ZnO piezoelectric coatings used for the ultrasonic excitation of longitudinal-transverse waves and their application for smart bolts

The accurate measurement of the prestress for bolt has been intensively investigated in recent years. Many research studies have been conducted to improve the accuracy of prestress measurement using ultrasound techniques; in particular, the real-time prestress of bolt can be obtained without the requirements to calibrate the original load when ultrasonic longitudinal and transverse waves are applied simultaneously. However, there are few studies that have focused on ultrasonic transducers that can generate longitudinal and transverse waves simultaneously. Furthermore, research on coatings deposited directly on the top of the bolts for the excitation of longitudinal and transverse waves has not been reported. ZnO coating is widely used for the ultrasonic transducer due to its excellent piezoelectric property and stable structure in high temperatures. Therefore, it is an outstanding candidate for the excitation of both longitudinal and transverse waves and has a good application prospect in the field of bolt prestress measurement by ultrasonic sound wave with high accuracy. In this paper, ZnO piezoelectric coatings were deposited on (100)-oriented Si substrates by radio frequency sputtering techniques. The morphology, structure, and echo signal characteristics of the coatings were characterized by SEM, AFM, XRD, and ultrasonic measurement instruments. The experimental results showed that Ar/O2 ratio and deposition position exhibited significant effects on the excitation waveform of the ZnO piezoelectric coating. When the Ar/O2 ratio reduced to 1:3, the coating could excite both transverse and longitudinal waves. However, when the deposition position gradually moved away from the sputtering center, the transverse wave gradually enhanced. The coating could excite a pure transverse wave when the sample was at the edge of the effective sputtering area, which showed that the type of the excitation wave and the relative intensity of each wave could be well controlled by the Ar/O2 ratio and deposition position. These research results have a good application prospect in bolt stress measurement.