Ultrasonic Total Focusing Imaging Method of Multilayer Composite Structures Using the Root-Mean-Square (RMS) Velocity

Multilayer composite structures have been widely used in industrial manufacturing, and nondestructive testing of these multilayer structures is to ensure their reliable quality and performance. Currently, ultrasonic total focusing method (TFM) imaging using full‐matrix capture (FMC) technology has been proven to sense small defects in a single homogeneous medium and improve the imaging signal‐to‐noise ratio. However, these algorithms cannot be accurately applied to imaging of multilayer composite structures, due to the acoustic impedance variation and because reflection and refraction occur at the interface between the layers, which makes it very difficult to calculate the ultrasonic propagation path and time. To solve this problem, a root‐mean‐square (RMS) velocity algorithm for total focusing imaging of multilayer structures is proposed in the article. Based on the theory of RMS velocity for processing of seismic data, the approximated delays can be easily and quickly calculated by a hyperbolic time‐distance relationship under circumstances of short lateral distance and horizontal layers. The performance of the proposed algorithm is evaluated by total focusing imaging of a two‐layer medium with drilled holes and conducted by the finite element simulation. To further improve imaging efficiency, the partial data in the full‐matrix data were used for imaging which is the simplified matrix focusing method (SFM). The results verify that the proposed methods are capable of total focusing imaging of two‐layered structures. However, the imaging performance and efficiency of these algorithms are different.