A Comparison of Composite Specimens Damage area Measurements Performed using Pulsed Thermography and Ultrasonic NDT Methods

Abstract

Carbon fiber reinforced plastics (CFRPs) are widely used in aerospace structures due to their high stiffness, strength and good fatigue properties. They are however vulnerable to loads perpendicular to their plane and, while impacted, can suffer significant internal damage decreasing their overall strength. Detecting and sizing such damage is an important task of the non-destructive inspection (NDI) methods. This study was conducted to detect and quantify damage in a set of six impacted even rectangular CFRP specimens designed from a MiG-29 vertical stabilizer’s skin. The inspection was done using the ultrasonic (UT) method (based on mobile scanner – MAUS V) and the pulsed infrared thermographic (IRT) method. Each specimen’s inside and outside (impacted) surface was inspected separately with IRT, while the outside surface was then inspected with UT. UT provided the most precise measurements of the damage area, while the IRT inspection of the outside surface (which would be accessible on a real aircraft structure) provided underestimated values due to the damage’s depth and geometry.

Fatigue Behaviour of Medium Carbon Steel Assessed by the Barkhausen Noise Method

“…The ultrasonic method is the technique most often used in many branches of contemporary industry: automotive [13,14], aviation [15][16][17], power engineering and building [18,19]. However, it should be noted that conventional ultrasonic parameters such as the wave velocity and attenuation coefficient have some limits in applications.…”

Analysis of Cultural Heritage by Non-Destructive Methods: The Case of Sivas Congress Museum

“…Some of the NDT techniques are X-ray fluorescence spectroscopy, holographic interferometry, infrared thermography, sonic/ultrasonic, electromagnetic and electrical techniques, and Schmidt Hammer Rebound (SHR) test; [1], [2], [5], [6], [8], [13]- [17]. In order for these techniques to be applied non-destructively, the devices must be portable and the work must be done in situ [18].…”