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Applied Sciences
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Application of Acoustics as a Structural Health Monitoring Technology
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Application of Acoustics as a Structural Health Monitoring Technology

A Special Issue of Applied Sciences (ISSN 2076-3417) belonging to the section "Acoustics and Vibrations".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 20 October 2026 | Viewed by 6517

Editors

Dr. Gbanaibolou Jombo

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Centre for Engineering Research, University of Hertfordshire, Hatfield, UK
Interests: condition monitoring; structural health monitoring; acoustics, and vibration
Dr. Yu (Eve) Zhang

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Aeronautical and Automotive Engineering, Loughborough University, Leicestershire, UK
Interests: condition monitoring, fault diagnosis and the development of data analysis and machine learning techniques
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Acoustics plays a pivotal role in the evolving field of structural health monitoring (SHM), offering robost methods for the real-time and intermittent assessment of materials, structures, and machinery. Techniques such as sound, acoustic emission, ultrasonics, acousto-ultrasonics, and guided waves are essential in civil engineering, aerospace, automotive, energy, and manufacturing industries, amongst others. These technologies allow for early fault detection, reducing the need for expensive manual inspections while enhancing reliability and safety.

We invite contributions that examine advancements in acoustics for SHM, including the integration of machine learning, data processing algorithms, and new acoustic sensor technologies. Topics of interest include, but are not limited to, the following:

  • Acoustic methods (sound, acoustic emission, ultrasonics, acousto-ultrasonics, guided waves, etc.) for SHM;
  • Integration of artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning with acoustic-based SHM;
  • Real-time data processing and signal interpretation;
  • Case studies in civil, aerospace, automotive, energy, manufacturing sectors, etc.;
  • Hybrid systems combining acoustics with other SHM technologies;
  • Advances in acoustic sensor technologies for SHM;
  • Challenges of applying acoustics in complex environments;
  • Sustainability and cost-effectiveness of acoustics-based SHM;
  • Future trends in acoustic-based SHM applications.

We encourage original research articles, reviews, and case studies that advance the application of acoustics in SHM.

Dr. Gbanaibolou Jombo
Dr. Yu (Eve) Zhang
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 250 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for assessment.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-anonymized peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Applied Sciences is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2400 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • sound
  • acoustic emission
  • ultrasonics
  • acousto-ultrasonics
  • guided waves
  • machine learning
  • artificial intelligence
  • sensor technologies

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Published Papers (4 papers)

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Research

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24 pages, 13834 KB  
Article
Magnetostrictive Patch Transducers for the Generation of Acoustic Waves in Concrete
by Zachery L. West, Shazia Khan, Saida Alimdjanova, Duncan Billson, Lee Marston, Sadiq Abdullahi, Robin Young and Oksana Trushkevych
Appl. Sci. 2026, 16(13), 6317; https://doi.org/10.3390/app16136317 - 23 Jun 2026
Viewed by 482
Abstract
Magnetostrictive patch transducers (MPTs) are highly efficient for generating and detecting ultrasonic waves for non-destructive evaluation (NDE), though their use on cementitious media and fibre-reinforced concrete has not yet been investigated. In this study, a COMSOL simulation, validated with laser-Doppler vibrometry, was first [...] Read more.
Magnetostrictive patch transducers (MPTs) are highly efficient for generating and detecting ultrasonic waves for non-destructive evaluation (NDE), though their use on cementitious media and fibre-reinforced concrete has not yet been investigated. In this study, a COMSOL simulation, validated with laser-Doppler vibrometry, was first used to quantify patch deformation for use in subsequent simulation of wave propagation in samples. The MPT system was then validated on thin glass plates, producing tunable A0, S0, and SH0 modes through frequency-wavelength matching. In cementitious mortar plates, SH0 and SH1 modes were demonstrated experimentally for the first time using MPTs. The validated COMSOL model was then used to interpret complex signals in quasi-plate and half-space cementitious mortar prisms, showing that MPTs generate Rayleigh, bulk SH, and surface-skimming SH modes. In steel fibre-reinforced concrete, surface-skimming SH wave speed correlated with increases in breaking strength even in the presence of surface features such as notches. Notably, Rayleigh wave speeds could not be measured in the presence of surface features, and the Rayleigh velocities measured in the same sample, but not in the local tested area did not correlate with SH speed. This behaviour is likely due to the non-uniform distribution of material constituents, including fibre-reinforcement and coarse aggregate, combined with the different propagation paths and depth sensitivities of the reported wave modes. Overall, racetrack-coil MPTs enable multimodal inspection of cementitious media, providing information on the presence of geometric features and material properties. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Application of Acoustics as a Structural Health Monitoring Technology)
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40 pages, 20294 KB  
Article
Quantifying Impact Damage Severity in Conventional, Hybrid and Natural-Based Composite Structures: An Acousto–Ultrasonics Approach
by Kumar Shantanu Prasad, Gbanaibolou Jombo, Sikiru O. Ismail, Yong K. Chen and Hom Nath Dhakal
Appl. Sci. 2026, 16(13), 6313; https://doi.org/10.3390/app16136313 - 23 Jun 2026
Viewed by 343
Abstract
This study presents an approach to quantifying impact-induced damage severity in composites, focusing on synthetic carbon fibre-reinforced polymer (CFRP), natural flax fibre-reinforced polymer (FFRP) and hybrid fibre reinforced polymer (HFRP) composite of carbon and flax. The investigation aims to quantitatively characterise impact damage [...] Read more.
This study presents an approach to quantifying impact-induced damage severity in composites, focusing on synthetic carbon fibre-reinforced polymer (CFRP), natural flax fibre-reinforced polymer (FFRP) and hybrid fibre reinforced polymer (HFRP) composite of carbon and flax. The investigation aims to quantitatively characterise impact damage under energies ranging from 10 to 70 J through acousto–ultrasonics (AU) testing, proposing an efficient technique for evaluating the integrity of various FRP composites under in-service conditions. AU testing was performed at azimuthal angles of 0°, 30°, 45°, 60° and 90°, utilising acousto–ultrasonic waveform indices (AUWIs), such as wave velocity, peak amplitude, energy content, centroid frequency and skewness factor. The damage severity index is correlated with the damage mode. The findings establish that wave velocity is a reliable parameter for quantifying damage severity across all composite material types considered, with high adjusted R2 values of 0.92 for CFRP, 0.89 for FFRP and 0.90 for HFRP. Peak amplitude also shows considerable sensitivity. Finally, this research highlights the limitations of traditional non-destructive evaluation (NDE) techniques and demonstrates the potential of combining multi-damage metrics with advanced imaging methods, such as X-ray micro-computed tomography (X-ray µCT) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM), to provide a comprehensive assessment of damage in various composite materials. The proposed methodology offers a promising approach for quantifying the impact damage severity in composite structures, as applicable to wind turbine blades, amongst other structural components. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Application of Acoustics as a Structural Health Monitoring Technology)
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22 pages, 2499 KB  
Article
Low-Power Vibrothermography for Detecting Barely Visible Impact Damage in CFRP Laminates: A Comparative Imaging Study
by Zulham Hidayat, Muhammet Ebubekir Torbali, Nicolas P. Avdelidis and Henrique Fernandes
Appl. Sci. 2025, 15(15), 8514; https://doi.org/10.3390/app15158514 - 31 Jul 2025
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1655
Abstract
This study explores the application of low-power vibrothermography (LVT) for detecting barely visible impact damage (BVID) in carbon fibre-reinforced polymer (CFRP) laminates. Composite specimens with varying impact energies (2.5–20 J) were excited using a single piezoelectric transducer with a nominal centre frequency of [...] Read more.
This study explores the application of low-power vibrothermography (LVT) for detecting barely visible impact damage (BVID) in carbon fibre-reinforced polymer (CFRP) laminates. Composite specimens with varying impact energies (2.5–20 J) were excited using a single piezoelectric transducer with a nominal centre frequency of 28 kHz, operated at a fixed excitation frequency of 28 kHz. Thermal data were captured using an infrared camera. To enhance defect visibility and suppress background noise, the raw thermal sequences were processed using principal component analysis (PCA) and robust principal component analysis (RPCA). In LVT, RPCA and PCA provided comparable signal-to-noise ratios (SNR), with no consistent advantage for either method across all cases. In contrast, for pulsed thermography (PT) data, RPCA consistently resulted in higher SNR values, except for one sample. The LVT results were further validated by comparison with PT and phased array ultrasonic testing (PAUT) data to confirm the location and shape of detected damage. These findings demonstrate that LVT, when combined with PCA or RPCA, offers a reliable method for identifying BVID and can support safer, more efficient structural health monitoring of composite materials. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Application of Acoustics as a Structural Health Monitoring Technology)
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Review

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32 pages, 1405 KB  
Review
Acoustics as a Structural Health Monitoring Tool in Naval and Offshore Structures: A Comprehensive Review
by Arturo Silva-Campillo, M. A. Herreros-Sierra and Francisco Pérez-Arribas
Appl. Sci. 2026, 16(3), 1477; https://doi.org/10.3390/app16031477 - 2 Feb 2026
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1993
Abstract
The increasing demand for reliability and safety in naval and offshore structures has accelerated the adoption of advanced Structural Health Monitoring (SHM) techniques. Among them, acoustic methods—ranging from passive acoustic emission monitoring to guided ultrasonic waves—have demonstrated exceptional potential for early detection, localization, [...] Read more.
The increasing demand for reliability and safety in naval and offshore structures has accelerated the adoption of advanced Structural Health Monitoring (SHM) techniques. Among them, acoustic methods—ranging from passive acoustic emission monitoring to guided ultrasonic waves—have demonstrated exceptional potential for early detection, localization, and characterization of structural damage under harsh marine environments. This review provides a comprehensive and critical synthesis of the state-of-the-art in acoustic-based SHM applied to ships, submarines, offshore platforms, and floating renewable energy systems. Special emphasis is placed on the comparative performance of different acoustic techniques, their integration with numerical modeling and data-driven methods, and their suitability for real-world deployment considering hydrodynamic, operational, and environmental constraints. By bridging current achievements with future challenges, the paper highlights research gaps and outlines key directions to accelerate the transition of acoustic SHM technologies from laboratory studies to widespread industrial applications. This review aspires to serve as a reference work for both academic researchers and practitioners, consolidating knowledge and inspiring innovation in the field. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Application of Acoustics as a Structural Health Monitoring Technology)
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