Performance tests of a new non-invasive sensor unit and ultrasound electronics

Industrial applications involving pulsed ultrasound instrumentation require complete non-invasive setups due to high temperatures, pressures and possible abrasive fluids. Recently, new pulser-receiver electronics and a new sensor unit were developed by Flow-Viz. The complete sensor unit setup enables non-invasive Doppler measurements through high grade stainless steel. In this work a non-invasive sensor unit developed for one inch pipes (22.5mm ID) and two inch pipes (48.4mm ID) were evaluated. Performance tests were conducted using a Doppler string phantom setup and the Doppler velocity results were compared to the moving string target velocities. Eight different positions along the pipe internal diameter (22.5mm) were investigated and at each position six speeds (0.1–0.6m/s) were tested. Error differences ranged from 0.18 to 7.8% for the tested velocity range. The average accuracy of Doppler measurements for the 22.5mm sensor unit decreased slightly from 1.3 to 2.3% across the ultrasound beam axis. Eleven positions were tested along the diameter of the 48.4mm pipe (eight positions covered the pipe radius) and five speeds were tested (0.2–0.6m/s). The average accuracy of Doppler measurements for the 48.4mm sensor unit was between 2.4 and 5.9%, with the lowest accuracy at the point furthest away from the sensor unit. Error differences varied between 0.07 and 11.85% for the tested velocity range, where mostly overestimated velocities were recorded. This systematic error explains the higher average error difference percentage when comparing the 48.4mm (2.4–5.9%) and 22.5mm (1.3–2.3%) sensor unit performance. The overall performance of the combined Flow-Viz system (electronics, software, sensor) was excellent as similar or higher errors were typically reported in the medical field. This study has for the first time validated non-invasive Doppler measurements through high grade stainless steel pipes by using an advanced string phantom setup.