Abstract
Voids in polymer matrix composites are one of the most common manufacturing defects, which may influence the mechanical properties and structural behavior of the final parts made of composites by various manufacturing methods. Therefore, numerous non-destructive testing (NDT) techniques were developed and applied for quality control and in-service testing of such structures. In this paper, the authors analyzed various alternatives to the reference technique, X-ray computed tomography (XCT) NDT, which is used for industrial testing of composite disks having defects in the form of the lower density areas. Different candidates, namely: vibration-based testing, infrared thermography, vibro-thermography, as well as ultrasonic testing were analyzed in terms of their sensitivity and technical feasibility. The quality of the results, the complexity of the testing procedure, time and labor consumption, and the cost of the equipment were analyzed and compared with the reference technique. Based on the conducted research the authors finally proposed a hybrid approach to quality control, using a combination of two NDT techniques–infrared thermography (for initial scanning and detection of near-surface defects) and ultrasonic testing (for a more detailed analysis of products that pass the first testing procedure). It allowed for replacing the costly XCT diagnostics with a much cheaper, but almost equally effective, alternative.
Highlights
Voids occurring in polymeric and polymer matrix composite (PMC) structures during their manufacturing belong to the class of manufacturing defects that appear in such structures most often
The main goal of this study is to analyze and compare the preselected non-destructive testing (NDT) techniques, verify their sensitivity based on the results of the X-ray computed tomography (XCT) reference scans, and develop a combined approach for production inspection (PI) and quality control (QC) of composite elements based on preselected NDT
The intention of this paper was to present the performance of the selected NDT techniques based on the case study of the identification of internal lower density areas in composite disks, discuss the applicability of the selected NDT techniques in industrial conditions, and propose an effective tool based on a combination of various NDT techniques for fast and effective PI and QC of investigated elements with a possibility of automation of an inspection process
Summary
Voids occurring in polymeric and polymer matrix composite (PMC) structures during their manufacturing belong to the class of manufacturing defects that appear in such structures most often. Their appearance is typical for all manufacturing methods being used for polymeric and PMC structures. Connecting the mentioned reasons with the manufacturing process, the appearance of voids in polymeric and PMC structures can be related to the specificity of a processed polymer, i.e., nucleation processes occurring during crystallization or solidification, the influence of residual volatiles, dissolving or absorption of moisture and other gases during the manufacturing process, etc. The presence of voids in polymeric and PMC structures causes a significant influence on their numerous properties. The local inhomogeneity caused by the presence of voids influences the modal parameters of the entire structure, which was confirmed by Yang et al [18]
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