wall thickness loss was observed in both experimental and numerical results. This perspective is promising for the feasibility of corrosion-induced wall thickness loss estimation based on AE measurements.