Model-based simulation of focused beam fields produced by a phased array ultrasonic transducer in dissimilar metal welds

Phased array ultrasound testing (PAUT) can produce steerable and tightly focused ultrasonic beams, so it is widely used for detecting flaws. However, inspection of dissimilar metal welds (DMWs) using phased array ultrasound is not easy at all, since ultrasonic beams are skewed and distorted severely in the welds that are anisotropic and inhomogeneous elastic media. So, to increase focusing efficiency and have optimized conditions for inspecting the welds, quantitative prediction of phased array ultrasonic beams is needed. This paper proposes a modeling approach that includes modeling the grain orientation of the welds with buttering, calculating the ray path for the determination of focal laws, and applying the linear phasing multi-Gaussian beam model in order to focus the ultrasonic beams produced by a phased array transducer mounted on a wedge contacted to the interrogated DMW. This paper also presents an example of the model-based simulation of the focused beam fields produced in the DMW. The proposed model allows us to increase the focusing efficiency by accurately simulating the ultrasonic testing of welded components and to propose a new tool to associate welding design with the ultrasonic assessment of structural integrity.