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Green, Robert E., Jr.

Publications and source records attributed to Green, Robert E., Jr..

Nondestructive Evaluation of Aircraft and Spacecraft Wiring

Spacecraft, and especially aircraft, often fry well past their original design lives and, therefore, the need to develop nondestructive evaluation procedures for inspection of vital structures in these craft is extremely important. One of the more recent problems is the degradation of wiring and wiring insulation. The present paper describes several nondestructive characterization methods which afford the possibility to detect wiring and insulation degradation in-situ prior to major problems with the safety of aircraft and spacecraft.

White, John E.↗

Nondestructive Determination of Bond Strength

Current projects include loading adhesive bond in shear in MTS machine, ultrasonic tests with shear waves, shear-fatigue adhesive bonding, and use of ultrasound to detect onset of nonlinearity.

Berndt, Tobias P.↗

Noncontact Acousto-Ultrasonic Testing With Laser Beams

Laser beams used to excite and detect acoustic waves in specimens. Laser/acousto-ultrasonic technique entails no mechanical contact between specimens and testing apparatus. Apparatus located at relatively large distances (meters) from specimens, making it possible to test specimens too hot for contact measurements or located in inaccessible places, vacuums, or hostile environments.

Huber, Robert D.↗

Noncontact acousto-ultrasonics using laser generation and laser interferometric detection

A compact, portable fiber-optic heterodyne interferometer designed to detect out-of-plane motion on surfaces is described. The interferometer provides a linear output for displacements over a broad frequency range and can be used for ultrasonic, acoustic emission, and acousto-ultrasonic (AU) testing. The interferometer in conjunction with a compact pulsed Nd:YAG laser represents a noncontact testing system. This system was tested to determine its usefulness for the AU technique. The results obtained show that replacement of conventional piezoelectric transducers (PZT) with a laser generation/detection system make it possible to carry out noncontact AU measurements. The waveforms recorded were 5 MHZ PZT-generated ultrasound propagating through an aluminum block, detection of the acoustic emission event, and laser AU waveforms from graphite-epoxy laminates and a filament-wound composite.

Green, Robert E., Jr.↗

Acousto-ultrasonic nondestructive evaluation of materials using laser beam generation and detection

Presented in viewgraph format, the possibility of using laser generation and detection of ultrasound to replace piezoelectric transducers for the acousto-ultrasonic technique is advanced. The advantages and disadvantages of laser acousto-ultrasonics are outlined. Laser acousto-ultrasonics complements standard piezoelectric acousto-ultrasonics and offers non-contact nondestructive evaluation.

Huber, Robert D.↗

Characterization of the Nonlinear Elastic Properties of Graphite/Epoxy Composites Using Ultrasound

The normalized change in ultrasonic "natural" velocity as a function of stress and temperature was measured in a unidirectional laminate of T300/5208 graphite/epoxy composite using a pulsed phase locked loop ultrasonic interferometer. These measurements were used together with the linear (second order) elastic moduli to calculate some of the nonlinear (third order) moduli of this material.

Prosser, William H.↗

Acousto-ultrasonic nondestructive evaluation of materials using laser beam generation and detection

The acousto-ultrasonic method has proven to be a most interesting technique for nondestructive evaluation of the mechanical properties of a variety of materials. Use of the technique or a modification thereof, has led to correlation of the associated stress wave factor with mechanical properties of both metals and composite materials. The method is applied to the nondestructive evaluation of selected fiber reinforced structural composites. For the first time, conventional piezoelectric transducers were replaced with laser beam ultrasonic generators and detectors. This modification permitted true non-contact acousto-ultrasonic measurements to be made, which yielded new information about the basic mechanisms involved as well as proved the feasibility of making such non-contact measurements on terrestrial and space structures and heat engine components. A state-of-the-art laser based acousto-ultrasonic system, incorporating a compact pulsed laser and a fiber-optic heterodyne interferometer, was delivered to the NASA Lewis Research Center.

Huber, Robert D.↗

Ultrasonic characterization of the nonlinear elastic properties of unidirectional graphite/epoxy composites

The theoretical treatment of linear and nonlinear elasticity in a unidirectionally fiber reinforced composite as well as measurements for a unidirectional graphite/epoxy composite (T300/5208) are presented. Linear elastic properties were measured by both ultrasonic and strain gage measurements. The nonlinear properties were determined by measuring changes in ultrasonic natural phase velocity with a pulsed phase locked loop interferometer as a function of stress and temperature. These measurements provide the basis for further investigations into the relationship between nonlinear elastic properties and other important properties such as strength and fiber-matrix interfacial strength in graphite/epoxy composites.

Prosser, William H.↗