Ultrasonics 82 (2018) 19–30

Contents lists available at ScienceDirect

Ultrasonics
journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/ultras

Two dimensional modeling of elastic wave propagation in solids

containing cracks with rough surfaces and friction – Part II: Numerical
implementation
Steven Delrue a,⇑, Vladislav Aleshin b, Kevin Truyaert a, Olivier Bou Matar b, Koen Van Den Abeele a
a
Wave Propagation and Signal Processing Research Group, KU Leuven Kulak, Kortrijk, Belgium
b
Joint International Laboratory LICS/LEMAC, Institute of Electronics, Microelectronics and Nanotechnologies, UMR CNRS 8520, Villeneuve d’Ascq, France

a r t i c l e i n f o a b s t r a c t

Article history: Our study aims at the creation of a numerical toolbox that describes wave propagation in samples con-
Received 26 April 2017 taining internal contacts (e.g. cracks, delaminations, debondings, imperfect intergranular joints) of
Received in revised form 9 June 2017 known geometry with postulated contact interaction laws including friction. The code consists of two
Accepted 3 July 2017
entities: the contact model and the solid mechanics module. Part I of the paper concerns an in-depth
Available online 13 July 2017
description of a constitutive model for realistic contacts or cracks that takes into account the roughness
of the contact faces and the associated effects of friction and hysteresis. In the crack model, three different
Keywords:
contact states can be recognized: contact loss, total sliding and partial slip. Normal (clapping) interactions
Nonlinear acoustics
Internal contacts
between the crack faces are implemented using a quadratic stress-displacement relation, whereas tan-
Friction gential (friction) interactions were introduced using the Coulomb friction law for the total sliding case,
COMSOL MultiphysicsÒ and the Method of Memory Diagrams (MMD) in case of partial slip. In the present part of the paper,
we integrate the developed crack model into finite element software in order to simulate elastic wave
propagation in a solid material containing internal contacts or cracks. We therefore implemented the
comprehensive crack model in MATLABÒ and introduced it in the Structural Mechanics Module of
COMSOL MultiphysicsÒ. The potential of the approach for ultrasound based inspection of solids with
cracks showing acoustic nonlinearity is demonstrated by means of an example of shear wave propagation
in an aluminum sample containing a single crack with rough surfaces and friction.
Ó 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

1. Introduction Finite-amplitude or nonlinear ultrasonic methods, on the other

Non-Destructive Testing (NDT) of materials using ultrasonic
waves is an area of continuing growth. The need for developing
ultrasonic techniques that are capable of detecting incipient
damage has increased dramatically in various applications, such
as product safety, in-line material characterization and defect
diagnostics, quality control, structural health monitoring, etc. A
major branch of ultrasonic NDT relies on the reflection,
transmission or scattering of ultrasonic waves at defects and
inhomogeneities [1]. However, in case of contact-type defects, such
as closed cracks, disbonds, delaminations, etc., these techniques
are often found not to be sensitive enough, especially when the
sound energy is not sufficiently high to activate the feature.
⇑ Corresponding author.
E-mail addresses: Steven.Delrue@kuleuven.be (S. Delrue), Vladislav.Aleshin@
iemn.univ-lille1.fr (V. Aleshin), Kevin.Truyaert@kuleuven.be (K. Truyaert), olivier.
boumatar@iemn.univ-lille1.fr (O. Bou Matar), Koen.VanDenAbeele@kuleuven.be
(K. Van Den Abeele).
hand, provide extreme sensitivity in detecting these defects, as
they allow to -at least- temporarily create impedance mismatches
(by opening and closing cracks) and friction effects (by rubbing
surfaces) [2–5]. In general, nonlinear ultrasonic techniques focus
on the investigation of nonlinear features generated by the defects,
such as the generation of harmonics [6–9], nonlinear frequency
mixing [3,8,10,11], and lack of scalability as evidenced by Pulse
Inversion (PI) [12,13] or Scaling Subtraction Methods (SSM) [14–17].
Besides diagnosing contact-type defects by way of the nonlin-
earity they generate, the next step forward would be to fully char-
acterize the detected defects (e.g. by estimating their physical and
geometric parameters), allowing to make a reasonable prediction
about the lifetime or serviceability of the tested sample and/or
structure. This can for instance be done by comparing the experi-
mentally obtained nonlinear indicators with the outcome calcu-
lated by an appropriate and effective numerical model.
Conversely, numerical models can also be exploited to further
investigate the effect of microscale contacts on the presence of

http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.ultras.2017.07.003
0041-624X/Ó 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
20 S. Delrue et al. / Ultrasonics 82 (2018) 19–30
macroscopic events. Over the past decades, several numerical
models have been proposed to describe nonlinear crack-wave
interactions. These models either use Finite-Difference Time
Domain (FDTD) or Finite Element Method (FEM) principles. Among
others, we mention the work of Sarens et al. [18] who imple-
mented a 3D finite-difference, staggered grid simulation to model
nonlinear acoustic wave-defect interaction, and demonstrated har-
monic generation at the delamination interfaces of a circular
defect. Kimoto et al. [19] also used FDTD for the analysis of elasto-
dynamic scattering by a crack with interacting faces. Similar to the
work of Sarens et al., they used split computational nodes in order
to develop a 2D numerical technique for the analysis of contact
nonlinearities. The most attractive feature of FDTD models is that
they are easy to implement, while their main drawback is that they
are restricted to handle rectangular shapes and simple alterations
thereof. To increase flexibility, crack-wave interactions are often
modeled using FEM. In particular, Zak et al. [20] studied the clap-
ping behavior of a single, closing delamination, modeled using
three plate finite elements with additional boundary conditions
at the delamination front. Contact forces in the damaged area were
calculated using the penalty method. Müller [21] used FEM and
Newton’s impact law to simulate the same clapping behavior of a
delamination as considered by Zak et al., and provided evidence
for the associated generation of harmonics. Harmonic generation
was also studied by Kögl et al. [22] who simulated the formation
of higher harmonics as a result of clapping in one or multiple
cracks in a sample. Delrue and Van Den Abeele [23] studied the
nonlinear behavior of delaminations by introducing a clapping
model based on local spring and damper forces at both sides of
the delamination interface in a 3D FEM model. A similar model
was also proposed by Kumar Singh et al. [24]. Finally, however
without being exclusive, Yuan et al. [25] considered both hard
and soft contact interfaces in order to measure the nonlinearity
parameter. Apart from nonlinearities generated by a clapping (nor-
mal) interaction, the tangential behavior within cracks, such as
sticking and slipping of its interfaces, can also lead to nonlinearity.
This was quite recently illustrated by Meziane et al. [26] who con-
sidered two types of friction laws in a 2D FEM code. The same code
was also used to study the nonlinear interaction of an elastic wave
with a closed crack under oblique incidence [27], to illustrate the
non-collinear mixing method for detection of closed cracks [28],
and to calculate the nonlinear far field of ultrasonic waves scat-
tered by closed cracks [29]. Another FEM model of frictional con-
tacts was constructed by Yuan et al. [30] to describe the
interaction between a Rayleigh wave and a closed surface crack.
The crack was modeled using an interface of hard contact in com-
bination with Coulomb friction, which allowed to study the influ-
ence of both clapping and slipping mechanisms.
Most of the above mentioned models consider a crack as being a
zero thickness cut with ideal smooth faces. In this paper, we pro-
pose a more realistic model of a crack that has rough surfaces.
The numerical code contains two components: the constitutive
crack model and the elastic wave propagation unit. The second unit
is responsible for solving the elasticity equations in a bulk volume
with internal contact boundaries. The appropriate boundary condi-
tions to be imposed at the internal boundary corresponding to the
contact are provided by the crack model, which is discussed in
detail in Part I of this paper [31], and allows to describe three dif-
ferent contact states: contact loss, total sliding, and partial slip. The
latter case, in which both stick and slip areas are present in the
contact zone, is only possible in case of a nontrivial topography
of the internal contact/crack surfaces. Note that the focus of this
paper is on the numerical implementation of the external crack
model into available finite element software and the illustration
of the potential of the final model to simulate nonlinear elastic
wave propagation in solids containing cracks with rough surfaces
and friction. A dedicated comparison with the already existing
‘simple’ models for unilateral contacts with friction, or recent
experimental observations, falls beyond the scope of this paper,
yet is planned for future work.
The paper starts with a detailed description of the numerical
modeling of crack behavior (Section 2). Section 2 summarizes the
theoretical background of the preferred model for cracks with
rough surfaces and discusses its implementation in the commer-
cially available, finite element based software package COMSOL
MultiphysicsÒ [32]. For a more in-depth description of the crack
model, we refer to Part I of this paper [31]. In Section 3, the final
model for elastic wave propagation in cracked samples will be
illustrated by means of an example of a propagating shear wave
in a 2D aluminum sample with an inclined crack. We will show
the influence of the constitutive crack model on the relative dis-
placements and contact stresses measured locally at the crack
interface, and discuss how the newly developed crack model
engenders the overall nonlinear interaction of elastic waves with
closed, rough surface cracks.
2. Numerical implementation of wave-crack interactions
A successful model for elastic wave propagation in materials
containing cracks requires two components: a crack model and a
solid mechanics unit. The crack model should take into account
the microscopic normal and tangential contact behavior at the
crack interface, whereas the solid mechanics unit is essential for
solving the elastic wave equations. In this study, the elasticity
equations will be solved using the Structural Mechanics Module
[33] of the commercially available, finite element based, software
package COMSOL MultiphysicsÒ. This specific module was espe-
cially developed for the analysis of mechanical structures that
are subject to static or dynamic loads and is therefore suitable
for the modeling of elastic wave propagation. Exploiting the dedi-
cated physics interfaces and tools of the software package, COM-
SOLÒ also allows one to incorporate external user-supplied crack
models.
2.1. Modeling approach
When using COMSOLÒ for the simulation of wave propagation
in samples containing contacts, with or without friction, several
approaches can be considered. However, until now, none of these
approaches takes into account surface roughness at the crack’s
interfaces. This is mainly due to the fact that accounting for rough-
ness makes the theory more complex, as its presence engenders a
regime of partial slip which is absent for plane contact faces. Yet,
this regime can be successfully described using the Method of
Memory Diagrams (MMD) [34] which automates and greatly sim-
plifies the accounting of frictional contact systems, and provides an
analytical computer-assisted solution to the frictional contact
problem. Moreover, the MMD procedure allows one to directly
and explicitly calculate normal and tangential contact stresses (r
and s), for any combination of normal and tangential displace-
ments (un and ut ). At the same time, COMSOLÒ accepts
displacement-driven boundary conditions, not necessarily
expressed in closed form equations, but equally well as an external
algorithm written in MATLABÒ and connected to COMSOLÒ using
the LiveLinkTM for MATLABÒ [35]. This allows the more complex
MMD based algorithm to be directly incorporated in COMSOLÒ
and hence, ensures a simple and explicit procedure of data
exchange between the crack model and the solid mechanics unit
in COMSOLÒ, organized as follows:
 S. Delrue et al. / Ultrasonics 82 (2018) 19–30
(a) In the Structural Mechanics Module of COMSOLÒ, normal
and tangential stresses (r and s), defined by appropriate
internal and external boundary conditions, are used to calcu-
late normal and tangential displacements (un and ut ) defined
at each contact surface at a particular time step t of the pro-
cedure. The relative normal and shear displacements Dun
and Dut calculated at the discretization points on the contact
interface (called integration points or Gauss points) are
stored as outputs of the COMSOLÒ module and considered
as an input for MATLABÒ.
(b) The calculated relative displacement values at all Gauss
points on the contact interface are used as an input in the
displacement-driven crack model in MATLABÒ, in order to
determine the corresponding stress values at these posi-
tions, which in turn are transferred to COMSOLÒ to update
the boundary conditions at the contact interface.
(c) Steps (a) and (b) are repeated for the next time step, until
the desired calculation time is reached.
Using this approach, the final model thus contains two compo-
nents: the constitutive model for cracks with rough surfaces imple-
mented in MATLABÒ and the wave propagation model
implemented in the Structural Mechanics Module of COMSOLÒ. It
is important to note that accounting for roughness does not mean
that internal roughness meshing is used. The roughness is only
present on the microscopic level of the crack model, whereas at
the mesoscopic level crack faces are considered and modeled as
globally flat.
2.2. Theoretical background of the constitutive crack model
The constitutive crack model, described in detail in Part I of this
paper [31], is based on the contact behavior of two rough surfaces
and is formulated by approximating the contact surface with a
number of small volume elements, called mesoscopic cells. At the
mesoscopic level, average stresses and displacements are linked by
particular relations. In contact mechanics, it is common to denote
the normal and tangential stresses by respectively N and T, and the
displacements by a and b, with the displacements defined as one-
half of the total displacements between the unperturbed parts of
the bodies.
The introduction of surface roughness considerably influences
the normal contact behavior, since the application of a normal
compressive load (N > 0) in this case results in the appearance of
a positive a. This is not possible for flat surfaces, as positive a would
mean that both crack faces penetrate into each other. Using con-
ventional models of contact mechanics, it can be shown that for
fatigue cracks, a quadratic dependency between the normal stress
N and the normal displacement a can be assumed in case of contact
[31]:
ch0 Ek
NðaÞ ¼ a2 ; ða P 0Þ: ð1Þ
4jð1  m2 Þ
Here c ¼ 1=2, if we assume that the deformed asperities are approx-
imately spherical and the deformation is elastic (Hertz result [36]),
h0 is equal to the root mean square of the surface slope, j  2; k is
an intermediate inclination coefficient (0 < k < 1) of the tangent to
the curve uðzÞ, which describes the distribution of surface distances
for a random gap between the surfaces, and E and m are respectively
the Young’s modulus and the Poisson’s ratio of the body material. As
mentioned in Part I of this paper, this quadratic normal reaction
curve is not a general equation than can be used for any rough sur-
face [31]. Nevertheless, in this study, we accept Eq. (1) as a model
equation for the normal reaction curve, even though for the pro-
21
posed contact model, different forms of NðaÞ can also be easily
introduced into the model.
Apart from its influence on the normal contact interaction, the
introduction of roughness also complicates the tangential contact
behavior, as it allows two different friction regimes to appear: total
sliding, when slip occurs at each contact point on the crack inter-
face, and partial slip, when both stick and slip areas are present
in the contact zone. In the total sliding regime, the tangential stress
T is easily calculated according to Coulomb’s law of friction:
T ¼ lN. In the partial slip case, the hysteretic tangential reaction
curve can be obtained using the Method of Memory Diagrams
(MMD) [34], which for a displacement-driven system is based on
the following set of equations:
Z a
b ¼ hl DðaÞda; ð2Þ
Z a
0

dN
T¼l DðaÞ  da; ð3Þ
0 da a¼a
where DðaÞ is the memory diagram function, containing all memory
information present in the system, and h is a material constant that
depends on Poisson’s ratio m:
2m
h¼ : ð4Þ
2ð1  mÞ
For known displacements a and b, the memory diagram function
can be easily determined by Eq. (2), before being introduced in
Eq. (3) to determine the tangential stress T. For clarity, this two-
step procedure to determine the friction-induced hysteretic behav-
ior can be condensed in a more compact notation:
T ¼ MMDðbÞ: ð5Þ
The full model for cracks with rough surfaces thus allows the
description of three possible contact states: contact loss, total slid-
ing and partial slip, as shown in the scheme of the algorithm
depicted in Table 1. The conditions under which these cases occur
are fully determined by the displacement values a and b, taking
into account that the total tangential displacement b should be
additionally split into two parts: one part, b0 , corresponding to
~ corresponding to partial slip:
total sliding and another part, b,
~
b ¼ b0 þ b: ð6Þ
Contact loss appears when a becomes negative. In case of positive a,
a distinction between total sliding and partial slip is made by com-
~ to hla : jbj
~ P hla means total sliding, while
paring the value of jbj
~ < hla means partial slip. These identification criteria actually
jbj
correspond to Coulomb’s conditions for stick or slip regimes, now
written for displacements, instead of the more traditional condi-
tions written for forces. Depending on the current contact state, val-
ues for the components b0 and b ~ are updated, and the memory
diagram function is calculated. This finally results in the determina-
tion of the contact forces per unit area, N and T:
N ¼ NðaÞ; ð7Þ
T ¼ Tðb; aÞ; ð8Þ
for any value of the normal and tangential displacements, a and b.
2.3. Numerical implementation of the constitutive crack model
Internal cracks can be implemented in COMSOLÒ using a ‘‘thin
elastic layer” boundary condition [33]. On interior boundaries,
the thin elastic layer decouples the displacements between the
two sides of the boundary. The two boundaries are then connected
by forces per unit area (here denoted by F n for the normal compo-
nent and F t for the tangential component) with equal size, but
22 S. Delrue et al. / Ultrasonics 82 (2018) 19–30

Table 1
Three possible contact states in the model of cracks with rough surfaces. For each case, the following
information is supplied: conditions under which the case occurs, solutions for components b0 and b, ~
solutions for forces N and T, and memory diagrams.

opposite directions, and related to the relative normal and tangen-
tial displacements between the crack faces (here respectively
denoted by Dun and Dut ). The boundary forces need to be included
by the user and this feature can for instance be used to ensure neg-
ligible penetration between the surfaces in case of contact (normal
forces), or to model stick or slip conditions (tangential forces).
The displacement variables Dun and Dut , defined in COMSOLÒ,
are linked to the normal and tangential displacements, a and b,
used in the constitutive crack model, in the following way:
3. Instructive example
In order to illustrate the potential of the proposed model, an
instructive example of a shear wave propagating in a 2D aluminum
sample with an inclined crack is studied. The study allows to estab-
lish the influence of both the normal and tangential interaction of
the crack faces on their respective displacements, as well as to
reveal the generation of nonlinear features due to these
interactions.

Dun ¼ 2a; ð9Þ 3.1. Model specifications

Dut ¼ 2b:
Note that in the theoretical model, the normal displacement a can
be considered an overclosure distance, and contact thus occurs
when a is positive (see Table 1), whereas in the numerical model
the normal displacement Dun is considered a gap distance for which
contact occurs if it is negative. In addition, the numerical and theo-
retical displacements differ by a factor two, which is due to the fact
that displacements in the theoretical model are defined as one-half
of the total displacements between the unperturbed (bulk) parts of
the bodies.
In a similar way, the forces per unit area, F n and F t , are linked to
the normal and tangential forces per unit area, N and T, used in the
theoretical model:
ð10Þ
The model geometry consists of a rectangular aluminum
domain of 50 mm width and 100 mm height, as illustrated in
Fig. 1. The aluminum sample has a density q ¼ 2700 kg/m3,
Young’s modulus E ¼ 70 GPa, and Poisson’s ratio m ¼ 0:33. A crack
with a length of 20 mm is positioned in the center of the sample
and is inclined over 20 degrees. On the top boundary of the sample,
a continuous shear wave excitation with a frequency f ¼ 100 kHz
is defined by specifying a tangential (i.e. in x-direction) displace-
ment boundary condition of the form:

F n ¼ N; ð11Þ
F t ¼ T: ð12Þ

As was the case for the normal displacements, the normal forces
also have opposite signs. This is due to the fact that, in case of con-
tact, the normal force N can be considered as the load used to press
both faces against each other, whereas the normal force F n used in
the numerical model, is to be considered as the reaction force that
exists due to this pressure.
Taking into account the link between theoretical and numerical
displacement and force variables, the required force-displacement
relations can now be calculated using Eqs. (7) and (8), which
resulted from the algorithm in Table 1. Based on Eq. (1), the normal
reaction curve NðaÞ is considered to have a quadratic dependency:

NðaÞ ¼ C 2 a2 ; ða P 0Þ; ð13Þ

where C ¼ 6  1010 Pa1/2 m1, corresponding to the value obtained
by matching the experimental relation between the contact pres-
sure and the gap distance, as exemplified by Biwa et al. [37], and
used in the numerical study of contact between two solid blocks
of aluminum by Yuan et al. [25].
Fig. 1. Illustration of the geometry implemented in COMSOLÒ, together with the
generated mesh. The geometry consists of a rectangular aluminum domain with a
crack of finite extent positioned in the center of the aluminum domain and inclined
over 20 degrees. The geometry was meshed with triangular mesh elements. Smaller
mesh elements were generated in the region of the crack, in order to obtain a stable
solution.
 S. Delrue et al. / Ultrasonics 82 (2018) 19–30 23

ux ðx; tÞ ¼ AwðxÞ sinð2pftÞ; ð14Þ ing them to move freely. Note that this linear case is not a physical
one, since, by removing all contact interactions, overlap of the
with A the excitation amplitude, and wðxÞ a predefined rectangular crack surfaces may appear. The nonlinear models, on the other
window function in COMSOLÒ equal to one for x-values in the inter- hand, are more realistic. The first nonlinear model takes into
val ½20; 20 mm and zero for values outside the interval, taking account normal crack face interactions by introducing the normal
into account a 5 mm smooth transition zone (i.e. 2.5 mm at both force F n , whereas in the second nonlinear simulation the full crack
ends) to improve numerical stability. The other boundaries of the model is used, introducing both the normal force F n and tangential
aluminum sample are considered to be low reflecting boundaries. force F t . In each case, normal and tangential relative displace-
By default, the low-reflecting boundary condition in the finite- ments, Dun and Dut , and normal and tangential contact stresses,
element software uses material data from the neighboring domain r and s, are determined at an a priori fixed location on the crack
to develop a perfect impedance match for pressure and shear interface. The relative normal and tangential displacements Dun
waves. As a result, reflections at the surface boundaries are and Dut are defined as the difference between respectively normal
decreased, allowing to easily reduce the computational domain to displacements un and tangential displacements ut at the top and
a practical size, while ensuring accurate simulation results. At the bottom face of the crack, with the displacements un and ut defined
internal crack surfaces, a thin elastic layer boundary condition is as follows:
defined, according to the description from the previous section.
 
The friction coefficient l needed in the crack model is set equal ux
un ¼ ~
n; ð15Þ
to one. uy
As illustrated in Fig. 1, the full geometry is meshed using quad-  
ux
ratic triangular elements. To reach convergence, COMSOLÒ ut ¼ ~
t: ð16Þ
uy
requires approximately 6 second-order mesh elements per wave-
length, which for this particular model corresponds to a maximum Here, ux and uy are the displacement components in the ðx; yÞ refer-
element size of approximately 5.2 mm. Smaller mesh elements are
ence frame, and ~ n and ~
t are respectively the upward pointing and
generated in the region of the crack, since the MMD algorithm
rightward pointing vectors normal and tangential to the crack
requires a small spatial discretization size in order to obtain stable
(see Fig. 1). In a similar way, the normal and tangential contact
and accurate solutions. As discussed above, MMD approximates a
stresses r and s are defined as follows:
crack by a number of mesoscopic cells. When using finite element
  
modeling, the mesh elements on the crack interface can be consid- rx rxy
r¼ ~
n ~
n; ð17Þ
ered as representative volumes for these mesoscopic cells. On one rxy ry
hand, the mesh elements/mesoscopic cells should be small enough   
rx rxy
to assume macroscopic elastic fields to be uniform within each cell, s¼ n ~
~ t; ð18Þ
and, on the other hand, sufficiently large to contain a lot of micro- rxy ry
scopic geometric features (asperities). Doing so, convergence will
where rx ; ry and rxy are the components of the Cauchy stress ten-
be ensured. In this study, a fixed number of 150 mesh elements
sor in the ðx; yÞ reference frame. Introduction of the forces F n and F t
at the internal crack boundary is adopted, corresponding to an ele-
in the model should be directly visible in the calculated contact
ment size of approximately 0.13 mm.
stresses r and s, which are expected to obey the same behavior
The wave propagation problem is solved using the implicit gen-
as the implemented forces. On the other hand, the influence of
eralized alpha time-dependent solver, which is the preferred solver
the forces on the movement of the crack faces should be visible in
to be used for structural mechanics problems in COMSOLÒ. For
the measured displacements Dun and Dut .
time-dependent wave propagation problems, COMSOLÒ requires
Figs. 2–4 show the relative displacements and the contact stres-
to have at least 20 time steps per wave cycle. Again, in order to
ses calculated at the central point on the crack interface for the
get accurate solutions, the MMD algorithm requires a much smal-
ler time discretization size as it introduces local and fast changing
nonlinear behavior involving higher frequencies. Therefore, the Relative displacements
time step chosen for this particular simulation is Dt ¼ 50 ns, which
Displacement [nm]

100 un
corresponds to 200 time steps per wave cycle.
ut
0
3.2. Simulated normal and tangential reaction curves
-100
Upon solving the model, the excited shear wave will first
straightforwardly propagate in the aluminum sample until it 0 0.01 0.02 0.03 0.04 0.05 0.06 0.07
reaches the crack and starts interacting with it. At that point, part Time [ms]
of the energy of the wave will be reflected, particularly at positions
where the crack is open, while at closed positions the wave will be 105 Contact stresses
transmitted through the defect. The occurrence of both dynamic 2
Stress [N/m2 ]

clapping (i.e. opening and closing) and dynamic friction at the

crack interface will result in nonlinear wave distortion. 0
Before studying the macroscopic nonlinear features generated
by the combined effects of clapping and friction, we first study -2
the influence of the internal boundary forces per unit area, F n
and F t , individually on the behavior of the crack. To do this, we 0 0.01 0.02 0.03 0.04 0.05 0.06 0.07
compare the simulated results obtained in case of three gradually Time [ms]
more complex models: a linear model and two nonlinear models.
Fig. 2. Calculated relative displacements Dun and Dut (top) and contact stresses r
The purely linear model, in which stress-free boundary conditions and s (bottom) at the central point on the crack interface in case of a shear wave
are imposed at the crack interface, is used as a reference, since in excitation at 100 kHz with amplitude A ¼ 100 nm. The crack was implemented by
this model both crack faces do not interact with each other, allow- means of a linear model where no forces are imposed on the crack faces.
24 S. Delrue et al. / Ultrasonics 82 (2018) 19–30

Relative displacements fers from zero in case of contact (i.e. a P 0 or Dun 6 0).
Consequently, the normal contact stress r also differs from zero
Displacement [nm]

100 un
only in case of contact. This is clearly visible in Fig. 3, where neg-
ut
ative normal stress values are observed at those periods in time
0
where the relative normal displacement Dun is also negative. In
agreement with the underlying physics, the negative stress values
-100
indicate the fact that both crack faces are pushing against each
0 0.01 0.02 0.03 0.04 0.05 0.06 0.07 other and are therefore in a compressive state. The influence of
Time [ms] introducing the normal force F n in the model can furthermore be
seen in the relative displacements plot, where, obviously, the rela-
105 Contact stresses
tive normal displacement signal behavior has changed in compar-
2 ison with the results from the linear (stress-free) model (Fig. 2).
Stress [N/m2 ]

Because of the presence of compressive stress in case of contact,

0 the relative normal displacement amplitude becomes asymmetric
and distorted, while the relative tangential displacement of the
-2 crack faces is not affected. Finally, Fig. 4 shows the results obtained
when using the full crack model with both the normal and tangen-
0 0.01 0.02 0.03 0.04 0.05 0.06 0.07 tial forces (F n and F t ) included. In comparison with the results
Time [ms] shown in Fig. 3, the normal relative displacement and normal con-
tact stress did not change. The tangential behavior, on the other
Fig. 3. Calculated relative displacements Dun and Dut (top) and contact stresses r
and s (bottom) at the central point on the crack interface in case of a shear wave hand, is clearly altered due to the introduction of F t in the model.
excitation at 100 kHz with amplitude A ¼ 100 nm. The crack was implemented by Eq. (12) states that the normal force F t depends on both the normal
means of a nonlinear model where only the normal force F n is imposed on the crack and tangential displacements, with the relation being determined
faces. by the algorithm represented in Table 1. In case of an open crack
(i.e. a < 0 or Dun > 0), the tangential force F t , and therefore also
the tangential stress s, is equal to zero. In case of contact (i.e.
Relative displacements
a P 0 or Dun 6 0), the tangential force differs from zero, with the
Displacement [nm]

100 un value depending on the contact state: total sliding or partial slip.
ut In the case of partial slip, the tangential stress is determined by
0 the MMD algorithm, whereas the total sliding case states that
the size of the tangential stress can never exceed the size of the
-100 normal stress multiplied by the friction coefficient l. This behavior
is clearly visible in Fig. 4 where the tangential contact stress s
0 0.01 0.02 0.03 0.04 0.05 0.06 0.07 indeed only differs from zero in case of contact, with for all time
Time [ms] steps jsj 6 ljrj. As for F n , introduced in the first nonlinear model,
the influence of introducing the tangential force F t is again obvious
105 Contact stresses
in the relative displacements plot, where the relative tangential
2 displacement is visibly distorted when compared to the previous
Stress [N/m2 ]

nonlinear case (Fig. 3). The relative tangential displacement ampli-

0 tude decreases in time-periods of contact and therefore becomes
-2
0 0.01 0.02 0.03 0.04 0.05
Time [ms]
Fig. 4. Calculated relative displacements Dun and Dut (top) and contact stresses r
and s (bottom) at the central point on the crack interface in case of a shear wave
excitation at 100 kHz with amplitude A ¼ 100 nm. The curve for jrj is included to
illustrate that the tangential stress s always lies in between þlr and lr, with in
this study l ¼ 1. The crack was implemented by means of the full crack model with
both normal force F n and tangential force F t imposed on the crack faces.
three different models, in case of a shear wave excitation with
amplitude A ¼ 100 nm. In Fig. 2, the results for the linear model
are displayed. As mentioned before, in this case, no forces are
exerted on the crack faces so they can both move freely, without
interacting with each other. This free motion is illustrated by the
fact that both contact stresses r and s are zero (i.e. stress-free sit-
uation), and both relative displacements Dun and Dut are symmet-
rically oscillating around the initial relative displacement (i.e. zero-
displacement for an initially closed crack). In Fig. 3, relative dis-
placements and contact stresses are displayed for the case in which
only the normal force F n is included in the model, i.e. l ¼ 0 is sup-
posed so that no MMD calculation is necessary. Note that in the
opposite case (l  1) the computing can also be considerably sim-
plified [38]. According to Eqs. (11) and (13), this normal force dif-
| |
asymmetric. This is due to the presence of the tangential contact
stress, which is linked to friction effects that will reduce the rela-
tive distance over which the crack faces can move in tangential
0.06 0.07
direction.
Apart from studying the transient behavior of either relative
displacements or contact stresses, we can also study the normal
and tangential relations between contact stresses and displace-
ments in a parametric manner. Fig. 5 shows the normal and tan-
gential reaction curves calculated at the central point on the
crack interface when using the full crack model. For clarity, the
normal reaction curve is only plotted for displacement values
Dun 6 5 nm, while the tangential reaction curve is only plotted
for displacement values Dut P 20 nm, since both reaction curves
are constantly equal to zero for other displacement values. The
normal reaction curve clearly shows a quadratic relation between
the normal contact stress and the relative normal displacement,
as expected according to Eq. (13). The tangential reaction curve,
where switching between the three contact states (contact loss
(black solid line), total sliding (red dotted line) and partial slip
(blue dashed line)) can be identified, clearly indicates hysteresis
behavior with several hysteresis loops due to the presence of fric-
tion occurring in the total sliding and partial slip regimes. It is easy
to relate the switching between states during one hysteresis loop
with the time signals of normal and tangential contact stress
shown in Fig. 4. Each time the contact faces are getting in contact,
the contact starts with a phase of total sliding (i.e. jsj ¼ ljrj),
 S. Delrue et al. / Ultrasonics 82 (2018) 19–30 25

105 Normal reaction curve u n frequency spectrum

Normalized FFT Amplitude

1 1
0 Linear model
[N/m 2 ]

Crack model
-1 0.5
-2

-3 0
-20 -15 -10 -5 0 5 0 50 100 150 200 250 300 350 400 450 500
u n [nm] Frequency [kHz]

Normalized FFT Amplitude

105 Tangential reaction curve u t frequency spectrum
2
1
Contact loss
Linear model
Total sliding
[N/m 2 ]

1
Crack model
Partial slip
0.5
0

-1
-20 0 20 40 60 80 100 120 0
0 50 100 150 200 250 300 350 400 450 500
u t [nm]
Frequency [kHz]

Fig. 5. Calculated normal and tangential stress-displacement curves at the central
point on the crack interface when using the full crack model in case of a shear wave
excitation at 100 kHz with amplitude A ¼ 100 nm. The top figure illustrates the
quadratic normal behavior in case of contact (i.e. Dun 6 0), according to Eq. (13).
The bottom figure illustrates the tangential hysteresis behavior with several
hysteresis loops. The tangential reaction curve also clearly indicates the switching
between different contact states (contact loss (black solid line), total sliding (red
dotted line) and partial slip (blue dashed line)). For clarity, the reaction curves are
only plotted for values Dun smaller than 5 nm in the normal case and values Dut
larger than 20 nm for the tangential case, since for other displacement values both
reaction curves are constantly zero. (For interpretation of the references to colour in
this figure legend, the reader is referred to the web version of this article.)
followed by a partial slip state (i.e. jsj 6 ljrj), and finally ending
with a state of total sliding just before the crack faces loose contact
again.
Fig. 6 shows similar tangential reaction curves for two points on
the crack interface respectively positioned 2 mm to the left and
2 mm to the right of the crack center. Again, several hysteresis
loops can be observed, with a different behavior on both sides of
105 Tangential reaction curve (point left)
2
Contact loss
Full sliding
[N/m2 ]
Fig. 7. Fourier spectrum of the calculated relative normal and tangential displace-
ments (Dun and Dut ) obtained for both the linear model and the full crack model at
the central point on the crack interface in case of a shear wave excitation at 100 kHz
with amplitude A ¼ 100 nm. When using the full crack model, harmonic frequen-
cies are generated.
the crack. The area of the hysteresis loops is bigger for the point
on the left hand side of the crack when compared to the area of
the loops for the point on the right hand side. This will result in
a more pronounced nonlinear behavior on the left hand side. This
asymmetrical behavior will be further discussed later, when study-
ing the generated nonlinear features.
3.3. Clapping and friction induced nonlinear features
The above discussed results illustrate that the proposed crack
model is able to simulate the expected behavior of cracks with
rough surfaces and friction. This behavior is mainly determined
by the presence of normal and tangential stresses at those posi-
tions where the crack faces are in contact. Since these contact
stresses are directly linked to the relative displacement of both
crack faces, the movement of both faces becomes asymmetric
within a single period of oscillation. As a result of the distortion,

1
Partial slip nonlinear features are being generated at the crack interface,
which can be evidenced for instance by the appearance of
0
harmonics.
The nonlinear wave distortion can already be noticed in a time
-1
-40 -20 0 20 40 60 80 100 120 domain study when comparing the relative displacement signals in
u t [nm] Figs. 2 and 4. In the linear model (Fig. 2) both displacement signals
are harmonically oscillating at a frequency of 100 kHz, in accor-
105 Tangential reaction curve (point right) dance with the excitation frequency. However, when normal and
2
tangential contact stresses are activated in the model (Fig. 4), the
Contact loss
Full sliding
relative displacement signals clearly deviate from this pure sinu-
[N/m2 ]

1
Partial slip soidal behavior, indicating the presence of harmonic frequencies.
Passing to the frequency domain (Fourier transform) in Fig. 7, the
0
spectrum derived from the linear model indeed only shows the
presence of the fundamental frequency f ¼ 100 kHz, whereas in
-1
-40 -20 0 20 40 60 80 100 120 the full crack model harmonic frequencies are (slightly) present.
u t [nm] Apart from considering the frequency spectra for the crack cen-
ter, the spectra can also be calculated for other positions along the
Fig. 6. Calculated tangential stress-displacement curves at points on the crack crack interface in order to determine on which part of the crack
interface respectively 2 mm to the left and 2 mm to the right of the center. The nonlinearities are primarily generated. Fig. 8 shows color1 coded
curves were obtained using the full crack model in case of a shear wave excitation
at 100 kHz with amplitude A ¼ 100 nm. For clarity, the reaction curves are only
plotted for values Dut larger than 20 nm, since for other displacement values both 1
For interpretation of color in Figs. 8 and 10, the reader is referred to the web
reaction curves are constantly zero. version of this article.
26 S. Delrue et al. / Ultrasonics 82 (2018) 19–30
Fig. 8. Fourier spectrum of the relative normal and tangential displacement signals
(Dun and Dut ) at 21 positions on the crack interface in case of a shear wave
excitation at 100 kHz with amplitude A ¼ 100 nm. Harmonic frequencies in the
relative normal and tangential displacement signals, generated by clapping or
friction effects, are mainly occurring at the left side of the crack interface (i.e.
negative positions).
plots of the frequency spectra of the relative displacement signals at
a number of equidistant points along the crack interface (i.e. 21 posi-
tions in steps of 1 mm). Harmonics in both normal and tangential
relative displacement signals are (slightly) observed, mainly at the
left side of the crack interface (corresponding to negative positions).
This is due to the orientation of the crack and the way the ultrasonic
shear wave interacts with it. The wave first impinges on the right
(top) corner of the crack and is then somehow guided downwards
along the crack boundary, where it constructively interferes with
the direct impinging part of the wave. This results in higher ampli-
tude vibrations and hence, more efficient generation of nonlineari-
ties. In the future, we plan to study wave-crack interactions for
different crack orientations and excitation parameters in order to
determine the configurations for which clapping and/or friction
induced effects are most efficiently generated.
In order to accentuate the nonlinear components, several tech-
niques can be used. One possibility is to subtract the calculated rel-
ative displacement signals obtained using the linear (reference)
model from those obtained using the crack model, in order to elim-
inate all linear components. However, in practice, this would
require to have two similar samples, one intact sample without a
crack and a second (identical) sample containing a nonlinear crack.
As this is hard to realize in real experiments, we prefer to use an
alternative method, the Scaling Subtraction Method (SSM) [14],
which exploits the distorted scaling of the received signals with
increasing excitation amplitude due to nonlinearity. For the SSM
method all experiments can be conducted on a single sample in
which a nonlinear crack is present. This sample is then excited
twice, once at a low excitation amplitude Alow , and once at a high
excitation amplitude Ahigh ¼ nAlow , where n denotes the scaling fac-
tor. By subtracting the properly scaled relative displacement sig-
nals obtained using the low excitation amplitude from the ones
obtained using the high excitation amplitude, all linear contribu-
tions in the signals will be eliminated and the nonlinearities will
be enhanced. Fig. 9 shows the simulation results obtained when
using this approach, in case of Alow ¼ 10 nm and
Ahigh ¼ 10Alow ¼ 100 nm. The generated harmonic frequencies in
u n SSM frequency spectrum
Normalized FFT Amplitude
0.2
0.15
0.1
0.05
0
0 50 100 150 200 250 300 350 400 450 500
Frequency [kHz]
u t SSM frequency spectrum
Normalized FFT Amplitude
0.04
0.02
0
0 50 100 150 200 250 300 350 400 450 500
Frequency [kHz]
Fig. 9. Fourier spectrum of the relative normal and tangential displacements
signals (Dun and Dut ) at the central point on the crack interface in case of a shear
wave excitation at 100 kHz, after applying the Scaling Subtraction Method (SSM).
The displacement signals were obtained by subtracting the displacements obtained
at an amplitude Alow ¼ 10 nm from the signals obtained at amplitude
A ¼ Ahigh ¼ 10Alow ¼ 100 nm. Harmonic frequencies are clearly generated.
the resulting SSM signals for both the relative normal and tangen-
tial displacements are now clearly visible. The harmonics present
in the relative normal displacement signal are mainly caused by
clapping effects (i.e. normal interaction between the crack faces),
whereas the harmonic frequencies present in the relative tangen-
tial displacement signal are predominantly generated by friction
effects (i.e. tangential interaction between the crack faces). Note
that due to the oblique incidence of the shear wave on the crack,
friction effects produce both even and odd harmonics (in contrast
to the normal incidence case where only odd harmonics would be
generated [26]). Similar results were also obtained in the numeri-
cal study of crack-wave interactions by Blanloeuil et al. [27]. More-
over, the amplitude of the clapping-induced harmonics is larger
than that of the friction-induced harmonics. This result is in excel-
lent qualitative agreement with some recently published experi-
ments where in-plane and out-of-plane focusing of ultrasonic
waves in the vicinity of a crack was used for defect characteriza-
tion. The experimental results showed that the nonlinearity
induced by the focusing in the direction normal to the crack line
is much stronger than the one induced by focusing along the crack
line [39,40].
The above post-processing analysis using SSM can now again be
repeated for a number of positions along the crack interface, sim-
ilar to the approach used in Fig. 8. Fig. 10 shows color coded plots
of the frequency spectra of the SSM relative displacement signals at
a number of equidistant points along the crack interface (i.e. 21
positions in steps of 1 mm). Similar results as before are obtained.
Harmonics in both normal and tangential relative displacements
are observed. For the normal displacement signals, the harmonic
frequencies mainly occur at the left side of the crack interface (cor-
responding to negative positions). For the tangential displacement
signals, the harmonic frequencies occur slightly more centralized
inside the crack, and cover a wider zone of the crack.
Fig. 11 shows vibration amplitude patterns in the entire simula-
tion domain after filtering the scale subtracted normal and tangen-
tial displacements, un and ut , around the second harmonic
frequency (f ¼ 200 kHz). These vibration amplitude maps allow
to verify that nonlinear features are indeed generated at the crack
 S. Delrue et al. / Ultrasonics 82 (2018) 19–30
Fig. 10. Fourier spectrum of the relative normal and tangential displacement
signals (Dun and Dut ) at 21 positions on the crack interface in case of a shear wave
excitation at 100 kHz, after applying the Scaling Subtraction Method (SSM). This
displacement signals were thus obtained by subtracting the displacements
obtained at an amplitude Alow ¼ 10 nm from the signals obtained at amplitude
A ¼ Ahigh ¼ 10Alow ¼ 100 nm. Harmonic frequencies in the relative normal displace-
ment signals, generated by clapping effects, are mainly occurring at the left side of
the crack interface (i.e. negative positions), whereas harmonics in the relative
tangential displacement signals, generated by friction effects, are also occurring
near the center of the crack interface.
u n at f=200 kHz u t at f=200 kHz
50
0.08
50
0.07
0.06
0.05
y [mm]
y [mm]
0 0
0.04
0.03
0.02
0.01
-50 -50
-20 0 20 -20 0 20
x [mm] x [mm]
Fig. 11. Vibration amplitude patterns of the scale subtracted normal (left figure)
and tangential (right figure) displacement components, un and ut , in the entire
simulation domain after filtering around the generated second harmonic frequency
f ¼ 200 kHz. The figures clearly illustrate the generation of this second harmonic at
the crack interface, with clapping induced nonlinearity mainly occurring at the left
side of the crack (left figure) and friction induced nonlinearity both at the left side
and near the center of the crack (right figure).
interface from where they propagate further in the sample. The left
figure shows the result for the scale subtracted normal displace-
ment signals un , where the normal displacements were calculated
according to Eq. (15), while the right figure shows the result for the
scale subtracted tangential displacement signals ut , with the tan-
gential displacements calculated according to Eq. (16). With refer-
ence to the underlying physics, the left figure should be linked to
clapping induced nonlinearity, while the right figure is linked to
friction induced nonlinearity. Both figures confirm that nonlinear-
ities (here second harmonic generation) are indeed being gener-
ated at the position of the crack, before being redistributed into
27
the sample (see later). In agreement with the result discussed in
Fig. 10, the more global view displayed in Fig. 11 confirms that
clapping induced nonlinearity is found to be mainly generated at
the left side of the crack, whereas friction induced nonlinearity also
occurs closer to the center of the crack. The ‘oscillatory’ behavior
observed above the crack in the tangential displacement plot
results from a (second harmonic) standing wave that is generated
in between the crack interface and the top boundary of the sample.
This is not observed in between the crack interface and the bottom
boundary as the latter was being modeled as a low reflecting
boundary.
Finally, in order to illustrate the dynamics of the friction model
at the interface of the crack and the redistribution of the nonlinear
signatures over the entire sample, Fig. 12 provides an overview of
the time evolution of the nonlinear wave propagation. The top fig-
ures show the time evolution of the normal and tangential contact
stresses (r and s) at all positions along the crack interface in case
of a shear wave excitation at 100 kHz with amplitude A ¼ 100 nm.
The figures clearly demonstrate the dynamic switching that occurs
between the non-contact (when both r and s are equal to zero)
and contact states (when both r and s differ from zero), with dif-
ferent behavior for different positions on the crack. The set of fig-
ures in the second row show snapshots of the displacement
component ux in the aluminum sample at four instances in time,
illustrating the incident wave. The considered time instances are
also indicated by the vertical white lines in the top figures. The
third row and bottom set of figures show snapshots of respectively
the scale subtracted normal and tangential displacements, ut and
un , at the same instances in time, illustrating the nonlinear contri-
butions in the full wave propagation. The color scale in each set of
snapshot figures runs from blue (most negative displacement value
over time) over green (zero displacement) to yellow (most positive
0.025 displacement value over time). At the first time instant (t ¼ 15 ls),
there is no sign of nonlinearities at all. This is due to the fact that it
0.02 takes the excited shear wave approximately 16 ls to travel from
the top boundary to the crack (shear wave velocity v S ¼ 3122 m/
s). Once the first part of the shear wave has reached the crack,
0.015
the dynamic wave-crack interaction starts, resulting in the gener-
ation of both clapping and friction induced nonlinearities at the
0.01 crack interface, as illustrated by the snapshots at t ¼ 18 ls, for un
and for ut respectively. The contact stress evolution (top figures)
shows that around t  20 ls, the entire crack is again in an open
0.005
state. In this case, the crack faces do not interact temporarily,
and there will be no activation of contact nonlinearities, which
can for instance be seen in the snapshots at time t ¼ 22:5 ls. The
negative value for ux in the incident wave field opens the crack,
and therefore no contact interaction is observed. Yet, at that partic-
ular time, the previously generated nonlinear features have propa-
gated some distance in the sample, while generation of new
nonlinear features is not detected. As the energy of a quasi point
source is redistributed circularly for 2D cases, the amplitude
quickly diminishes. At t  25 ls, the crack faces restart to interact.
This again induces the generation of nonlinearities at the crack
faces, which is nicely illustrated by the snapshot at time
t ¼ 27 ls. Here, ux is positive, pressing both contact faces together
and initiating nonlinear contact behavior. Note once more that
clapping induced nonlinearities are predominantly excited at the
left side of the crack, while friction induced nonlinearities are
occurring closer to the center of the crack, as stated before.
This instructive example, and in particular the time evolution
study of the nonlinear content in the wave propagation, thus con-
firms that a crack starts to behave as a nonlinear source when trig-
gered by a wave-crack interaction. The signals excited by this
nonlinear source, and detected at the surface of the object, can in
turn be used for defect detection, localization and/or characteriza-
tion, provided the recorded amplitudes are measurable.
28 S. Delrue et al. / Ultrasonics 82 (2018) 19–30

Normal stress [N/m2 ] 105 Tangential stress [N/m2 ] 105

4 2

Position on crack [mm]

Position on crack [mm]

5 2 5 1

0 0 0 0

-2 -1
-5 -5

-4 -2
0.01 0.02 0.03 0.04 0.01 0.02 0.03 0.04
Time [ms] Time [ms]

Fig. 12. TOP: Color coded plots illustrating the time evolution of the normal and tangential contact stresses (r and s) at the crack interface in case of a shear wave excitation at
100 kHz with amplitude A ¼ 100 nm. Contact occurs when both r and s are not constantly zero. SECOND ROW: Snapshots of the displacement component ux in the aluminum
sample at four different instances in time. THIRD ROW: Snapshots of the scale subtracted normal displacement un in the aluminum sample at four different instances in time.
BOTTOM: Snapshots of the scale subtracted tangential displacement ut in the aluminum sample at four different instances in time. The four time instances are indicated by the
white vertical lines in the top figures. The color scale in each set of snapshot figures runs from blue (most negative displacement value over time) over green (zero
displacement) to yellow (most positive displacement value over time). (For interpretation of the references to colour in this figure legend, the reader is referred to the web
version of this article.)

4. Conclusion Mechanics Module of the commercially available, finite element

In this paper, a new 2D model for wave propagation in samples
with cracks is presented. The full model contains two components:
an elastic wave propagation model and a constitutive crack model.
The wave propagation model is implemented in the Structural
based, software package COMSOL MultiphysicsÒ. The crack model
is implemented in MATLABÒ, and introduced in the wave propaga-
tion model by using the LiveLinkTM for MATLABÒ in COMSOLÒ.
The developed crack model takes into account the roughness of
the internal crack faces and friction between them, together with
 S. Delrue et al. / Ultrasonics 82 (2018) 19–30
the associated effects of memory and hysteresis. Using the model,
three different contact states can be described: contact loss, when
there is no contact between any two corresponding points from
opposite crack faces; total sliding, when both faces are slipping
over each other; and partial slip, when both stick and slip areas
are present in the contact zone. In order to continuously update
the current contact state, several conditions for the normal and
tangential relative displacements are checked. Depending on these
conditions, corresponding normal and tangential contact stresses
can be calculated. In case of contact loss, all contact stresses are
set to zero, allowing both crack faces to move freely. In case of con-
tact, conventional contact mechanics models can be used to calcu-
late the normal contact stress. The tangential contact stress, on the
other hand, is calculated using Coulomb’s law of friction when total
sliding is considered, whereas in the partial slip case the Method of
Memory Diagrams (MMD) is used.
The full model was tested by means of an instructive example of
shear wave propagation in an aluminum sample containing a crack
with rough surfaces, inclined over 20 degrees. The model allowed
to verify the presence of normal and tangential contact stresses
at the crack interface, which influences the movement of the crack
faces in both normal and tangential direction, and results in the
creation of harmonic frequencies. It was shown that the generated
macroscopic nonlinear features were induced by both clapping and
friction effects at the crack interface. For the particular configura-
tion considered in the present study, the normal (clapping) interac-
tions resulted in harmonic generation which is primarily
concentrated at the left side of the crack, whereas nonlinear fea-
tures due to tangential (friction) interactions also occurred near
the center of the crack. Finally, snapshots of the simulations illus-
trated that, once generated at the crack interface, the nonlinear
features propagate further into the sample and the crack therefore
behaves as a nonlinear source.
In the future, we plan to exploit this model in view of the sup-
port and optimization of existing and novel techniques for nonlin-
ear ultrasonic non-destructive testing of materials. We also plan to
extend the current model to the 3D case by considering the normal
contact stress together with two components for the tangential
stress. Apart from its value for supporting purely ultrasonic non-
destructive testing techniques, we also plan to extend the code
by adding heat generation mechanisms (e.g. friction induced heat-
ing) and incorporating thermal physics laws with the goal to real-
istically model experimental non-destructive testing techniques
based on ultrasonic thermography. Considering a wider perspec-
tive, the developed model may also be of interest for researchers
dealing with vibrations of loaded contacts, nonlinear metamateri-
als, nonlinear vibrometry, etc.
Acknowledgments
The research leading to these results has gratefully received
funding from the European Union Seventh Framework Program
(FP7/2007–2013) under Grant Agreement n 314768 (ALAMSA),
and the Research Council KUL (C24/15/021).
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