Category: News and Announcements

We are excited to announce our 2024 webinar list has been finalized.

To see the list of webinars click here.

The ASNT Iowa Section hosted Rick Lopez, NDT Compentcy Lead at John Deere and a CNDE board member at their October meeting. Mr. Lopez gave a presentation to the group titled “Heavy Off-Road Industrial NDT Application.”  To read the article, click here.

Name:  John C. Aldrin

How long have you been at CNDE or collaborating with?   My earliest collaborations involved working with Bruce Thompson on model-assisted probability of detection (MAPOD) evaluation working group, going back to 2001.  Bruce was a great leader, while also so gracious with his time and experience.  I got to really appreciate how CNDE is such a special organization within the NDE research community.  Over the years, I have collaborated with Steve Holland on vibrothermography research, and more recently in 2023, with the encouragement of Reza Zoughi, I  became an Affiliated Research Scientist to help reinvigorate work at CNDE on MAPOD.  I feel honored to be part of this organization and help to continue the legacy of Bruce and Don Thompson.

Area(s) of expertise:   My core areas of expertise or nondestructive evaluation modeling and simulation, data analysis, algorithms / artificial intelligence (AI) for indication classification and material characterization, and reliability assessment.

Who or what inspired you to pursue your career in NDE? I have been interested in acoustics and vibration, going back to a co-op engineering position at Whirlpool Corporation in the early 1990s.  When I decided to leave Whirlpool and pursue a Ph.D., I contacted Jan Achenbach at Northwestern back in 1997.  I didn’t realize how important his work was at the time; I just knew he did ultrasonics research, basically “high frequency acoustics”.  Thankfully, he had a great project that I really enjoyed, and I have had a series of wonderful opportunities since to continue work in NDE field.

Briefly describe one of your technical contributions to the NDE field.   As part of my graduate work at Northwestern University, I led the development of automated defect analysis algorithms incorporating neural networks for interpreting data from complex weep hole ultrasonic inspections.  These algorithms were the first application of machine learning in NDE to be fully validated with a comprehensive POD study, demonstrating enhanced performance relative to human data review.  Since this effort, I have been involved with a number of transition program of algorithms/AI to support NDT data review.

What advice would you give a researcher just starting out in the NDE field?  Be open to getting out of your comfort zone, whether it is working outside your favorite research topic, NDE technique or material system.  Nondestructive evaluation is a widely varying field with research topics shifting frequently.  I’ve worked on NDE for metallics, polymer matrix composites, ceramic matrix composites, and even concrete.  You can gain a great deal of insight by stepping outside your comfort zone and expanding your perspective, which can lead to novel technical solutions.

Rick Lopez, NDT Competency Lead for John Deere, recently presented at the Central Iowa chapter’s October meeting, attracting a robust audience of 26 attendees, including many undergraduate students. His talk, titled “Heavy Off-Road Industrial NDT Applications,” provided a comprehensive overview of the diverse inspection methods employed by manufacturers in the agriculture, construction, road building, and turf care sectors. Rick detailed various non-destructive testing (NDT) techniques, such as eddy current, magnetic particle, liquid penetrant, X-ray diffraction, ultrasound, and fluorescent penetrant, highlighting their applications, advantages, and limitations. He emphasized the importance of quickly identifying defects without the need for disassembly, which can be time-consuming. Following his engaging presentation, attendees enjoyed complimentary food and beverages while discussing the costs and time requirements associated with the different NDT methods. Additionally, several professors from CNDE conducted demonstrations of various NDT techniques to further enhance the learning experience. Overall, the event successfully combined valuable insights with practical demonstrations, fostering a deeper understanding of NDT practices.

The American Society of Nondestructive Testing (ASNT) Iowa Section achieved a Bronze level President’s Award for the 2023-2024 year. The award was last won in the 2021-2022 program year. 

“The President’s Award program recognizes ASNT sections for outstanding section management performance. The program serves as a roadmap for successful section operation by allowing sections to track their yearly activities and progression. The President’s Award program has evolved since its inception in 1964, with the newest updates that started July 2022.” 

Two former officers from the section will receive the award at the 2024 Annual Conference in Las Vegas, NV. Thank you to all officers who volunteered for the section over the last year: 

Dr. Mohammad Tayeb Al Qaseer (Chair)
Brady Engle (Vice Chair)
Anna Case (Secretary)
Dr. Matthew Dvorsky (Treasurer)
Trent Moritz (Section Director)
Farzaneh Ahmadi (Section Director)
Joseph Filbert (Education Chair)
Kyle Rose (Membership Chair)

CNDE welcomes Dr. Junzhen Wang as our newest Research Scientist.  To read more about Dr. Wang’s research specialties, click here.

Farzaneh Ahmadi, a Ph.D. student in the Electrical and Computer Engineering (ECpE) department, is the recipient of the Research Excellence Award presented by ISU’s Graduate College.  This award is in recognition of her outstanding research accomplishments in a graduate program.  Her research focus involves developing In-line nondestructive evaluation methods for polymer- and metal-based additive manufacturing (AM) processes under the direction of Dr. Reza Zoughi through the Center for Nondestructive Evaluation (CNDE).

The intent of this program is to recognize “the best of the best” graduating students.  This award aims to recognize graduate students for outstanding research accomplishments as documented in their theses and dissertations.  Students are expected to be academically superior and able to not only do the research but also to develop a well-written product.

Featured Researcher

Name: Stephen Holland

How long have you been at CNDE? Since 2002

Area(s) of expertise: Thermography, ultrasound, NDE data integration and digital twin

Who or what inspired you to pursue your career in NDE? I stumbled across laser ultrasonics as a student intern at Sandia Labs because it was a more interesting topic than boring virtual reality computer work.  Back at university, I was inspired to continue after starting undergraduate research in Wolfgang Sachse’s lab.  Five years later, I had my PhD and started at Iowa State.

Briefly describe one of your technical contributions to the NDE field.  Discovery and explanation of the significance of a zero-group-velocity plate wave resonance that dominates air-coupled ultrasonic transmission, is fundamental to impact echo testing of civil structures, and also important in laser ultrasound.

What advice would you give a researcher just starting out in the NDE field?  To study as much math and engineering physics as you can.

Name:  Henry Moldenhauer

Research areas of interest:  Thermography, solid mechanics modeling for NDE, resonant testing for materials characterization.

Anticipated graduation date:  December 2024

Who or what inspired you to pursue your studies in NDE?  During my final year as a civil engineering student, I looked into graduate programs in engineering mechanics. I got in contact with Dr. Stephen Holland at the Center for Nondestructive Evaluation (CNDE) and became one of his students. Before this, I had little knowledge of NDE, but I grew to appreciate the wide variety of topics within the field. The types of problems and projects that I have had the opportunity to work on with Dr. Holland and others at CNDE have really cemented my interest in the field.

Briefly describe something you have learned or discovered during your time at CNDE that surprised you.  I was most surprised by how interdisciplinary the field of NDE is. I’ve found it to be more of an intersection of many interesting fields. On a single project, you may have researchers with experience in different NDE modalities (e.g. electromagnetic methods, ultrasound, thermography, etc.) as well as researchers specializing in other topics like statistics or computational methods. This interdisciplinary approach has not only allowed me to build a much broader background of information, but it has also allowed me to contribute to a much wider variety of projects than I might have in other fields.

What are your future career plans?  I am actively exploring opportunities within the field of NDE. My main goal is to continue to be able to work on solutions to a variety of interesting problems. If possible, I want to find ways to share what I have learned with others interested in NDE.

Henry is the recipient of the O.D. & O.U. Trapp Graduate Fellowship through CNDE.

Name:  Anna Case

Research areas of interest:  Microwave and millimeter wave materials characterization

Who or what inspired you to pursue your studies in NDE?  As a sophomore in electrical engineering, I was hired by Dr. Zoughi to work in the Applied Microwave Nondestructive Testing Lab.  At the time, I was happy to have the opportunity but didn’t know if it would lead to a career.  Several years later, I can say that everyone I work with, including my mentor, David Moore from Sandia National Labs, has continued to encourage me to stay in the field.

Briefly describe something you have learned or discovered during your time at CNDE that surprised you.  What surprised me the most about coming to CNDE was the difference in work as an undergraduate and as a graduate research assistant.  As an undergraduate student, you are given very specific tasks to accomplish, while as a graduate student, you have more open-ended questions to answer.  It’s important to continue to state the tasks you perform so that you know what you have done – even if it doesn’t always answer the question at first.

What are your future career plans?  I am joining the NDE team at Sandia National Labs in Albuquerque, NM.  I hope to expand my NDE experience with CT, ET, and UT.  I plan to stay involved with the American Society of Nondestructive Testing (ASNT) and the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE).

Anna is the recipient of the O.D. & O.U. Trapp Graduate Fellowship through CNDE.

CNDE Director, Dr. Reza Zoughi is the recipient of the 2023 American Society for Nondestructive Testing (ASNT) Lester/Mehl Honor Lecture.  The purpose of the Lester/Mehl Honor Lecture is “to recognize individuals who have made outstanding contributions to the science of nondestructive testing. Such contributions may be made in the area of research, applications technology, management, education, equipment development, or other related areas. Nominees must have made outstanding contributions to the science of NDT. Such contributions may be in the area of research, applications, technology, management, education, equipment development, or other related areas.”

Read More

Farzaneh Ahmadi, CNDE Graduate Research Assistant, will be presenting:

Millimeter-Wave Near-Field Evaluations of Polylactic Acid Filament Used in Polymer-Based Additive Manufacturing

as part of the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) – Nondestructive Characterization Institute (NCI) Seminar Series

August 17, 2023

1:00 pm (CST) 

Weblink

ABSTRACT: Polymer-based additive manufacturing (AM) has found extensive application in various industries, including medical and aerospace, owing to its rapid and cost-effective process. Nevertheless, real-time monitoring of the printed parts continues to face challenges and issues. This study compares the effectiveness of three near-field millimeter wave probes – open-ended rectangular waveguide (OERW), dielectric-loaded waveguide (DLW), and extended dielectric-loaded waveguide (EDLW) – in detecting small voids and moisture absorption in polylactic acid (PLA) filaments commonly used in polymeric AM. Dielectric inserts serve as a field concentration tool, potentially improving the spatial resolution of the probes. Numerical electromagnetic simulations were performed at Ka-band (26.5-40 GHz) and V-band (50-75 GHz) using CST Studio Suite® to detect small hemispherical voids and moisture absorption in the feedstock, respectively, followed by experimental validation. The results of the study indicated that, at V-band (50-75 GHz), the spatial resolution of the standard OERW probe was deemed sufficient for detecting small surface voids in stock PLA filaments. In terms of moisture detection, the EDLW probe at Ka-band (26.5-40 GHz), exhibited the highest sensitivity, when loaded with a material possessing a dielectric constant similar to that of the inspected filament.

BIO: Farzaneh Ahmadi received her B.S. degrees in electrical engineering from Shahid Rajaee University (Tehran, Iran) in 2010 and her M.S. degree in electrical engineering from Tarbiat Modares University (Tehran, Iran) in 2012. She is currently working towards her Ph.D. degree in Electrical and Computer Engineering (ECpE) at Iowa State University (ISU). Her research at the ISU Center for Nondestructive Evaluation (CNDE) involves developing In-line nondestructive evaluation methods for 3D printed structures, especially polymers and metals. She is a recipient of CNDE R. B. Thompson Fellowship, the 2023 American Society for Nondestructive Testing (ASNT) Student Travel Grant Award, and the 2022 ASNT Best Student Paper Award (2nd place).

Congratulations Pete Collins (CNDE, Materials Science and Engineering), Maria Jose Quintana (Materials Science and Engineering), and Yuan Ji!  Their paper, “A Perspective Of The Needs And Opportunities For Coupling Materials Science And Nondestructive Evaluation For Metals-Based Additive Manufacturing” was selected by ASNT as the 2023 Outstanding Paper. 

This paper attempts to provide a bridge between two traditionally separated technical communities, namely the NDE and AM communities.  By providing a brief review of the state-of-the-art of relevant literature, it serves to give a foundation to understand what materials details need to be understood, what information methods may provide, and the possible research pathways going forward.

Name: Trent Moritz

Research areas of interest: Microwave and millimeter wave nondestructive testing and material characterization.

Anticipated graduation date: Spring 2026

Who or what inspired you to pursue studies in NDE? While taking Electromagnetics with Dr. Mani Mina, he told me about CNDE (which up to that point, I did not know existed) and that they were looking for undergraduate students to work in their labs.  After hearing a brief description of what they do, I found it interesting and asked Dr. Reza Zoughi if they were still looking for students.  Fortunately they were and very quickly after joining as an undergraduate research assistant in their labs, I found that I really enjoyed NDE and all the pieces that go into it. While there are many things along the way that led to me pursuing a PhD in NDE, it was mainly the people (Dr. Mina and everyone I have worked with at CNDE) that got me interested in the field and made me want to stick around.

One thing I have learned that surprised me: The biggest thing that surprised me is how little I knew in terms of practical knowledge in NDE coming out of my undergrad. I knew there was going to be somewhat of a learning curve, but I thought with my theory from courses I would be able to quickly figure things out. This was not the case. I have enjoyed the process of learning how to perform NDE and it is something I am still doing to this day.

Future career plans:  I would like to stay in the NDE field, but I am not sure where that will be.

Trent is the first CNDE-GRA recipient and also the recipient of the O.D. & O.U. Trapp Graduate Fellowship in CNDE.

Reza Zoughi, CNDE Director, Kirby Gray (Battelle) Chair in Engineering, and Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering, has been recognized as one of IEEE Xplore’s Featured Authors.

Featured abstract entitled: “Wideband Microwave Camera for Real-Time 3-D Imaging”.