A novel damage detection method for carbon fibre reinforced polymer structures based on distributed strain measurements with fibre optical sensor

Abstract

This paper presents a novel approach for damage detection in carbon fibre reinforced polymer (CFRP) structures based on local strain feature matching. The proposed approach utilizes distributed in-plane strain measurements for plate structures under load (in-service application) to define a local point autocorrelation coefficient based on Delaunay triangulation and Hausdorff distance. This coefficient effectively identifies the discontinuities in distributed in-plate strain, enabling accurate capture of damage information through the damage index which is defined as the integral of this coefficient. Notably, the proposed approach requires no prior knowledge of the non-damaged strain distribution and yields excellent detection results for both Barely Visible Impact Damage (BVID) and Visible Impact Damage (VID). Leveraging the advantages of distributed strain sensing, coupled with image processing technology for the purpose of in-service damage detection of CFRP structures, the proposed novel method is a promising technology. The efficacy of this technology has been demonstrated in this paper through theoretical analysis and experimental investigations, offering valuable insights and reference for future research in this domain.