Undergraduate Research Assistant for the LAMSS Lab
Since February I have been working as a research assistant for the Laboratory for Active Materials and Smart Structures at the great University of South Carolina. The lab as a whole deals with nondestructive testing methods for structural health monitoring. This entails developing and testing sensors that continuously gather data about the structure to check for flaws or damages. These sensors act like a sort of electrocardiograph for, say, airplanes. One of the main sensors used in the LAMSS lab are piezoelectric wafer active sensors (PWAS). These have the capability of converting mechanical waves into electrical signal and vice versa. Jared Leone’s post goes more into depth about the usefulness and application of PWAS. Though his post is about spent nuclear fuel casks, the idea is essentially the same for me but instead of nuclear decay I deal with damage due to fatigue.
One way to monitor fatigue is with the use of acoustic emissions (AE). The idea is that whenever a material is fatigued there are cracks and damages that form. Whenever these damages occur, ultrasonic waves are emitted and can be picked up with sensors that use piezoelectric material so we can visualize the acoustic emission. These waves hold a plethora of information such as the location and severity of the damage.
Though my work in the lab has varied, the main role I have played is preparing specimens and conducting experiments for fatigue and AE data. After many tests we are able to compare the data with previous findings from our lab and other labs around the globe. In fact, I have been fortunate enough to attend and even present some data at the Acoustic Emissions Work Group in Chicago earlier this summer. Researchers from around the world attended the conference and shared their findings specifically in the AE field. It was a bit intimidating but a great experience.
My time with the lab has been a great one. My fellow colleagues are always willing to help and share their knowledge and I have been able to experience more than one topic of research as I am always encouraged to learn. This research position has provided me with a way to ease myself into the field of engineering with the addition of school and I encourage everyone to pursue a position if they get the opportunity.
