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Impact on the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)

Analysis of institutional authors

Sanchez Iglesias, FernandoCorresponding AuthorPedraza Rodriguez, AndresAuthorFernandez Lopez, AntonioAuthor

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May 26, 2024
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Validation of a ray-tracing-based guided Lamb wave propagation methodology in aerostructures

Publicated to: STRUCTURAL HEALTH MONITORING-AN INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL. 24 (2): 1043-1059 - 2025-03-01 24(2), DOI: 10.1177/14759217241249056

Authors:

Sanchez Iglesias, Fernando; Garcia Serrano, Andres; Pedraza Rodriguez, Andres; Fernandez Lopez, Antonio
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Affiliations

Tech Univ Madrid, ETSI Aeronaut & Espacio, Plaza Cardenal Cisneros N3, Madrid 28040, Spain - Author
Tech Univ Madrid, Madrid, Spain - Author

Abstract

Accurate modeling of guided wave propagation is crucial for structural health monitoring (SHM) systems, where a large amount of information and cases are needed to cover all in-service conditions of a structure. Finite-element models have proven to be accurate enough to simulate the problem; however, they typically require substantial computational resources, and each simulation may require a significant amount of time. This article presents a comprehensive study of a ray-tracing-based wave propagation methodology applied to predict the acoustic behavior of lightweight structures. Focused on composite materials, particularly carbon fiber-reinforced plastic (CFRP), the study addresses the growing need for accurate and fast simulation tools in industries where high-strength lightweight materials play a pivotal role, such as aerospace or automotive. The study presents an examination of the ray tracing method's effectiveness with series of experimental coupon tests, ranging from a simple metallic plate to a representative CFRP wing lower cover of the Universidad Polit & eacute;cnica de Madrid-LIBIS Unmanned Aerial Vehicle. The investigation spans a distribution of possible damage locations ensuring a comprehensive applicability evaluation. Results demonstrate efficacy in predicting the wave propagation characteristics, including transmission, reflection, and absorption within composite structures, and also an accurate representation of its behavior for in-service damages, both via added masses and real impact damages. The validation involves an in-detail comparison with experimental measurements, evaluating the reliability and applicability of the ray tracing approach. This research not only contributes to the advancement of predictive modeling for acoustic behavior in composite structures but also addresses the broader implications for industries relying on accurate simulations for design optimization and performance evaluation. The validated ray tracing method has proven to be a valuable tool to ensure precise predictions of wave propagation in composite materials, and its computation speed makes the methodology ideal to contribute to a training database for a possible physics-informed machine learning SHM system.
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Keywords

Acoustic behaviorAerostructuresAntennasCarbon fiber reinforced plasticsCarbon-fibre reinforced plasticsCompositesComposites materialComposites structuresCompression-after-impactDamagDamageEdgFailure-mechanismForecastingGuided electromagnetic wave propagationGuided lamb wavesGuided wavesIndustry, innovation and infrastructureLamb-wave propagationLocalizationModelRay tracingRay-tracing methodReflectionShmStructural health monitoringStructural health monitoring systemsStructure (composition)Surface waves

Quality index

Bibliometric impact. Analysis of the contribution and dissemination channel

The work has been published in the journal STRUCTURAL HEALTH MONITORING-AN INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL due to its progression and the good impact it has achieved in recent years, according to the agency WoS (JCR), it has become a reference in its field. In the year of publication of the work, 2025, it was in position 16/179, thus managing to position itself as a Q1 (Primer Cuartil), in the category Engineering, Multidisciplinary. Notably, the journal is positioned above the 90th percentile.

Independientemente del impacto esperado determinado por el canal de difusión, es importante destacar el impacto real observado de la propia aportación.

Según las diferentes agencias de indexación, el número de citas acumuladas por esta publicación hasta la fecha 2026-04-24:

  • Open Alex: 2
  • WoS: 2
  • Scopus: 3
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Impact and social visibility

From the perspective of influence or social adoption, and based on metrics associated with mentions and interactions provided by agencies specializing in calculating the so-called "Alternative or Social Metrics," we can highlight as of 2026-04-24:

  • The use of this contribution in bookmarks, code forks, additions to favorite lists for recurrent reading, as well as general views, indicates that someone is using the publication as a basis for their current work. This may be a notable indicator of future more formal and academic citations. This claim is supported by the result of the "Capture" indicator, which yields a total of: 5 (PlumX).

With a more dissemination-oriented intent and targeting more general audiences, we can observe other more global scores such as:

    It is essential to present evidence supporting full alignment with institutional principles and guidelines on Open Science and the Conservation and Dissemination of Intellectual Heritage. A clear example of this is:

    • Assignment of a Handle/URN as an identifier within the deposit in the Institutional Repository: https://oa.upm.es/93421/

    As a result of the publication of the work in the institutional repository, statistical usage data has been obtained that reflects its impact. In terms of dissemination, we can state that, as of

    • Views: 39
    • Downloads: 13
    Continuing with the social impact of the work, it is important to emphasize that, due to its content, it can be assigned to the area of interest of ODS 9 - Industry, innovation and infrastructure, with a probability of 54% according to the mBERT algorithm developed by Aurora University.
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    Leadership analysis of institutional authors

    There is a significant leadership presence as some of the institution’s authors appear as the first or last signer, detailed as follows: First Author (SANCHEZ IGLESIAS, FERNANDO) and Last Author (FERNANDEZ LOPEZ, ANTONIO).

    the author responsible for correspondence tasks has been SANCHEZ IGLESIAS, FERNANDO.

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    Project objectives

    Los objetivos perseguidos en esta aportación se centran en avanzar en la modelización precisa y eficiente de la propagación de ondas guiadas en estructuras aeronáuticas. Se pretende analizar la efectividad de una metodología basada en trazado de rayos para predecir el comportamiento acústico de materiales compuestos, especialmente CFRP. Además, se busca evaluar la aplicabilidad del método mediante pruebas experimentales en diferentes configuraciones, desde placas metálicas simples hasta componentes aeronáuticos complejos. Otro objetivo es determinar la capacidad del método para representar características de propagación como transmisión, reflexión y absorción, así como daños en servicio. Finalmente, se aspira a validar la fiabilidad del enfoque mediante comparaciones detalladas con mediciones experimentales, destacando su potencial para sistemas de monitorización estructural basados en aprendizaje automático.
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    Most relevant results

    Los resultados más relevantes del estudio se centran en la validación de una metodología basada en ray-tracing para la propagación de ondas Lamb en estructuras aerotransportadas. En primer lugar, se demuestra la eficacia del método para predecir características de propagación de ondas, incluyendo transmisión, reflexión y absorción en estructuras compuestas. En segundo lugar, la metodología ofrece una representación precisa del comportamiento ante daños en servicio, evaluada mediante masas añadidas y daños por impacto real. En tercer lugar, la validación se realiza mediante una comparación detallada con mediciones experimentales en diversas muestras, desde placas metálicas simples hasta componentes de CFRP de un ala de UAV. Finalmente, se destaca la alta velocidad computacional del método, adecuada para la generación de bases de datos para sistemas SHM basados en aprendizaje automático.
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    Awards linked to the item

    The author(s) disclosed receipt of the following financial support for the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article: This project has received funding from the national research program Retos de la Sociedad under the Project STARGATE: Desarrollo de un sistema de monitorizacion estructural basado en un microinterrogador y redes neuronales (reference PID2019-105293RB-C21)
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