Enhanced Ultrasonic Nondestructive Partial Immersion Technique for Inservice Inspection of Rail

Foot Flaws

附件 1

中南大学
研究生学位论文开题报告

姓 名： Wakili Theophilus Usman (瓦克礼)

学 号： 214218019
论文题目： Enhanced Ultrasonic Nondestructive Partial Immersion
Technique for Inservice Inspection of Rail Foot Flaws

课题来源： Instructor’s Project

Master’s Degree
攻读学位：
Prof. Shuzeng Zhang (张书增)
指导教师：
交通运输工程
学科专业：
交通运输工程学院
二级单位：
2022/12/ 16
填表日期：

中南大学研究生院制
 Enhanced Ultrasonic Nondestructive Partial Immersion Technique for Inservice Inspection of Rail
Foot Flaws

一、 选题意义和研究价值

1.1 Main Background and Significance

With the global increase in railway transportation mileage the stable operation and
maintenance of railway transportation equipment becomes ultimately more important. For
over 160 years, the application of steel rail has been the very core of the global railway
systems. The rail enables the transmission of wheel forces to the track bed and guidance
[1]
of wheel tread and flanges along the rail . As a structured system within the entire track
construction, it is often in use; as such, immediate rectification is required in any case of
[2]
failure . Historical precedence has shown that potentially life threatening and costly
railroad track failures are likely to occur presently and in the future [3].
Steel rails are continually subjected to rolling contact pressure, bending forces, thermal
[4]
and residual stresses in its services . With increased axle loads, train speed and traffic
[5]
frequency, an ever-increasing contact forces is attained, which may damage the rails .
In-service rail flaws that initiates the rail failure process are mainly classified into flaws
caused by rolling contact fatigue (RCF) mechanism and flaws initiated by improper use,
[1]
handling or installation . Flaws caused by the latter process occurs earlier than
predicted by design lifetime or shows an accelerated growth due to improper use, as such,
the flaws formed from the two process can be associated in certain cases. Rail failures
resulting from these two types of flaws have been put into consideration by most rail
operators, and every rail system operator makes reference to rail flaws handbooks and
[1,6,7]
manuals . In this regards, the development of a rapid, effective and timely means of
rail inspection is a major issue of concern to the global railroad operators [8–10].
In-service rail flaws can be found in the rail head, web or foot. The rail head region is the
[11]
more often region where it occur . Loss of material due to corrosion may also occur in
[12]
the web and foot, especially in humid environments such as tunnels . The database
report provided by Shanghai railway bureau on rail, damage and traffic volume was
[13]
highlighted by Tian et.al, , the railway stations and sections were separated and the
amount of rail flaws and failures per kilometer of the section K862 + 892 – K917 +500 in
Beijing to Shanghai line from the period of December 2010 to March 2019 was analyzed,
the results indicates a quadratic relation of rail flaws and failures per kilometer. According
to statistical reports of railway accidents that took place in the United States between 2005
 Enhanced Ultrasonic Nondestructive Partial Immersion Technique for Inservice Inspection of Rail
Foot Flaws

to 2014, which was published by the Federal Rail Road Administration (FRA) Office,
accidents caused by flaws around the rail head region showed a significant proportion
[7,14]
. However, another reports of rail breaks, across all (UK) Network Rail route during
the periods of 2010-2011 and 2013-2014, a total of 171 rail breaks were recorded on the
network rail infrastructure between 2010 and 2011, out of which 67 cases were due to rail
foot flaws (a proportion of about 39%), whereas, from the period of 2014 to 2015, 54 out
[15,16]
of 98 rail breaks were caused by rail foot flaws (a proportion of about 55%) . It is
obvious, that the proportion of rail breaks caused by rail foot flaws increases by 16%, yet,
the total number of rail break incident declines.

Figure 1. Distribution of rail breaks by types in Network Rail (UK) routes [5].
This was speculated by Ge et al., [5] to be as a result of the inaccessible rail bottom region
for inspection with the current test technology based on bulk ultrasonic wave. Moreover,
[9]
mentioned that inspection from moving test vehicles becomes unlikely when weld
flaws originate around the web/base radius or out in the edges of the rail foot, as such,
demanding novel methods of inspection that can symmetrically reach the rail foots.
 Enhanced Ultrasonic Nondestructive Partial Immersion Technique for Inservice Inspection of Rail
Foot Flaws

1.2 Common Rail Foot Flaws

Various rail foot flaws may alter the rail integrity, the common rail foot flaws are
longitudinal vertical crack, corrosion pit, and rail injury [12].

Figure 2. The Various Rail Flaws under investigation: (a) longitudinal vertical crack, (b)
corrosion pit, and (c) rail injury [12].

1.3 Significance of Inspection in Railway Maintenance Unit and Predominant

Application of Ultrasonic Non-destructive Testing at Present
From the earliest days of railroad operation, track structure maintenance has been one of
the significant challenges of operating industries. The ultimate exceptional advantage of
this challenging task is the assurance of service stability of the rail. Maintenance
procedure scheme employed by infrastructure managers are basically designed to address
structural degradation of rail tracks caused by fatigue and wear, if maintenance scheduling
also puts into consideration the probability of rail failure due to unexpected flaws initiated
from random events, then the structural reliability of the rail network is appreciated
[17]
whereas the efficiency of the maintenance process is negotiated . In order to achieve
maximum reliability of the railway network and enhance the efficiency of the
maintenance procedure, it becomes absolutely necessary to conduct adequate and reliable
inspection of the rail tracks [10]. For this reason, various Nondestructive test methods have
been implemented to inspect in-service rails for internal and surface flaws. Currently, the
rail foot flaws, turn out flaws and flaws in weld region are the most difficult region in in-
service detection of rail flaws. Due to the relatively less number of turnout and welds they
[18,19]
can be detected by manual inspection ; but the required detection volume for the
entire rail foot flaws is extremely large, and there are currently no available online rail
 Enhanced Ultrasonic Nondestructive Partial Immersion Technique for Inservice Inspection of Rail
Foot Flaws

foot flaw detection equipment and systems for in-service rail, The detection of rail foot
flaws is still a blind spot. The railway operators adopt the method of regular rail
replacement to prevent the failure of in-service rail [20,21]. At present, the online inspection
of in-service rails includes machine vision, electromagnetic acoustic and conventional
ultrasonic inspection. Moreover, inspection systems such as laser ultrasound, eddy current,
and air-coupled ultrasound are still being researched and explored [22,23]. Among them, the
machine vision is mainly oriented to flaw detection of rail treads and visible surface and
cannot detect internal flaws; the conversion efficiency of electromagnetic ultrasonic is low
and it is easily affected by lift-off distance (the required distance between the EMAT coil
and sample surface), therefore it is not common in rail detection. In contrast, ultrasonic
test has the potentials of low detection cost, convenient operation, high penetration
power, high sensitivity, safety, accuracy and flexibility and has been widely used on small
[24,25]
and large rail flaw detectors . Most of the advanced modern and applied ultrasonic
online inspection devices and systems for in-service rails broadly use water wheel
coupling and contact coupling are mainly used for the detection of flaws in the rail head,
web and the middle region of the rail foot [26,27]. Pertaining the detection of other flaws on
both sides of the rail foot, due to the influence of fasteners, ballast, connecting plates and
deposits on the rail foot, as shown in Figure 3, it is difficult to achieve coupling between
the ultrasonic probe and rail foot. Efficient ultrasonic wave transmission cannot be
performed, thus limiting the detection of rail foot flaws. Although the detection of rail foot
can be done manually the workload will be much and difficult to implement. Therefore, it
is necessary to study the automation of ultrasonic detection method for in-service rail foot
flaw, in order to realize the rapid and effective detection of flaws on the full section of the
rail foot, and ensuring the safety of the railway transportation.

(a) (b) (c)

Figure 3. Factors limiting Ultrasonic Coupling to Rail foot (a) Fasteners. (b) Ballast, (c)
Connecting plates
Enhanced Ultrasonic Nondestructive Partial Immersion Technique for Inservice Inspection of Rail
Foot Flaws

二、 国内外研究现状和发展动态

2.1 Research Status and Development Trends of Rail Foot flaw Detection System
Regardless of the current challenges experienced in the detection of in-service rail foot
flaws local and international scholars have conducted series of researches on theoretical
and experimental verification to provide a means of developing systems for online
detection of in-service rail foot flaws. On the aspect of theoretical research, simulation and
analysis of ultrasonic wave propagation characteristics in the rail foot has been used to
[28]
help guide the design of detection methods. Hayashi et al. , conducted a research on
detection device for flaws located on rail foot edges by using ultrasonic guided waves ,
and obtained the dispersion curves of guided waves on the rail foot through a semi-
analytical finite element calculation, and found that the guided waves at frequency range
from 10 kHz to 200kHz are multi-modal, with mainly vertical vibration mode, transverse
vibration mode and longitudinal vibration mode in the rail foot, among which the vertical
vibration mode guided waves are more sensitive to transverse crack in the rail foot.
[29]
Gharaibeh et al. , employed the ABAQUS software to simulate and analyze the
propagation of ultrasonic guided waves on the rail foot, the results showed that guided
[30]
waves can detect 2mm transverse crack in the rail foot. Cerniglia et al. , discovered
Rayleigh waves from two ultrasonic guided waves propagation along two free plate
surface, which could be used to detect pitting corrosion from the rail foot in a remote NDE
setup. Lu Chao et al. [31], analyzed the characteristics of ultrasonic guide waves on the rail
foot and found that guided waves that generates the vertical vibration mode of the rail foot
is the most suitable for detecting rail foot flaws, and this is verified by experiments. Zhang
[32]
et al. , used the multivariate Gaussian model to simulate the propagation characteristic
of ultrasonic waves in the rail foot, the acoustic beam model studies the method of
detecting rail foot flaws with contact ultrasonic probes and realized the effective detection
of 2mm flat-bottom hole flaw in the rail foot.
The above theoretical research show that ultrasonic waves, especially ultrasonic guided
waves have good detection capabilities for rail foot flaws. However, all experimentally
verified works were performed under laboratory conditions, and related detection theories
and technologies are still affected by practical ultrasonic coupling factors and practical
detection conditions.
Enhanced Ultrasonic Nondestructive Partial Immersion Technique for Inservice Inspection of Rail
Foot Flaws

The application of non-contact ultrasonic detection methods to compensate for the

[33] [34]
coupling problems have also been researched . Chang Junjie et al. considered the
coupling problem during ultrasonic testing, and proposed the technology of using non-
contact, non-immersion, and non-destructive air coupling probes for rail flaw detection.
Through experiments, it was found that air coupling probes can detect flaws in different
[35]
parts of the rail. Hu et al. , studied the non-contact EMAT method to detect rail foot
flaw, effective detection and identification of rail foot flaws was realized using B-imaging
[20]
display technique. Pathak et al. used non-contact laser ultrasonic technique to detect
and evaluate the damage of the rail foot, and also realized the non-contact detection of rail
foot flaw. Similar to the theoretical research on rail foot flaw detection, the above non-
contact detection methods are only carried out under laboratory conditions. As shown in
Figure 4, the EMAT detection method does not consider the fasteners and other complex
field components. So far, there are no non-contact detection methods used in the field
based on the current reports on practical applications.

Figure 4. The Scheme of rail foot flaw detection using EMAT (a) EMAT probe design, (b)
Detection procedure [5]

2.2 Principles of Ultrasonic Nondestructive Testing

Ultrasonic testing is a versatile nondestructive test (NDT) method that employs a
transducer to transmit high-frequency, short-pulse, inaudible sound waves through a test
sample and receive them back up at a receiver. Based on the reflection and propagation of
these sound waves through the medium flaws are detected and the material is
characterized. It can also be used to measure thickness, look for irregularities and monitor
the condition of flaws, among other uses.
Ultrasonic non-destructive testing can be performed in several ways, the most common
means use piezoelectric transducer. This device converts acoustic energy into electrical
energy and vice versa. It essentially generates the acoustical energy that propagates
Enhanced Ultrasonic Nondestructive Partial Immersion Technique for Inservice Inspection of Rail
Foot Flaws

through the test object. When the propagating energy hits a discontinuity in the material,
some of the acoustic energy reflects back for a receiver to pick up. A flaw detector (a type
of receiver) identifies these anomalies and displays them on an oscilloscope, which
displays the signals graphically and requires an expert for interpretation [36]. The two types
of transducer configuration used for testing includes:
✓ Pulse Echo Mode:
In this design, the acoustic energy is both emitted and received by the same transducer.
Pulse-echo is the most common mode, as it is simple to set up and more portable. If the
propagating sound waves makes contact with an imperfection in the test object, the waves
reflect back to the probe. The probe interprets the waves and show the corresponding
signals propagating through the material. This configuration is mostly preferred for large
items where it is difficult to access the other side [37].

Figure 5. Pulse Echo mode (without and with defect) [38].

✓ Through Transmission Mode:
With through-transmission, the object being inspected sits between a transmitter and a
receiver. The transmitter sends the waves through the object and toward the receiver. Any
imperfection within the object affects the sound signal reaching the receiver. This method
is much suited for small test objects with other side easily accessed [37].

Figure 6. Through Transmission Method from reference [39].

Enhanced Ultrasonic Nondestructive Partial Immersion Technique for Inservice Inspection of Rail
Foot Flaws

Another significant component of ultrasonic testing is the couplant gel, oil or water are
some typical couplant, and they all help to efficiently transmit the sound energy from the
transducer to the object being inspected. The couplant displaces the air between the
transducer and the surface of test object in order to allow for more efficient transmission
of sound waves. The coupling of ultrasonic testing is featured in a few varieties, primarily
contact coupling and immersion coupling, Advantages of each method is seen in different
situations [36].
✓ Contact Coupling:
Ultrasonic contact coupling is a more portable option, great for large or object difficult to
access. It uses a pulse-echo transducer and a couplant, and the transducer requires contact
with one surface of the test object. They’re useful when only one side of the material can
be reached. Plus, the transducer can be moved to the test object most especially in the case
of objects difficult or costly to transport.

Figure 7 Contact Testing from reference [39].

✓ Immersion Coupling:
Another option is ultrasonic immersion coupling, which is more suitable for laboratory or
factory environment. This strategy is often used when the test object has a complex shape
or curves. The object is immersed in water, which serves as the couplant. The pulse-echo
method is also applied here, with a single probe transmitting and receiving the wave
signals.
Enhanced Ultrasonic Nondestructive Partial Immersion Technique for Inservice Inspection of Rail
Foot Flaws

Figure 8. Immersion Testing [39].

Some Industries that rely on ultrasonic testing are: Aerospace, automobile, medical, rail,
construction, oil and gas, metallurgy and manufacturing. Operators in these industries can
use ultrasonic testing with various materials, but some provide better results than others.
Materials commonly used in ultrasonic testing include metal, composites, plastic and
ceramic. A high density improves the accuracy of the image due to less attenuation, and
other materials moderately dense are still well-suited to this technology. Paper and wood
are some of the few materials that ultrasonic testing is not suitable for, along with coarse
grains like cast iron that can reduce sound transmission.
Ultrasonic testing is widely preferred to other NDT method for some reasons, which
includes; high penetration power, high accuracy and sensitivity, safety, flexibility and
adaptability, rapid preparation, immediate results and automation [36,37].
2.3 Significance of Modelling Ultrasonic Waves
Computations of ultrasonic wave field are mainly done to determine the spatial
distribution of wave pressure or particle velocity radiated by ultrasonic transducers or
other sound sources. They are significantly influenced by a number of factors, such as the
shape of the transducer, the driving frequency, and the acoustic properties of the
[40]
propagating medium . The essence of wave field studies is to have an insight on the
transducer sensitivity [41], characterize the wave propagation in a medium [42,43], guide and
[44,45]
design detection procedures and quantitatively evaluate flaw or material properties
[46]
, and so on. Therefore, trends in efficient ultrasonic field modeling methods continues
to increase.
Enhanced Ultrasonic Nondestructive Partial Immersion Technique for Inservice Inspection of Rail
Foot Flaws

2.4 Ultrasonic Wave modeling methods used for NDE Simulation Software
Packages
Ultrasonic nondestructive evaluation (NDE) simulation software can enable optimized
inspection methods, enhanced inspection confidence and the ability to predict if
assembled components are inspectable prior to fabrication. Ultrasonic NDE simulation
methods are active research field that also involves the development, validation and
implementation of these tools [47]. The use of simulation software for modeling ultrasonic
nondestructive evaluation (UT-NDE) provides the necessary versatility for studying
several cases for a particular NDE problem. They give more insight and information
without the need for expensive and time-consuming empirical study. With simulated
models, it is possible to study the behavior of ultrasonic probes under various conditions,
visualize and characterize the propagating ultrasonic waves in the material and their
scatter from flaws, and study the response of different types of flaws. When taking
account of wave field at ultrasonic frequency ranges and driven by piston-like transducers,
we can classify the methods of simulating ultrasonic waves into three categories:
analytical, semi-analytical, and numerical method.
In the analytical method, fundamental integral expressions are used to derive an exact or
[40,48,49]
approximate analytical expression for the wave field . For instance, analytical
solutions have been derived for the wave fields of circular and elliptical planar transducers
[40,49]
and focused transducers . They are very efficient in terms of computation time, but
prior to now they are highly limited in the transducer types and range of geometry that can
be simulated.
One of the most common semi-analytical method for ultrasonic wave field calculation is
[50–52]
the Multi-Gaussian beam (MGB) model . Other methods such as the non-paraxial
[53]
Multi-Gaussian beam (NMGB) model and the Gaussian beam equivalent point source
[54]
(GBEPS) model were advances made to compensate for certain limitations of the
MGB model. These methods trade-off accuracy for speed by the use of approximations in
wave equation to model the ultrasound field. Although much faster than numerical
methods, the accuracy of the results may vary based on the type of the modeled material,
flaw size, signal frequency, and transducer shape.
[55]
The Numerical methods include the finite element method (FEM) , boundary element
Enhanced Ultrasonic Nondestructive Partial Immersion Technique for Inservice Inspection of Rail
Foot Flaws

method (BEM) [56,57], finite difference method (FDM) [58,59], Rayleigh integral (RI) method
[40]
, distributed point source method (DPSM) [60,61] and the Quasi-Monte Carlo Method [62].
Numerical methods solve for the ultrasound field by discretizing the space and time
domains of the problem. Numerical methods are highly accurate because they directly use
the wave equation and few assumptions to solve for the ultrasound field, this makes it
possible to obtain the wave field generated by almost any kind of transducer. In recent
times, they usually require a lot of computation time, and they become impractical for the
high frequencies generally of interest in UT-NDE. However, with current advance in
computing technology, numerical methods are becoming more computationally efficient
[63–66] [47,67,68]
. The finite difference Method (FDM) and the finite element method (FEM)
[66,69–71]
. are the two most common numerical methods used. The FDM method is more
limited in the type of geometries it can simulate because the discretization of the space
domain is constrained to a regularly shaped grid, whereas, the FEM method because of its
ability to model any geometry of interest by discretization of the space domain into finite
elements of arbitrary shape it is used by most commercially available software. It also,
provides the basis for modelling ultrasonic wave transmission, reflection and mode
conversion [72].
2.5 Factors Influencing the Reliability of Ultrasonic NDE simulation
In order to attain reliability, it is essential for simulation results obtained from a simulation
software to correspond to the results of its experimental equivalent, at least in a way that
yields to the same conclusions if both experimental and simulation results were obtained
[73]
for the same problem . There are several factors that would negatively influence the
accuracy of the results in a simulation model:
✓ When simulation software algorithms and physics solvers are inaccurate or cannot
support the simulation for a particular NDE problem of interest.
✓ When accuracy of the input parameters provided by the user, such as probe
dimensions, excitation frequency, bandwidth, and material properties are not
sufficient enough to reproduce experimental results.
✓ Experience of the user with the software. For instance, if the software provides
different solvers, the user must know the suitable solver to select for their
particular problem.
Enhanced Ultrasonic Nondestructive Partial Immersion Technique for Inservice Inspection of Rail
Foot Flaws

2.6 Studies on UT-NDE Simulation with Common FEM-Based Commercial

Software Package
2D implicit Newmark’s FEM of ANSYS software package was successfully used by
[74]
Baskaran et al. to simulate defect detection and sizing by Time-of-Flight Diffraction
(TOFD) test technique, a simple thin aluminum specimen with vertical and inclined defect
was first simulated for detection followed by probe position optimization of a T-butt weld
joint structure with such defects, both cases were validated experimentally. Afterwards, H.
Chen et al. [75] advanced the same work with three sets of thick steel material, propagation
of wave types in elastic medium was initially studied by conventional pulse-echo method
only in a piece of steel plate without defect, subsequently two sets of steel plate samples
with embedded groove and hole defects was used to analyze both conventional and TOFD
ultrasonic test technique respectively, theoretical predictions and experimental results
were used to validate the conventional method whereas only experimental results was
used to verify the TOFD method. The effect of porosity on ultrasonic signal propagation
in a refined realistic composite laminate FEM model, extracted from a computer
[66]
tomography scan was demonstrated by Zelenyak et al. , with application of 3D multi-
scale and direct multi-physics coupling of structural mechanics and ac/dc (piezoelectric
effect) modules for FEM simulation in COMSOL Multiphysics package, the pulse-echo
mode was used. Yet, in a comprehensive and experimentally unverified research on
[69]
ultrasonic fault detection according to Qian et al., , the pressure acoustic module of
COMSOL was used to simulate a 2D FEM model for the detection of internal corrosion
of thin walled pipes based on the pulse-echo method, showing the relation between
accuracy and probe size. The field coupling process of COMSOL Multiphysics software
[76]
was also employed by Liu et al. for 2D FEM simulation of ultrasonic test used for
stainless steel resistance spot weld inspection, firstly, to determine the characteristic
parameter used to describe the weld fusion state and finally study the influence of porosity
defect on ultrasonic spread characteristics. In another experimentally validated studies, the
piezoelectric effect and pressure acoustic modules of COMSOL was
[77]
merged by Bilgunde and Bond , to simulate a 2D FEM model of piezoelectric
transducer used for liquid coupled NDT system, the studies investigated the propagation
of ultrasonic waves in three separate cases, namely; on aluminum block with a side-drilled
Enhanced Ultrasonic Nondestructive Partial Immersion Technique for Inservice Inspection of Rail
Foot Flaws

hole to simulate defect, in water only and in an aluminum plate immersed in water. The
[70]
FEA software package, PZ-Flex, was used by Dobson et al., to establish an
experimentally verified 2D and 3D FEM modelling approach, subsequently, simulating
the detection of defect in a practically mapped heterogenous material (weld) where defect
size can have the same length scale as grain structure, as such, facilitating the
implementation of the novel Full Matrix Capture (FMC) ultrasonic array test technique for
[78]
such material. FEM package, ABAQUS, was employed by Farhang and Somayeh , to
simulate the ultrasonic TOFD test configuration in a two-dimensional sample made of
glass and steel, a side drilled hole was used for the glass model whereas, two surface
cracks and an internal crack was used for three models of the steel, the authors validate the
received signals in accordance with the actual TOFD signals.
Enhanced Ultrasonic Nondestructive Partial Immersion Technique for Inservice Inspection of Rail
Foot Flaws

三、 主要研究思路、研究内容和在学术方面的创新点

3.1 Main Research Idea

Although non-contact ultrasound detection technique such as laser ultrasound, EMAT
technique, and air-coupling ultrasound have been studied and developed they are affected
by many factors such as detection surface condition, noise interference and high energy
consumption of acoustic waves in the detection of the steel rail foot flaws. If the
conventional ultrasonic method is applied to detect the rail foot flaws, it becomes
challenging to realize the effective coupling between the ultrasonic probe and the rail foot.
The commonly used method such as the contact coupling and water wheel coupling are
not applicable to the rail foot flaws, inspired by the water spray coupling and water film
[79] [80]
coupling methods . Yuan et al, proposed the partial water immersion method and
successfully applied for the inspection of austenitic weld, but the reliability of this method
still needs to be further improved. In order to attain a high-precision and high-efficiency
testing of rail foot flaws it is necessary to improve and optimize this feasible method to
obtain a more reliable ultrasonic coupling technique.
3.2 Research Thesis Content
In this research thesis the detection of flaws from rail foot is determined based on an
enhanced partial immersion coupling method. The work content in this thesis is proposed
to comprise of five chapters; they are outlined as follows:
✓ Chapter 1 provides the background and significance of the topic with a
comprehensive collection of literature review of research materials, both local and
international which is relevant for this research thesis.
✓ Chapter 2 provides an elaborate theoretical basis of fundamental ultrasonic test
principles, immersion coupling principles, theoretical analysis of the enhanced
partial immersion coupling method, the concept of elastic waves in solid medium
and governing equations of elastic waves used for the Finite Element numerical
simulation.
✓ Chapter 3 outlines all the details for model design, acoustic and mechanical
properties of applied materials including the input test parameters for each case,
further describe the procedures applied for numerical simulation, and the
corresponding simulation results.
Enhanced Ultrasonic Nondestructive Partial Immersion Technique for Inservice Inspection of Rail
Foot Flaws

✓ Chapter 4 provides a detailed description on manufactured probes and mobile rail

mechanism. The equivalent experimental setup and test based on the optimal
simulation results will be conducted.
✓ Chapter 5 will discuss the comprehensive analysis of both results and highlight
further optimization solutions based on identified limitations,
✓ Chapter 6 will briefly summarize the entire work, state the main conclusions of
the study, as well as a prospect for future research.

3.3 The Innovation of the Work

✓ Partial immersion coupling method is adopted to improve the coupling efficiency
and minimize mechanical interference with surrounding rail foot component.
✓ Numerical simulations will be performed to guide the probe and shell component
design by selecting the set of ultrasonic test parameters enabling the optimal
detection.
✓ Manufacturing probes based on optimal parameters and mobile rail mechanism
loaded with the relevant set of ultrasonic test device to enable automation of
detection.
Enhanced Ultrasonic Nondestructive Partial Immersion Technique for Inservice Inspection of Rail
Foot Flaws

四、 拟采取的研究方法和技术路线
4.1 Proposed Methodology
The main research methods are firstly to design and manufacture a partially water-
immersed coupling shells through CAD and 3D printing technology and ultrasonic probe
matched with a wedge will be assembled altogether. Secondly, to manufacture moving rail
mechanism based on the in-service rail features and provide the relevant setup of
ultrasonic test devices for online in-service inspection. Finally, the overall process will
begin by providing a basis of detection by using the FEM simulation of elastic waves to
establish the ultrasonic propagation and reflection models in the wedges and various rail
regions as well as scattering models of ultrasonic waves caused by flaws. The simulated
propagation characteristics of the sound field will be used to provide a feasible full-section
detection of the rail foot flaws,
The detailed research process includes:

4.2 The Design and Development of Partial Water Immersion Coupling Probe
The current design of the partial immersion technique will be enhanced by embedding it
with a contact coupling wedge. The resulting probe design for rail foot flaw detection is
shown in Figure 9. The probe and the wedge are directly coupled through a matching
material layer, and the wedge is coupled with rail through a thin water coupling layer and
the shell will be used to effectively store water to ensure the coupling effect. The design
process comprehensively considers the choice of probe shell material, the design of the
shell shape and size parameters, the choice of sealing scheme, the clamping of the shell on
the rail mobile mechanism, the running speed, the wear and tear during the running
process and the sealing of the water volume preserved. Whereas in the case of the wedge,
the design needs to consider the material shape wear resistance and acoustic impedance.
Preliminary manual laboratory experiments might be considered during probe and shell
manufacturing so as to optimize and improve the related designs until the ideal
experimental effect of ensuring ultrasonic coupling is achieved.
Enhanced Ultrasonic Nondestructive Partial Immersion Technique for Inservice Inspection of Rail
Foot Flaws

(a) (b)
Figure 9. Schematic of optimized and improved partial water immersion coupling method
(a) Conventional Partial Immersion coupling, (b) Enhanced Partial Immersion with
Contact Coupling.

After a comprehensive consideration of the influence of rail foot fasteners, connecting

plates, ballast, corrosion rust, rail deformation and so on, a portable mobile detection
mechanism for in-service rail foot flaws is optimized to ensure that partial water
immersion coupling ultrasonic probe can work stably and the design ideas are shown in
Figure 10 below, the device needs to provide a certain pressure to ensure a good coupling
between the probe and the rail. The device needs to be able to clear obstacles and remove
the dirt on the rail foot surface, it also needs to reserve a certain movement allowance to
avoid interference from fasteners. The combination of the overall component provides an
effective rail foot flaw detection system on the full-section.

Figure 10. Illustration of Probe Clamping Device for Rail Foot Flaw Detection.
Enhanced Ultrasonic Nondestructive Partial Immersion Technique for Inservice Inspection of Rail
Foot Flaws

4.3 Modelling and simulation for Choice of Probe Parameters

The Ultrasonic wave field simulation model will be established using the elastic wave
time explicit physics that implements the time-explicit discontinuous Galerkin finite
element method (dG-FEM) to model the propagating wave field in the multi-layer media.
The propagation of elastic waves in solid media would be the basis for studying the
interactions of ultrasonic waves within the rail foot. In this simulation, the Elastic Wave
Time Explicit interface of COMSOL will be used as the computational tool. The explicit
method of finite element is preferred for problems involving dynamic phenomenon such
as ultrasonic wave propagation, where instantaneous results at each time step are required
[78]
.
The simulation results of a simple standard rectangular steel block model with a side
drilled hole located near the bottom will be compared to an equivalent standard
experimental test result for preliminary validation of the method. This is also done to
study the effects of the of partial longitudinal waves and shear waves through the test
medium, based on the flaw amplitude arrival time and possible interference of other
waves the, the best wave will be decided for the actual simulation on rail foot model.
Probes with different parameter will be used, various incident angles, transducer element
diameter, excitation frequency and wedge lengths will be selected to study the propagation
characteristics of various modes of ultrasonic waves in the rail foot, the geometry of the
selected type of rail foot flaws will be constructed and the boundary conditions will be
setup to realize the modeling of the reflected waves from the foot flaws. By optimizing the
probe parameters, the number of probes to ensure full-section flaw detection of the rail
foot with the sound beam is selected. The proposed sound field modeling process for a
full-section detection of the rail foot is shown in Figure 11. Finally, after selection of the
suitable probe parameters, the suitable probe and water shell will be manufactured and an
equivalent experiment will be carried out on a rail test block with artificial flaws to
validate the detection scheme.
Enhanced Ultrasonic Nondestructive Partial Immersion Technique for Inservice Inspection of Rail
Foot Flaws

(a) (b) (c)

Figure 11. Illustrative Diagram Showing the procedures for full-section coverage of the
rail foot (a) 20 degrees Incident longitudinal waves toward the edge (b) 0 degrees Incident
longitudinal waves directly beneath the slope (c) 14 degrees Incident longitudinal waves
toward the center of the rail foot

4.4 Model Design and Setup

A numerical model of standard 60kg/m UIC steel rail section that is held on the foot by a
fastener with maximum size of 2.75cm will be used. Due to the symmetry condition of the
desired rail inspection system and the necessary aim at the rail foot flaws, a halved
vertical and horizonal symmetric section of the rail would be used. This is done also to
improve on the computational efficiency. The transducer probe will be placed in manner
that avoids any contact with either the web/base radius curve or the curves close to the rail
foot edges (due to the effect of curved surfaces on incident beams and to ensure a proper
interface coupling). This would determine the limit of probe width.
The Numerical simulation would be divided into four cases, firstly, the detection
sensitivity of the steered elastic waves (partial longitudinal and shear waves would be
tested with a simple rectangular steel plate with side drilled holes near the bottom, the
results will be validated with an equivalent experimental case using a standard calibration
block. Secondly, as shown in Figure 12(a), the probe would initially be focused toward the
center of the rail foots (closer to the line of symmetry) from the rail foot slope, this
orientation would be used to detect flaws near the bottom of the rail foot center by using
either partial longitudinal waves or shear waves depending on the best sensitivity. Thirdly,
as shown in Figure 12(b), the orientation of the transducer probe would be adjusted to
normal to the plane of the rail foot slope, normal longitudinal waves would be used to
detect near bottom flaws directly beneath and around the slope. Lastly, as shown in Figure
Enhanced Ultrasonic Nondestructive Partial Immersion Technique for Inservice Inspection of Rail
Foot Flaws

12(c), the orientation of the probe would be set towards the edges of the rail foots and
either partial longitudinal waves or shear waves would be used to also detect the near
bottom flaws in the edges toward the fasteners.

(a) (b) (c)

Figure 12. Complete model setup and various wave propagation direction for full-section
rail foot flaw detection (a) Toward center (b) Directly beneath the probe (c) Towards the
rail foot center.

4.5 The Computational Mathematical Model

On the Elastic Wave Time Explicit interface of COMSOL, the model solves the governing
wave equation for a general linear elastic material in a velocity-strain formulation.
𝜕𝐯 (1)
𝜌 𝜕𝑡 − ∇ ∙ 𝐒 = 𝐅V

𝜕𝐄 1 (2)
− [∇v − (∇v)T ] = 0
𝜕𝑡 2

𝐒 = 𝐂: 𝐄 (3)
where v is the velocity, 𝝆 the density, 𝐒 the stress tensor, 𝐄 the strain tensor, 𝐂 is the
elasticity tensor (or stiffness tensor), and 𝐅V is a possible body force. The equations are
valid for both isotropic and anisotropic material data. The effects of damping can be added
to the model in the form of Rayleigh damping. This results to an additional right-hand side
terms to the equation of motion (equation 1) with a mass and stiffness damping term [81].
Enhanced Ultrasonic Nondestructive Partial Immersion Technique for Inservice Inspection of Rail
Foot Flaws

4.6 Technical Guide

With regards to the above coupling technique mentioned, the main objective of this
research, is to enhance the technique in a way that fits the inspection conditions of the rail
foot flaws. On this wise, the modelling studies will be done first in order to fathom
accuracy for the experimental test parameters. In similitude of the literature review and
data presented in this proposal, the guiding procedure for this research will initially begin
with the case study and review of literature as shown in Figure 13, this is done first in
order to attain coherence when collecting data and establishing standard theoretical basis
for modelling. In line with the established theoretical basis the basic parametric studies
will precede the modelling (such as estimation of critical incident angles, magnitude of
incident angle to cause a significant change in the direction of refracted waves, the
smallest flaw size in accordance to the fractional value of transducer beam diameter,
maximum wedge width to accommodate possible transducer diameter and minimum
wedge height to reduce propagation time and minimize the effect of wave reverberation
interference). At the stage of modelling, flexibility will be reserved just to ensure that the
model can be adjusted to reduced form and suitability. Subsequently, the simulation would
be performed using COMSOL Elastic Wave interface, the simulation would first involve
the preliminary validation of the various probes using a simple standard rectangular steel
calibration block model with side drilled hole located near bottom, the results will be
compared to an equivalent experimental result for such case. Thereafter, the rail foot
model setup will be simulated for all the probe placement orientation in tandem array.
Based on the simulation results, the optimal detection parameters for each probe
orientation will be used to manufacture and fabricate the probe component for the
experimental test setup on the developed moving rail mechanism, the result will be
compared in each case for validation. Finally, the compared results will be analyzed and
discussed, conclusion and prospect will also be highlighted.
Enhanced Ultrasonic Nondestructive Partial Immersion Technique for Inservice Inspection of Rail
Foot Flaws

Figure 13. Technical Guide for Research

 Enhanced Ultrasonic Nondestructive Partial Immersion Technique for Inservice Inspection of Rail
五、 进度安排和预期成果
5.1 Schedule
Table 1. outlines the schedules
of this thesis research
Dec. 2022 to Jan 2023
Feb 2023 to March23
April 2023 to May 2023
June 2023 to July 2023
August 2023 to October 2023
November 2023 to December
2023
January 2024 to June 2024
Foot Flaws
Consultation and sorting of all the relevant materials
local and international for this research
Designing the various numerical model with various
flaws and highlighting regions or components that can
be negotiated to improve the computational resource.
Numerical simulation and manufacture of probe
components
Laboratory Experiments and Necessary Adjustments
Field Experiment and validation of simulation results
for each test case
Result analysis, discussion.
Completion of thesis draft and Preparation for Final
Defense
Enhanced Ultrasonic Nondestructive Partial Immersion Technique for Inservice Inspection of Rail
Foot Flaws

六、 已有基础(与本项目有关的工作积累和已取得的成绩、已具备的条件、尚缺少
的条件及解决途径)
6.1 Current Progress and Available Conditions
The accumulated tasks so far concerning this research has covered the design of the
numerical models with one type of flaw as shown in Figure 13, 14 15 and16. Some
preliminary simulation to determine the effect of some feasible incident angles and the
extent of transmission of waves between the wedge (made of acrylic plastic) and the steel
interface have also been done. According to the obtained preliminary simulation results,
estimation of the increment interval for transducer incidence angle was appropriately
determined based on the magnitude of the corresponding refracted angle required to create
a significant change in the direction of wave propagation. In this research 2 degrees
incremental interval was selected between the acrylic plastic medium and steel medium
within the range of feasible incident angles for the steered waves.

(a) (b)
Figure 14. Steered Longitudinal Waves towards the rail foot center at (a) 12 degrees angle
of incidence and (b) 14 degrees angle of incidence
Enhanced Ultrasonic Nondestructive Partial Immersion Technique for Inservice Inspection of Rail
Foot Flaws

Figure 15. Steered Longitudinal Waves towards the rail foot edges at (a) 16 degrees angle
of incidence and (b) 18 degrees angle of incidence

Figure 16. Pure Longitudinal Waves directly beneath the probe at 0 degrees angle of
incidence
Concerning the test facilities, ultrasonic test equipment and some transducers are available
in the laboratory. Rails with embed artificial flaws are also available,
Enhanced Ultrasonic Nondestructive Partial Immersion Technique for Inservice Inspection of Rail
Foot Flaws

6.2 Conditions Lacking and Solutions

The CAD design of the moving rail test mechanism is ready and currently in
manufacturing stage. Figure 17 show the CAD design of the rail test mechanism.

(a) (b)
Figure 17. Moving Rail Test Mechanism (a) Sectional view (b) Side view
The fabrication of the probe component including the manufacturing of the water shell
will commence as soon as the optimal test parameters are decided from the entire
simulation results.
Enhanced Ultrasonic Nondestructive Partial Immersion Technique for Inservice Inspection of Rail
Foot Flaws

七、 主要参考文献
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 Enhanced Ultrasonic Nondestructive Partial Immersion Technique for Inservice Inspection of Rail
Foot Flaws

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