A Method Based on Virtual Wave Front for Acoustic Emission Source Location in Laminates

The sensor systems to detect impacts on spacecraft promote a demand for acoustic emission (AE) source location method in laminates. Based on the principle of virtual wave front, a new AE source location method for the laminates is derived, a univariate function is used to present the location problem. Experiments have also been carried out on both unidirectional and bidirectional glass fiber reinforced epoxy composites laminates using both lead-break and hypervelocity AE source. The experimental results indicate that: this method can be used in the laminates effectively, when the wave velocity in the plate is lower, the location precision will be higher, and compare with using 3 transducers, 4 transducers can obtain a better result, more accurate results can be obtained for hypervelocity experiments. The results provide a reference for the development of the sensor systems to detect impacts on spacecraft.