Source location of acoustic emission in diesel engines

Abstract This paper is the third in a series developing methods of mapping acoustic emission (AE) signals and wave propagation in engines and focuses on source location techniques for the multi-source signals on relatively complex structures typical of machinery applications. Two source location techniques, a traditional wave velocity-based and an AE energy-based technique, using triangular sensor arrays, are used to locate source positions on the cylinder head of a 74 kW diesel engine using simulated sources (pencil lead break) and real sources (e.g. injectors (INJs) and exhaust valves during engine running). Source location using both techniques is demonstrated on the cylinder head of a 74 kW four-stroke diesel engine. The velocity-based technique uses AE wave speeds and time-of-flight (wave arrival time) to locate source position and is found to be most effective for single source signals with a sharp rising edge and good signal to noise ratios. The energy-based technique is based on a simple absorption attenuation model and was found to be useful for multiple source signals such as INJ signals, although structure-specific attenuation coefficients need to be measured for accurate source location.