Non-destructive evaluation of composites

Abstract

The composite materials have been used in aerospace industries for quite some time. Several non-destructive evaluation (NDE) methods have been developed to inspect composites in order to detect flaws, matrix cracking, and delamination. These methods include ultrasonics, acoustic emission, shearography, thermography, X-ray, and digital image correlation. The NDE Branch of Marshall Space Flight Center has recently acquired a thermal imaging NDE system. The same system has been used at NASA Langley Research Center for detecting disbonds. In order to compare different NDE methods, three carbon/carbon composite panels were used for experiment using ultrasonic C-scan, shearography, and thermography methods. These panels have teflon inserts to simulate the delamination between plies in a composite panel. All three methods have successfully located the insert. The experiment and results are presented in the following sections.