Efficient methods to model the scattering of guided waves in 3D

The propagation of ultrasonic guided waves and their interaction with a defect is of interest to the non-destructive testing community. There is no general solution to the scattering problem and it is still an ongoing research topic. Due to the complexity of guided wave scattering problems, most existing models are related to the 2D case. However, thanks to the increase in computer calculation power, specific 3D problems can also be studied, with the help of numerical or semi-analytical methods. This paper describes two efficient methods aimed at modeling 3D scattering problems. The first method is the use of the Huygens' principle to reduce the size of finite element models. This principle allows the area of interest to be restricted to the very near field of the defect, for both the generation of the incident field and the modal decomposition of the scattered field. The second method consists of separating the 3D problem into two 2D problems for which the solutions are calculated and used to approximate the 3D solution. This can be used at low frequency-thickness products, where Lamb waves have a similar behavior to bulk waves. These two methods are presented briefly and compared on simple scattering cases.