Line scanning with Gas-Coupled Laser Acoustic Detection (GCLAD)

The Gas-Coupled Laser Acoustic Detection (GCLAD) is an optical technique for ultrasonic detection based on the deviation that a laser beam sustains when travelling in a fluid that features refractive index fluctuations. If the laser beam is perpendicular to the wave propagation direction, the technique enables simultaneous detection of direct waves in mechanical components and eventual echoes from defects to be achieved. The technique is applied to the inspection of elements predominantly extending in one/two dimensions as bars and axisymmetric pieces, exploiting a signal enhancement effect occurring in defects’ proximity. The phenomenon, namely constructive interference between wave crests of a direct Rayleigh ultrasound and those associated with reflections on a defect flank, is first illustrated numerically. The effect of parameters like the angle between wave propagation direction and source-receiver distance on the GCLAD sensitivity is then experimentally highlighted. The technique is finally implemented to B-scan a steel plate with 1 mm wide, 20 mm long, and 3 mm deep surface defects. Since the GCLAD probe laser beam insists on an entire line, defects present on that line can be identified without moving the device along such direction. This reduces the monitoring time compared to techniques leveraging on traditional air-coupled transducers or more sophisticated methods (Scanning Laser Source).