Nonlinear resonant ultrasound spectroscopy (NRUS) applied to damage assessment in bone

Marie Muller, Alexander Sutin, Robert Guyer, Maryline Talmant, Pascal Laugier, Paul A. Johnson

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

125 Scopus citations

Abstract

Nonlinear resonant ultrasound spectroscopy (NRUS) is a resonance-based technique exploiting the significant nonlinear behavior of damaged materials. In NRUS, the resonant frequency(ies) of an object is studied as a function of the excitation level. As the excitation level increases, the elastic nonlinearity is manifest by a shift in the resonance frequency. This study shows the feasibility of this technique for application to damage assessment in bone. Two samples of bovine cortical bone were subjected to progressive damage induced by application of mechanical cycling. Before cycling commenced, and at each step in the cycling process, NRUS was applied for damage assessment. For independent assessment of damage, high-energy x-ray computed tomography imaging was performed but was only useful in identifying the prominent cracks. As the integral quantity of damage increased, NRUS revealed a corresponding increase in the nonlinear response. The measured change in nonlinear response is much more sensitive than the change in linear modulus. The results suggest that NRUS could be a potential tool for micro-damage assessment in bone. Further work must be carried out for a better understanding of the physical nature of damaged bone and for the ultimate goal of the challenging in vivo implementation of the technique.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)3946-3952
Number of pages7
JournalJournal of the Acoustical Society of America
Volume118
Issue number6
DOIs
StatePublished - Dec 2005

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