A fault detection system designed to evaluate the structural integrity of a material employs an array of sensors disposed over the material being evaluated. The sensors detect vibrations in the material and the sensor signals are fed to a data processor. The processor employs a method to analyze the linear and nonlinear characteristics of the sensor signals and then determines whether to proceed with a linear signal processing analysis or a nonlinear signal processing analysis of the sensor signals. Once the analysis is completed, the results are compared to baseline results to determine what if any divergence exists between the results and the baseline results. A significant divergence indicates a potential material failure. The fault detection system will indicate such a potential failure through a visual alarm on a graphical user interface.