A nonlinear ultrasonic method for real-time bolt looseness monitoring using PZT transducer–enabled vibro-acoustic modulation

A real-time nonlinear ultrasonic method based on vibro-acoustic modulation is applied to monitor early bolt looseness quantitatively by using piezoceramic transducers. In addition to the ability to detect the early bolt looseness, a major contribution is that we replaced the shaker, which is commonly used in a vibro-acoustic modulation method, by a permanently installed and low-cost lead zirconate titanate patch. In vibro-acoustic modulation, when stimulating two input waves with distinctive frequencies, namely the high-frequency probing wave and the low-frequency pumping wave, the high-frequency probing wave will be modulated by the low-frequency pumping wave to generate sidebands in terms of bolt looseness. Thus, the influence of low-frequency voltage amplitudes on the modulation results, which is ambiguous in previous research, is also analyzed in this article. The results of experiment demonstrated that the lead zirconate titanate–enabled vibro-acoustic modulation method is reliable and easy to implement to identify the bolt looseness continuously and quantitatively. In addition, low-frequency amplitudes of actuating voltage should be selected in a reasonable range. Finally, we compared the vibro-acoustic modulation method with the time-reversal method based on the linear ultrasonic theory, and the result illustrates that vibro-acoustic modulation method has better performance in monitoring the early bolt looseness.