Signal processing techniques for ultrasonic inspection

This thesis discusses the need for nondestructive testing and highlights some of the limitations in present day techniques. Special interest has been given to ultrasonic examination techniques and the problems encountered when they are applied to thick welded plates. Some suggestions are given using signal processing methods. Chapter 2 treats the need for nondestructive testing as seen in the light of economy and safety. A short review of present day techniques in nondestructive testing is also given. The special problems using ultrasonic techniques for welded structures is discussed in Chapter 3 with some examples of elastic wave propagation in welded steel. The limitations in applying sophisticated signal processing techniques to ultrasonic NDT~ mainly found in the transducers generating or receiving the ultrasound. Chapter 4 deals with the different transducers used. One of the difficulties with ultrasonic testing is the interpretation of the signals encountered. Similar problems might be found with SONAR/RADAR techniques and Chapter 5 draws some analogies between SONAR/RADAR and ultrasonic nondestructive testing. This chapter also includes a discussion on some on the techniques used in signal processing in general. A special signal processing technique found useful is cross-correlation detection and this technique is treated in Chapter 6. Electronic digital compute.rs have made signal processing techniques easier to implement -Chapter 7 discusses the use of digital computers in ultrasonic NDT. Experimental equipment used to test cross-correlation detection of ultrasonic signals is described in Chapter 8. Chapter 9 summarises the conclusions drawn during this investigation.

The mechanical behaviour of cylindrical GRP panels

Glass reinforced plastic (GRP) is now an established material for the fabrication of sonar windows. Its good mechanical strength, light weight, resistance to corrosion and acoustic transparency, are all properties which fit it for this application. This thesis describes a study, undertaken at the Royal Naval Engineering College, Plymouth, into the mechanical behaviour of a circular cylindrical sonar panel. This particular type of panel would be used to cover a flank array sonar in a ship or submarine. The case considered is that of a panel with all of its edges mechanically clamped and subject to pressure loading on its convex surface. A comprehensive program of testing, to determine the orthotropic elastic properties of the laminated composite panel material is described, together with a series of pressure tests on 1:5 scale sonar panels. These pressure tests were carried out in a purpose designed test rig, using air pressure to provide simulated hydrostatic and hydrodynamic loading. Details of all instrumentation used in the experimental work are given in the thesis. The experimental results from the panel testing are compared with predictions of panel behaviour obtained from both the Galerkin solution of Flugge's cylindrical shell equations (orthotropic case), and finite element modelling of the panels using PAFEC. A variety of appropriate panel boundary conditions are considered in each case. A parametric study, intended to be of use as a preliminary design tool, and based on the above Galerkin solution, is also presented. This parametric study considers cases of boundary conditions, material properties, and panel geometry, outside of those investigated in the experimental work Final conclusions are drawn and recommendations made regarding possible improvements to the procedures for design, manufacture and fixing of sonar panels in the Royal Navy.

Characterization of Atlantic Cod Spawning Habitat and Behavior in Icelandic Coastal Waters

The physical habitat used during spawning may potentially be an important factor affecting reproductive output of broadcast spawning marine fishes, particularly for species with complex, substrate-oriented mating systems and behaviors, such as Atlantic cod Gadus morhua. We characterized the habitat use and behavior of spawning Atlantic cod at two locations off the coast of southwestern Iceland during a 2-d research cruise (15–16 April 2009). We simultaneously operated two different active hydroacoustic gear types, a split beam echosounder and a dual frequency imaging sonar (DIDSON), as well as a remotely operated underwater vehicle (ROV). A total of five fish species were identified through ROV surveys: including cusk Brosme brosme, Atlantic cod, haddock Melanogrammus aeglefinus, lemon sole Microstomus kitt, and Atlantic redfish Sebastes spp. Of the three habitats identified in the acoustic surveys, the transitional habitat between boulder/lava field and sand habitats was characterized by greater fish density and acoustic target strength compared to that of sand or boulder/lava field habitats independently. Atlantic cod were observed behaving in a manner consistent with published descriptions of spawning. Individuals were observed ascending 1–5 m into the water column from the bottom at an average vertical swimming speed of 0.20–0.25 m s−1 and maintained an average spacing of 1.0–1.4 m between individuals. Our results suggest that cod do not choose spawning locations indiscriminately despite the fact that it is a broadcast spawning fish with planktonic eggs that are released well above the seafloor.

Caracterização mecânica, térmica e acústica de um compósito que utiliza rejeitos de mármore, granito e EPS para a fabricação de blocos para a construção civil

The use of composite materials for the construction industry has been the subject of numerous scientific papers in Brazil and in the world. One of the factors that motivate this quest is the housing deficit that countries especially the third world face. In Brazil this deficit reaches more than 6.5 million homes, around 12% of all US households . This paper presents a composite that was obtained from waste generated in processes for the production of granite and marble slabs, cement, gypsum, sand, crushed EPS and water. These wastes cause great damage to the environment and are thrown into landfi lls in bulk. The novelty of the work is in the combined study thermal, mechanical and acoustic composite obtained in real situation of rooms that are part of an experimental housing. Many blocks were made from cement compositions, plaster, foam, sand, marb le and / or granite, preliminary tests of mechanical and thermal resistance were made by choosing the most appropriate proportion. Will be given the manufacturing processes and assembly units 500 units 10 x 80 x 28 cm produced for the construction of an ex perimental home. We studied what kind of block and residue, marble or granite, made it more feasible for the intended purpose. The mechanical strength of the produced blocks were above 3.0 MPa. The thermal resistance of the blocks was confirmed by the maxi mum temperature difference between the inner and outer walls of rooms built around 8.0 ° C. The sound absorption for optimal room was around 31%. Demonstrated the feasibility of using the blocks manufactured with composite material proposed for construction.

A plasticidade acústica de uma população de Boto - Cinza, Sotalia Guianensis (Van Banédén, 1864) (Cetacea, Delphinidae), na região Nordeste do Brasil

The environmental characteristics can modify the acoustics of a species due to habitat, time of day and year. Therefore, this study investigated the relationships between seasons, tide, daily cycle of tides, times of day and different habitat and noise emission of S. guianensis. Sound recordings occurred in the Curral’s Cove and Lagoon Complex of Guaraíras (CLG) in the municipality of Tibau do Sul/RN. Whistles are emitted with lower frequency during rainy season and spring tide while clicks are higher; whistles, clicks and calls have higher frequency during ebb tide. These modifications can be related with turbidity and prey availability. The whistles and clicks occurrence are higher at night probably because luminosity is lower. Furthermore, the whistles and clicks frequency reduction overnight allows the sound to travel longer distance and helps the view which is limited; but the minimum frequency increase was needed to catch the prey. The low occurrence of calls could be related to the small group size. The acoustic changes at night may be partly influenced by light levels as prey availability that is larger in this period. Whistle frequencies and click initial frequency are higher in CLG than Curral’s cove that permitted good precision. However, click central frequency is lower and may be connected to tracking the area. Several factors may be associated with such modifications as background noise, bottom and others. This study supports the hypothesis that S. guianensis presents an acoustic plasticity according to the local conditions where the species is embedded and adapts to the environmental changes.

Variabilidade acústica e respostas evolutivas a diferentes pressões seletivas no canto de anúncio de anfíbios

Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq)

Mapping of the Eltanin impact area in the South-East Pacific

Two Polarstern expeditions were conducted in 1995 (ANT-XII/4) and 2001 (ANT-XVIII/5a) to the Bellingshausen Sea and Amundsen Sea and the suspected Eltanin meteorite impact in the SE-Pacific. A survey of the sediment distribution and its acoustic structure along the cruise track was performed. The seafloor topography was sampled using the multibeam sonar system Hydrosweep DS2 which operates on a frequency of 15.5 kHz. The resulting AWI Bathymetric Chart of the Eltanin Meteorite Impact Area is based on a Digital Terrain Model of this area. The mapping was performed using ArcGIS. The Eltanin impact area which covers the 4.100 m high Freden Seamount is visualized by one overview sheet of the scale 1:200,000 and four 1:100,000 subsheets.

Documentation of IPY Seamount

During Leg ANT-XXIII/9 on 2007-04-04 the German research vessel POLARSTERN mapped a significant bathymetric feature with its swath sonar system in the area of the Indian Ridge in the Southern Indian Ocean. The feature is a vulcano located 800 km northwest of Crozet Island. The vulcano with a crater has an absolute height of 1370 m, extending from 3100 m mean depth of the surrounding sea floor to a depth of 1730 m at the top of the crater rim. The crater has a depth of about 135 m. Due to the fact, that the feature was discovered just a month after the fourth International Polar Year (IPY) 2007/2009 has started, it was named "IPY Seamount". The undersea feature name proposal was submitted to the International Hydrographic Organisation (IHO) and the Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission (IOC of UNESCO) on 2007-05-11. The name was officially accepted by the GEBCO Sub-Committee on Undersea Feature Names (SCUFN) at its 20th meeting in July and was added to the GEBCO Gazetteer of UFN.

Lithofacies distribution in the western Bay of Plenty, New Zealand

Sediment dynamics on a storm-dominated shelf (western Bay of Plenty, New Zealand) were mapped and analyzed using the newly developed multi-sensor benthic profiler MARUM NERIDIS III. An area of 60 km × 7 km between 2 and 35 m water depth was surveyed with this bottom-towed sled equipped with a high-resolution camera for continuous close-up seafloor photography and a CTD with connected turbidity sensor. Here we introduce our approach of using this multi-parameter dataset combined with sidescan sonography and sedimentological analyses to create detailed lithofacies and bedform distribution maps and to derive regional sediment transport patterns. For the assessment of sediment distribution, photographs were classified and their spatial distribution mapped out according to associated acoustic backscatter from a sidescan sonar. This provisional map was used to choose target locations for surficial sediment sampling and subsequent laboratory analysis of grain size distribution and mineralogical composition. Finally, photographic, granulometric and mineralogical facies were combined into a unified lithofacies map and corresponding stratigraphic model. Eight distinct types of lithofacies with seawards increasing grain size were discriminated and interpreted as reworked relict deposits overlain by post-transgressional fluvial sediments. The dominant transport processes in different water depths were identified based on type and orientation of bedforms, as well as bottom water turbidity and lithofacies distribution. Observed bedforms include subaquatic dunes, coarse sand ribbons and sorted bedforms of varying dimensions, which were interpreted as being initially formed by erosion. Under fair weather conditions, sediment is transported from the northwest towards the southeast by littoral drift. During storm events, a current from the southeast to the northweast is induced which is transporting sediment along the shore in up to 35 m water depth. Shorewards oriented cross-shore transport is taking place in up to 60 m water depth and is likewise initiated by storm events. Our study demonstrates how benthic photographic profiling delivers comprehensive compositional, structural and environmental information, which compares well with results obtained by traditional probing methods, but offers much higher spatial resolution while covering larger areas. Multi-sensor benthic profiling enhances the interpretability of acoustic seafloor mapping techniques and is a rapid and economic approach to seabed and habitat mapping especially in muddy to sandy facies.

AWI Bathymetric Chart of the Gakkel Ridge (AWI BCGR) (Scale 1:150,000)

The 1 : 1,500,000 AWI Bathymetric Chart of the Gakkel Ridge (AWI BCGR) has been developed from multibeam data measured during the Arctic Mid-Ocean Ridge Expedition in 2001 (AMORE 2001, ARK-XVII/2). This expedition was conducted to investigate the Gakkel Ridge in the Arctic Ocean and was carried out by the icebreaking research vessels RV Polarstern and USCGC Healy. Polarstern is equipped with the multibeam sonar system Hydrosweep DS-2, whereas Healy carries Seabeam 2112. During the expedition an area of 8890 km length and 18 - 46 km width, situated between 82°N/8°W and 87°N/75°E, was surveyed simultaneously by both vessels. Water depths ranged from 566 to 5673 meters. Dense sea ice cover derogated the sonar measurements and decreased data quality. Data errors were corrected in an extensive post-processing. The data of two different sonar systems had to be consolidated in order to derive a high resolution bathymetry of the Gakkel Ridge. Final result was a digital terrain model (DTM) with a grid spacing of 100 meters, which was utilized for generating the map series AWI Bathymetric Chart of the Gakkel Ridge, consisting of ten map sheets.

Pore-water concentration of chloride in sediment cores and equilibrium temperatures and gas bubble analysis at ROV stations from the Vodyanitskii mud volcano

Vodyanitskii mud volcano is located at a depth of about 2070 m in the Sorokin Trough, Black sea. It is a 500-m wide and 20-m high cone surrounded by a depression, which is typical of many mud volcanoes in the Black Sea. 75 kHz sidescan sonar show different generations of mud flows that include mud breccia, authigenic carbonates, and gas hydrates that were sampled by gravity coring. The fluids that flow through or erupt with the mud are enriched in chloride (up to 650 mmol L**-1 at 150-cm sediment depth) suggesting a deep source, which is similar to the fluids of the close-by Dvurechenskii mud volcano. Direct observation with the remotely operated vehicle Quest revealed gas bubbles emanating at two distinct sites at the crest of the mud volcano, which confirms earlier observations of bubble-induced hydroacoustic anomalies in echosounder records. The sediments at the main bubble emission site show a thermal anomaly with temperatures at 60 cm sediment depth that were 0.9 °C warmer than the bottom water. Chemical and isotopic analyses of the emanated gas revealed that it consisted primarily of methane (99.8%) and was of microbial origin (dD-CH4 = -170.8 per mil (SMOW), d13C-CH4 = -61.0 per mil (V-PDB), d13C-C2H6 = -44.0 per mil (V-PDB)). The gas flux was estimated using the video observations of the ROV. Assuming that the flux is constant with time, about 0.9 ± 0.5 x 10**6 mol of methane is released every year. This value is of the same order-of-magnitude as reported fluxes of dissolved methane released with pore water at other mud volcanoes. This suggests that bubble emanation is a significant pathway transporting methane from the sediments into the water column.

Analyse des variables statiques et dynamiques associées à la prédiction de la récidive sexuelle chez trois catégories d'agresseurs sexuels

Thèse numérisée par la Direction des bibliothèques de l'Université de Montréal.

Soundscape Ecology of Hawaiian Spinner Dolphin Resting Bays

Sound is a key sensory modality for Hawaiian spinner dolphins. Like many other marine animals, these dolphins rely on sound and their acoustic environment for many aspects of their daily lives, making it is essential to understand soundscape in areas that are critical to their survival. Hawaiian spinner dolphins rest during the day in shallow coastal areas and forage offshore at night. In my dissertation I focus on the soundscape of the bays where Hawaiian spinner dolphins rest taking a soundscape ecology approach. I primarily relied on passive acoustic monitoring using four DSG-Ocean acoustic loggers in four Hawaiian spinner dolphin resting bays on the Kona Coast of Hawai‛i Island. 30-second recordings were made every four minutes in each of the bays for 20 to 27 months between January 8, 2011 and March 30, 2013. I also utilized concomitant vessel-based visual surveys in the four bays to provide context for these recordings. In my first chapter I used the contributions of the dolphins to the soundscape to monitor presence in the bays and found the degree of presence varied greatly from less than 40% to nearly 90% of days monitored with dolphins present. Having established these bays as important to the animals, in my second chapter I explored the many components of their resting bay soundscape and evaluated the influence of natural and human events on the soundscape. I characterized the overall soundscape in each of the four bays, used the tsunami event of March 2011 to approximate a natural soundscape and identified all loud daytime outliers. Overall, sound levels were consistently louder at night and quieter during the daytime due to the sounds from snapping shrimp. In fact, peak Hawaiian spinner dolphin resting time co-occurs with the quietest part of the day. However, I also found that humans drastically alter this daytime soundscape with sound from offshore aquaculture, vessel sound and military mid-frequency active sonar. During one recorded mid-frequency active sonar event in August 2011, sound pressure levels in the 3.15 kHz 1/3rd-octave band were as high as 45.8 dB above median ambient noise levels. Human activity both inside (vessels) and outside (sonar and aquaculture) the bays significantly altered the resting bay soundscape. Inside the bays there are high levels of human activity including vessel-based tourism directly targeting the dolphins. The interactions between humans and dolphins in their resting bays are of concern; therefore, my third chapter aimed to assess the acoustic response of the dolphins to human activity. Using days where acoustic recordings overlapped with visual surveys I found the greatest response in a bay with dolphin-centric activities, not in the bay with the most vessel activity, indicating that it is not the magnitude that elicits a response but the focus of the activity. In my fourth chapter I summarize the key results from my first three chapters to illustrate the power of multiple site design to prioritize action to protect Hawaiian spinner dolphins in their resting bays, a chapter I hope will be useful for managers should they take further action to protect the dolphins.

Passive Acoustics: A Multifaceted Tool for Marine Mammal Conservation

Marine mammals exploit the efficiency of sound propagation in the marine environment for essential activities like communication and navigation. For this reason, passive acoustics has particularly high potential for marine mammal studies, especially those aimed at population management and conservation. Despite the rapid realization of this potential through a growing number of studies, much crucial information remains unknown or poorly understood. This research attempts to address two key knowledge gaps, using the well-studied bottlenose dolphin (Tursiops truncatus) as a model species, and underwater acoustic recordings collected on four fixed autonomous sensors deployed at multiple locations in Sarasota Bay, Florida, between September 2012 and August 2013. Underwater noise can hinder dolphin communication. The ability of these animals to overcome this obstacle was examined using recorded noise and dolphin whistles. I found that bottlenose dolphins are able to compensate for increased noise in their environment using a wide range of strategies employed in a singular fashion or in various combinations, depending on the frequency content of the noise, noise source, and time of day. These strategies include modifying whistle frequency characteristics, increasing whistle duration, and increasing whistle redundancy. Recordings were also used to evaluate the performance of six recently developed passive acoustic abundance estimation methods, by comparing their results to the true abundance of animals, obtained via a census conducted within the same area and time period. The methods employed were broadly divided into two categories – those involving direct counts of animals, and those involving counts of cues (signature whistles). The animal-based methods were traditional capture-recapture, spatially explicit capture-recapture (SECR), and an approach that blends the “snapshot” method and mark-recapture distance sampling, referred to here as (SMRDS). The cue-based methods were conventional distance sampling (CDS), an acoustic modeling approach involving the use of the passive sonar equation, and SECR. In the latter approach, detection probability was modelled as a function of sound transmission loss, rather than the Euclidean distance typically used. Of these methods, while SMRDS produced the most accurate estimate, SECR demonstrated the greatest potential for broad applicability to other species and locations, with minimal to no auxiliary data, such as distance from sound source to detector(s), which is often difficult to obtain. This was especially true when this method was compared to traditional capture-recapture results, which greatly underestimated abundance, despite attempts to account for major unmodelled heterogeneity. Furthermore, the incorporation of non-Euclidean distance significantly improved model accuracy. The acoustic modelling approach performed similarly to CDS, but both methods also strongly underestimated abundance. In particular, CDS proved to be inefficient. This approach requires at least 3 sensors for localization at a single point. It was also difficult to obtain accurate distances, and the sample size was greatly reduced by the failure to detect some whistles on all three recorders. As a result, this approach is not recommended for marine mammal abundance estimation when few recorders are available, or in high sound attenuation environments with relatively low sample sizes. It is hoped that these results lead to more informed management decisions, and therefore, more effective species conservation.

Analyse des variables statiques et dynamiques associées à la prédiction de la récidive sexuelle chez trois catégories d'agresseurs sexuels

Thèse numérisée par la Direction des bibliothèques de l'Université de Montréal.