Shuncong Zhong

Walter Nsengiyumva

Nondestructive
Testing and
Evaluation of
Fiber-Reinforced
Composite
Structures
Nondestructive Testing and Evaluation
of Fiber-Reinforced Composite Structures
Shuncong Zhong · Walter Nsengiyumva

Nondestructive Testing
and Evaluation
of Fiber-Reinforced
Composite Structures
Shuncong Zhong Walter Nsengiyumva
School of Mechanical Engineering School of Mechanical Engineering
and Automation and Automation
Fuzhou University Fuzhou University
Fuzhou, Fujian, China Fuzhou, Fujian, China

ISBN 978-981-19-0847-7 ISBN 978-981-19-0848-4 (eBook)

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Foreword

As a researcher in structural integrity, I have been asked many times by engineers

this kind of question “how to detect and evaluate the defects in composite struc-
tures”. This is a very challenging issue in engineering application of a structural
material because engineers cannot use a material without knowing its risk to fail. I
am happy to see this new book entitled “Nondestructive Testing and Evaluation of
Fiber-Reinforced Composite Structures” is ready and answers this concern. As the
title indicates, the book focuses on the major types of NDT techniques that are used
to detect, characterize, and evaluate flaws in fiber-reinforced composite materials
and structures. The authors were extremely careful in the choice of the words and
terminology to ensure accurate information is conveyed to the readers. Indeed, this is
extremely important for beginners and students who are interested in the nondestruc-
tive testing and evaluation (NDT&E) of fiber-reinforced composite materials and
structures. The authors start by presenting comprehensive background information
whereby the different types of defects and damage are accurately described outlining
their common location, relative size, cause, and inherent characteristics followed by
the description and application requirements for the different NDT techniques. If
the guidelines and protocols presented in this book are accurately followed and the
different NDT techniques are used appropriately, positive effects on the cost and
reliability of fiber-reinforced composite materials and structures can be achieved
effectively by evaluating the design prototypes during their development, providing
means and feedback for process control during their manufacturing process, and
inspecting the final products before and during their service life. This is especially
important in the current era of significant technological advancements in the area of
Internet of Things (IoT), Big Data, and Industry 4.0 where the complete networking
of all industrial platforms is highly recommended to obtain high quality and achieve
effective maintainability of the advanced fiber-reinforced composite materials and
structures.
Consistent with the aforementioned, the present book clearly demonstrates that
most NDT techniques are constantly developing by following these developments
and adapting to new technologies to introduce the capabilities of the cybersys-
tems into the testing, characterization, evaluation, and maintenance processes of

v
vi Foreword

fiber-reinforced composites while equally working to identify possible future NDT

needs using new, conventional, and unconventional testing principles to adapt to the
constantly developing fiber-reinforced composite designs and satisfy the customers’
requirements. The present book provides the readers with the most up-to-date infor-
mation, while equally bridging the gap between conventional NDT techniques of
the present and the past as well as providing and guiding NDT practitioners to the
new NDT opportunities for fiber-reinforced composite materials. In fact, each NDT
technique presented in this book provides a detailed description that includes the prin-
ciples of operation, theoretical analysis, and signal processing techniques involved.
Pursuing a rigorous approach with regard to the presentation of the information, the
present book establishes a fundamental framework for the NDT of fiber-reinforced
composite structures, while equally emphasizing the importance of the techniques’
spatial resolutions, integrated systems analysis, and the significance of the influence
stemming from the applicability of NDT and the physical parameters of the test
structures in the selection and utilization of adequate NDT techniques. The contribu-
tions that make up this book are well presented and can be accurately corroborated
by real-time applications/measurements for the different NDT techniques presented.
The present book constitutes a good source of information for students, researchers,
and engineers aspiring to work with the NDT of fiber-reinforced composite materials
and structures.

Shanghai, P. R. China Shan-Tung Tu

January 2022 Academician of the Chinese Academy
of Engineering
Professor of East China University of
Science and Technology
Preface

Advanced fiber-reinforced composites (FRCs) are constantly gaining popularity in

various structural and engineering applications, thanks to their outstanding physical,
electrical, and mechanical properties. However, these types of materials are also
prone to developing defects and damage ranging from small cracks to big impacts
both at the manufacturing and in-service stages of the composite. To this end, a
relentless investigation into their structural integrity is crucial as it helps users to
determine when to reject, repair, or replace a particular part or component that might
be of potential risks to the safety and security of users and the operation of the host
structural system as a whole. In this book, we present a series of major nondestructive
testing and evaluation (NDT and NDE) techniques for fiber-reinforced composite
structures. As interesting as the title of the book might be, one may also want to
know why we decided to include the words “testing and evaluation” in a single
title instead of just keeping the generic term “testing” which is commonly used in
many instances in connection with the word “nondestructive”. To explain where
all this comes from, we need to take a deep dive into the original meaning of the
individual words of the phrase “nondestructive testing and evaluation”. According to
ASTM E1316-17A, the word nondestructive denotes a process of doing something
that does not result in damage or harmful effect to the material or structure under
test. Similarly, the most appropriate definition of the word “testing” relates to the
determination of the presence of certain properties in a component under investigation
and to present its inherent conditions or characteristics by direct or indirect means.
The word “evaluate”, on the other hand, has a definition that seems to be broader in
meaning as it involves a careful examination of the test results and decides of whether
the indications or features noted during the examination can be the cause to accept
or to reject the material or component consistent with the predefined acceptance
criteria.
In practice, however, both evaluation and testing have always been used inter-
changeably in many instances with other expressions such as examination, inspec-
tion, and investigation including in some references of the present book. Although all
these terms do not necessarily have the same meaning, they all refer to the same tech-
nology, the one that is still widely misunderstood or unknown by the general public

vii
viii Preface

and it is even believed that the wrong utilization of these terms contributes in many
ways to this misunderstanding. Assuming it is acceptable to take some liberties with
all these definitions, we would like to advise that the most suitable definition of NDE,
NDT, or NDI would be “an investigative process that does not result in any damage
nor changes to the original attributes of the test composite and through which the
presence of unpleasant conditions, features or discontinuities can be detected, locate,
measured, and then evaluated”. In case this definition is followed and the NDT tech-
niques are used appropriately, the latter can have significant effects on the cost and
reliability of composite structures as they can evaluate the design prototypes during
the development of composite structures, provide means and feedback for process
control during their manufacturing process, and inspect the final product before and
during their service stages. In the current era of technological advancements with
significant interest in the Internet of Things (IoT), Big Data, and Industry 4.0, the
complete networking of all industrial areas is inevitable to ensure the manufacturing
of high quality and maintainability of the advanced composite structures. As such,
NDT must inevitably follow these developments by adapting to new technologies
and introducing the capabilities of the cyber systems into the testing, evaluation, and
maintenance processes while equally working to identify possible future NDT needs.
Although these NDT techniques are constantly improving with new and unconven-
tional testing principles being introduced into the entire NDT industry, the implacable
responsibility for the manufacturing industries to adapt their composite designs to
satisfy their customer’s requirements will undoubtedly affect the way testing engi-
neers provide NDT services. Typically, NDT techniques are currently being inte-
grated into quality control schemes involved in composites manufacturing processes,
resulting in a significant paradigm shift in the entire industrial quality management
and the NDT of composite structures as we know it. It is also believed that some
of the classical concepts featuring comparison of components with similar attributes
and the statistical analysis of these comparative results will no longer be relevant
under these conditions, raising concerns about the prospect of the human factors
in the whole industry setup. To this end, it appears that the NDT community must
continuously work to produce a highly qualified new generation of NDT engineers
capable of making factual decisions based on NDT results and with adequate knowl-
edge about the material properties, the components behavior, and NDT modeling of
NDT experiments in accordance with the relevant applications. This new generation
of NDT engineers should have a broader overview of conventional and new NDT
techniques to rise above the ongoing challenges. Although a considerable amount
of overview literature for common NDT techniques is available, the new generation
of NDT engineers should know that new methods may, at the present moment, be
in experimental and/or development stages (or may not even be presently consid-
ered possible NDT candidates) but have the potential for application in many NDT
settings. To adequately solve all the future NDT tasks, NDT specialists should have a
clear understanding of what is possible and what is not without going into too many
details.
To present our readers with the most up-to-date information, the present book
bridges the gap between conventional NDT techniques of the present and the past and
Preface ix

provides and guides for the new NDT opportunities for FRC materials. In doing so, a
detailed description that includes the principles of operation and theoretical analysis
of the most common NDT techniques for FRC structures during their manufacturing
and/or in-service stages is presented. To facilitate the understanding and the impor-
tance of the different NDT techniques for FRCs, the book first provides some infor-
mation regarding the defects and material degradation mechanisms observed in FRC
structures as well as their general description and most probable causes. Although
there are several NDT techniques used to detect and characterize defects and struc-
tural damage in FRC structures, they all have their specific advantages, disadvantages,
and scopes of application. This means that there is currently no single NDT technique
that has proven to be false-negative or false-positive free when it comes to the testing
and evaluation of composite structures because even factors such as temperature,
stiffness, and mass changes (i.e., due to the installation of sensors) still introduce
additional complications than the damage itself. Additional factors such as hostile
environment, on-site construction errors, equipment’s spatial resolution, as well as
the data collection techniques significantly influence the quality of the measurement
data and the size of the smallest detectable defect. As such, the determination of
the exact size of defects in composite structures and the selection of appropriate
NDT techniques to be used for specific applications remain such a complex practice
in the NDT sphere. To provide effective solutions to some of these challenges, the
present work was written based on the extensive scientific research and engineering
backgrounds of the authors in the NDT and SHM of structural systems from various
areas including electrical, mechanical, materials, civil, and biomedical engineering.
Pursuing a rigorous approach, the book establishes a fundamental framework for
the NDT of FRC structures, while emphasizing the importance of the technique’s
spatial resolution, integrated systems analysis, and the significance of the influence
stemming from the applicability of the NDT and the physical parameters of the test
structures in the selection and utilization of adequate NDT techniques.
This book is structured based on the lines of the well-established NDT principles
with a particular emphasis on the advanced methods of measurement and data anal-
ysis featured in the current state-of-the-art NDT techniques. Although it was not the
intent of the book to provide the state-of-the-art mathematical formulations guiding
the principles of operation of the different NDT techniques, a brief description of
such formulations was introduced in summary for each NDT technique trying to be
essential without boring our readers with dispensable digressions. In general, the
contributions that make up this book were extracted from the published research
works, and others were produced by the engineers in our research group working on
advanced optics and NDT techniques for composite structures. To this end, we are
sincerely grateful to all those who were involved in the conceptualization, writing,
editing of the first draft, and production of the final version of this work as well
as the authors of the many excellent publications cited in this work. Although the
publication of this book may seem to be the end of this work, the task of keeping up
to date with the constantly evolving NDT techniques for composite structures can
never be stopped (i.e., additional research can still be regularly conducted to extend
and update the present work). In this context, the online version of this book will be
x Preface

continuously updated and enlarged at some points in the future to keep the contents
up to date and to provide a healthy mixture of classical, new, and conventional NDT
techniques for composite structures.

Fuzhou, China Shuncong Zhong

Walter Nsengiyumva
Contents

1 Introduction and Background of Fiber-Reinforced Composite

Materials . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
1.1 Introduction and Synopsis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
1.2 Basics of Composites Materials . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
1.3 Polymeric Matrices and Polymerization Processes . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
1.3.1 Thermosets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
1.3.2 Thermoplastics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
1.4 Reinforcements for Polymer Matrix Composites . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
1.5 Types of Fiber-Based Reinforcement Architectures . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
1.5.1 Woven Fabric Architectures . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
1.5.2 Preimpregnated Thermosets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
1.5.3 Non-crimp Fabric Architectures . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
1.6 Types of Fibers Reinforcements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
1.6.1 Glass Fibers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
1.6.2 Carbon Fibers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
1.6.3 Aramid Fibers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16
1.6.4 Boron Fibers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18
1.6.5 Polyethylene Fibers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
1.6.6 Ceramic Fibers and Whiskers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
1.6.7 Natural Fibers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
1.7 Design of Polymer-Matrix Composites . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
1.8 Polymer-Matrix Composites Manufacturing Procedures . . . . . . . . . 23
1.8.1 Hand or Manual Lay-Up Process . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23
1.8.2 Filament Winding . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25
1.8.3 Pultrusion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25
1.8.4 Resin Transfer Molding . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26
1.8.5 Resin Film Infusion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27
1.8.6 Resin Liquid Infusion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28
1.9 Fiber Metal Laminates . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28
1.10 Sandwich Structures . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29
1.11 Properties of Fiber-Reinforced Composites . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30

xi
xii Contents

1.12 Main Types of Deficiency in Polymer-Matrix Composites . . . . . . . 32

1.12.1 Material Processing Defects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32
1.12.2 Manufacturing Defects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33
1.12.3 In-Service Damage and Material Degradation . . . . . . . . . . 36
1.13 Trends Towards Novel Technologies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51
1.14 General Conclusions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53
References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 54
2 Introduction to Nondestructive Testing and Evaluation
of Fiber-Reinforced Composites . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61
2.1 Approaching the Nondestructive Testing World . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61
2.2 Classification of Flaws Vis-À-Vis the NDT Techniques . . . . . . . . . . 64
2.3 General Hints on Testing Techniques and Procedures . . . . . . . . . . . 67
2.4 Classification of NDT Techniques . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 69
2.5 Inspection Requirements for NDT Techniques . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 72
2.6 Regulations, Standards, and Recommended Practices
for NDT . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 74
2.7 Role of Research and Development in NDT . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 77
2.8 Application of NDT: Impact of Globalization and Operator’s
Perspectives . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 79
2.8.1 Important Events in Academic and Industrial NDT . . . . . 81
2.8.2 Important Historical Dates in Standards
Development . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 82
2.8.3 Qualification and Certification of Personnel for NDT . . . . 83
2.9 The Need for Reliability and Accurate Statistic Evaluation . . . . . . 86
2.10 Probability of Detection in DNT . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 88
2.11 Conclusions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 90
References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 91
3 Visual Testing for Fiber-Reinforced Composite Materials . . . . . . . . . . 97
3.1 Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 97
3.2 Important Dates and Development . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 98
3.3 Theory and Principles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 101
3.3.1 The Object Factors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 102
3.3.2 The Light and Test Structure Lighting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 103
3.3.3 The Human Factors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 105
3.4 Visual Inspection Requirements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 107
3.5 Test Equipment and Accessories . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 108
3.5.1 The Direct Visual-Eyes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 108
3.5.2 The Direct Visual Aids . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 109
3.5.3 Remote Visual Testing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 113
3.5.4 Image Recording and Devices . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 116
3.5.5 Image and Video Display Units . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 117
3.5.6 Imaging Software and Digital Cameras . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 117
3.6 Applications to the Inspection of Composite Structures . . . . . . . . . 119
3.7 Evaluation and Reporting of Visual Test Results . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 122
Contents xiii

3.8 Advantages and Limitations of Visual Testing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 124

3.9 Standards, Codes, and Specifications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 127
3.10 Conclusions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 128
References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 129
4 Ultrasonic Testing Techniques for Nondestructive Evaluation
of Fiber-Reinforced Composite Structures . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 133
4.1 Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 133
4.2 Operation and Variants of Ultrasonic NDT . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 137
4.3 Types of Ultrasonic Waves . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 143
4.3.1 Longitudinal Waves . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 144
4.3.2 Shear Waves . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 145
4.3.3 Rayleigh Waves . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 146
4.3.4 Lamb Waves . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 146
4.4 Types of Ultrasonic Transducers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 148
4.5 Ultrasound Generation and Coupling with the Composite . . . . . . . 149
4.6 Ultrasonic NDT Instruments for Composites . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 154
4.7 Ultrasonic NDT Methods for Composite Structures . . . . . . . . . . . . 155
4.8 Applications of Ultrasonic Inspection of Composite
Laminates . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 155
4.9 Ultrasonic Inspection of Sandwich Structures . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 168
4.9.1 Through-Transmission Ultrasonic NDT . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 170
4.9.2 Air-Coupled Ultrasonic Inspection of Sandwich
Structures . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 170
4.9.3 Inspection of Composite Sandwich with Perforated
Facesheet . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 172
4.9.4 In-Field Inspection of Honeycomb Sandwich
Structures . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 173
4.10 Performance Comparison of Ultrasonic NDT . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 174
4.11 Current Trends and Prospects of Ultrasonic NDT . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 175
4.11.1 Sizing of Flaws Using Ultrasonic NDT . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 176
4.11.2 Signal Processing Techniques . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 177
4.11.3 Standards for Composite Structures . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 178
4.11.4 Integrated Inspection Systems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 179
4.12 Advantages and Limitations of Ultrasonic NDT . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 181
4.13 Conclusions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 183
References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 185
5 Infrared Thermography Testing and Evaluation
of Fiber-Reinforced Composite Materials . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 197
5.1 Introduction and History of IRT . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 197
5.2 Generalities and Basic Concepts of IRT . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 199
5.2.1 Passive Thermography . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 201
5.2.2 Active Thermography . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 203
5.2.3 Classification and Factors Determining Classes
of Active IRT . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 205
xiv Contents

5.3 Thermal Properties of Materials . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 211

5.3.1 Thermal Conductivity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 211
5.3.2 Thermal Diffusivity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 213
5.3.3 Thermal Effusivity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 213
5.4 Infrared Measuring Devices . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 214
5.5 Emissivity and Reflected Temperature Measurement . . . . . . . . . . . . 216
5.6 Established IR Thermographic NDT Techniques . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 218
5.6.1 Optical Thermography . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 218
5.6.2 Laser Thermography . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 225
5.6.3 Eddy Current Thermography . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 225
5.6.4 Microwave Thermography . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 227
5.6.5 Vibrothermography and Ultrasound Thermography . . . . . 228
5.7 Scanning IR Thermographic NDT . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 233
5.7.1 Line Scanning Thermography . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 234
5.7.2 Scanning Eddy Current Thermography . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 236
5.8 Applications of IRT-NDT for Composite Structures . . . . . . . . . . . . 238
5.9 Performance Comparison of IRT and Other NDT Techniques . . . . 246
5.9.1 Different Heating Functions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 246
5.9.2 Different Excitation Sources . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 247
5.9.3 Comparison with Other NDTs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 248
5.10 Current Trends and IRT Research Prospects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 252
5.10.1 New Physics and Multiple Physics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 252
5.10.2 Signal Processing Techniques . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 253
5.10.3 Integrated Inspection System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 255
5.10.4 Standards for Composites . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 256
5.11 Advantages and Limitations of Using IRT . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 257
5.12 Conclusions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 259
References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 260
6 Terahertz Testing Technique for Fiber-Reinforced Composite
Materials . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 273
6.1 Introduction and Background Information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 273
6.2 Terahertz Devices and Systems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 275
6.2.1 Terahertz Pulsed Systems—THz-TDS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 275
6.2.2 Terahertz Continuous Wave Systems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 280
6.3 Imaging Theory and Procedures . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 283
6.4 Applications of THz Systems to the Inspection of Fibrous
Composites . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 284
6.4.1 THz Imaging . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 286
6.4.2 THz Spectroscopy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 288
6.5 Specific Application of THz Systems for the Evaluation
of Composite Structures . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 290
6.5.1 Online Process Monitoring . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 290
6.5.2 Off-Line NDT Inspection . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 292
Contents xv

6.5.3Characterization of In-Service Damage

and Material Degradation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 296
6.6 Outlook on Possible Future Applications of the THz Systems . . . . 303
6.7 Conclusions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 304
References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 306
7 Application of Acoustic Emission for the Inspection
of Fiber-Reinforced Composite Materials . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 315
7.1 Generalities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 315
7.2 Usage and History of AE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 316
7.3 Principle of Operation of an AE System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 319
7.4 AE Sensors Calibration and Coupling with Test Structure . . . . . . . 322
7.5 Sources of AE in Composite Materials . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 324
7.6 Analysis Tools for AE Measurement Signals . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 327
7.6.1 Distribution of Signal Hits in the Composite . . . . . . . . . . . 327
7.6.2 Source Localization of AE Signals in the Composite . . . . 329
7.6.3 Identification of Wave Features . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 331
7.6.4 Interpretation and Evaluation of AE Signals . . . . . . . . . . . 333
7.7 Applications in the Testing of Composite Structures . . . . . . . . . . . . 335
7.8 Combination with Other NDE Techniques and Prospects . . . . . . . . 340
7.9 Advantages and Limitations of AE Technique . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 342
7.10 Current Trends and AE Standards . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 345
7.11 Conclusions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 347
References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 348
8 Other NDT Methods for Fiber-Reinforced Composite
Structures . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 355
8.1 Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 355
8.2 Vibration Testing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 356
8.3 Strain Monitoring . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 366
8.4 Electrical Testing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 372
8.5 Ground-Penetrating Radar, Microwave, and Millimeter
Waves . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 375
8.5.1 Ground-Penetrating Radar Inspection Technique . . . . . . . 376
8.5.2 Microwave Testing Technique (MW) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 379
8.5.3 Millimeter Waves (MmW) Testing Technique . . . . . . . . . . 380
8.6 Optical Interferometric Techniques . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 381
8.7 Radiography and Tomography . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 387
8.7.1 Backscattered X-ray Imaging . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 388
8.7.2 X-ray Computed Tomography Imaging . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 389
8.7.3 Neutron Imaging Technique . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 390
8.7.4 Nuclear Magnetic Resonance Imaging Technique . . . . . . . 392
8.8 Conclusions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 393
References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 394
xvi Contents

9 Conclusions, Current Developments, and Prospects in the NDT

of Fiber-Reinforced Composites . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 407
9.1 Conclusions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 407
9.2 Current Developments in the NDT of Fiber-Reinforced
Composites . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 413
9.3 Prospects in the NDT of Fiber-Reinforced Composites . . . . . . . . . . 416
References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 419
Chapter 1
Introduction and Background
of Fiber-Reinforced Composite Materials

1.1 Introduction and Synopsis

In recent years, composite materials such as fiber-reinforced composites (FRCs) (also

herein referred to as fiber-reinforced polymer-matrix composites, composition mate-
rials, fibrous composites, or simply composites), nanocomposites and fiber-metal
laminates (FMLs) have become popular for use in aerospace, renewable energy, civil
and architecture, marine, and automotive industries. In the early days, these types
of materials were used as the fairings or reinforcements for other structures, but
they are currently being used as advanced structural components in primary and
secondary load-bearing components even in structures where any structural failures
would result in catastrophic safety issues [1]. In the aerospace industry, for example,
carbon fiber-reinforced polymers (CFRPs) are used in wing planks, sandwich panels,
and fuselages; they are also used to strengthen and repair the existing structures of
airplanes. Glass fiber-reinforced polymers (GFRPs) are used in thicker structures
such as helicopter’s rotor systems in the aerospace industry as well as the piping and
storage tanks in the petrochemical industry. Also, nearly all marine hulls are currently
made of molded GFRPs or laminate skins bonded to the foams, and in some cases,
wood-filled sandwich panels are used [2, 3]. In the construction industry, compos-
ites are used as reinforcements to concrete pillars and bridge decks as well as the
retrofitting elements for the concrete and masonry structures [4, 5]. In renewable
energy and marine industries, hybrid FRCs involving carbon and glass fibers are
extensively used in the manufacturing of wind turbine aerofoils and hydrofoils for
marine propulsors, respectively [6, 7]. In most of these industries, material develop-
ment and improvement have always been a key parameter in their evolution, going
from wood and metal to composites in search for materials with improved physi-
comechanical properties such as lightweight, high-temperature stability, corrosion
resistance, and many others that could suitably satisfy the application requirements

© Science Press 2022 1

S. Zhong and W. Nsengiyumva, Nondestructive Testing and Evaluation
of Fiber-Reinforced Composite Structures,
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-19-0848-4_1
2 1 Introduction and Background of Fiber-Reinforced …

of each of aforementioned industries [8, 9]. In particular, though, the weight to resis-
tance ratio has always been a factor of great concern in industries such as automotive,
marine, sports, energy, construction, and aerospace.
In the aerospace industry, for example, the utilization of composite materials has
gone through an extensive revolutionary history since the first flight by the Wright
brothers (i.e., using a wood-and-fabric biplane) in 1903 to the time when the aircraft
became a common means of transportation in the mid-1950s. It is noted that aerospace
composites development started at the beginning of the twentieth century (i.e., a
period known as the pioneering phase) when Aluminum was not yet available at
reasonable prices. At that time, wood (which is indeed a composite material provided
by the natural world) was perceived to be the only viable material that could be
used for the manufacturing of structures intended for use in flying machines [9]. In
particular, wood was considered the cheapest and the most readily available substance
that could easily be tailored into the desired shape and strong enough to withstand
flight loads and turbulences. Inspired by the development of the military aviation
industry at the beginning of the twentieth century, Hugo Junkers pioneered the first
all-metal plane in 1915 [10] and in the 1930s the structural revolution started whereby
wood-based structures were being replaced by metal-based structures (i.e., mostly
Aluminum at that time) [8, 11]. The aforementioned structural revolution was marked
by the manufacturing of all-metal fuselages that were used in Boeing 247D (i.e.,
manufactured in 1933) and DC-3 (i.e., manufactured in 1935) aircraft systems [12].
Research continued during World War II and significant developments were achieved
in the 1960s and 1970s. In the 1960s, for example, advanced composite materials
were first introduced in military aviation, and in the 1970s, the same materials were
introduced in civil aviation [8]. However, the use of composite materials was initially
limited to the fabrication of secondary wing and tail components such as the rudder
and wing trailing edge panels, involving directional reinforcement. Revolutionary
expansions of using composites in the aerospace industry took place in the 2000s
with the production of two big airplanes being the main milestone of these key
signs of progress. These two big airplanes are the Airbus A380 (i.e., manufactured in
2005) and the Boeing Dreamliner (i.e., manufactured in 2009). In these two airplanes,
composite materials are intentionally used in the primary load-carrying structure to
prove their efficacy and strength, and today, most aircraft structures have their major
parts made of composite materials including the A400 whose chassis is made almost
entirely of composites.
In the automotive industry, composite materials have been used in the manufac-
turing of caps and steering wheels since the 1940s. However, if one was to pinpoint
the exact date indicating the birth of composites in the automotive industry, then the
1953 GM Motorama auto show at the Waldorf-Astoria Hotel in New York City would
be the best choice. It was at this event when the Chevrolet Corvette was first unveiled
followed by the presentation of the stylish convertible, polo white with red interiors
six months later. The Corvette body featured GFRP composites and was indeed the
first production car to use structural polymer composites, establishing a significant
milestone for the automotive industry [13]. At this time, the use of GFRPs was
already becoming a popular method for constructing lightweight vehicles. In 1957,
1.1 Introduction and Synopsis 3

the Lotus Elite was manufactured using several GFRP moldings to create monocoque
composites. At this time, engineers started using the same new method (i.e., use of
several glass-fiber-reinforced plastics molding to manufacture monocoque compos-
ites) to produce other sporting products such as fishing poles/rods, tennis racquets,
spars/shafts for kayak paddles, windsurfing masts, and boards, hockey sticks, as well
as kites and bicycle handlebars among others [14]. The method of using composites
to manufacture molding for cars, especially cars designed for speed and fuel-saving
efficiency, mainly derived from the development of natural composites. The latter are
composite materials obtained by combining plant fibers (i.e., particularly plants that
have a makeup of fibers) and resins. In particular, natural composites present many
interesting properties and their ability to sway under the force of wind gives them a
unique combination of strength and flexibility and a key feature enabling them for
use in many industrial applications. Inspired by the same natural concept of trees,
composites manufacturers have discovered that the same results, if not better, could
also be produced by using other components. To this end, composites have been
used and experimented with for many years and significant improvements have been
recorded, hence the ability to make stronger lightweight materials that are currently
used in cars, boats, and aerospace equipment to list but a few. In the early 1990s,
for example, numerous super-cars such as Jaguar XJ220 and Bugatti EB110 were
manufactured using a variety of composite materials in their body structures [15]. The
Jaguar XJ220, for example, was manufactured using an aluminum mixture while the
Bugatti EB110 was manufactured using a combination of aluminum, carbon panels,
and steel.
In the construction and architecture industries, the combination of different mate-
rials in building and construction has been around since ancient history. The literature
indicates that one of the earliest examples of using composite materials for the manu-
facturing of structural systems in construction can be traced back to around 3400 B.C.
when Mesopotamians glued wood strips at different angles to create plywood [16]. As
the technology continued to grow, new materials and methods of making composites
were developed for different applications. However, composite materials were gener-
ally utilized in structural engineering as fairings and reinforcements for the existing
structures and were not utilized to their full potential until recently. This is particu-
larly because the engineering capabilities of making advanced composites were not
at a satisfactory level yet and their properties were poorly understood in the engi-
neering world compared to their metallic counterparts. In recent years, however, the
shift has been gradually moving toward their applications in primary load-bearing
structures, thanks to the continued development of science and technology which
has enabled engineers to better understand the properties and improved designs for
advanced composite materials. It is noted that the term advanced materials refer to
materials based on new fiber and resin systems having greater strength and stiffness
properties than those of conventional glass and carbon fiber-based composites mate-
rials. Indeed it is now clear that the use of composite materials has enjoyed successful
advancements over the years and continue to grow to this date-driven primarily by
several factors such as the transition from simple natural composites to advanced
natural and man-made composites (i.e., also referred to as synthetic composites) as
4 1 Introduction and Background of Fiber-Reinforced …

well as the advancements registered in the development of polymeric resins since

the 1930s, along with the development of carbon fibers in the 1960s which laid the
groundwork for today’s manufacturing of fiber-reinforced composite materials [17].
Advancements and expertise in specialized molding processes have also allowed
composites manufacturers to be able to tailor some of the unique properties of the
composite materials to fulfill certain requirements not to mention their favorable
strength to weight ratios which are indeed the key parameters for aerial craft systems
that have to operate against the gravity force [9]. Government regulations in certain
countries such as the United States and the European Union also continue to impose
tighter restrictions on vehicle emissions and demand the improvement in materials
and transportation safety, and one way to meet these requirements by the automobiles
manufacturing industries is by using advanced lightweight materials such as plastics
and composites that have the highest potential in this regard [13].
In summary, the above overview outlining the chronological development of
materials for different industries from wood to the generation of advanced fiber-
reinforced composite materials highlights the continuing trend of increasing exploita-
tion of advantageous composite materials physicomechanical properties such as the
strength-to-weight, temperature corrosion resistance, and many others. However,
since the selection of materials for a particular component in a structure depends on
the various design and operation criteria, it is necessary to consider all the pros and
cons that go along with the application of interest before choosing the raw mate-
rials for the fabrication of specific components. In particular, some of the impor-
tant criteria to be considered taking into account the above-mentioned prerequisites
include physical (i.e., density, temperature resistance, etc.), mechanical (i.e., tensile
strength, modulus, toughness, etc.), environmental (i.e., biodegradability, toxic level,
etc.), and cost (i.e., raw material cost, manufacturing cost, etc.). Although composite
materials have had tremendous success in structural engineering for many years,
their manufacturing process may often lead to a complex product that yet entails
serious technical hitches in the complete understanding of its performance. A lot has
been done since the appearance on the market of the first made-made or synthetic
composite materials, but the world of composites remains an open endeavor that still
needs to be fully explored.

1.2 Basics of Composites Materials

In general, composite materials are obtained by combining two or more basic mate-
rials with different physical or chemical properties (often referred to as constituent
materials or material constituents) to generate a relatively homogeneous material
with improved properties compared to those of its original material constituents.
Two main categories of materials constituent viz. the matrix (also referred to as the
binder) and reinforcement are generally used. In the context of this book, a composite
material denotes a material consisting of a combination of filaments (fibers) in a
common matrix. The basic premise of these materials is that the combination of
1.2 Basics of Composites Materials 5

materials does not alter their individual properties (both good and poor properties),
but rather provides support to one another to overcome their limitations and achieve
the desired properties [18]. It is certainly this design freedom that gives composites
their greatest advantages, uniqueness as well as distinct attributes allowing their mate-
rial constituents to remain flexible and be able to play different roles for a common
goal [8]. In general, the fibers provide the essential axial high strength and stiffness
of the composite material, with a low density that gives the significant benefits of
exceptionally high specific properties. However, fiber is brittle and requires support
against premature fracture to allow the composite to meet its design specifications.
Thus, a matrix is added to the composite to perform other critical functions such as
maintaining the reinforcements (i.e., fibers in this case) in the proper orientation and
location, protecting them from abrasion and environmental effects, helping to transfer
or distribute stresses between the adjacent fibers and particles, avoiding the propa-
gation of fractures, and contributing to electrical conductivity as well to the thermal
stability of the composite. In addition, the matrix properties generally determine the
resistance of the composite to most of the damaging and/or material degradative
processes that eventually cause the failure of the structure including impact damage,
delamination, water absorption, chemical attack, and high-temperature creep. Thus,
the matrix is typically the weak link in fiber-reinforced composite structures. The
resulting structure provides an increase in the damage tolerance and toughness of the
brittle fibers with minimal loss of their beneficial mechanical and physical properties.
Several types of materials are generally used as the matrix for composites
including polymers, cement, ceramics, and metals, with some of these materials
being predominantly used in some applications than in others. In civil engineering,
for example, cement is widely used in concrete-based products whereby additional
materials such as sand, stones, and steel serve as reinforcement embedded in the
form of particles or metal rods (i.e., reinforced concrete). Although ceramic matrix
composites (CMCs) are extremely brittle, they are particularly appreciated for their
resistance to high temperature, low densities, thermal conductivities, and environ-
mental effects such as corrosion and oxidation [19]. As a result, their primary use is for
thermal protection systems (TPSs), for example, as carbon-reinforced silicon carbide
(C/SiC) or silicon carbide reinforced silicon carbide (SiC/SiC), which are used where
oxidation resistance and high-temperature capability are critical [20], especially for
thermal protection in the aerospace field. Substantial advances have been made in
the thermal barrier coating (TBC) of gas turbine blades and vanes [21]. Also, metal
matrix composites (MMCs) are composed of a metal matrix (e.g., Magnesium, Tita-
nium as well as Aluminum and their alloys) and a reinforcement/filler material (e.g.,
silicon carbide and graphite) which provide them with excellent mechanical perfor-
mance compared to their base metals and their polymer-matrix-based counterparts.
Although MMCs have lower toughness than their base metals, they present many
enhanced properties such as specific strength, stiffness and moduli, low density and
high-temperature resistance, lower coefficients of thermal expansion, and, in some
cases, better wear resistance.
In general, a magnesium matrix is used for the manufacturing of parts for gear-
boxes, compressors, and engines such as casings its composites help to offset the
6 1 Introduction and Background of Fiber-Reinforced …

fuel costs associated with flight and help reduce carbon emissions (i.e., magnesium
has the highest strength-to-weight ratio of all the structural metals with 36% lighter
per unit volume than Aluminum and 78% lighter than iron) [22, 23]. Instead, a tita-
nium matrix is mainly used for the manufacturing of turbine engine components (fan
blades, actuator pistons, synchronization rings, connecting links, shafts, and discs)
[24, 25]. Moreover, in the aerospace field, Al-SiC, Al-B, Mg-C, Al-C, Al-Al2 O3
continuous and discontinuous reinforcements are widely used for frames, reinforce-
ments, and aerial joining elements [8, 26]. It is worth mentioning that commercial
applications for metal matrix composites are generally sparse due to their high cost.
However, because they are considered enablers for future hypersonic flight vehi-
cles, metal matrix composites remain important materials in the aerospace industry
[27]. In particular, polymers present a relatively low-processing cost and several
advantageous physicomechanical properties and they are by far the most commonly
used type of matrix in non-civil products. Reinforcements are often made of glass
or carbon fibers and they are often referred to as fiber-reinforced polymers-matrix
(FRP) composites. If classified by matrix, fiber-reinforced composite structures are
classified as thermoplastic (e.g., long and short fiber-reinforced thermoplastics) and
thermoset (e.g., paper composites panels) composites. Advanced thermoset polymer
matrix systems usually incorporate aramid fiber and carbon fiber in an epoxy resin
matrix. Indeed, fiber-reinforced composites have generally been considered the most
market-dominant types of composites among the other composite materials in the
aircraft industry and will be treated in greater detail consistent with the line of work
and the subject-matter being discussed in this book.

1.3 Polymeric Matrices and Polymerization Processes

Generally speaking, the term “polymer” denotes a substance or material consisting

of very large molecules, or macromolecules, composed of many repeating subunits
(i.e., small molecules called monomers, or “mers”). The latter are bonded together
through a chemical reaction process referred to as “polymerization”. However, each
monomer must have at least two reaction sites or functional groups for the poly-
merization process to take place. It is noted that two types of polymerization are
usually identified depending on the process by which the polymers are formed. The
two polymerization processes are addition polymerization and condensation poly-
merization. In the former, several mers react in the presence of a catalyst to form
the polymer without the formation of byproducts, and in the latter, the polymeric
chain development is followed by the elimination of small molecules such as water
(H2 O), methanol (CH3 OH) and many others [28]. Interestingly, their consequently
large molecular mass, relative to small molecule compounds, produces some of the
unique physical properties including toughness, high elasticity, viscoelasticity, and
a tendency to form amorphous and semi-crystalline structures rather than crystals.
Indeed different polymers present different properties and these can even be used
1.3 Polymeric Matrices and Polymerization Processes 7

Fig. 1.1 General comparison of the main characteristics of thermoplastic and thermoset polymeric
matrices used in fiber-reinforced composites— (Source Darrel R. Tenney, NASA Langley Research
Center) [31]

to classify them into different groups [29]. Two main groups are generally consid-
ered viz. thermosets and thermoplastics depending on their behavior under heating
or cooling conditions [29, 30], properties of these two types of polymers are signif-
icantly different. To this end, the general characteristics of each matrix type are
shown in Fig. 1.1; however, recently developed matrix resins have begun to change
this picture, as noted below.

1.3.1 Thermosets

Prior to polymerization, thermosets behave like low-viscosity resin and cure grad-
ually at a relatively low temperature (i.e., between 20 to 200 °C). As soon as they
are fully cured, thermosets cannot be reprocessed by reheating or otherwise. In their
fully cured form, molecules in polymeric thermosets are cross-linked to connect the
entire matrix in a three-dimensional network (a process called curing), and because
of this property, these types of polymers are generally referred to as cross-linked
polymers [32]. Thermoses, because of their three-dimensional crosslinked structure,
tend to have high dimensional stability, high-temperature resistance, and good resis-
tance to solvents. Recently, considerable progress has been made in improving the
toughness and maximum operating temperatures of thermosets. Also, molecules of
fully cured thermosetting polymers are permanently insoluble and infusible. Typical
examples of thermosetting polymers include unsaturated epoxies, polyesters, vinyl
esters, polyamides, and phenolics among others [8, 30]. As mentioned earlier, cured
epoxy resins remain reasonably stable even in hostile environments (i.e., high resis-
tance to corrosive chemical attack) and are excellent adhesives having low shrinkage
during curing (polymerization) and present no emission of volatile gases. Indeed
the aforementioned characteristics confer to these materials with high mechanical
properties and high corrosion resistance (coupled with a quite simple curing process),
making them the most popular amongst advanced composite resin matrices. However,
epoxies are generally expensive, they cannot be stored for a long time and so are
mainly used in high technology areas.
8 1 Introduction and Background of Fiber-Reinforced …

In contrast to epoxy resins, thermosetting polyesters are relatively cheaper, easily

accessible, and used in a wide range of fields. In addition, liquid polyesters can
be stored at room temperature for a longer time (the storage time usually varies
between several months and sometimes even years), and with the mere addition of
a catalyst can cure within a short time; the cured polyester can be rigid, or flexible,
as the case may be, and transparent. Thermosetting polyesters are commonly used
in fiber-reinforced plastics. They are mainly used in the automotive and naval fields.
Phenolics represent the first truly synthetic plastic (i.e., commercialized in 1905)
obtained combining formaldehyde and phenol. They are water and solvent resistant,
can be used as electrical insulators (i.e., they are extensively used in circuit boards),
but are generally brittle even if they can be strengthened, to a certain extent, by
fillers. Nowadays, they have been practically superseded by modern plastics such as
epoxy or polyester resins. Phenolic and amino resins are another group of polymer-
matrix resins as well as polyamides, which are relative newcomers to the advanced
composite industry and have not been studied to the extent of the other resins.

1.3.2 Thermoplastics

Currently, thermoplastics only represent a relatively small portion of all the compos-
ites in the entire FRCs industry. They are typically supplied as nonreactive solids
(no chemical reaction occurs during processing) and require only heat and pres-
sure to form the finished part. Unlike the thermosets, the thermoplastics can
usually be reheated and reformed into another shape if desired. Thermoplastics
are also linear polymers, which are composed of chainlike molecules (i.e., long
and discrete molecules) that may be some high-viscosity resins with varying
degrees of crystallinity. These types of resins are also referred to as engineering
plastics and they include some polyesters, polypropylene (PP), polyvinylchlo-
ride, polyetherimide (PEI), polyamide-imide, polyether ether ketone (PEEK),
polystyrene, and polyphenylene sulfide (PPS) as well as liquid crystal polymers
among others. Regarding their properties, most thermoplastics can be dissolved in
certain liquids, and as indicated earlier, they soften or melt upon heating above
their melting/processing temperature (i.e., typically from 100 to 400 °C) for addi-
tional processing, and after forming, they are cooled to become amorphous, semi-
crystalline, or even crystalline solids (i.e., the degree of crystallinity has a strong
effect on the final matrix properties). Unlike the curing process of thermosetting
resins, the processing of thermoplastics is reversible, and if desired, the resin can
be formed into another shape by simply reheating the original product to its process
temperature. Although thermoplastics are generally inferior to thermosets in terms
of properties and resistance to environmental corrosion (i.e., particularly in high-
temperature strength and chemical stability), they are generally more resistant to
cracking and impact damage [33, 34]. However, it should be noted that the recently
1.3 Polymeric Matrices and Polymerization Processes 9

developed high-performance thermoplastics, such as PEEK, which have a semi-

crystalline microstructure, exhibit excellent high-temperature strength and solvent
resistance than previously measured with other types of thermoplastics.
In terms of their applications, thermoplastics have recently become of great
interest to engineers and researchers in material science for their ductility and high-
processing speed as well as for the greater flexibility and choice of manufacturing
techniques. Their processing can be selected depending on the scale and rate of
production required as well as the size of the component. In addition, thermoplastic
composites can be easily repaired and/or remanufactured because their transition
to the softened phase can be accomplished any number of times by simply heating
them making them extremely useful especially in the areas where structural repairs
are of great concern. Thermoplastics offer great promise for the future from a manu-
facturing point of view, because it is easier and faster to heat and cool a material
than it is to cure it. This makes thermoplastic matrices attractive to high-volume
industries such as the automotive and aerospace industries. Currently, thermoplas-
tics are used primarily with discontinuous fiber-reinforced composite materials such
as chopped/short glass or carbon fiber/graphite. However, there is great potential for
high-performance thermoplastics reinforced with continuous fibers also known as
long FRCs. While thermoplastics could be used to replace thermosets-based struc-
tures in the next generation of fighter aircraft systems [35–37], thermoset matrices
(i.e., especially epoxy) are generally preferred for aeronautical applications due to
their lightweight requirements. In addition, even though the use of thermoplastics
is emerging as the total composite percentage in airplanes is currently increasing,
thermosets still lead the way in these types of structures and are expected to remain
so for many years to come.

1.4 Reinforcements for Polymer Matrix Composites

Generally speaking, fiber-reinforced composite materials consist of a variety of

short or continuous fibers (reinforcements) bound together either by a polymer
matrix which can be a thermoset or thermoplastic type of polymer (binder). Fiber-
reinforced composite materials are generally designed to transfer the loads between
the individual fibers in the polymer matrix and present several advantages such as
lightweight, good abrasion resistance, good corrosion resistance, high stiffness as
well as high strength in the direction of their reinforcements. Generally speaking,
the reinforcement of a composite material indicates all the methods used to improve
its mechanical properties it also indicates the materials used to provide the compos-
ites with additional strength and flexural stiffness. Indeed the choice of reinforcement
material is particularly important because it provides most of the composite’s strength
and stiffness and determines some of the most important mechanical properties of
the finished structure such as its load-carrying capacity, strength, impact resistance,
and flexural stiffness. Several types of materials are usually used as reinforcements
for fiber-reinforced composite materials and they can be introduced in the polymer
10 1 Introduction and Background of Fiber-Reinforced …

Fig. 1.2 Types of reinforcement materials: a fibers, b whiskers (discontinuous reinforcement), c

particles and d fabrics

matrix as particles (i.e., also known as discontinuous reinforcement), short fibers or

whiskers, fabrics, and continuous fibers as illustrated in Fig. 1.2. Particles or discon-
tinuous reinforcements are generally cubic pieces of material, while whiskers are
single stretched crystals and fibers are single filaments of significantly small diam-
eter/length ratio that are aligned following one main direction or randomly dispersed
into the polymer matrix.
It is noted that fibers are the most commonly used types of reinforcements because
the resultant composite (i.e., fibrous composite or polymer matrix composite) often
comes with small and scarce defects compared to other types of composites and
the fact that fibers can be oriented following the direction of the main tensile
stresses does provide additional strength to the composite [8]. Interestingly, fibers
with a small diameter offer great flexibility to manufacturers during the fabrication
processes. High-performance composites are generally manufactured with contin-
uous fibers, while composites in less-demanding applications can be made with
cheaper short fibers in an aligned array or with a random orientation. Generally
speaking, fiber-reinforced composites usually contain about 60% reinforcing fibers
of the total volume of the composite, and glass fibers, graphite, and aramid are
among the commonly used fibers. The fibers that are commonly found and used
within fiber-reinforced composite materials include fiberglass, graphite, and aramid.
Glass fibers present a relatively low stiffness at the same time exhibit a competi-
tive tensile strength compared to other types of fibers. The cost of glass fibers is
also dramatically lower than that of other types of fibers which is probably why
glass fibers are the most widely used type of fibers in fiber-reinforced composite
materials. The reinforcing fibers have their highest mechanical properties along their
lengths rather than their widths. Thus, the reinforcing fibers may be arranged and
1.4 Reinforcements for Polymer Matrix Composites 11

oriented in different forms and directions to provide different physical properties

and advantages based on the application [7, 8]. In general, proper selection of the
fiber type, fiber volume fraction, fiber length, and fiber orientation is very important,
since it influences the density, tensile strength and modulus, compressive strength
and modulus, fatigue strength as well as fatigue failure mechanisms, electrical and
thermal conductivities and ultimately the cost of the composites.

1.5 Types of Fiber-Based Reinforcement Architectures

As indicated earlier, fiber reinforcements are the most commonly used reinforcements
for composites materials and they will indeed be the primary focus for this book.

1.5.1 Woven Fabric Architectures

The reinforcing medium can be also produced in the form of woven fabric by directly
interlacing either separate bundles of fibers or tows, combining warp (0◦ ) and weft
(90◦ ) in a regular pattern or weave style (i.e., formed by weaving). Examples of
woven fabric architectures are illustrated in Fig. 1.3 and their preference of usage
in the manufacturing of fiber-reinforced composite is solely based on the compro-
mise between ease of handling during the manufacturing process, drapability (i.e.,
the ability to form the fabric into a three-dimensional geometry), and mechanical
performance to list but few. In the compact plain weave (Fig. 1.3a), individual warp
fiber passes alternately under and over each weft fiber, making it one of the most
stable types of woven fiber (due to the intertwined weave structure), but also one
of the most difficult weaves to drape. In addition, this type of weave does produce
composites with significantly reduced in-plane strength and stiffness because of its
high level of fiber crimp (i.e., misalignment of fibers from the plane of the fabric),

Fig. 1.3 Some woven fabric types: a plain-woven fabric, b twill woven fabric, and c satin woven
fabric
12 1 Introduction and Background of Fiber-Reinforced …

which produces resin-pockets zones (i.e., resin-rich and/or resin-starved areas) in the
composite and their limited performance attributes.
As opposed to compact plain weave, the twill weave (Fig. 1.3b) presents one
or more warp fibers alternately weave over and under two or more weft fibers in a
regular repeated manner with the visual effect of a straight or broken diagonal ‘rib’
to the fabric. Although this type of weave presents slightly less stable composites,
the twill weave features superior wet out and drape features and it does provide
composites with improved mechanical properties, reduced crimp, and a smoother
surface compared with the plain weave. Satin weaves (Fig. 1.3c) are fundamentally
twill weaves modified to produce fewer intersections of warp and weft. The ‘harness’
number used in their designation (typically 4, 5, and 8) is the total number of fibers
crossed and passed under before the fiber repeats the pattern. In most cases, a 5-
harness satin weave is the most preferred drapeable example, and it features a weave
pattern of reduced intertwining which provides improved in-plane mechanical prop-
erties at the expense of stable handling. In addition, the asymmetry that needs to
be considered in the satin weaves entails that one face of the fabric involves fibers
running predominantly in the warp direction while the other face has fibers running
predominantly in the weft direction.

1.5.2 Preimpregnated Thermosets

Either reinforcing unidirectional (UD) fiber tapes or woven fabrics can be pre-
impregnated with a partially cured thermoset resin to produce what is known as
a ‘prepreg’. These compounds form the basis of most high-performance structural
composite components and have been used for many decades. The material needs
storage at low temperatures to prevent the resin from prematurely curing, which
could start at room temperature. The material, supplied in rolls or tape, is cut into
pieces and laid up in a mold manually or robotically, then, it must be vacuum bagged
before the start of the curing process, which generally takes place in an autoclave,
under a controlled pressure/temperature cycle. The resulting structures made from
prepreg materials can show significant performance benefits compared to those made
from alternative continuous fiber materials, with an increase of stiffness and strength
up to 30% [38]. These advantages are to be ascribed to a high nominal fiber volume
fraction of 60% and the use of high-grade, fully impregnated resins. Adversely, the
production of such materials is expensive in terms of equipment required, storage,
and skilled labor costs.

1.5.3 Non-crimp Fabric Architectures

In stricter terms, non-crimp fabrics (NCFs) arose from the challenge to create rein-
forcements that combine unidirectional fibers with integrity, ease of handling, and
1.5 Types of Fiber-Based Reinforcement Architectures 13

drape of textile fabrics [39]. As indicated in Fig. 1.4, these types of fibers differ
from woven fabrics by a stitching material (polyester yarn) that is introduced to bind
several unidirectional fiber layers to avoid misalignments (i.e., individual layers of
reinforcement in weft yarns are placed on top of each other and are then fixed by
knitting yarns in a warp-knitting process). The benefit of overlaying straight tows
joined by stitching is that the formation of tow crimps may be avoided, which results
in improved strength, stiffness, and fatigue life. Apart from their unique properties,
NCFs are often obtained through different manufacturing processes and different
bonding solutions. As with woven fabrics, a variety of assembly styles are available
[8] involving different mass per unit area (i.e., defined by the number of unidirec-
tional layers in the fabric and the number of individual fibers contained in a single
tow) and stitching mechanisms.
An additional advantage of such a process is that the manufacturers can control
the angle in which fibers are placed (i.e., from a wide range of approximately 20° to
−20° against the direction of production) to obtain the best possible semi-finished
textile products for composite applications. Ideally, the fibers are laid down at angles
that correspond to the load state of the final composite part, of which, quadraxial
NCF has been found to achieve quasi-isotropic behavior in the material by numerous
researchers [40]. The stitching properties such as pattern, length, and tension of the
yarn have a great influence on the properties of the textile. This is in particular valid
for mechanical properties (i.e., drapability) of dry textiles. Also, the manufacturing
process is very simple (i.e., uses conventional stitching machinery) and the absence
of the tow crimps may result in composites of higher mechanical performance as
compared to woven fabrics. Although the mechanical properties of NCFs greatly
depend on the fiber material used, NCFs do generally exhibit a significant reduction in
performance when compared to those derived from pre-pregs mainly because of lower
fiber volume fractions and the use of lower performance resins suitable for infusion.
Interestingly, the fiber over resin percentage may be enhanced by reducing the tow
spacing and by improving the stitching architecture as well the overall manufacturing
process, leading to a product of comparable performance but cheaper than those from
pre-pregs.

Fig. 1.4 Typical examples of stitching in non-crimp fabric architecture: a and b unidirectional type
of stitching and b biaxial type of stitching
14 1 Introduction and Background of Fiber-Reinforced …

1.6 Types of Fibers Reinforcements

Generally, fibers are the principal constituents in fiber-reinforced composite materials

and constitute about 60% of the total volume of the composites [41, 42]. There are
currently many types of fibers used for the manufacturing of composite materials
(both natural and synthetic fibers) whose primary role is to provide the required
strength and stiffness to the composite. While carbon and glass fibers are the most
commonly used reinforcements in fiber-reinforced composite materials, aramid fibers
(e.g., Kevlar and Twaron), as well as boron fibers, have also been extensively used
in composites and each of these two types of fibers offers some beneficial properties
such as excellent toughness and compressive strength, respectively [42]. Additional
types of fibers include but are not limited to silicon carbide, spectra, high-modulus
polyethylene (PE), poly-p-phenylene-2,6-benzobisoxazole (PBO), and alumina as
well as natural fibers such as sisal, kenaf, banana, bamboo, and hemp. Some of
these fibers are used in dedicated applications, others for general applications, and
the best type of fibers to be used for a particular application is determined based on
several factors including the required strength, stiffness, corrosion resistance, and the
available budget [41]. The following sections present thorough details of the most
important fibers that are used for the manufacturing of composite materials.

1.6.1 Glass Fibers

Glass fibers constitute the vast majority of all fibers used in the composites industry.
Glass fiber was first discovered in the 1890s and made commercially available in
the early 1930s; it was first used as insulation material in electrical, thermal, and
acoustic uses. Then, it achieved great popularity during the 1950s when it was consid-
ered as a good substitute for asbestos fibers whose health hazards were becoming
apparent. Today fiberglass is the dominant reinforcement fiber in composite construc-
tion, accounting for about 90% of worldwide consumption. This is simply because
it has good strength-to-weight characteristics, can be easily processed, and sells at a
low price. Glass filaments are relatively easily produced by extruding molten glass,
which is obtained by blending quarry products (e.g., sand, kaolin, limestone, and
colemanite) at about 1600 °C; then, the formed liquid is passed through micro-fine
bushings and simultaneously cooled to produce the fiber filaments of a diameter
generally ranging between 5 and 24 mm. The filaments are drawn together into a
strand (i.e., closely associated) or roving (i.e., more loosely associated), and coated
with a ‘size’, or binder; this is to provide an efficient filament cohesion and to mini-
mize the degradation of the filament strength that would otherwise be caused by
filament-to-filament abrasion. The size may be temporary, as in the form of a starch-
oil emulsion that is subsequently removed by heating and replaced with a glass-
to-resin coupling agent known as a finish. On the other hand, the size may be a
1.6 Types of Fibers Reinforcements 15

compatible treatment that performs several necessary functions during the subse-
quent forming operation and which, during impregnation, acts as a coupling agent
to the resin being reinforced [43].
Consistent with the aforementioned, it is noted that different types of glass
including A-glass (i.e., alkali glass), C-glass (i.e., chemical glass), E-glass (i.e.,
electrical glass), R-, S-, T-glass (i.e., structural glass), M-glass (i.e., modulus glass)
and D-glass (i.e., dielectric glass) can be produced by varying the ‘recipe’ (i.e., the
addition of chemicals to silica sand). While the present book does not detail the char-
acteristics and properties of each of the above types of glasses (i.e., interested readers
are referred to Ref. [8] for more details), it is important to indicate that electrical and
structural glasses are, by far, the most common types found in composites (even
though the type of fibers to be used is selected based on the application) because of
their good combination of mechanical properties, chemical resistance, and insulating
properties. In particular, however, electrical glass looks more attractive from the cost
point of view, while structural glass offers better mechanical performance than elec-
trical glasses. Apart from the selection of the type of the fibers to be used in a given
application itself, the proper selection of the fiber volume fraction, fiber length, and
fiber orientation are equally important since it influences the characteristics of the
composite laminate’s density, tensile strength, and modulus, compressive strength
and modulus, fatigue strength as well as fatigue failure mechanisms, electrical and
thermal conductivities and cost to list but a few. Additional information regarding
the types of characteristics of the different types of glass fibers is provided in Ref.
[41] and readers are directed to this specific study for more details.

1.6.2 Carbon Fibers

Carbon has the highest strength and highest price of all reinforcement fibers available
for composites manufacturing today. These fibers were first produced in the United
Kingdom in the early 1960s, even if Edison had much earlier used them in lighting
lamps. The most common method of making long carbon fibers is the oxidation and
thermal pyrolysis of an organic precursor, poly-acrylonitrile (PAN). Through heating
at correct conditions (2500–3000 °C), the non-carbon constituents evaporate away
with a resulting material having a 93–95% carbon content. Indeed the properties
of carbon fibers largely depend on the raw material and the manufacturing process
the relative amount of exposure at high temperatures 500–3000 °C results in greater
or less graphitization of the fiber. Higher degrees of graphitization usually result
in a stiffer fiber (higher modulus) with greater electrical and thermal conductivity
values. The size, or thickness, of carbon tows, is measured in “k” or thousands
of filaments. A 3 k tow contains 3000 filaments and a 12 k has 12,000 filaments.
Carbon fibers exhibit substantially better strength and stiffness values than all the
other types for fiber reinforcement, outstanding temperature performance, and high
electrical and thermal conductivities. The impact damage tolerance in pure carbon
composite products can be from relatively low to very poor and greatly depends on
16 1 Introduction and Background of Fiber-Reinforced …

the processing method. Notwithstanding the aforementioned, carbon fibers represent

the best reinforcement to use particularly when the weight of the composite (i.e., final
product) is important because of the significant advantages retained by them their
high stiffness-to-weight ratio, high strength, corrosion resistance, fatigue resistance,
as well as their high-energy absorption on impact. The fact that the properties of
the final product can be tailored to meet the design requirements is another added
advantage.
Consistent with the aforementioned, carbon fibers are often praised for their
lightweight (i.e., ability to produce lightweight structures) and designers can choose
between stiff and strong fibers depending on the composite part being produced.
Another major advantage is that their thermal expansion is zero; this means that
unlike metals, which expand when heated, carbon fibers remain in their basic form
with remarkable benefits in specific projects where thermal stability is required. In
addition, the material can resist very high temperatures (1000 °C), being practi-
cally limited only by the matrix. If properly designed and conceived, carbon fiber
composite structures do not suffer any fatigue issues. Finally, carbon fibers are perme-
able to X-ray and do not corrode, which is a huge concern with metals. The material
also has some disadvantages that need to be taken into consideration when planning
a project. As an example, carbon fibers are fairly expensive compared to other rein-
forcements even if their price is steadily decreasing due to the progress of production
technology. Also, carbon fiber is an electric conductor and, as such, can reflect radio
waves, which can be a disadvantage in some cases. In addition, carbon fibers are
brittle and material breakage can create debris, which can fly in multiple directions
with safety implications. The handling of carbon fibers may often be difficult and
some protection is necessary due to their intrinsic brittleness. The sized material must
be appropriately chosen since it must provide consistent handling without swelling
residues on the processing equipment and obstacles to the penetration of the resin
matrix into the fiber bundle. However, a different blend of physical characteristics
optimized for the fiber shape and surface texture is required due to the differences
in commercial carbon fiber surface features (i.e., striated, round, smooth, or kidney-
shaped, etc.). Finally, the size of the materials should equally be compatible with the
resin matrix to facilitate some of the most important precursor steps such as their
solubility and/or reactivity with the formulated resin which allows the resin matrix
to better impregnate the fiber bundle and form an adequate fiber-matrix interface.

1.6.3 Aramid Fibers

Aramids constitute a family of generic organic material made from polyamides and
they belong to the broad family of nylons (often referred to as aliphatic polyamides)
though they are a little bit different from the common nylons. The main differ-
ence between these two families (aramids and common nylons) is that common
nylon is an aliphatic polyamide containing amide-carboxylic bonds only while
aramids have an aromatic ring structure in addition to these amide-carboxylic bonds
1.6 Types of Fibers Reinforcements 17

providing them with higher tensile strength and thermal resistance than the aliphatic
polyamides. Aramids are grouped into meta-aramid (e.g., Nomex®) and para-aramid
(e.g., Kelvar®) depending on the position of the amide group (i.e., meta-position or
para-position) and both of these two groups have aromatic chains between their
amide groups which provide the resultant fibers with unique properties [44]. Aramid
fibers present several properties including very high performance, very high chemical
and thermal stability (attributed to the presence of the aromatic rings and the added
strength of the amide linkages), high toughness, and exceptional tensile strength
and modulus. The aramid fibers have high energy absorption during failure, which
makes them ideal for impact and ballistic protection. Because of their low density,
they offer a high tensile strength-to-weight ratio, and high modulus-to-weight ratio,
which makes them attractive for aircraft and body armor. Conversely, they have
relatively poor shear and compression properties, which requires an exceptionally
careful design particularly when they are to be used in structural applications that
involve bending or compression.
Aramid was introduced by DuPont in the 1960s (Kevlar is the registered trade
name of DuPont aramid) as a result of research on aliphatic polyamide fibers. Aramid
fibers were introduced in the marketplace for the first time in the 1970s as a replace-
ment for asbestos for tire reinforcements. As indicated in the previous paragraphs,
their chemical structure presents the aromatic benzene rings along the polymeric
backbone; and indeed, their name derives from the blend of aromatic polyamide.
These types of fibers present good strength and modulus, with compression and
shear strength similar to E-glass, but low density and UV resistance. Additionally,
Aramid fiber has superior toughness and resistance to impact and heat (up to 500
°C) related damage, which makes it ideal for use in armor, as well as the military
and ballistic applications in the manufacturing of safety equipment such as ballistic-
rated body armor fabric and ballistic composites, helmets and bulletproof vests, as
well as the fabrication of firefighting protection devices/equipment. Aramid fiber-
reinforced composites are also used in aerospace and military applications, marine
cordage, and marine hull reinforcement. In the aerospace industry, in particular,
aramid fiber-reinforced composites are used to produce the underside of airplanes
(these are the structural body of the airplane that protects it against the stone strikes
during the landing and takeoff process) and the underside of the race cars to give
them additional strength and resistance to impact damage. In general, structures that
are exposed to impact, abrasion, and/or heat damage are the best candidate structure
that could benefit from the combined resistance properties of aramid fiber-reinforced
composites. Although the utilization of aramid fiber-reinforced composite is highly
beneficial, the manufacturing of aramid fiber-reinforced composite materials and
structural systems is particularly difficult than glass and carbon fibers-based compos-
ites due to several drawbacks including (1) aramid fibers are extremely tough and
their fabrics prove significantly difficult to cut through using conventional tools, (2)
aramid fabrics are hard to wet out compared with glass fibers and carbon fibers, (3)
orthophthalic polyester is almost impossible to adhere to these types of fibers, and (4)
transformation of raw composites into finished products (e.g., making components,
trimming off the edges, polishing the finished structures, etc.) are also demanding.
18 1 Introduction and Background of Fiber-Reinforced …

In this context, studies suggest that a good compromise may be the use of carbon-
aramid hybrid reinforced composites, which share the high strength and stiffness
of carbon and the impact protection of aramid. Apart from carbon-aramid hybrid
reinforced composites, there are certainly other possible combinations that can be
considered for hybrid composites with aramid fibers and users should investigate
these possibilities based on the applications and the properties required.
Aramid fibers are extensively used in both composites and nanocomposites appli-
cations, in diverse industrial sectors including aerospace, sports, automotive, and
marine. The use of aramid fibers depends upon the specific type and fiber form and
their physico-mechanical properties. Typically, meta-aramid fibers such as Nomex®
are generally known for, their excellent thermal resistance, good textile character-
istics and poor mechanical properties, hence they are commonly used in protective
clothing, reinforced belts, hoses, industrial coated fabrics, etc. Para-aramid fibers
such as Kevlar® and its various subtypes (e.g., Twaron®, etc.) possess excellent
mechanical properties. Continuous filament yarns and rovings of para-aramids are
used in composite pressure vessels, rocket motor casings, sporting goods, rope, and
cable, etc. Fabrics are used in facings of sandwich constructions in aircraft systems
and helicopters, boat hulls, etc. Staple fibers are used in automotive applications such
as brake and clutch linings, gaskets, etc. In addition to glass, carbon, and aramid
fibers, there are other reinforcing fibers used in fiber-reinforced composite materials;
notable among these are boron and extended chain polyethylene fiber. Ceramic fibers
and whiskers are commonly used in MMCs and CMCs. A unique class of reinforcing
fibers is natural fibers, and it has become a subject of active research now. Aramid
fibers can be chopped into staple form to make felt for applications such as chain
saw-protective garments, or they may be blended with other fibers for other end uses.
Aramid fiber is lyotropic. It is solution-spun and it melts at a lower temperature than
a thermotropic liquid crystal fiber.

1.6.4 Boron Fibers

Generally speaking, boron fibers are high-performance fibers with tensile strength
and a tensile modulus. They are produced through the chemical vapor deposition
process from a mixture of hydrogen and boron tri-chloride on fine diameter tungsten
filaments at high temperatures (i.e., around 1200 °C). In order to get the boron
filaments, boron is continuously deposited on a tungsten wire core, as well as on a
glass or graphite filament core. In case the tungsten is used to collect boron filaments,
the latter is rather fat with an overall diameter ranging from 100–140 µm because the
tungsten wire core is very fine with a nominal diameter of 13 µm. Boron fibers are
characterized by la ow density (i.e., 2.6 g/cm3 ), a high tensile strength (i.e., ranging
from 3100–4200 MPa), and a high modulus of elasticity (i.e., of up to 360 GPa).
Although boron fibers can be formed into resin-impregnated tapes for hand lay-up and
filament winding processes, these types of fibers are extremely stiff (e.g., five times
stiffer than the usual glass fibers), and hence, they are difficult to weave, bend, braid or
1.6 Types of Fibers Reinforcements 19

twist. Another advantage of boron fibers relates to their high compressive properties,
and their ability to retain their mechanical properties at high temperatures of up to
800 °C. With that said, applications of boron fibers have been limited to their use in
experimental aircraft and spacecraft systems due to the high cost associated with these
fibers. Additional applications of boron fibers involve their use as reinforcements for
MMCs and for some boron/epoxy composites used to manufacture certain sports
equipment.

1.6.5 Polyethylene Fibers

Extended chain polyethylene (PE) fibers are a type of high-performance organic

fibers with some extraordinary properties, though not as popular as glass, carbon,
or aramids. These fibers are produced by solid-state extrusion and gel spinning
methods, and they possess a combination of favorable and unfavorable properties.
Notable among the favorable properties are very low density (0.97 g/cm3 ), high
tensile modulus (130 GPa) and high tensile strength (2700 GPa), outstanding fatigue
and impact resistance, excellent environmental resistance, etc. However, they are
poor in creep, compression, and transverse directional properties. Further, these fibers
have a very low service temperature, and untreated extended chain PE fibers do not
have good compatibility with the resin matrix. Typical applications of these fibers
include bulletproof vests, military helmets, ropes, cables, nets, surgical gloves, sports
goods, etc. Gel-spun polyethylene fibers are ultra-strong, high-modulus fibers that are
based on simple and flexible polyethylene molecules. They are called high-strength,
light-weight polyethylene fibers, high-modulus polyethylene (HMPE) fibers, high-
performance polyethylene fibers, or sometimes extended chain polyethylene fibers.
The gel-spinning process uses physical processes to make available the high-potential
mechanical properties of the molecule. Due to low density and good mechanical prop-
erties, the performance on a weight basis is extremely high. The chemical nature of
polyethylene remains in the gel-spun fiber and this can both be positive and a limi-
tation: abrasion and fatigue properties are very high but the melting point is limiting
certain application areas. Nowadays the versatile HMPE fibers are widely used in
a wide range of industries like military and law enforcement (ballistic protection),
marine, offshore, commercial fishing, sports, forestry, protective clothing, aviation,
and medical, and a variety of composite applications.

1.6.6 Ceramic Fibers and Whiskers

Ceramic fibers both with oxide as well as non-oxide compositions are also used in
composites. Typical examples of oxide fibers are alumina (Al2 O3 ), alumina-silica
(Al2 O3 -SiO2 ), and zirconite (Zr-Al2 O3 ), whereas silicon carbide (SiC) is a typical
non-oxide fiber. Ceramic fibers are available in continuous as well as discontinuous
20 1 Introduction and Background of Fiber-Reinforced …

forms, and due to their high-temperature stability, they are commonly used as rein-
forcements for MMCs and CMCs in high-temperature applications. Whiskers are
single-crystal fibers with nearly zero defects. They are very short in length, but their
aspect ratios are very high. Whiskers, owing to their nearly perfect crystal alignment
and defect-free structure, possess high mechanical properties compared to their bulk
forms.

1.6.7 Natural Fibers

Interest in natural fibers as an alternate class of fibers for composites has been growing
and a considerable amount of work has been published especially in recent years.
Natural fibers are generally obtained from three broad sources of natural fibers viz.
plants, animals, and minerals. Plant fibers are the most abundant types of fibers
and depending on the specific part of a plant that is used, these types of fibers
are categorized into bast fiber (i.e., fibrous material from the phloem of the plant
or simply the fibrous vascular tissue of a plant), seed fiber (i.e., fibers collected
from the seeds of the plant), leaf fiber (i.e., typically sisal and abaca, leaf-fibers are
hard fibers that are rich in lignin content and mainly used for cordage or producing
rope), fruit fiber (i.e., fibers that are contained in the fruits of the plant), and stalk
fiber (i.e., natural fibers that are taken from the stalk of a plant). Similarly, animal
fibers can also be categorized into wool or hair, silk fiber, and avian fiber. Natural
fibers such as jute, sisal, flax, hemp, silk, bamboo, and coir possess several favorable
characteristics viz. inexpensive, abundant, and renewable, are lightweight, with low
density, high toughness, and are biodegradable. Additionally, these types of fibers
are also biocompatible and environment-friendly [45]. Looking at their advantageous
properties, natural fibers such as jute have the potential to be used as a replacement
for traditional reinforcement materials in composites for applications that require
a high strength-to-weight ratio and further weight reduction. However, mechanical
properties of natural fibers (e.g., batch-to-batch inconsistency and other fiber quality
considerations, high flammability and thermal instability, performance limitations
including the tensile strength, impact strength, and low thermal resistance; as well
as odor and fogging, etc.) are generally poor and non-uniform compared to their
synthetic counterparts (i.e., glass, carbon, and aramid fibers, etc.) [45–47].
In addition to the aforementioned, natural fibers also present relatively variable
dimensions (i.e., difficult to control), poor compatibility with most of the matrix
systems as well as a higher susceptibility to rotting and hydrophilic character makes
them vulnerable to high moisture absorption feature are the other two of their major
drawbacks that affect the properties of natural fiber polymer composites, making
them unusable in applications where these drawbacks might be a challenge. Although
their disadvantages far outweigh their advantages, further applications for natural
fibers are currently being explored in cutting-edge technologies. To this end, some
of the present applications of natural fibers are in the automotive industry (i.e., the
two most important natural fibers are flax and hemp). The latter are used to build
1.6 Types of Fibers Reinforcements 21

automotive interiors such as car seats and dashboards and they help in a drastic weight
reduction of a car (i.e., enabling the car’s capabilities of producing fewer emissions
and enhancing its fuel efficiency). Natural fibers are also an essential element of
materials used in the construction industry (e.g., particularly in the manufacturing of
doors, windows, etc.) [45, 48]. While the application of natural fibers in structural
engineering continues to grow, it is important to understand the individual properties
and growing conditions of widely used plant-based fibers, to use them effectively in
composites applications.
Consistent with the aforementioned, the manufacturing of natural fibers-based
composites requires the manufacturers to maintain the uniformity of the final product
to evaluate the properties of the composites effectively. For example, any addition
of hydrophilic natural fibers (e.g., kenaf) to hydrophobic plastic (e.g., polypropy-
lene (PP)) will result in a composite with poor properties due to non-uniform fiber
dispersion in the matrix and an inferior fiber-matrix interface. However, this problem
can be overcome by the suitable selection of a compatibilizer (e.g., maleated PP) or
by surface treating the fibers. As a result, in recent years, natural fiber usage has
substantially increased in injection molding due to the good mechanical properties
of the products and an increased cost-performance ratio in comparison to common
injection-molded synthetic plastics [49, 50]. The limited thermal stability of natural
fibers, which leads to degradation during processing beyond 200 °C, also restricts the
use of mass manufacturing methods and this has to be overcome by improving the
precision of effective manufacturing techniques. Another challenge in composites
manufacturing using plant-based natural fibers is to maintain a high aspect ratio in
order to achieve superior thermal, mechanical, and functional properties. Composite
processing methods, such as extrusion and injection molding, have a significant
influence on fiber aspect ratio and fiber length retention [51–53]. It is important
to disintegrate fiber bundles into individual fibers without damaging them. Effective
dispersion and distribution of fibers within the matrix material by avoiding agglomer-
ates can create homogeneous composites with enhanced properties. It has been found
that the reduction in fiber length associated with extrusion or injection molding may
not affect the tensile properties significantly due to improvements in fiber orientation
along the polymer flow direction and increased fiber dispersion through dimensional
changes [50].

1.7 Design of Polymer-Matrix Composites

Generally speaking, all of the advanced fiber-reinforced composite materials are

designed materials and this surely underscores the premises of their usefulness in
structural engineering. In particular, their properties can be optimized for specific
applications based on the spectrum of matrix and reinforcement materials available.
Typically, advanced composites can be designed to have zero coefficient of thermal
expansion and the fact that they can be reinforced with combinations of different
fiber materials (i.e., hybrid fiber-reinforced composite materials) and geometries
22 1 Introduction and Background of Fiber-Reinforced …

to maximize performance and minimize cost is another added advantage [2, 54].
Until recently, the design opportunities for fiber-reinforced composite materials
were still in their infancy and it was only from the 1980s where the research in
composite materials started taking it to the next level making available so many
types of composite designs that are available today [55, 56]. Although there has been
tremendous progress in terms of design and manufacturing (i.e., thanks to the current
technological advancements), the research suggests that a lot still needs to be done
with some of the most advanced designs only starting to emerge now. Particularly,
the enormous design flexibility of advanced composites is obtained at the cost of a
large number of unfamiliar design variables. In fact, composites are more accurately
characterized as customized structures, rather than customized materials.
Although the engineering properties of the homogeneous resins and fibers can be
easily determined, the properties of each type of fiber-reinforced composite material
depend on the composition (i.e., material constituents), fiber length, and geometry
as well as the nature of the interphase. The categories of mechanical and physical
properties used to characterize fiber-reinforced composites stem from the long engi-
neering experience with metals which may or may not provide adequate results given
the distinct nature of the materials involved. A major and quite frankly urgent need
to obtain better designs in advanced composites technology is a better capability
for modeling the structures’ property relationships including the relationship of the
materials with the stages of design and the optimization and with the mechanics
of materials. There are many excellent textbooks available detailing the mechanics
of fiber-reinforced composite materials such as those presented in Refs. [57, 58].
As such, the present book will not provide any theoretical formulations or deriva-
tions of mechanics of composite materials, and interested readers are directed to
these specific books for more details on the mechanics of fiber-reinforced composite
materials. It is also noted that even despite the lack of adequate knowledge related
to materials’ mechanics, experience to date has shown that designers and manufac-
turers can produce quite reliable fiber-reinforced composite structures. This is prob-
ably because, in the face of uncertainty, designers tend to overdesign; that is, they
are conservative in their use of material, to avoid any possibility of material failure.
It is also important to indicate that fiber-reinforced composite structures are exten-
sively tested before use, to prevent any potential problems that might arise during the
in-service stage are detected during these preliminary tests (i.e., the testing). Thus,
both the flexibility and advanced properties of fiber-reinforced composite materials
themselves have been proven that they can be easily used to fabricate fiber-reinforced
composite structures that are reliable and meet all the design criteria. However, both
overdesign and empirical testing are costly and drive up the prices of fiber-reinforced
composites. Thus, a principal benefit of enhanced modeling capability will be to help
make advanced composites more cost-competitive [59, 60].
1.8 Polymer-Matrix Composites Manufacturing Procedures 23

1.8 Polymer-Matrix Composites Manufacturing

Procedures

In general, composites are produced through a wide range of manufacturing processes

(e.g., hand lay-up, pultrusion, filament winding, resin transfer molding, etc.).
However, the choice of the manufacturing procedure does often depend on the type
of reinforcements (dry or pre-impregnated) and matrices (thermosetting or thermo-
plastics polymers) being used as well as the application of the resultant composite.
Additional factors determining the type of the manufacturing process include the
low cost of the manufacturing technologies as well as the ability to enhance the
signature properties of the resultant structure through the manufacturing process. In
the past, the manufacturing of composites was primarily dominated by the prepreg
philosophy with the primary challenge for designers and manufacturers being to
obtain composite materials of high performance to compete with, or surpass, metals.
However, the production of composites with pre-pregs is expensive and, the atten-
tion is currently moving toward the use of new types of reinforcements and cheaper
manufacturing processes. To this end, composites obtained from dry fabrics and
liquid infusion processing are being considered for applications in various struc-
tural components instead of prepreg-based composites. As an example, non-crimp
fabrics-bases composites, involving a multiaxial reinforcement (made up of multiple
plies of dry fibers layered on top of each other or stitch-bonded with a polyester
thread), represent a typical good compromise between the fiber strength and costs.
Although there are several types of composites manufacturing procedures, the basic
steps involved in each of them include (1) the curing process for thermosetting
polymer matrices or the thermal processing for thermoplastic polymer matrices, as
well as (2) the finishing process. (3) the impregnation of the fibers with the resin, (4)
the formation of the composite structure, However, these steps may occur separately
or continuously depending on the process. The following sections present a brief
description of some of the most important composites manufacturing processes.

1.8.1 Hand or Manual Lay-Up Process

Also called manual lay-up, hand layup is the simplest and oldest open molding
method for fabricating composite materials with prepregs [8, 27]. It is based on the
superimposition of pre-impregnated fibers or laminas of thickness in the range 0.125–
0.30 mm [8]. At first, dry fibers or laminas in the form of woven, knitted, stitched,
or bond fabrics are partially impregnated with resin, and then manually placed in
the mold, and a brush is used to apply the resin matrix on the reinforcing material.
The raw material is generally found in rolls or tapes, from which laminas or fibers
of given dimensions are cut. The cutting operations are generally automated unless
the number of pieces or parts required does not justify the cost of programming an
automated cutter or in case the latter is not available at all. However, if hand cutting is
24 1 Introduction and Background of Fiber-Reinforced …

to be selected, templates to facilitate the cutting operation may have to be fabricated.

Also, if the lay-up requires any contour of the plies, the contour will equally have
to be factored into the templates [27]. Automated materials cutting involves the use
of both reciprocating knives and ultrasonically driven ply-cutting methods. In the
former process, a carbide blade reciprocates up and down (similar to a saber saw)
while the lateral movement is controlled by a computer-controlled driven head. To
allow the blade to penetrate the prepreg (or any other material being cut), the bed
supporting the prepreg consists of nylon bristles that allow the blade to penetrate
during the cutting operation. The reciprocating knife cutter is usually less efficient
because only one out of five plies can be cut during a single pass. The latter operates
similarly but the mechanism is a chopping rather than a cutting action. Instead of a
bristle bed that allows the cutter to penetrate the prepreg being cut, a hard plastic bed
is used with the ultrasonic method. It is worth mentioning that most of the modern
automated ply-cutting equipment is fast and produces high quality cuts.
In addition, many of these systems have automated ply-labeling systems in which
the ply identification label is placed directly on the prepreg release paper. A typical ply
label will contain both the part number and the ply identification number. This makes
sorting and kitting operations much simpler after the cutting operations are completed
to avoid any possible confusion among the different parts, sizes, and destinations.
As soon as the cutting operation is complete, obtained pieces are layered on top of
each other following the predefined placement, shape, and stacking pattern; the latter
entails the orientation of fibers and the composite thickness. Prior to performing ply
or fibers collation, the tool should have either been coated with a liquid mold release
agent, or covered with a release film to avoid the part being stuck to the mold. If
the surface is going to be painted or adhesively bonded after cure, some lay-ups
also require a peel ply on the tool surface (usually nylon, polyester, or fiberglass
fabrics coated with release agents or not). However, it is important to thoroughly
characterize the peel ply material that is bonded to a composite surface, particularly
if that surface is going to be structurally adhesively bonded in a subsequent operation.
Prior to placing a ply onto the lay-up, the operator should make sure that all of the
release paper is removed and that there are no foreign objects on the surface. Once the
laminas are stacked, a vacuum bag is used to remove entrapped air (or any other gases
developed during the process) and an autoclave cycle curing is performed (i.e., the
heating cycle required to start and complete the cure of the resin matrix). In general,
the curing cycle involves cooperation between the levels of temperature and the
vacuum to achieve two main purposes: (1) reach the correct viscosity of the resin for
its uniform distribution throughout the laminate, and (2) eliminate the entrapped air or
other developed gases to remove voids and porosity (i.e., voids and porosity). This
procedure allows the manufacturing of fiber-reinforced composite materials with
optimal physical and thermomechanical properties, but it requires skilled personnel.
In particular, voids and porosity should be minimized at all costs when manufacturing
reinforced composite materials because if not addressed, they severely affect the
mechanical properties and limit the lifespan of the composite by degrading its matrix-
dominated properties (e.g., interlaminar shear strength, longitudinal compressive
strength, and transverse tensile strength).
1.8 Polymer-Matrix Composites Manufacturing Procedures 25

1.8.2 Filament Winding

Filament winding is a mature fiber-reinforced composite materials manufacturing

technique that is primarily used to obtain open-end (cylinders) or closed-end struc-
tures (pressure vessels or tanks) [42]. At a minimum, this type of manufacturing
process requires a tow of pre-impregnated fibers and a rotating male mandrel whereby
the tow is continuously wound onto the mandrel following the desired design (i.e.,
pattern or angle) by dedicated software to obtain a specific fiber orientation and
quantity that fulfills the design requirement of the composite [12]. Polar, helical, and
hoop are generally the three dominant winding patterns used in filament winding
systems [27]. According to Ref. [42], this technique has been in continuous use
since the mid-1940s and the most commonly used filaments are glass and carbon
and these are continuously impregnated in a bath with resin as they get wound onto
the rotating male mandrel (the choice of the mandrel type and design is determined by
the function of the design and size of the part to be built). After the winding process
is completed (i.e., once the mandrel is completely covered to the desired thickness),
and depending on the resin system that is used and its cure characteristics the wet
wound mandrel is put in a vacuum bag and then in an oven (preferred method) or
sometimes in an autoclave or simply placed under radiant heaters for curing [27].
The hollow composite is obtained after the resin system has completely cured and the
mandrel is removed. However, some products such as gas bottles require the mandrel
to remain in place as an integral part of the finished product forming a liner to prevent
gas leakage or as a barrier to protect the composite from the fluid to be stored when
in service. The controlled variables for winding are fiber type, resin content, wind
angle, as well as the tow or bandwidth and thickness of the fiber bundle. The angle at
which the fiber is wound has an effect on the properties of the resultant composite. A
high angle “hoop” will provide circumferential strength, while lower angle patterns
(either polar or helical) will provide greater longitudinal/axial tensile strength. The
procedure is completely automated and can be used to fabricate almost any body of
revolution, such as cylinders, shafts, spheres, and cones [27]. It also allows the easy
fabrication of pressure vessels, aircraft bodies, power transmission poles, bicycle
rims, pipes, and many more.

1.8.3 Pultrusion

As the name indicates, pultrusion is a portmanteau word combining “pull” and “extru-
sion”. However, in pultrusion, the materials get pulled while they get pushed in
extrusion. Pultrusion consists in pulling the raw materials into a shaped die to obtain
the composite, including the fiber impregnation pre-form and curing. Generally
speaking, the process begins with racks, or creels, holding rolls of fiber mats or doffs
of fiber rovings. The raw fiber is then pulled off the racks and guided through a resin
impregnation system (the resin can also be injected directly into the die depending
26 1 Introduction and Background of Fiber-Reinforced …

on the pultrusion system). After that, the pre-impregnated fibers are guided through a
series of tooling (pre-form), which organize the fiber into the correct shape, while the
excess resin is squeezed out of the composite. In its final step, the obtained composite
passes through a heated steel die where an exothermic reaction takes place to cure
the resin matrix. At this stage, the component is continuously dragged and exits a hot
mold with a constant cross-sectional area, and the final product gets cooled by forced
air convection fed into and then cut into small pieces consistent with the application
being considered. Pultrusion is generally cost-effective particularly when it comes
to the production of high volumes of constant cross-section composite parts. The
earliest reports regarding the “birth” pultrusion pertain to the patent developed by J.
H. Watson regarding the manufacture of a string or the like in 1944. A latter patent
filed by M.J. Meek in the 1950s focused on the method for fabricating a glass rod.
In 1952, Rodger White filed his patent pertaining to the manufacturing of articles
from thermosetting materials. These were followed by W. R. Brandt Goldsworthy
in 1953, with his patent entitled “Apparatus for producing elongated articles from
fiber-reinforced plastic material” who is considered the initiator of pultrusion to this
day. Parallel to the work of Goldsworthy, who concentrated his work on unsaturated
polyester resins, Ernst Kühne developed a quite similar process in 1954 based on
epoxy resin. To date, the invention, development, and issuance of patents continue
in the field of pultrusion with the latest system being developed and patented by
Thomas GmbH + Co. Technik + Innovation KG in 2008 (Germany).

1.8.4 Resin Transfer Molding

Resin transfer molding (RTM) [13] represents a viable alternative to prepregs and
autoclave-based composites production. It involves a rigid two-sided mold set that
forms both surfaces of the panel. The molds are typically constructed from aluminum
or steel, but composite molds are sometimes used. The two sides fit together to
produce a mold cavity. The detailed process of the RTM starts with the reinforcement
mat, or woven roving, being draped in the bottom half of the mold. Then, the top
section of the mold is closed and catalyzed, low-viscosity resin (i.e., heated resin) is
pumped into the mold using a high-pressure pump, displacing the air and venting it
to the edges of the mold until the latter is filled up. After that, the mold is clamped off
and the resin matrix is allowed to cure until the composite is completely formed. One
of the main advantages of the RTM is that the dimensions of the obtained composites
solely depend on the shape of the molds and their distinguishing features. Also, the
reinforcement materials are first placed into the cavity of the mold set and closed
before the introduction of the matrix material, which makes the process easier to
handle and relatively clean. In this context, the obtained composites do generally
have a good surface finish on both sides, suggesting that they are generally ready to
be used without further treatments. This process is cheaper than most of the other
composites manufacturing processes and it is currently gaining popularity in many
different types of industries including the aerospace industry where components such
1.8 Polymer-Matrix Composites Manufacturing Procedures 27

as door pillars, stringers, stiffened panels, rudder tips, and ribs are manufactured by
RTM. Although the above indicates the general operation of the RTM process, the
technique does include numerous variants which differ in the mechanisms of how the
resin is introduced to the reinforcement in the mold cavity. These variations include
everything from the RTM methods used in out of autoclave composite manufacturing
for high-tech aerospace components to vacuum infusion (that is primarily used in the
boat building industry) to vacuum-assisted resin transfer molding (VARTM). RTM
can be performed at either ambient or elevated temperatures and is suitable for the
manufacturing of high-performance composite components in medium volumes.

1.8.5 Resin Film Infusion

The resin film infusion (RFI) is a composite manufacturing process that was devel-
oped by NASA and the Long Beach division of McDonnell-Douglas (Boeing). The
development was driven by the desire to obtain 3D reinforcement for damage-tolerant
wing design for commercial aircraft and be able to use an adequate prepreg resin
system for the matrix resin and be able to overcome the challenges related to the
requirement of minimum viscosities observed in conventional RTM when using
prepreg resin systems. It is noted that the minimum viscosities required in conven-
tional RTM are usually greater than 500 cps which are too high to be able to success-
fully inject and fill the stitched preform during injection [42]. Unlike conventional
RTM, the RFI process requires just one male or female mold of the desired shape
to manufacture the composite [14]. In this mold, dry fabrics are first laid up inter-
leaved with the layers of pre-catalyzed semisolid resin films supplied on a release
film/paper, and then the entire lay-up is placed in a vacuum bag where it is vacu-
umed to remove the air entrapped in the dry fabrics. Finally, the vacuumed lay-up is
placed in an oven or autoclave to thermally cure the resin matrix, while the vacuum is
continuously applied. In this process, the temperature is first increased to reduce the
resin viscosity to a level when it is fluid enough to flow into the fabric layers of the
composite under the applied pressure and once the infusion is complete the pressure
and temperature are raised to consolidate and fully cure the composite. Understanding
the compaction and permeability of the preform as well as the viscosity and kinetics
of the resin system is the towards a successful RFI process. In addition, the design
of the preform and its placement within the tooling, as well as the design of the
tooling itself and its dimensional control are critical for this process. A special cure
cycle must be developed to achieve the correct time–temperature-viscosity profile to
ensure complete saturation of the preform. A variant of this process is resin liquid
infusion (RLI), in which a liquid resin instead of a solid resin is placed or injected
into the bottom of the tooling prior to loading the preform. This process allows to
reach high specific strength and it is suited for making relatively large structures
such as stiffened skins and rib-type structures [61] but it is not generally used for
manufacturing of structural parts.
28 1 Introduction and Background of Fiber-Reinforced …

1.8.6 Resin Liquid Infusion

In the composite manufacturing industry, the resin liquid infusion is a composite

molding process whereby the liquid resin is drawn into a stack of dry fabrics with
the aid of vacuum pressure to impregnate the laminate. This process is technically
similar to the RFI with the only difference being the fact that only dry fibers are
placed in the mold (i.e., single-sided mold), which is enclosed in a vacuum bag and
connected to the resin supply source and the vacuum pump. In this context, the liquid
resin with hardener infuses into the reinforcing fibers, thanks to the vacuum pumping
the resin matrix into the mold. In the field of composites, this method is particularly
effective because it helps to obtain fibrous composites with a limited amount of voids
(i.e., the voids in an evacuated stack of porous material are filled with liquid resin).
Curing and de-molding steps follow the impregnation process to finish the product.
One of the main advantages of this process is that it is capable of producing large and
thin parts in a relatively inexpensive way. In the composite manufacturing industry,
resin liquid infusion technology is generally used to manufacture composite parts for
aerospace primary and secondary load-bearing structures such as engine fan blades,
composite wing boxes, spoiler components, etc.

1.9 Fiber Metal Laminates

As their name indicates, fiber metal laminates (FMLs) are laminated materials
consisting of thin layers of metal sheet and unidirectional fiber layers embedded
in an adhesive system. FMLs are particularly attractive for the aerospace industry
because they combine the high bearing strength and impact resistance features of the
metals with the excellent fatigue characteristics, high strength, and stiffness, as well
corrosion resistance of fiber-reinforced polymers. All these properties and advantages
combined enable these types of materials to overcome most of the disadvantages of
single monolithic materials sheets. FMLs were conceived at the Delft University of
Technology in the Netherlands, starting from the end of the 1970s (i.e., with the
first patent on FMLs filed in the USA in 1981 [62]), with the idea to increase the
fatigue performance of aluminum alloys. Although fiber-reinforced polymers were
widely studied at that time, they were still very expensive, and, against this back-
ground, researchers wanted to combine the metals and fiber-reinforced polymers to
obtain a kind of material with intermediate metallic and fiber-reinforced polymers
features. A significant improvement was observed when aramid fibers were intro-
duced into the adhesive layers, and with that, the first FMLs were called aramid fiber-
reinforced aluminum laminates (ARALL) [8]. Four different types of ARALL were
first investigated passing transitioning to carbon-fiber-reinforced aluminum lami-
nates (CARALL) and then to glass-fiber-reinforced aluminum laminates (GLARE).
All these types of materials present different properties and interested readers are
directed to ref. for more information.
1.9 Fiber Metal Laminates 29

Glass fiber laminate aluminum reinforced (GLARE) is a type of aluminum fiber

metal laminate composite, in which unidirectional S-2 glass fibers are embedded
in FM-34 epoxy structural film adhesive and is normally available in six different
standards grades [27]. Exceedingly improved impact resistance and mechanical prop-
erties make Glare one of the most successful FML for advanced aerospace structural
applications. Unlike classical composites, Glare generally undergoes plastic defor-
mation under impact with the indenting of the external aluminum layer (which is
easily noticed by the naked eye), making it easier to diagnose and take necessary
action concerning the replacement and/or repair. In addition, the growth rate of fatigue
cracks, which is normally high in aluminum sheets, is significantly reduced in the
presence of glass fibers. As a most important feature, Glare has good burn-through
resistance and it is therefore considered one of the optimal materials for the fabrica-
tion of parts that are most exposed to heat burns during the service stage. However,
Glare is extremely expensive and users should examine its benefits based on the
application. In modern aircraft, Glare is mainly used for the fabrication of the aircraft
fuselage (e.g., Airbus A380) and the leading edge of the tail surfaces. Gunnink and
Vlot [62] provided additional information regarding the historical overview, manu-
facturing process, properties, and the application of FLMs, and interested readers are
directed to their study for more information.

1.10 Sandwich Structures

Sandwich structures are panels of lightweight core (whose material may be low-
density foam or honeycomb) sandwiched between two relatively thin but hard and
strong sheets of laminates. The literature indicates that various types of core and
skins can be used depending on the performance and the application requirements
of the final part. However, since sandwich structures must generally be strong and
lightweight at the same time, a good solution has always been to insert a cellular
structure like an open or closed-cell foam, honeycomb core (both metallic and non-
metallic configured in hexagonal, flexible-core, or over-expanded shapes), balsa
wood, as well as syntactic between two thin composite laminates. Although the
honeycomb cores are generally more expensive and difficult to fabricate than any
other sandwich cores, the former provides superior performance to the structure and
this may be the reason why many commercial applications use foam cores, while
aerospace applications use the higher performance and are more expensive honey-
comb cores (e.g., Nomex® which is a honeycomb core made from aramid paper).
It is also noted that the foam materials are normally much easier to work with than
their honeycomb counterparts. Typically, the foam core sandwich assemblies can be
bonded together with supported film adhesives but the more common case is to use
either liquid/paste adhesives or do wet lay-up of the skin plies directly on the foam
surface. Quite recently, foam cores with dry composite skins are being impregnated
and bonded with liquid molding techniques, such as RTM or VARTM. In contrast to
the foam core sandwich assemblies, supported film adhesives are normally used to
30 1 Introduction and Background of Fiber-Reinforced …

bond composite structural honeycomb assemblies. While the foam and honeycomb
cores are the most commonly used sandwich cores, the materials for the sandwich
cores should be carefully selected as they determine the performance and properties
of the final parts.
Consistent with the aforementioned, it is noted that aluminum cores have the
best combination of strength and stiffness, followed by the non-metallic honeycomb
cores and then polyvinyl chloride (PVC) foam. However, the in-service experience
with aluminum honeycomb cores has not always been good. Apart from the fact
that aluminum honeycomb cores have durability problems, they are also susceptible
to moisture migrating into the assemblies and causing corrosion of the aluminum
core cells. There is also a problem with liquid water, which upon entering the core
(through exposed edges, such as panel edges, closeouts, door and window sills,
attachment fittings, or almost any location that the skin and core bond terminate)
causes the degradation of the skin-to-core bond strength, the fillet bond strength, and
the node bond strength and the failure of the structure may follow. It is also very
difficult to make major repairs to honeycomb assemblies. In recent years, the shift is
being directed towards the development of new materials (e.g., metal foams) that can
be used as the core in sandwich structures against the aforementioned background.
A metal foam is a cellular structure consisting of solid metal with gas-filled pores
comprising a large portion of the volume as their signature characteristic. Interest-
ingly, this foam is generated by forced expansion of a precursor, which is generally
an aluminum alloy mixed with a percentage of foaming agent. As a great advantage, a
metal foam is generally much lighter but it maintains nearly all the mechanical char-
acteristics of the initial solid material. As such, metal foams present good stiffness
and strength-to-weight ratios as well as the ability to absorb both the impact energy
and the electromagnetic waves. Also, metal foams can be used as acoustic insula-
tors (i.e., soundproofing materials that prevent the sound from entering or exiting
an enclosed space by creating some barrier between the interior and the exterior
areas) and/or thermal insulator (i.e., reduction of heat or thermal energy transfer
between objects of differing temperature), owing to the air pockets contained in their
structures.

1.11 Properties of Fiber-Reinforced Composites

In general, the properties of fiber-reinforced composite materials depend on the

matrix, the reinforcements (i.e., types of fibers), and their direction in the composite,
as well as the quality of the interphase between the different laminates or plies.
Consequently, there are many variables to consider when designing a fiber-reinforced
composite material to ensure the optimization of the aforementioned parameters.
Individual material constituents (i.e., matrix and reinforcement) are generally not
considered alone, composites designers should also consider their relative propor-
tions, the geometry of the reinforcement, and the nature of the interphase. Each of
these variables must be carefully controlled to produce a structural material system
1.11 Properties of Fiber-Reinforced Composites 31

optimized for the conditions for which it is intended to be used. Typically, the use of
continuous-fiber reinforcement confers a directional character, called isotropy, to the
properties of fiber-reinforced composite materials. It is noted that fiber-reinforced
composite materials are strongest when stressed (i.e., when the load is applied)
parallel to the direction of the fibers (0°, axial, or longitudinal, direction) and weakest
when stressed perpendicular to the fibers (90°, transverse direction). In practice,
however, most structures are subjected to complex loads, necessitating the use of
fibers oriented in several directions (e.g., 0◦ , ±45◦ , and 90◦ ). While the above loading
frameworks are generally not practical, fiber-reinforced composite materials users
should know that these types of composites are most efficiently used in applications
that can take advantage of the inherent anisotropy of the materials. Users of fiber-
reinforced composite materials should also know that when discontinuous fibers or
particles are used as reinforcement, the properties tend to be more isotropic because
these reinforcements tend to be randomly oriented. In this case, fiber-reinforced
composite materials will be partially deprived of their continuous fiber’s full strength
although they can be produced more cheaply by using the technologies developed for
unreinforced plastics viz. extrusion, injection molding, and compression molding.
A typical example of such materials is the sheet molding compound (SMC) which
is widely used in the automotive industry [63]. Longer fibers in SMCs result in
better strength properties than standard bulk molding compounds (BMC) products.
Although SMCs require extensive disposal of the hazardous chemicals (i.e., one of
their negative effects) [64], they have proved themselves to be versatile reinforced
plastics in the areas of painted and unpainted (e.g., bumpers, fenders, exterior and
interior panels, structural elements, and more recently, high-temperature underhood
parts) automotive componentry [65].
Consistent with the aforementioned, fiber-reinforced composite materials offer the
best combination of cost and performances, and often exhibit comparable and in some
cases better properties than the traditional metallic materials. Indeed, the low densi-
ties of the fiber-reinforced composite materials along with their HT-to-weight and
modulus-to-weight ratios make them suitable candidates to be used as replacements
to some metallic materials in exigent applications requiring high-performance (HP),
lightweight structures [66]. However, the complexity of advanced composites can
complicate any efforts to compare their properties with those of conventional mate-
rials. In general, however, properties such as specific strength are relatively easy to
compare although advanced composite materials tend to have higher specific strength
and stiffness than metals. Also in many cases, properties such as the composite’s
toughness and surface hardness that are easily defined in metallic structures are less
easily defined in their advanced composites counterparts. While the dynamics of
crack propagation and failure are relatively well understood in metals, for example,
toughness can be defined relatively easily. On the contrary, toughness in advanced
composite structures is a joint complicated function of the matrix, fiber, as well
as the interphase and the reinforcement geometry. Additionally, both the shear and
compression properties of advanced composites are poorly defined. Another result of
the complexity of fiber-reinforced composite materials is that the mechanical prop-
erties are highly interdependent and should not be analyzed independently. As an
32 1 Introduction and Background of Fiber-Reinforced …

example, the matrix cracking associated with the development/application of shear

stresses may result in a loss of stiffness. Impact damage can seriously reduce the
compressive strength and the load-bearing capacity of fiber-reinforced composites.
This is because the compressive and shear properties of advanced composites can
be seen as strongly related to the toughness of the matrix on the one hand and the
strength of the interfacial bond between matrix and fiber on the other.

1.12 Main Types of Deficiency in Polymer-Matrix

Composites

As the name indicates, composite materials are made of two or more basic materials
(referred to as material constituents) and manufactured through complex processes
based on temperature, pressure, and chemical reaction modifications to obtain mate-
rials with improved properties. In this context, it should be expected that the final
product may be affected by types of anomalies of different sizes and significance that
could subsequently affect its performance or utilization altogether. Apart from the
abnormalities that can arise during the manufacturing process, the in-service environ-
ment or mode of utilization of the final composite components can also be responsible
for damage formation and/or material degradation. In the following discussion, the
defects that are mostly present in composites will be grouped into two categories:
manufacturing defects and in-service failures.

1.12.1 Material Processing Defects

As the name indicates, material processing defects occur in fiber-reinforced

composite materials during the preparation and processing of their material
constituents [18, 67]. Generally speaking, most of these types of defects are caused
by improper or poor storage conditions, poor quality control, as well as the prefab-
rication process, material mishandling, and batch certification processes that lead to
raw materials or prepreg variations and/or damage [67–69]. Although these types
of material processing defects are susceptible to occur in nearly all the types of
fibrous composites, some of these defects are more prevalent in some of the compos-
ites than they are in others. Typical materials processing defects include but are not
limited to variations/damaged filaments such as broken filaments, knots, splices, split
tow, fiber separation, as well as hollow and interrupted fibers [18]. In other types
of composites such as metal-matrix composites and fiber-metal laminates defects
such as improper/poor storage, poor quality control, and over-aged materials are
often observed [69, 70]. One of the most dominant consequences related to material
processing defects is that they significantly reduce the interfacial strength between
the matrix and the different material constituents of the composite of interest, which
1.12 Main Types of Deficiency in Polymer-Matrix Composites 33

further degrades its overall stiffness and strength making it unable to fulfill its func-
tional requirements [71]. Although the variation in different constituents is often
seen as a component manufacturing defect that is controlled by the curing process,
research suggests that it may also be a material processing defect under some circum-
stances suggesting that parameters setup, the manufacturing environment, and the
integrity of the individual materials should all be controlled to obtain the desired
fiber-reinforced composite materials [18]. Additional materials processing defects
in fiber-reinforced composite materials include fiber misalignment, marcelled fibers,
wrong matrix percentage vis-à-vis other constituents, fiber miscollination as well as
over-aged prepreg among others [18, 68]. If and when these defects occur in the
composite, they significantly degrade its properties [32] and its response to various
loading conditions will significantly differ from its original design specifications and
ultimate failure may follow. The above constitute just the basic information regarding
the material processing defects occurring in fiber-reinforced composite materials
and interested readers are encouraged to read [17, 18, 41] for more information and
descriptions of other types of material processing defects.

1.12.2 Manufacturing Defects

As the name indicates, manufacturing defects are those accidental defects (i.e., unin-
tended defects) that occur in the composites during the manufacturing process as a
result of poor handling and/or control of the materials as well as the contaminated
environment. Several types of defects may occur during the fabrication of fiber-
reinforced composites, the most common being a fiber/ply misalignment, broken
fibers, resin cracks or transversal ply cracks, voids, porosity, slag inclusions, non-
uniform dispersion of fiber/resin volume ratio throughout the entire composite,
disbonded interlaminar regions, the presence of sections with kissing bonds, incor-
rect cure and mechanical damage around machined holes and/or cuts to list but
a few. While the effective performance of fiber-reinforced composites depends on
the correct alignment of reinforcements (i.e., in this case the fibers) vis-à-vis the
stress/strain direction within the composite. In fact, in the presence of fiber misalign-
ment, the loading of the fibers may change from straight tension/compression loading
to shear loading of the weaker interface. This may result in a considerable drop in
the composite mechanical properties, and hence, the composite will be unable to
fulfill its functional requirements [17]. Also, different types of inclusions such as
dirt and debris may unintentionally contaminate the matrix, causing areas of local
stress concentrations in the composite, and delamination may follow (i.e., this kind
of delamination is susceptible to occur in the composite during the manufacturing
process or the in-service stages).
In retrospect, we note that the strength of CFRP components is strongly depen-
dent on both the volume percentage of the resin matrix and the fiber volume frac-
tion/percentage in the composite also known as content in fiber volume fraction. In
fact, the presence of regions of fibers unsupported by the polymeric matrix can induce
34 1 Introduction and Background of Fiber-Reinforced …

local stress concentrations throughout the composite (i.e., also known as the notch
effect) followed by severe degradation of its strength and stiffness which shortens
its service life span. Amongst the procedures that allow adequate production and
subsequently the quality of the resulting composite, the most important is probably
the resin curing process. Indeed the curing process has to be optimized in order to
get appropriate components responding to the structural design requirements. Other-
wise, resin curing is dependent on the temperature rate increase, the temperature and
duration of the curing plateau, the time at which pressure is applied, and the post-
curing temperature and pressure. If something unexpected occurs in the process,
the typical consequence could be incomplete or inappropriate chemical reactions,
uneven wetting of the fibers, incorrect fiber-volume ratio as well as the formation of
local matrix-rich pockets or matrix-starved regions. Moreover, the vacuum pressure,
if not suitable, could affect the degassing of contaminants with only partial removal
of the gases developing during chemical reactions. This may induce the formation
of voids (or porosity) within the matrix, between the plies, or at the fiber/matrix
interface. The detrimental effects of porosity have been known since 1978 when it
was found that there was a decrease of the interlaminar shear strength by about 7%
for each 1% of voids up to a total void content of about 4% [72, 73]. The decrease
of other properties for the first 1% of voids is reported as high as 30% (flexural
strength), 9% (torsional shear), 8% (impact strength), and 3% (tensile properties).
Although the above-described defects are found to be the most recurrent ones;
research indicates that some other types of defects are peculiar to some specific
manufacturing processes than others. In particular, composites manufactured using
pre-impregnated layers may entail some specific defects due to the improper storage
of pre-pregs such as out-of-date resin because of exposure to ambient temperature
(higher than that required for correct storage), wrinkled surface because of an uneven
position, which may result in, resin-rich regions within the laminate, accumulation
of debris, resulting in slag inclusions and broken, or damaged, fiber tows resulting
in reduced strength of the final composite laminate. Also, some defects can occur
in the laminate during the processing in the autoclave, mainly because of the pres-
ence of the regions with inadequate cured resin following the use of incorrect pres-
sure/temperature during the curing process. The application of non-uniform pressure
on a certain surface of the composite will often lead to the lack of bonding between
adjacent layers in the composite and this may often trigger additional damage (i.e.,
delamination, fiber breakage, etc.) and materials degradation (i.e., moisture ingress
and high-temperature degradation). Additionally, other manufacturing techniques
such as RTM often come with the formation of porosity due to the volatilization of
dissolved gases in the polymeric resin, the mechanical entrapment of gas bubbles,
or in some cases the evaporation of the mold-release agents/coatings. In particular,
excessive void formation is often influenced by several factors including the resin
properties, the molding temperature, as well as both the injection and the external
pressure that are applied during the curing process.
Indeed, whatever the type of the manufacturing defect is in the composite, it may
result in slight, severe, or even variations of the material properties from those of its
intended design which, in turn, leads to the reduction of its originally predicted life
1.12 Main Types of Deficiency in Polymer-Matrix Composites 35

span. In fact, these variations may act as sites for the initiation of fatigue damage or
may facilitate the growth of a fatigue crack during cyclic loading. A comprehensive
assessment of the quality of a composite structure prior to installation into service is
hence as important as the monitoring of its levels of damage accumulation during the
service [19]. And this probably justifies the increasing attention of many scientists and
engineers toward the development of effective NDT techniques capable of detecting
and characterizing the different defects at their incipient initiation, as well as adequate
design procedures that can reliably achieve zero-growth thresholds for any type of
defect. In theory, though, most of the manufacturing defects may be avoided and the
overall quality of a composite component or material itself may be increased with the
implementation of certain procedures and manufacturing practices combined with the
use of specific instrumentation. As an example, the use of computer-controlled tape-
laying machines may assure the construction of a prepreg stack for autoclaving to very
high standards of quality and repeatability. Similarly, errors of control in pressing
can be avoided to some extent by the use of automated autoclaves with pressure–
temperature cycles carefully programmed from detailed chemical knowledge of the
gelation and viscosity characteristics of the resin in use [74]. Of course, this entails
extra costs that remain an industrial decision.
In light of the aforementioned, one may want to know the real consequences of
the presence of a defect in any composite structure. While this may seem to be a fair
question to know the answer to, it is not easy to answer because many parameters
should be defined before a plausible answer is provided. Among them, the size and
orientation of the defects vis-à-vis the loading direction may play an important role
in determining their effect on the life of the composite structure [75]. This corrobo-
rates the findings by Harris, who, in his compressive book on engineering composite
materials [74] indicated that a few isolated spherical pores (i.e., having a diameter
of a micron or so in diameter), do generally not have significant effects on any of
the material physical properties, and may not, therefore, affect its tensile or flex-
ural mechanical performance. In contrast, a considerable distribution of innocuous-
looking pores can markedly reduce the interlaminar shear strength of a material and,
by providing sites for accumulation of moisture, may also considerably decay the
electrical or dielectric performance of the material. Similarly, minor delamination
between the adjacent plies of the complex laminate may have no effect on the tensile
strength of the material, but such defects are frequently injurious to the compression
performance of laminates and, as indicated previously, can rapidly grow to eventually
damage the composite under cyclic loading conditions. As a result, it is important to
use the most effective NDT techniques to detect the defects and establish the critical
size with a case-by-case approach owing to the specific type of composite and the
specific service conditions for any given application in order to avoid unpredictable
failure catastrophes [17]. The application of NDT would also help to localize and
characterize flaws at their incipient initiations and allow engineers to take an appro-
priate course of action which could ultimately save resources, eliminate unplanned
breakdown, and provide a timely window for repair-maintenance activities when the
composites are in service.
36 1 Introduction and Background of Fiber-Reinforced …

1.12.3 In-Service Damage and Material Degradation

In-service damage or material degradation of composite structures are caused by

several types of unpleasant events in the service environment including but not
limited to impact strikes [20], prolonged exposure to harsh conditions (i.e., high
temperatures, exposure to corrosive chemicals, UV lights, etc.). In aerospace and
marine composite structures, for example, impact strike is quite a devastating type
of damage and is considered to be the most ubiquitous type of damage in aerospace
composite structures. To this end, the weakness of composites to impact strikes is well
known in CFRP, especially to low-energy impacts that cause subsurface damage in the
form of delamination, cracks, and/or fiber breakage. In general, these types of impacts
show little visual evidence on the external surface (i.e., other than a small dent) that it
happened, and hence the name of barely visible impact damage (BVID) [18, 76]. The
latter is particularly a serious type of damage because it transfers its impact energy
into the affected area of the composite in pyramidal fashion (i.e., in a form of tree root
of matrix cracks and propagating delamination) leading to significant degradation of
the composite’s structural properties (e.g., residual strength, composite compactness,
etc.). In this case, the composite becomes defenseless and ultimately vulnerable to
almost any subsequent damage including out-of-plane deflections and ply buckling
when subjected to shear and compressive loading. Indeed these initial cracks and
delamination often continue to grow slowly under alternating or fluctuating stress
leading to significant losses of stiffness and ultimately catastrophic failures may
follow.
Consistent with the aforementioned, delamination in CFRP laminates is partic-
ularly devastating because it significantly reduces the composite’s strength (i.e.,
particularly the compression strength). In more severe cases (i.e., if undetected and
unrepaired timely), this kind of defect often results in a significant reduction of the
as-designed load capability, and in some cases, the inability to withstand design limit
load may follow [8]. In contrast, when it comes to the safety issues in aircraft struc-
tures, the structure must be able to ‘withstand reasonable loads without failure or
excessive structural deformation after an impact damage’ for the ‘operational life of
the aircraft’ or ‘until the damage is detected and fixed’ [77, 78]. Indeed one of the
most viable solutions toward the production of efficient fiber-reinforced composite
materials is that designers should have sufficient knowledge about the failure mech-
anisms of the final product to ensure their products can effectively respond to their
design functions without their structural integrity being compromised. In the Grif-
fith model [79–81], for example, it is indicated that the fracture of homogeneous
materials is based on the stress-intensity factor (K) and the associated strain-energy
release rate (G), which is mainly related to the material fracture toughness (i.e., mate-
rial resistance to crack propagation) [74]. In real fiber-reinforced composite material,
however, both the microstructural inhomogeneity and anisotropy of the material are
the key parameters causing the failure mechanism to be very complex as they involve
a combination of micro-failure events (i.e., these micro-cracks can often give rise to
high levels of fracture energy). In fact, unlike homogeneous materials such as metals,
1.12 Main Types of Deficiency in Polymer-Matrix Composites 37

composites have crack-stopper ability inherent in both types of interfaces at a micro-

scopic level (i.e., crack-stoppers between the fibers and the polymeric matrix) and a
macroscopic level (i.e., crack-stoppers between separate laminas). This gives rise to
complex fracture mechanisms involving the breaking of fibers and matrix, delami-
nation between fibers and matrix, and a combination of crack deviations alongside
the interfaces (i.e., all of these taking place in the composite at both the micro and
macroscopic levels). In practice, the fracturing of a composite is driven by three
factors: the matrix, the reinforcement, and the interface; it is important to consider
the types of matrix and fibers, their mutual volumes, and the type of bonds in between
them, meaning the curing process.
In general, the toughness of a composite is derived from its material constituents,
and the relative contributions of the individual materials depend not only on the phys-
ical and mechanical characteristics but also on how they interact with one another.
To this end, it is generally difficult to predict the toughness of all composites based
on the characteristics of their material constituents [74], because even the procedures
based on classical fracture mechanics cannot be purely applied in the design of the
composites without any prior modifications and expect to obtain the properties as
estimated. To put this into perspective, when fibers are incorporated into the poly-
meric matrix, their separate phases do not necessarily contribute to the composite’s
structural toughness in an additive fashion, as the breadth of this interaction largely
depends on the level of constraint that is set consistent with their properties differ-
ences [72, 74]. As such, it is rather difficult, or even impossible, to predict the way a
composite will fail. To overcome this difficulty, scientists generally prefer to estab-
lish the damage threshold load (DTL) under impact in specific industries such as the
aircraft industry to be able to predict the behavior of the composite during its service
life [82]. Although the establishment of the DTL has been the line of work for many
years and there is a significant amount of numerical simulation and experimental
testing data, there is still no clear methodology to unambiguously establish this DTL
threshold more reliably. This is particularly because establishing an accurate DTL
mainly depends on many factors, including but not limited to the effective material
mechanical characteristics as well as the geometry of both the target [83, 84], and
the impactor [85]. In addition, the high variability of the composite’s mechanical
properties is the main cause of porosity that is induced in the final product during the
manufacturing processes (i.e., can be reduced by accurately controlling the manu-
facturing parameters but not fully removed) [86]. It is largely believed that properties
variability is the main reason causing composite structures to display a large variety of
damaging ways when subjected to impact (i.e., produce deformations in a small zone
surrounding the point of impact while others completely deform the entire structure)
[87]. Also, a major portion of the impact energy is transferred to the plate in some
cases, while most of the impact energy may be returned to the impactor in others
[8], or the effect of indentation is almost negligible in some cases while it absorbs a
significant portion of the impact energy (i.e., it must be adequately modeled in the
analysis) in the others.
Apart from the establishment of the DTL threshold, it must be pointed out that
impact threats are also quantified in terms of impact energy in the aircraft industry,
38 1 Introduction and Background of Fiber-Reinforced …

though this is technically not a reliable method because even at the same impact
energy, a small mass and a large mass impactor exhibit completely different responses
[31]. In a recent study, Meola and co-authors in [88] provided a solution to this
drawback, after conducting a series of studies [89–91], by proposing a relationship
that links the damaged area to the impact energy and the dimension of the impactor
dimension. They indicated that it is possible to visualize the thermal effects that
develop under the low-energy impact, and which may supply information about
initiation and propagation of the impact damage [85]. Since the kinetic energy passes
from the impactor nose to the target during the impact event and because such energy
is partly dissipated as heat, the detection of thermal signatures developing under
the impact damage is important for the understanding of failure modes in fibrous
composites. They also demonstrated that any form of damage (delamination and/or
fiber breakage) is generally followed by some form of heat dissipation, which is
expressed by the appearance of hot spots/areas on the surface of the material. In this
context, infrared thermography is generally perceived as one of the most beneficial
and unique tools to detect such damage (see details in chapter five of the book).
Although most of these damage and material degradation processes occur in the
composite as a result of natural phenomena, some of them may also occur following
initial damage that leads the way. Liquid water normally enters the core through
exposed edges, such as panel edges, closeouts, door and window sills, attachment
fittings, or almost any location where the skin and core bond terminates. The majority
of the damage is often found at the edges of panels [92]. Adhesive bond degradation
will lower the skin-to-core bond strength, the fillet bond strength, and the node
bond strength. Node bond degradation can reduce the core shear strength so that the
assembly fails prematurely by core failure. In addition, water will enter the assembly
through any puncture in the facesheets. Since some honeycomb assemblies contain
extremely thin skins, water has been known to pass through the skins and then
condense on the cell walls of the sandwich structures, making them vulnerable to
disbonds and continuous material degradation. Interconnected microcracks in thin
skin honeycomb panels can also allow water ingression [92, 93]. Although absorbed
moisture affects the properties of any composite assembly, it is the presence of liquid
water in the cells that do the majority of the damage. Many field reports blame water
ingression on “poor” sealing techniques. While there is a great deal of truth to the
statement that good sealing practices are important, it is the author’s opinion that it is
just a matter of time before water will find its way into the core of most honeycomb
designs and initiate the damage process. Table 1.1 summarizes the most important
types of defect or damage occurring in composites as well as their location, relative
size, cause, and inherent characteristics.
In summary, Table 1.1 indicates that there are many different types of defects some
of the defects will likely occur at certain stages of the lifecycle of the composite than
others. Although most of these defects are known to the designers, their prediction
is still very difficult, especially in multidirectional laminates whereby a mixture of
unidirectional failure modes is susceptible to occur under different loading spectra. In
addition, the failure mode is determined by postmortem examination of the fracture
surface in the majority of defects cases. Some of the defects posing the most problems
Table 1.1 Summary of the different types of defect or damage occurring in composites as well as their location, relative size, cause, and inherent characteristics
Types of the defect or damage
Fiber faults or damaged
filaments
Delamination
Characterization of the defect or
the damage
It is a macroscopic type of defect
and is usually manifested in
different forms including but not
limited to variation in fiber
distribution across the composite,
fiber marcelling, kinks, fracture,
misalignment, fiber/matrix
debonds, as well as damaged
filaments, and many others
It is a macroscopic defect
occurring in the composite in a
form of an inter-laminar crack,
separation of the layers or plies, or
cracks between the plies of
laminate parallel to the fibers
Common causes of defect or the
damage
Generally caused by broken
filaments, knots, splices, and split
tow-in raw fibers. Inadequate cure
temperature, pressure, and resin
propagation. Also, improper yarn
spacing, fiber kinking, poor
prefabrication control and
handling, excessive local shear
transfer stresses in short fibers,
deviation from the adequate
winding patterns, and washout of
fiber due to the excessive resin
flow are among the additional
possible causes
Impact damage, matrix and free
edge cracking, incorrect
impregnation of fibers, and
compressive and tensile loading
Locations of the defects or
damage and time of occurrence
These types of defects or damage
are often identified in the raw
fibers and in the in-plane matrix
between the plies of the laminate
or within the laminate itself. They
occur at the different stages of the
life of the composite (material
processing, composite
manufacturing, and in-service
stages) with some of them being
predominant in some stages than
in others
In-plane matrix, between the plies
and within the laminate itself. It
occurs during the manufacturing
of in-serve stages of the composite
Major effects of defect or the
damage on the composite
Separation at the fiber-matrix
interface, induced matrix
cracking, loss of shear transfer,
and degradation of the overall
tensile and compressive strengths
as well as the stiffness of the
composite. Fiber faults can also
cause continuous fiber damage,
formation of undesired shapes of
the parts and ply buckling during
the layup process, loss of tensile
strength, accelerated fiber
buckling, and premature failure
It significantly reduces the overall
stiffness of the composite and
both its compressive and shear
strengths cannot be guaranteed
1.12 Main Types of Deficiency in Polymer-Matrix Composites
(continued)
39
Table 1.1 (continued)
Types of the defect or damage Characterization of the defect or
the damage
Matrix cracking It is often a macroscopic defect
that is characterized by matrix
breakage. It may also induce a
localized through-the-thickness
cracking and fiber breakage
depending on the properties of the
matrix
Impact damage It is a macroscopic defect/damage
that is characterized by a change
in the mechanical properties of the
composite. Obsolescence and
reduction in the overall
performance of the affected
structure
Corner crack It is a macroscopic defect and is
characterized by a matrix crack on
the corners of the structure or
delamination between plies. The
defect may be perpendicular or
trans-laminar to the ply
Common causes of defect or the
damage
It is usually caused by
over-stressing of the matrix
through various loading
conditions, thermal expansion,
defective cure cycle, impact
damage, and geometric
discontinuity
It is generally caused by projectile
impact, collision with a different
object or structure, mechanical
stress, and long-term mechanical
bending cycles
Projectile impact damage,
inter-laminar failure, free edge,
static or cyclic tensile loading,
compression, micro-cracks, voids,
and geometric boundaries
Locations of the defects or
damage and time of occurrence
It often occurs in the interface
planes of continuous fiber
composites and their laminates
during the manufacturing and
in-serve stages of the composite
It is susceptible to occur/appear
anywhere in the composite and it
often occurs during the in-service
stage
It is usually formed at the corners
or areas of geometric
discontinuity of the composite
while in-service. It may happen
during component manufacturing
40
Major effects of defect or the
damage on the composite
Localized stress concentrations,
reduction of stiffness and shear
strength, fiber fracture, and
delaminations
It often leads to wear and tear,
fracture of fiber layers, fissure in
the matrix, fiber/matrix layout,
and degradation of the
compactness of the material
Reduce stiffness and strength,
affect the compression and shear
strength of the components
(continued)
1 Introduction and Background of Fiber-Reinforced …
Table 1.1 (continued)
Types of the defect or damage
Cuts, scratches, and notches
Blistering
Contamination or artificial
inserts
Moisture ingress
Characterization of the defect or
the damage
They are all macroscopic defects
and as the name indicates, the first
two are cuts and scratches on the
surface of the composite while
notches are characterized by
uneven surface finishing
It is a macroscopic defect/damage
that is often considered to be a
localized lamina or ply
delamination
A defect whose size variable
(microscopic or macroscopic) and
is characterized by the inclusion
of foreign materials such as the
peel ply and backing paper at the
interface level between the plies
The moisture is absorbed into the
laminate through the matrix.
Usually contained in the outer
plies. Composite parts
performance is compromised
Common causes of defect or the
damage
They are all caused by poor
release procedures, composite
mishandling, solid particle
erosion, and low-speed projectile
impact
Expansion of trapped gases within
the lamina, localized heating of
the matrix, chemical attack, and
moisture ingress
It is caused by poor process
control and materials mishandling
Caused by water diffusing into the Usually contained in the outer
composite part over time
Locations of the defects or
damage and time of occurrence
Notches are often observed on the
surface, corners, and edges of the
composite while scratches and
cuts are on the surface of the
composite. They may happen
during the component
manufacturing and in-service
stages
Usually on the surface of the
composite but susceptible to occur
anywhere in the lamina or ply.
Usually in-service but may
happen during the component
manufacturing
The in-plane matrix between the
plies of the laminate or within the
laminate itself. It happens during
the composite manufacturing
stage
plies and take place during the
in-service stage of the composite
Major effects of defect or the
damage on the composite
They all lead to a significant
reduction in the static strength of
the composite through the severity
depending on their sizes, the
application, and the direction of
the load being applied
Degrade the resin matrix, and
damage the fiber/matrix interface.
Reduces the compression,
stiffness, and shear strengths
Affect the thermo-mechanical
properties of the structures
1.12 Main Types of Deficiency in Polymer-Matrix Composites
The degradation of the resin
properties (softening and
stiffness), reduction of fiber
interface bond strength, and
swelling
(continued)
41
Table 1.1 (continued)
Types of the defect or damage Characterization of the defect or
the damage
Porosity Size is variable and porosity may
be microscopic or macroscopic
and these are small and randomly
dispersed air bubbles within the
laminate. A cluster of several
microscopic voids. Usually, the
size is not as important as the
concentration
Voids These may be microscopic or
macroscopic defects indicating
localized or distributed trapped
gases, volatiles materials in the
resin
Composite size or thickness Usually indicated by the variation
variations of the thickness or the density of
the composite. It may be a
macroscopic or microscopic
variation
42
Common causes of defect or the Locations of the defects or Major effects of defect or the
damage damage and time of occurrence damage on the composite
Poor material or process control, Within the laminate often takes Porosity causes localized stress,
over-aged material, air/moisture place during the component strength, and fatigue
entrapment in the prepreg, or an manufacturing concentrations. Degradation of
autoclave malfunction tensile, interlaminar, compression,
and bearing properties at high
temperatures
Generally caused by poor process They are often located within the Voids degrade the mechanical and
control, defective resin matrix of the laminate during the thermal properties. Reduces the
propagation, trapped air within the manufacturing process modulus and fatigue resistance.
resin and filament bundle, residual Reduces the interlaminar shear,
solvent carrier, chemical reaction longitudinal, transverse flexural,
products, volatilization of tensile, and compressive strength
low-molecular-weight
components, and organic
inclusions
Generally caused by the Within the laminate and it is a Excessive peel stresses in bonded
inconsistencies in the resin composite manufacturing defect joints, degrade the bond joint
content of the laminate or the efficiency. Their effect on the
adhesive layer in the bonded joints laminate is similar to that caused
as well as the presence of voids, or by the prepreg variability
porosity within the composite
(continued)
1 Introduction and Background of Fiber-Reinforced …
Table 1.1 (continued)
Types of the defect or damage
Surface swelling
Matrix crazing
Thermal stresses
Solid particle erosion/abrasion The recurrent impact from solid
Characterization of the defect or Common causes of defect or the Locations of the defects or Major effects of defect or the
the damage damage damage and time of occurrence damage on the composite
A kind of macroscopic blister that Use/contact of undesirable The surface of the composite Localized breakdown of the
causes the surface of the solvents on the outer ply of the structure and takes place during matrix, loss of fiber/matrix
composite to swell structure the in-service stage of the stiffness, and shear transfer
composite
It is a type of macroscopic damage Usually over-aged material or Interface planes of the continuous Localized stress concentrations,
and is characterized by the exposure to excessive heat or fiber composites and their fiber fracture, and/or
formation of multiple cracks in the severe ultraviolet radiations laminates delaminations
matrix following all directions.
Common in nonstructural matrix
materials
Not true defects but rather a result High and periodic thermal stresses In components after removal from Affect the component’s structural
of microscopic residual stresses from the curing process. Improper autoclave or during cool down. performance. Thermoelectric
within the laminate cool-down rates Component manufacturing and damage and potential surface
in-service of the parts blisters
The repeated impact of solid It is usually located at the free Particle erosion reduces the local
particles that remove the external particles in the air/liquid, wear, edges, geometric discontinuity, strength and stiffness and causes
matrix/fibers from the target and abrasion and the surface of the part asymmetry and out-of-plane
surface. It is often a macroscopic stresses of the composite
1.12 Main Types of Deficiency in Polymer-Matrix Composites
type of damage
(continued)
43
Table 1.1 (continued)
Types of the defect or damage
Surface oxidation
Translaminar cracks
Unbond or debond
Pills or fuzz balls
44
Characterization of the defect or Common causes of defect or the Locations of the defects or Major effects of defect or the
the damage damage damage and time of occurrence damage on the composite
It is a type of macroscopic damage Lightning strikes, local overheat, The surface of the composite The disintegration of structural
that is usually confused with other battle damage (laser), surface during its in-service stage integrity and matrix properties
surface damage types of defects damage, chemical attack
These are macroscopic Generally caused by extreme Within the laminate during the Same effects as fracture and hole
through-the-thickness cracks that overload or impact damage in-service stage stress concentrator
are often followed by fibers
breakage
Separations in a secondary Poor process control/fitting, Between bonded structures and Reduce the local stiffness of the
adhesive bond or sandwich facing. impact damage, thermal spikes, usually takes place during the structure
Typical delaminations between overload, or freeze/thaw cycle composite manufacturing and
bonded structures. It is generally a during in-service in-service of the parts
macroscopic defect or damage
Also known as the “furring” of the Poor process control during the Within the laminate, through-hole The affected area becomes
fibers—They are considered as manufacturing process areas during the manufacturing susceptible to localized high peel
prepreg deviations stage of the composite stresses
(continued)
1 Introduction and Background of Fiber-Reinforced …
Table 1.1 (continued)
Types of the defect or damage
Composite crushing
Creep
Corner splitting
Characterization of the defect or
the damage
It is a macroscopic type of damage Often caused by impact damage or
that is characterized by local
indentations or surface dents.
Often a sign of further internal
damages: delaminations, fiber
breakage, or matrix cracks
A matrix-dominated failure. Size,
shape, and frequency must be
monitored for critical components
This is a macroscopic type of
damage that is characterized by
the opening up of existing edge
delamination of the entire
delaminated area during loading.
These are also cracks between the
different plies of the composite
Common causes of defect or the
damage
inelastic collision with moving
objects
Plastic deformations that are
caused by continuous loading at
elevated temperatures
Caused by edge impact or
out-of-plane stresses. Usually, a
maintenance or part
installation-related damage
Locations of the defects or Major effects of defect or the
damage and time of occurrence damage on the composite
It is the exterior of the part, matrix Affect tensile, Compression, and
cracks and, fiber breakage that shear strength of the part
takes place during the in-serve
stage of the composite as a result
of impact damage or inelastic
collision
Sustained heat damage areas Tensile, shear, and compressive
occurring during the service life strength are reduced. In-plane
of the composite extension leads to out-of-plane
deflections and buckling
Edges and corners, as well as the Affect the shear strength of the
geometric discontinuity of the part
component that takes place during
the in-service stage of the
composite
(continued)
1.12 Main Types of Deficiency in Polymer-Matrix Composites
45
Table 1.1 (continued)
Types of the defect or damage
Bearing surface damage
Edge damage
Corner radius delaminations
Nonuniform agglomeration of
hardener agents
Mismatched parts
46
Characterization of the defect or Common causes of defect or the Locations of the defects or Major effects of defect or the
the damage damage damage and time of occurrence damage on the composite
A type of macroscopic damage Improper installation, loose Usually located at the joint Produce several micro-cracks and
that features fiber fractures, fastener, joint overload, free between the pin (fastener) and the micro-voids, progressive failure of
delamination, and matrix cracking edges, uneven distributions of edge of the hole and it takes place the part, matrix cracks, and holes
fiber strength, and imperfect during the service life of the
fiber/matrix interface bonding composite
This is a macroscopic type of Components mishandling and This type of defect/damage mostly Affect the composite part’s
damage and its common features high out-of-plane normal or appears on the edges of the compressive and shear strengths
include edge splitting, free-edge, shearing stresses at the proximity component and occurs during the
and delaminations of the free edges composite manufacturing and
in-serve stage of the parts
A type of macroscopic matrix Predominantly caused by Corners of the structure, and at the Induces significant out-of-plane
cracks parallel to the fiber axis in manufacturing errors while giving geometric discontinuity areas. stresses into the component
the corner radius of the part. The a particular shape to the composite Usually in-service but may
resulting delamination runs happen during the component
longitudinally manufacturing
It is a defect of variable size Poor control process and material The in-plane matrix between the Significant degradation of the
(maybe microscopic or mishandling plies of the laminate or within the local matrix properties
macroscopic) and is characterized laminate itself and usually takes
by the presence of a foreign body place during the component
or resin-starved area in the matrix manufacturing
Usually a macroscopic defect and Poor control process Especially in the joint areas and Affect the load response of the
is characterized by tolerance error takes place during the component laminate and often lead to fitting
manufacturing errors
(continued)
1 Introduction and Background of Fiber-Reinforced …
Table 1.1 (continued)
Types of the defect or damage
Over/under cured
Dents
Excessive ply overlap
Characterization of the defect or
the damage
It is a microscopic type of defect
and is characterized by the under
cure of over cure cycles causing
additional stresses to the
composite
These are macroscopic
indentations observed at the point
of interaction between the
composite and a moving object
but no fibers are broken
It’s a macroscopic type of defect
that is characterized by laminate
dimensional tolerance errors
Common causes of defect or the
damage
Improper curing process - Too
long/short in time and/or too
high/low cure temperature
Tool impressions and design
variance
Takes place when the ply is not
adequately trimmed during the
assembly process
Locations of the defects or
damage and time of occurrence
A matrix defect and takes place
during the composite
manufacturing stage
Usually on the surface of the part
and take place during the
composite manufacturing and
in-serve
In the plies of the laminate and
take place during the composite
manufacturing stage
Major effects of defect or the
damage on the composite
Localized laminate’s strength,
poor stiffness response, poor shear
transfer in the fiber/matrix
interface
Partial loss of stiffness
Often leads to warping which and
high peel stresses
(continued)
1.12 Main Types of Deficiency in Polymer-Matrix Composites
47
Table 1.1 (continued)
Types of the defect or damage
Reworked areas
Faulty prepreg
Composite warping
Characterization of the defect or
the damage
This is a macroscopic type of
damage that is characterized by
the presence of repair or rework
patches. Loss of mechanical
properties. Criticality depends on
the repair and the application
This is a microscopic type of
defect and is either characterized
by over-aged prepreg or prepreg
variation
It is a macroscopic defect that is
characterized by bent or twisted
out of shape, typically as a result
of the effects of heat or dampness
Common causes of defect or the
damage
Repeated repair
In the former case either B-staged
prepreg resin has aged or the final
cure does not provide adequate
fiber/matrix adhesion and volatile
evacuation while in the latter case
The preset material property levels
prior to cure are exceeded
Residual thermal stresses that
remain in the laminate after
fabrication of the composite or
parts assembly mismatch
Locations of the defects or
damage and time of occurrence
Areas of repair, either resin-filled
or patched and takes place during
the in-service
This type of defect is located in
the in-plane matrix between the
plies of the laminate or within the
laminate itself and occurs during
the component manufacturing
stage of the composite
This type of defect is usually
located at the joints areas and
takes place during the in-service
stage of the composite
48
Major effects of defect or the
damage on the composite
Degradation of structural
performance, localized strength,
and loss of stiffness
Faulty prepreg often causes a
significant reduction of the
laminate’s strength and stiffness
as well as the potential increase in
voids and porosity
Part may not fit at the next
assembly or, if fitted, out-of-plane
stresses may be induced
(continued)
1 Introduction and Background of Fiber-Reinforced …
Table 1.1 (continued)
Types of the defect or damage
Wrong materials
Faulty holes
Characterization of the defect or
the damage
Wrong materials used in the
fabrication of the component are a
blueprint error
Fastener holes defects, Fastener
removal and re-installation, The
hole elongation, The hole wear,
Improper fastener installation and
seating, Over-torqued fasteners,
Missing fasteners, Hole exit-side
damage, High drill-bit feed,
fastener pull-through, incorrect
installation of interference-fit
fasteners, resin-starved bearing
surface; and titled countersink
holes
Common causes of defect or the
damage
Poor control process
Tilted countersink and
interference-fit fasteners,
delamination, hole-exit damage.
Reworking a hole by removing or
reinstalling the fastener.
Overloading of the composite or
bearing failure. The movement of
the fastener in the hole. Improper
installation, seating, and size of
fasteners, under/over-torqued
fasteners. Absence of a fastener in
a through-hole. Over-torqued
fasteners and pull-through of the
fasteners. Drill burn, repair,
penetration damage, countersink
tear-out, fastener pull-through,
hole exit damage, miss-drill, tilted
holes, resin-filled holes, and free
edge porosity. Improper drill-bit
feed that causes delamination on
the backside of the composite
Locations of the defects or
damage and time of occurrence
Anywhere in the structure:
between plies of the laminate or
within the laminate itself and
usually takes place during the
composite manufacturing stage
These are macroscopic types often
located in and around the
through-hole areas of the
composite and they generally take
place during the service life of the
composite
Major effects of defect or the
damage on the composite
Inadequate stress and stiffness
characteristics and thermally
warped panel due to layup error
Local ply damage, affect the
tensile strength, compression
strength, and the structure’s
loading response. The wear and
tear of the hole especially when
the fastener shank pulls through
the hole. Reduces joint efficiency,
and produces a stress
concentration for through-holes.
Local crushing of the outer plies.
Tension, compressive and shear
strengths are affected. The
criticality of the damage depends
1.12 Main Types of Deficiency in Polymer-Matrix Composites
on the size of the inflicted
damage. Stress concentration,
fiber breakage. Severity depends
on the size of the drill burn, shape,
and location of the hole. Effect on
the part depends on the severity of
the damage but is most delicate in
tension and compression loading
modes
(continued)
49
Table 1.1 (continued)
Types of the defect or damage
Missing plies
Ply underlap or gap
Characterization of the defect or
the damage
This is a condition that occurs
when any of the plies of the
laminate is missing or the ply is
not correctly trimmed during the
assembly stage
N/A
Common causes of defect or the
damage
Usually Caused by the
mishandling of components
Too short ply size
Locations of the defects or
damage and time of occurrence
Usually located at the interface
between the plies. Usually takes
place during the composite
manufacturing stage
Usually located at the interface
between two consecutive plies
50
Major effects of defect or the
damage on the composite
Incorrect staking sequence of
plies, asymmetric laminate,
out-of-plane shape, unevenly
distributed stress
Affect the stiffness load response,
uneven strength distribution
1 Introduction and Background of Fiber-Reinforced …
1.12 Main Types of Deficiency in Polymer-Matrix Composites 51

to composite structures’ integrity during the in-service stages of their lifetime are the
intralaminar matrix cracking, delaminations, debonds, holes, and moisture ingress.

1.13 Trends Towards Novel Technologies

As indicated in the earlier sections of this chapter, fiber-reinforced composite mate-

rials have superior properties compared to their conventional structural material
systems. Fiber-reinforced composite materials have already gained a very high stan-
dard and their application in the aerospace and other important industries is now
prevalent than ever before, however, there is still room for further improvements.
Recent improvements are now aiming toward the manufacturing and cost reduc-
tion during material processing as well as the development of new applications and
the improvement of the overall material properties among others. In particular [94],
the development of new materials with improved properties such as resistance to
high temperature and corrosive substances, high stiffness coupled with high light-
ness, have always been the primary objective in the aeronautical field. Also, the
exploitation of novel materials, in both military and civil aviation as well as space
aeronautics, has allowed achieving results that were impossible to obtain with tradi-
tional materials [11]. The development of new materials is constantly progressing,
and now, in the era of composites, it is rather easy to create a new material by simply
adding a new ingredient to the basic recipe or by changing the curing parameters.
In particular, presently (in which words like smaller, younger, mini, and thinner
are imperative) the word nano is dominating the composite materials world than
ever before. Indeed, nanotechnology allows control of matter and processes at the
nanoscale (i.e., 1–100 nm) [95, 96] with the possibility to create materials of desired
characteristics.
The use of nanoparticles (e.g., carbon nanotubes, graphene, etc.) as filler in
polymer resins (i.e., to generate composites known as nanocomposites) have been
under investigation in the last decade and they resulted in tremendous improvements
in mechanical properties [64, 94, 97]. In general, nanocomposites present the advan-
tage of a high aspect ratio with the main effect of an increase in the reinforcement
surface area. This offers the possibility to obtain the same performance properties
achieved with traditionally filled resins but with a smaller filler volume fraction.
In addition, nano-filled resins often exhibit other novel beneficial characteristics on
the macroscale properties of the composite such as improved thermal and electrical
conductivity, reduced flammability, higher stiffness, strength, and resistance to wear
and damage. Also, the nanocomposites used as the matrix for fiber-reinforced poly-
mers (FRPs) have the potential to improve overall mechanical properties as inter-
laminar shear stress, first-ply failure, impact, and compression after impact to list
but a few. In electrical and electronic engineering, for example, the fact that polymer
matrix (i.e., an insulator by nature) can be turned into an electrically conductive
material is particularly beneficial because this additional function can be used for
both the electric charge ablation and the sensing of the composite deformation and/or
52 1 Introduction and Background of Fiber-Reinforced …

damage. In particular, their potential for strain sensing applications with electrical
conductivity methods can be used to investigate the response of the electromechan-
ical deformation and its subsequent effect on fiber-reinforced composite materials
with embedded nanoparticles when subjected to mechanical load.
Consistent with the aforementioned, an integration of nanoparticles into the matrix
of fiber-reinforced composite materials not only improves the overall properties but
also has the capabilities of turning the entire composite material into a multifunc-
tional material whereby superior mechanical properties are combined with excellent
sensing capabilities. Composite materials can even better compete with conven-
tional structural materials, respectively, are an even more attractive alternative [94].
Although nanocomposites present improved properties with potentially more appli-
cations compared to their simple fiber-reinforced composite materials counterparts,
the manufacturing of nanocomposites has raised the challenge of obtaining uniform
dispersion of the nanoscale fillers throughout the polymeric resin matrix. Several
solutions have been proposed to solve this problem including the use of centrifuge
machines, microfluidization, and the formation of 3D nanoparticles before infusing
them with the polymer resin. A useful application of nanotechnology has been devised
in the enhancement of fiber-reinforced polymer composites. This may include three
approaches the modification of the polymeric matrix, modification of the rein-
forcements, and the incorporation of a macroscopic arrangement of a nanometer-
dimensional material among others [98–100]. Of course, the new material may be
created by pursuing one, or more, of the three approaches described above. In partic-
ular, a novel technology that is still under development consists of the production
of reinforcements (glass or carbon) infused with carbon nanostructures to be used
as pre-pregs for the fabrication of composites [101–103]. This technology is known
as carbon-enhanced reinforcement and it is expected to deliver improved composite
in-plane shear strength and greater interlaminar shear strength.
In recent years, there has also been a growing interest in hybrid composites mate-
rials particularly for the manufacturing of strong and highly resistant structures such
as airplane wings and wind turbine blades, thanks to their ability to provide the manu-
facturers with greater control of the properties while equally enabling the achieve-
ment of a more favorable balance between the composites’ inherent advantages and
disadvantages [104]. This is particularly because the advantages of one reinforcement
could complement the disadvantages of another reinforcement through hybridization
in order to obtain a cost-effective hybrid composite with desirable properties through
the appropriate material selection. Given the fact that fiber reinforced polymers are
predominantly made of synthetic fibers (i.e., glass fiber, carbon fibers), an emerging
field of high-performance natural fibers, especially bast fibers (i.e., including flax,
hemp, and jute), is gaining significant interest. Therefore, the industry includes many
significant innovations at every stage of the manufacturing of composites, which
extends from the fibers and their precursors or preforms through to the manufac-
turing processes and their associated industries. There are currently many innova-
tions taking place in the market across the value chain, most of which are focusing
on performance improvement and cost benefits in the composites industry [50, 105].
Under the same umbrella, the hybridization of natural fibers and synthetic fibers is
1.13 Trends Towards Novel Technologies 53

particularly an attractive area in the transport industry as it provides composites with

a lightweight characteristic in comparison to non-hybrid synthetic fiber-reinforced
composites, which is due to the significantly lower density of natural fibers. Indeed
this characteristic is one of the criteria that is particularly important in transportation
sectors to reduce fuel dependence and energy consumption without any significantly
deteriorating the safety measures.

1.14 General Conclusions

In this chapter, a general introduction and background information pertinent to

the manufacturing of fiber-reinforced composite materials is provided outlining the
general analysis and properties of these types of materials. However, the information
provided in this chapter is only the summary that was gathered to help the readers as
the starting point to understand the thematic subject of this book as illustrated in the
title, suggesting that some of the details pertinent to the design and manufacturing of
FRCs might be missing. This is particularly because the primary aim of this book is to
provide the readers with information regarding the usefulness of the different NDT
techniques in the detection and characterization of the different types of defects
and damage in fiber-reinforced composite materials (i.e., including their design,
development, flaws evaluation methodologies and the subsequent maintenance of
the material). It is also acknowledged that some of the figures used herein, which
refer to well-known facts, were presented following some inspirations from some of
the NDT websites, and books and references have been provided when appropriate.
In this framework, this chapter has to be regarded as an introduction to composite
materials because it only provides the basic information outlining the main types of
composite materials with varying types of matrix and reinforcement, as well as some
general hints on the fabrication processes that help to obtain high-quality composites.
A section is also dedicated to the description of the main types of defects that may
arise in composites, either during the processing of the raw materials, the manufac-
turing of the composite as well as during its service. Particularly, we believe that such
a description will help readers to understand the main weaknesses of composites and
provide a viable source of information to the engineers on what they should expect
when using composite structures in their designs. The chapter ends with a look at
the environmental impact and the future research trend of the existing composite
material, which appears to be dominated by nanotechnology, and the apparent move
towards the development of environment-friendly and sustainable composite mate-
rials. The next chapter entirely focuses on the approaches of assessing the material’s
soundness in a nondestructive fashion. In particular, a general introduction to NDT is
provided outlining its usefulness in the detection and characterization of the different
flaws and damage. In doing so, the main intention is to ensure our readers have rele-
vant information regarding the semantics pertinent to the available testing techniques
and methodologies for fiber-reinforced composite materials in the NDT community.
Also, this will be thoroughly discussed in the chapters of this book, we believe that
54 1 Introduction and Background of Fiber-Reinforced …

the information provided in the next chapter may also be used as the basis for the
engineers or NDT practitioners to establish, through a general comparison, whether
an NDT technique may be used alone, in place of, or integrated with, some other
techniques to obtain reliable and accurate testing and/or evaluation results.

Important Disclosure In this chapter, some figures referring to well-known facts and popular THz
systems were arranged traying inspiration from NDT websites and sources were also referenced
when appropriately.

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Chapter 2
Introduction to Nondestructive Testing
and Evaluation of Fiber-Reinforced
Composites

2.1 Approaching the Nondestructive Testing World

In recent years, structural systems have been dominated by the utilization of longer,
bigger, and significantly complex fiber-reinforced composites including but not
limited to wind turbine blades (WTB), bridge decks, helicopter rotor systems, marine
hulls, and airplane wing-spars. Such an increase in size and complexity further
complicates their manufacturing processes, the likelihood of developing defects,
and strict utilization and maintenance requirements [1–3]. To avoid sudden failures,
users and manufacturers always seek to inspect composite structures during their
lifecycle by using adequate NDT techniques to ensure their functional design is not
compromised [4]. Among these NDT techniques, visual inspection remains the most
common testing method to reveal the truth and provide answers to questions such as
“what is inside?”, “is there damage?”, “must be anyhow rejected?” and “does it need
to be repaired?” etc. However, vision alone does not provide answers to all these
questions because it only works in a small band of frequencies in the electromag-
netic spectrum called visible light (i.e., with the wavelength λ varying between 400
and 700 nm). In fact, human eyes are only capable of detecting defects of certain
sizes (only on the surface of an illuminated component), unless such a component is
transparent under the visible light (e.g., glass, some plastic, etc.) [5]. As a result, the
inspection of composites for possible defects through vision remains limited because
the vast majority are not transparent in the visible band. Interestingly, it is possible
to find at least one physical phenomenon (the inspection parameter) that will interact
with and be influenced by the test specimen through some physical principles and
be able to see through the material and visualize the details in its interior that would
otherwise be invisible to the human naked eye.
In material engineering, product safety assurance, in-line diagnostics, quality
control, health monitoring, as well as security testing, and structural engineering,
methods using such physical principles to view the interior of the material without
altering its original attributes are referred to as nondestructive testing (NDT). Recent

© Science Press 2022 61

S. Zhong and W. Nsengiyumva, Nondestructive Testing and Evaluation
of Fiber-Reinforced Composite Structures,
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-19-0848-4_2
62 2 Introduction to Nondestructive Testing and Evaluation …

studies [1] suggest that NDT is a very broad and interdisciplinary area that encom-
passes all the techniques and methods that are used for the testing and evaluation of
structural systems or components to ensure they continuously perform their func-
tional design more reliably and cost-effectively [6]. In this context, NDT practi-
tioners and engineers generally define the conditions and types of nondestructive
tests and conduct them to locate, characterize and evaluate the material or structural
system’s conditions and flaws that might be threatening the structural integrity of
components and systems causing them to fail prematurely while in-service (e.g., the
train derail, plane crash, reactor failure, pipelines burst, pole breaking, etc.) and a
variety of less visible, but equally troubling events. Since NDT allows inspection
of components or materials without interfering with their structural attributes, NDT
techniques provide several benefits including the excellent balance between quality
control and cost-effectiveness [4, 7, 8]. The application of NDT techniques for the test
and evaluation of fiber-reinforced composite materials has been an area of continued
growth for over 60 years now and its growth does not only depend on its practical
demands but also its interdisciplinary nature. While there are many published studies
on this topic, the semantics are quite complex in most of the studies and often may be
misleading. As such, we believe that it is important to first establish the correct seman-
tics to be used in this book before starting the discussion on NDT of fiber-reinforced
composite materials, which is indeed our primary focus in this book. In reality, some
terms NDT, nondestructive evaluation (NDE), and nondestructive inspection (NDI)
are often used interchangeably including in some references in this book. Although
these three terminologies appear to be synonymous, a deeper analysis reveals that
fundamental differences exist between the three terms viz. inspection, testing, and
evaluation [4]. To this end, one may want to know the correct terminology to use and
what would be its significance/meaning in the NDT context.
Generally speaking, inspection indicates the action of observing the material or
the structure critically and carefully to ensure it is in line with the predefined stan-
dards. That is, inspection mainly involves the sense of sight where the individual
involved uses his or her eyes to carefully observe the material of interest. In many
engineering applications, for example, the inspection of structural systems involves
the use of measurement systems, test instruments, and gauges to obtain some features
and/or characteristics of the test material/structural system which are then compared
to some predefined requirements and standards to determine whether the material or
structural system is in line with these targets. According to ISO/IEC 17,020 standard,
inspection denotes an examination of the features of the products, structural systems,
processes, services, or installations and/or their designs to ensure their conformity
with specific requirements based on professional judgment or with general require-
ments [9]. Usually, inspection is performed by accredited bodies and may be followed
by legal action if protocols are not properly followed. Conversely, the word testing
mainly indicates the action of doing something with our hands and minds to ascer-
tain if the material presents certain features. Finally, evaluation entails the expression
of an opinion based on experience or measurements. That is, evaluation is closely
linked with testing because, in the sequence of events, the former follows the latter
(i.e., the output of a test may either be a matter of evaluation to appraise the health
2.1 Approaching the Nondestructive Testing World 63

status of the test structure or help in decision-making about the replacement, repair or
removal from the process). This indicates that evaluation is inherently a theoretically
informed approach to interpret the results obtained from tests and give a meaning
that is easily understandable and summarizes the main takeaway from these results.
Interestingly, all these terminologies preserve their original meanings when
coupled with the word nondestructive. In general, NDI mainly entails the use of vision
testing that results in either discarding the test component or calling for advanced
NDT techniques if macroscopic nonconformities are observed. The purpose of using
these advanced NDT techniques is to help engineers and technicians to gain more
information that will aid in the decision-making process pertaining to the replace-
ment, repair, or removal from the process. NDT involves a set of physical actions
performed on the composite material to verify or understand its characteristics, prop-
erties, behavior, integrity, composition, or any other features in ways that do not
impair its future usefulness and serviceability. It is noted that the results of such
tests deserve particular attention since they will be critically analyzed and evalu-
ated for a subsequent conclusion or decision-making process. NDE represents the
action of making the final judgment based on both the inspection and testing results
[10]. As an example, when buying a “watermelon” from the market, the buyer first
glances over the melons, picks one of them then looks it over for possible flaws
(i.e., visual inspection). After that, he/she tests the melon’s ripeness by tapping the
surface and listening for the hollow response (i.e., acoustic testing). Finally, he/she
evaluates the quality of the melon through the hallow response relative to his/her
preset NDE criteria (e.g., “The melon must look good, compact and be ripe enough”)
and decides whether to pay for it or choose another one. Quite surprisingly though,
all of the melons (even the flawed ones) will eventually be sold, and this reveals a
common problem with NDE: inspectors’ standards often change relative to their indi-
vidual perceptions. Hence, standard guidelines are crucial to establish the baseline
for the accept-or-reject criteria or any other types of evaluation and decision-making
processes. In this book, the term NDT is used to indicate that the investigations being
referred to involve the tests, while the term NDE denotes the use of both the tests
and evaluation of the test results.
It is also important to know what we are looking for when applying the testing
and evaluation to a material system. As indicated earlier NDT seeks to determine
the quality of the test structure (i.e., during the manufacturing process) [11–14],
investigate the structural integrity (i.e., in-service stage of the composite) [15–17].
In doing so, NDT engineers and practitioners seek to locate internal and surface
discontinuities (e.g., defects, flaws, damage, etc.) and determine their features (e.g.,
size, shape, flaw orientation within the structural system vis-à-vis the loading orien-
tation, etc.) [4, 11, 14, 18] and material/structural properties (e.g., optical, dielectric,
conductivity, etc.) [19, 20]. This leads us to another set of terminologies viz. defect,
flaw and damage. A flaw denotes an imperfection or discontinuity in material or
structural systems that may be detectable by an NDT technique but is not necessarily
rejectable. In contrast, defects are the types of laws with an aggregate size, shape,
orientation, location, or properties surpassing the pre-specified or predefined accep-
tance criteria and are therefore rejectable. In most cases, “flaw” and “defect” are used
64 2 Introduction to Nondestructive Testing and Evaluation …

interchangeably, including in some of the references in this paper. In this context,

we will try and make that distinction in the present book based on the detailed infor-
mation in the respective publications to ensure accurate information is conveyed to
our readers. As opposed to flaws and defects, the damage denotes an observable
change that happens to the material or a structural system to alter their geometric
properties which ultimately affects their structural performance when in-service (i.e.,
damage also includes material degradation) [10]. At the end of any nondestructive
test, inspectors should be able to answer whether the component is defectious, needs
some repair, or should be discarded. Indeed a straightforward answer to any of these
questions cannot be delivered by just looking at the component of interest because
several factors must be taken into consideration consistent with the intended use and
the acceptance criteria (which may be different depending on the industry and the
intended application). In general, however, several factors related to the defects in
structural systems (e.g., the presence of the defects, their nature, sizes, etc.) play an
important role in the decision-making process regardless of the industry, the desti-
nation, and the acceptance criteria. In some cases no defect (not even a very small
defect) is acceptable, and the part must be discarded if any defect is detected while
in other cases, the part passes the control stage even if it contains defects at a certain
level less than the predefined threshold.

2.2 Classification of Flaws Vis-À-Vis the NDT Techniques

Etymologically, the word defect comes from the Latin word “defectus” and this
word in Latin means weakness, deficiency, or lack of something for wholeness or
completeness. Although the literature indicates that the size of the defect presents
a significant effect on its criticality and the validity of the structure thereof, there
is no clear classification of defects based on their relative sizes with respect to the
size of the structure of interest except the general designation as microscopic and
macroscopic defects, also known as micro defects and macro defects, respectively.
Indeed this classification does not provide any measurements whatsoever but rather
a random judgmental comparison between the relative sizes of the defects in the
composite of interest and sometimes the individual perception of the estimation of
its size. Generally speaking, microdefects affect the material crystalline structure
and this is probably the reason why they are called crystalline defects. Interestingly,
these types of defects may be beneficial or adverse to the functional design of the
structure depending on the application. In semiconducting materials, for example,
crystalline defects may provide the material with specific properties that can also be
exploited for technological purposes. In particular, defects in the crystal structure
such as semiconductors may include either spoiled atoms or irregularities in the
atoms’ alignment and may be classified as point defects or linear defects. The former
constitutes a group of local imperfections in the crystal such as the missing atoms or
presence of holes (i.e., in semiconducting compound materials) and the presence of
2.2 Classification of Flaws Vis-À-Vis the NDT Techniques 65

Fig. 2.1 Illustration of the crystalline defects: a the normal crystal, b a crystal with some missing
atoms, and c a crystal with some interstitial defects

an interstitial impurity (e.g., the carbon atoms that are mixed with the iron atoms to
form the steel) as depicted in Fig. 2.1.
Conversely, macrodefects are generally large and undesirable types of defects
occurring in the composites. They represent discontinuities in the material which
may form at different stages of the composite’s life cycles during manufacturing
or in-service. As indicated in the first chapter of this book, incorrect manufacturing
processes often lead to the formation of defects such as voids, porosity, cracks, foreign
inclusions, and many others. In-service material degradation occurs mainly due to
fatigue cycles, impact damage, and adverse environmental conditions that cause
corrosion and overall decay of the composite. Usually, macroscopic defects are clas-
sified as open defects (e.g., cracks, delamination, holes, etc.), gas-filled defects (e.g.,
porosity, voids, etc.), solid slag inclusions (backing film, dust, foreign material frag-
ments), and the lack/excess, of adhesives in bonded joints or any other adhesive-based
structures. A typical example illustrating some of the above-mentioned macroscopic
defects is presented in Fig. 2.2. The first scheme shows a general flaw that may be
either a solid slag inclusion or a gas-filled volume. It is noted that this example is
presented for illustration purposes and might depict the like of the real defects as
the latter generally tend to be of complex geometry with jagged edges. The second
scheme represents a discontinuity in the adhesive film between two surfaces of a junc-
tion. This type of discontinuity is generally very thin and small since it is located
over either narrow or large surfaces but in a spotty fashion.

Fig. 2.2 Typical examples of macroscopic flaws in fibrous composite structures: a flaw buried in
the material, and b lack of adhesive between the parts of a joint
66 2 Introduction to Nondestructive Testing and Evaluation …

Although the standard terminologies for NDT are internationally standardized,

there are currently many types of international standards and some of the termi-
nologies might be slightly different. While it is not our intention to mention all the
definitions and terminologies found in the above documents [10, 21], some of the
main definitions are worth mentioning. In the context of NDT, “indication” denotes
on the one hand the response or evidence from an examination, such as a blip on
the screen of an instrument. Indications are classified either as true or false. In the
latter case, whereby the former is defined as those indications caused by factors not
related to the principles of the testing method or by improper implementation of the
method, like film damage in radiography, electrical interference in ultrasonic testing,
etc. True indications are further classified as relevant and non-relevant depending on
whether they are caused by flaws (delaminations, cracks, etc.) or by known features
of the tested object (i.e., gaps, threads, case hardening, etc.). “Interpretation” on
the other hand indicates the process of determining if an indication is of a type
to be investigated or if a certain action is to be taken. In electromagnetic testing,
for example, indications from metal loss are considered flaws because they should
usually be investigated, but indications due to variations in the material properties
may be harmless and non-relevant. According to ASTM E1316-17a [10], a flaw
denotes an imperfection or discontinuity that may be detectable by the NDT tech-
nique and is not necessarily rejectable as the part with a flaw can still be used to fulfill
its functional design. From the NDT perspective, a flaw is something that can occur
in various sizes, shapes, orientations, locations, and can even only be isolated to a
tiny portion of the material properties within a material volume. In general, flaws
can occur naturally or can be introduced by the material processing or finishing
processes. As such, with this wide range of definition and generation possibilities,
there is also a lot to take into consideration when understanding NDT capabilities for
detecting flaws. As opposed to a flaw, a defect denotes one or more flaws featuring
an aggregate size, shape, orientation, location, or properties that do not meet speci-
fied acceptance criteria and are therefore rejectable. Although the terms “flaw” and
“defect” are often used interchangeably (including in some references of this book),
a defect is considered a rejectable flaw by the standard and the content in this book.
Also, the term “damage” denotes changes in materials or geometric that affect the
performance of the final structural systems.
In summary, a complete classification of the different defects occurring in fiber-
reinforced composites vis-à-vis the different types of NDT techniques has to be
performed. This is particularly useful to the NDT engineers because there are several
types of fibrous composites and some of the defects/damage types occur in some
than in others depending on factors such as the field of application of the material
(e.g., transport industry, nuclear plants, chemical plants, architecture, environment,
etc.). Also, some defects/damage types are more serious in some types of fibrous
composites while their effects are almost negligible. In this context, some defects are
particularly serious and must be discovered in time to avoid subsequent catastrophic
consequences! Indeed, the most important thing to be considered by most of the NDT
inspectors is the use that the material is intended for, or better, whether or not the
material is used for the construction of structural parts. In normal circumstances, the
2.2 Classification of Flaws Vis-À-Vis the NDT Techniques 67

application also entails the urgency of detecting flaws before it is too late. Once, the
inspectors understand the urgency and the importance of detecting hidden defects
in specific structures or composite parts, the question is now to determine the safest
method and procedures they can use to discover all these buried defects without
destroying the material. In the following sections of this chapter, we will try to
respond to these questions in general, and in subsequent chapters, specific answers
will be provided.

2.3 General Hints on Testing Techniques and Procedures

The use of NDT methods to detect, localize and characterize flaws in composite
materials has always been an area of continued growth for over 60 years. However, the
need for NDT has significantly increased in recent years for many reasons including
product safety, in-line diagnostics, quality control, health monitoring, and security
testing to list but a few. In addition to its inherent practical demand, significant
advancements in NDT are also dependent on its interdisciplinary nature and the areas
where it is most indispensable including aerospace engineering, civil engineering,
electrical engineering, material science and engineering, mechanical engineering,
nuclear engineering, petroleum engineering, and physics among others. This clearly
indicates that a single NDT technique cannot in any way be sufficient to accommodate
all these areas, suggesting that even in a single area more than one NDT technique may
be needed, and hence a synergic integration of several techniques may be required
[1], which further reinforces the commonly repeated mantra that not a single NDT
technique can identify all types of defects in all types of materials. To this end, the
literature indicates that there are at least two dozen NDT methods in use today [1,
7, 22]. In fact, any sensor that can examine the inside of material without interfering
with its original attribute (i.e., in a nondestructive fashion) is useful for NDT.
In today’s composites manufacturing world, once a composite part is manufac-
tured, additional steps are undertaken to ensure its conformity with the specific
standards as established by the customers and ensure there is no buried defect. To
this end, the oldest and cheapest method that humans used to confirm the confor-
mity of an artefact’s correctness and/or exquisite design was by using their sensory
receptors (i.e., vision, percussion, and auscultation). Among them, the vision (i.e.,
the visual inspection) is perceived to be the NDT method that every single manufac-
turer uses automatically to verify the artefact’s correctness, without considering it as
a particular NDT method. In other words, inspectors or manufacturers must look at
the finished part to check the shape, dimensions and surface conditions then decide
whether the part is to proceed to the next stage (e.g., assembly) or reject (i.e., for the
parts that are entirely or completely off the design). Similarly, percussion is predom-
inantly used in architecture to examine the areas of disbonding patches or adhesives
partly because the bond quality is often accurately estimated by analyzing acoustical
response from a carefully controlled knock. However, inspection results obtained
by using human senses are almost subjective because, first, they are qualitative, and
68 2 Introduction to Nondestructive Testing and Evaluation …

second, they largely depend on the operator’s skill, experience as well as his/her
senses’ perception acuity. This is particularly because people often have different
levels of perception even when considering the same information and that may affect
the quality estimated from the information received by their senses. On the contrary,
the results of a serious quality control-related investigation must always be quanti-
tative and of overall validity (i.e., objective), and hence, adequate NDT techniques
must be used to ensure the inspection results represent an accurate account of the
health state of the test composite.
Consistent with the aforementioned, there are currently many different NDT tech-
niques are available to conduct the materials’ control quality during the development
and investigate the health status of the resulting structural systems when in service.
However, constantly evolving technologies give rise to the development of new mate-
rials which also bring about new testing challenges and defects types and orientations
that must unequivocally be overcome by NDT engineers and practitioners. In this
context, more sophisticated devices are constantly being developed to meet the chal-
lenges of the day, which clears the way for possible development of new techniques
as well the enhancement of the already existing ones to fit into the testing kits of
the materials and systems designs. The existence of different techniques means that
many different physical parameters and properties can be exploited for the NDT of
materials. In fact, there are NDT techniques that are based either on the optical signal,
thermal signal, acoustic signal, or electrical signal [22, 23]. All of these methods are
used for the detection of many different types of defects, whether they are shallow or
deeply buried within the thickness directions of the composite. Generally, the NDE
of composite materials is achieved by sending energy from the testing kits into the
test material system and analyzing its response. That is, certain signals (e.g., γ-rays,
electric current, electromagnetic waves, heat flux, ultrasound waves, etc.) are deliv-
ered to or inside the test fibrous composite material or structural system, then the
test instrumentation is used to measure and analyze the reaction of the test mate-
rial or composite structural system to such an external stimulus (i.e., the analysis is
conducted to quantify the changes experienced by the signal after passing through
the material) to obtain the information about the quality or soundness of the test
composite.
In terms of their operation, most NDT techniques operate differently depending
on the behavior of the material and its inherent flaws vis-à-vis the energy levels of the
input signal. In general, however, when a given input signal strikes the surface of the
test composite material, the former may be absorbed, scattered, or reflected by the
test material or structural system and in some cases, this energy may even be trans-
mitted through the material depending on its reflectivity, absorptivity, and transmis-
sivity properties vis-à-vis the test signal. That is, the propagation of the signal inside
the fiber-reinforced composite material generally depends on its inherent properties
(e.g., mechanical, thermal, chemical, acoustical, electrical, optical properties, etc.).
Indeed, all these properties combined determine the nature of the input signals used
by most NDT techniques in today’s nondestructive inspection practices. In case there
are changes in the material’s properties taking place as a direct consequence of inho-
mogeneities and overall material alteration, these changes can easily be picked up by
2.3 General Hints on Testing Techniques and Procedures 69

NDT engineers/practitioners by applying certain NDT techniques. It is also possible

to assess the variations in one set of material properties by examining changes in
another set of properties of the same material, and this is indeed one way of evaluating
the material integrity used by several NDT techniques (i.e., indirect measurements).
In all these cases, inspectors should choose the most appropriate NDT technique,
considering their effectiveness which largely depends on the properties of the host
material (e.g., electrical, dielectric, conductivity, thermal, mechanical, optical, etc.) to
block or let the test signal travel through the material (i.e., NDT techniques measures
the perturbation inflicted by a hidden discontinuity to the propagation of the specific
test energy signal). This is particularly because, NDT practitioners must always
ensure these two conditions are complied with so that the readable quantity (i.e.,
caused by the perturbation of the input signal by the material’s inhomogeneity),
must be sufficiently large to not be confused with the apparent background noise.
After the first step of measuring and acquiring the inspection data the material’s
integrity is evaluated by using the most advanced and effective signal processing-
based technique (i.e., wavelet transforms, gapped-smoothing method (GSM), Teager
energy operator (TEO), etc.) or by combining of techniques (i.e., also known as NDT
data fusion) [1]. It is important to indicate that most NDT practices do involve two
main aspects viz. the examination of the material degradation in terms of loss of its
original characteristics (i.e., thermal or electrical conductivity, material’s hardness,
elasticity, variation of the density, etc.) and the presence of defects or damage both
superficial (e.g., scratches, loss of optical properties, etc.) and internal (e.g., voids,
delaminations, cracks, etc.). A full description of these types of defects, damage, and
material degradation is provided in Table 1.1, and readers are referred to this table
for more information.

2.4 Classification of NDT Techniques

In order to provide a plausible classification of NDT techniques, it is important to

establish the right semantics pertinent to NDE and NDT as well as other related terms.
According to ASTM E1316-17A [10], NDT is the development and application of
technical methods that use the physical measurements to examine the materials or
components to detect, locate, measure, and evaluate flaws; to assess integrity, prop-
erties, and composition; and to measure geometrical characteristics in ways that do
not impair its future usefulness and serviceability [1, 10]. Nondestructive Inspection
(NDI) is often used to replace NDT (i.e., they are both considered synonymous)
because they are both related to the use of measurements tools per specification and
assessment against specified criteria. Consistent with the aforementioned, NDT is
generally an interdisciplinary area and it plays a crucial role in assuring that structural
components/systems perform their function more reliably and cost-effectively. NDT
practitioners and engineers define and implement nondestructive tests that identify
and evaluate the health status of the test structures and/or materials to prevent struc-
tural component or system failure (e.g., plane crash, reactor failure, the train derail,
70 2 Introduction to Nondestructive Testing and Evaluation …

pipelines burst) and a variety of less visible, but equally troubling events. Since NDT
allows inspection of components without interfering with their final usage, it provides
an excellent balance between quality control and cost-effectiveness [4, 7]. Although
nondestructive evaluation (NDE) is a term that is often used interchangeably with
NDT, the former is used to describe more quantitative measurements. That is, an NDE
facility would not only identify and determine the position of a flaw in a composite
material, but it would also be used to obtain detailed information about its size,
shape, and orientation. NDT techniques also help to determine the properties of the
materials including the dielectric properties, optical properties, fracture toughness,
formability, etc., which are generally important for specific applications of composite
materials such as the design of electrostatic discharge devices, the manufacturing of
electromagnetic shielding systems and/or printed circuit boards (PCB), etc. In some
cases, nondestructive characterization (NDC) is often used to replace NDE and they
both denote the use of nondestructive measurements for material condition, proper-
ties, or state assessment, especially in a quantitative manner. Although both NDT
and NDE are often used interchangeably as synonymous by many NDT practitioners
(i.e., including in some of the references of this book), readers are encouraged to
make a distinction between these two terms in the context of this book according to
the above-provided definitions. NDT&E is usually used to designate a combination
of both NDT and NDE and the same denomination is adopted in this book.
The classification of NDT techniques into different groups is not a trivial action
to perform because it involves a number of criteria and considerations which
may conflict with one another, resulting in techniques being wrongly classified as
belonging to one group or the other. However, a consensus governing the classifica-
tion of NDT into different groups considers a limited number of considerations. That
withstanding, nearly all the available NDT techniques can be classified based on the
way a test is conducted, or simply put, based on the relative position of the energy
input actuator and/or the measuring sensors vis-à-vis the surface of the composite
material being tested. To this end, it is possible to classify all the NDT techniques
into the two main groups viz. contact and noncontact NDT. As the name indicates,
the former involves all the NDT techniques that require either some kind of direct
contact with the surface of the composite material being tested or an indirect contact
when a coupling medium is needed while the latter involves all the NDT techniques
that do not need any direct contact nor coupling agent between the measuring sensor
and composite material being tested [1]. Each of these techniques presents many
advantages and depending on the application some techniques may be relevant than
others.
Another classification is often attempted and this considers the type of output
signal involved. That is, the output signal may be thermal energy, sound wave, elec-
tromagnetic radiation, X-rays, electric and magnetic fields to list but a few [4]. Indeed
this has been proven to be equally an effective way of classifying the different types of
NDT as the output signal may be the signature characteristic of each NDT technique.
The main signal classes that are often recorded in NDT activities include thermal
energy, sound, electricity/voltage, and radiation. Regarding the thermal energy signal,
the heat is delivered to the surface of the component or it is generated inside the
2.4 Classification of NDT Techniques 71

material. Then, the analysis is performed as a result of heat propagation and/or local
variations of temperature. Similarly, the sound waves, often ultrasound waves, are
exploited for the material evaluation owing to the changes that the signal under-
goes and its crossing speed. The use of electric signals involves all the techniques
that require the application of a direct electric current to be injected into the test
material or structural system or any effects related to the use of electric/magnetic
field to investigate the health status of materials or structural systems. In the context
of this book, magnetic-based techniques are considered to be part of the electric
testing methods also known as electromagnetic testing methods (e.g., eddy current
testing, electrical resistance testing, etc.) [23]. Indeed, electric and magnetic fields are
different and may exist independently, but they are also interrelated as the magnetic
field is produced by moving electric charges. Finally, electromagnetic radiation with
short-wavelength such as X-rays,γ -rays, or neutrons (i.e., the wavelength is generally
less than 10 nm), are used to penetrate an object of a given material. The radiation
collected by the instrument after passing through the test sample is analyzed to look
for variations in intensity levels indicating the difference in material properties due
to the presence of defects, flaws, or discontinuities. Indeed, the use of the output
(reading) signal is quite a general way used by most NDT engineers/practitioners to
classify different NDT techniques in different groups and the classification results
may not be accurate. Typically, heat can easily be generated into the test material
or structure after the introduction of electric current through the Joule effect. Simi-
larly, several types of output signals can also be generated into the test material or
structural system after the introduction of sound waves into the material or structural
system through the friction effect. In other cases, the classification of different NDT
techniques into different groups is solely based on the output signal that is directly
under analysis, without any distinction of what caused it.
An additional type of classification is also performed based on the safety issues
of the workplace, the individuals involved, and emissions that may be harmful to the
environment (e.g., toxic gases, ionizing radiation, etc.). That is, the NDT technique
may be classified as harmful or harmless to human lives. The former includes all
the NDT techniques with potential health risks, including the NDT techniques that
use electromagnetic radiation or emit different types of pollutants (e.g., chemicals,
radioactive emissions, etc.) during their operation, or they involve the use of mobile
mechanical parts, etc. This is particularly the case for X-ray and neutron imaging,
which represent the common examples of harmful NDT techniques. Conversely,
harmless NDT techniques do not emit any harmful radiation, cannot require the
users to be exposed to any hazardous materials/chemicals, and must not include
any harmful or unsafely moving mechanical parts in the test setup. It is noted that
these classifications do not provide any tangible measure to determine the best NDT
technique but rather the starting point in the whole NDT technique selection practices.
The optimum selection of the most relevant NDT technique for a particular test is
reached by not only choosing the best from each of the aforementioned classes, but
also by choosing an NDT technique that can detect the types of defects or damage
being considered (i.e., its spatial resolution, sensitivity, and variation in output signal),
the available personnel, the type of composite materials being tested, as well as the
72 2 Introduction to Nondestructive Testing and Evaluation …

cost of the test equipment involved among others. The technique should also be
harmless and noninvasive not only to the environment and personnel but also to the
sample itself to guarantee the structural integrity of the sample after the test. Finally,
after inspectors are aware of the type of material being tested and the type of defect
to discover, the determination of the best possible NDT technique is made through
a fair compromise between all the above-discussed considerations.

2.5 Inspection Requirements for NDT Techniques

The inspection of composite materials is performed at the different stages of their

life cycle (i.e., material processing, manufacturing, and in-service) [1, 24, 25]. At
the manufacturing level, NDT determines the part’s fitness to serve consistent with
the predefined specific requirements. At the in-service level, NDT determines the
health status, monitors the damage mechanism, and helps the inspectors to make
informed decisions regarding the structure’s remaining life span, and if necessary
recommends a maintenance-repair process and timeline [26, 27]. There are mainly
four considerations that should be observed when selecting the most suitable NDT
to be used in the inspection. These considerations include (1) the type of damage
the structure is to be inspected for, (2) the smallest detectable flaw size, shape,
and orientation within the composite, (3) the location of the damage/defect (i.e.,
accessibility, surface, or internal), and finally (4) the sensitivity, spatial resolution,
and the subsequent limitations of the NDT method under consideration. In some
cases where in-service composites are involved, the right NDT method for a specific
application is the one required by law to guarantee the safety of users and NDT
personnel. In case no specific laws is indicating the type of the test method, guidance
may still be found by reviewing the best practices published by international standards
organizations as listed in Ref. [1]. Similarly, the manufacturer of the structure being
tested may also publish a list of NDT standards and best practices for their product.
If none of the above provides an answer, it is recommended for the test practitioners
to consult a Level III NDT technician who can recommend the best next steps to
take though some well-established methods such as ultrasonic testing and infrared
thermography might likely be the best methods to envision.
Careful consideration of all the aforementioned factors will guarantee reliable
inspection results, optimize the composite performance while in-service, and mini-
mize the safety concerns [1, 7, 20]. Figure 2.3 outlines the different steps involved
in an NDT test to examine the quality and integrity of composite structures. NDT
produces always results in the form of an indication, which is then subjected to an
intense interpretation to decide whether it is a false indication (i.e., interpreted to
be caused by a condition other than a discontinuity or imperfection), non-relevant
(i.e., caused by a condition or type of discontinuity that is not rejectable), or relevant
(i.e., caused by a condition or type of discontinuity that requires a subsequent eval-
uation). If it has been interpreted as relevant, the subsequent evaluation will result
in the decision to accept or reject the results consistent with their conformance or
2.5 Inspection Requirements for NDT Techniques 73

Fig. 2.3 Illustration of the

steps and decision-making
process involved in the
application of NDT to
examine the integrity of
thick composites

nonconformance to the already set acceptance criteria or requirements [28–30]. All

NDT techniques do not perform in the same way and when referring to the effi-
cacy of the method, some formulations such as flaw detection, flaw localization,
and flaw characterization are often used by researchers including the references in
this book. In most cases, such denominations are used after the interpretation of
the inspection results and each of them presents a different meaning from the NDT
terminology standpoint. Flaw characterization indicates the process of determining
the size, shape, orientation, location, growth, or other properties, of a flaw based on
the NDT response [10]. The flaw detection indicates the action or the process of
identifying the presence of a flaw in the structure, while flaw localization denotes the
determination of its exact position within the structure, and the flaw quantification
denotes the sizing of the flaws.
Generally, setting the inspections requirements is not a trivial task given the
amount of work and levels of uncertainties involved. A robust and accurate quan-
titative examination limitation requires NDT personnel to take into account the
detection capacities and the tolerances and probability-of-detection (POD) for every
NDT, and this means that practitioners must conduct extensive NDT reliability
studies to produce a POD curve whereby minimum unfailingly detectable sizes of
defects/damage are determined, taking into consideration the operation conditions
of the NDT [1, 7]. To date, it is not possible yet to establish a credible chart outlining
the limitations of different NDT in terms of the sizes of the damage they can detect
unfailingly, other than the inspection goals which are usually set by the operators
considering the effect and the criticality of the defects or the damage of a specific
size on the composite part consistent with the aforementioned considerations [7, 31].
Also, the literature [1] suggests that there are still no clear inspection requirements
that would facilitate the choice of appropriate NDT for a particular structure when
considering certain features such as the thickness, size, and the type of flaws. Instead,
74 2 Introduction to Nondestructive Testing and Evaluation …

the detection goals are fixed based on the effects of the damage on the composite and
the industry where the composite is intended to be used [7, 32], particularly because
setting robust and quantitative inspection requirements requires extensive reliability
studies on different NDT techniques to establish a probability-of-damage curve and
the subsequent minimum unfailing detectable damage size [7, 33]. In particular,
the constantly increasing utilization of thick composites and sandwich structures in
structural engineering, their quality and performance specifications are becoming
increasingly demanding and in some cases difficult to achieve, suggesting that the
determination of robust and reliable NDT techniques (particularly for the techniques
that are used for the testing of composite structures) is highly warranted.
Although there has not been much discussion about reliable NDT techniques
to examine different composite structures with regards to all the above-mentioned
considerations and acceptance criteria for composite structures as safe to use, the
determination of the damage sizes has always been the focus of each NDT technique.
As a result, certain threshold values have been established for different inspection
practices and the techniques that can achieve the inspection up to these threshold
values are generally considered reliable. To this end, in reviewing the NDT of
porosity in PMC structures in 2004, the authors in Ref. [32] proposed that a 2%
voids in volume be considered the normally acceptable threshold to choose a reli-
able inspection for general-purpose composites and sandwich structures during the
manufacturing process [1, 7, 34]. In order to keep our discussion focused, simple, and
convenient, the same limitation is considered in this book. In addition, a technique
that is considered capable of examining composite structures is considered herein as
being able to reliably detect a localized flaw of approximately <5% in-thickness [7]
when compared with the thickness of its host composite structure.

2.6 Regulations, Standards, and Recommended Practices

for NDT

Generally speaking, several formulations such as codes, regulatory requirements,

standards, specifications, and recommended practices are frequently used in NDT
practices but not everyone understands what they really mean, at least from the NDT
standpoint. In this paragraph, we attempt to elucidate these terms to help our readers
get the right semantics as that would help them to understand better the content of this
book. Therefore, codes are generally the top-tier documents that provide a set of rules
that specify the minimum acceptable level of safety for the manufactured composite
parts/structures. These documents may incorporate regulatory requirements and will
often refer to a number of standards or specifications for precise details outlining
any possible additional requirements not specified in the code itself. Similarly, stan-
dards are the documents that establish the engineering or technical requirements for
the products, practices, methods, or operations relating to NDT. Typically, standards
2.6 Regulations, Standards, and Recommended Practices for NDT 75

that provide requirements for personnel certification and those that provide require-
ments for performing NDT tasks adequately are of particular interest to the NDT
personnel. In particular, standards are different from specifications because the latter
is only with specific requirements for materials, components, or services and are
often generated by private companies to address additional requirements applicable
to a specific product or application. As an example, specifications are often listed
in procurement agreements or contract documents as additional requirements above
and beyond the code and/or standard requirements. Finally, recommended practices
provide guidelines for performing operations or functions (e.g., ASNT recommended
practice for NDT personnel certification).
To ensure the accuracy and reliability of the testing results, NDT is prescribed
by codes and standards for the fabrication and testing of general-purpose and crit-
ical composite components as well as and in-service equipment. As a result, it
is often crucial for NDT personnel in critical industries (e.g., refineries, chemical
plants, gas plants, and pipeline owners) to have sufficient understanding and expe-
rience in the interdisciplinary field of NDT to be able to deal with all the prob-
lems in this interdisciplinary field. In addition to the factors listed in the section on
the inspection requirements for NDT techniques (see the previous section), NDT
personnel should also continuously acquire and develop knowledge consistent with
the evolving NDT technology to be able to perform up-to-date procedures during
the NDT practices [35]. Although specific codes, standards, specifications, regula-
tions, and recommended practices may be variant depending on the country and the
type of industry performing NDT, there are currently several international organi-
zations that do provide internationally recognized codes, standards, specifications,
regulations, and recommended practices for a unified standard application of NDT.
The following is the list of internationally recognized organizations (i.e., standards
bodies) that develop and publish industrial codes, standards, and recommended prac-
tices for NDT methods relating to the inspection of composite structures in different
industries: (a) the American Society for Nondestructive Testing (ASNT), (b) ASTM
International, (c) American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME), (d) Amer-
ican Petroleum Institute (API), (e) American Welding Society (AWS), (f) National
Board of Boiler and Pressure Vessel Inspectors (NBBI), (g) International Organiza-
tion for Standardization (ISO), (h) European Committee for Standardization (CEN),
and (i) European Pressure Equipment Directive (PED). All of these organizations
use industry subject-matter experts and a consensus process while developing their
codes and standards to ensure they can be cross-verified in different countries by all
these agencies.
Apart from the above-mentioned international standard organizations, some coun-
tries also have regulatory agencies created by their local governments to regulate the
application of NDT particularly in areas where public safety is of concern. Some
countries have more than one body regulating codes and standards, and they can be
either private industry bodies or government bodies (i.e., National Standards Bodies
(NSBs)). At times, these government agencies may create regulations above and
beyond those provided by the aforementioned industry codes and standards such as
the testing of radioactive materials, the testing of transportation equipment as well as
76 2 Introduction to Nondestructive Testing and Evaluation …

the testing of nuclear reactor structures, and many others [4]. In many cases, all these
guidelines and standards are very precise and detailed where applicable, and they
outline the types of defects and damage detectable using various NDT techniques,
dedicated techniques, the applicability of various NDT&E techniques for different
types of structures, requirements for the inspection of critically important structures
(e.g., whether one or two types of NDT need to be applied on a given structure to
confirm its health condition) and many others. Also, although all the aforementioned
documents are effective in providing important guidelines for effective utilization of
different NDT techniques, it is noted that the success of NDT activities is equally
operator-dependent [1, 20]. That is, a successful and reliable application of NDT
techniques depends heavily on the skill and the experience of the NDT personnel,
suggesting that NDT personnel who interpret and evaluate the test results should
be familiar with the codes and standards relevant to the products being inspected,
in addition to the customer specifications. To this end, NDT engineers in leadership
positions are required to put great reliance on the training, experience, judgment, and
integrity of the NDT technicians (i.e., see later discussion). Finally, the current era
of globalization requires that common standards be identified to allow a worldwide
harmonization of the application of NDT as well as the qualification, certification,
and worldwide recognition of NDT personnel.
In summary, properly prepared, standards, codes, specifications, recommended
practices, and regulatory requirements are of great value to industries in nearly all
sectors of life. These documents represent the combined knowledge of a large group
of individuals including producers, consumers and other interested parties, and thus,
reduce the possibility of misinterpretation and presentation of the testing results.
Importantly, these documents give the manufacturer a standard of production and,
therefore, tend to result in a more uniform process and product thereof. From the
economic standpoint, they lower unit costs by making standard processes and mass
production possible and ensuring the structural health of the component during its
service life. These documents also permit consumers to use a specification that has
been tried and is enforceable. They set standards of testing and measurement and
hence permit the comparison of the testing results. It is well-known that standards
always represent an effort by some organized group of people, and such an organi-
zation, be it public or private, becomes the standardizing agency, of which, various
levels of these agencies exist, ranging from a single business to local government to
national groups to international organizations. Indeed there are major well-known
professional and industrial organizations providing standards and related codes which
may potentially result in a release of conflicting codes and/or standards. In order to
fix this problem, the current tendency is for all the countries, agencies, industries, and
institutions to adopt a single set of standards or create a regionally cross-verifiable
set of standards that are accepted used and uniformly by all industries in the field or
countries of a specific region. In the US, for example, thousands of standard spec-
ifications and all have to be approved and recognized by the American National
Standards Institute (ANSI), which is a national, yet private, coordinating agency.
At the international level, the International Organization for Standardization (ISO)
performs this function.
2.7 Role of Research and Development in NDT 77

2.7 Role of Research and Development in NDT

Research in NDT covers experimental and theoretical investigations outlining scien-

tific and engineering bases of NDT, its measurement methodology, and a wide range
of applications of materials and structures that relate to the entire life cycle, from
manufacture to use and retirement. Particularly in composite materials, research in
NDT includes advances in the underlying science of acoustic, thermal, electrical,
magnetic, optical, and ionizing radiation techniques and their applications to the
inspection of composite materials in a nondestructive fashion. The main topics in
this area are predominantly based on the nondestructive characterization of a wide
variety of their properties and their degradation in service, non-intrusive sensors for
monitoring manufacturing and materials processes, new techniques and combina-
tions of techniques for characterizing hidden defects and distributed damage, stan-
dardization concepts as well as the quantitative approaches for advanced NDT tech-
niques and long-term continuous monitoring of composite structures and their mate-
rial constituents. While the traditional view among researchers and academics was
that NDT research should only focus on blue skies research leaving its industrial
application behind, the reality is that any research directed to the improvement,
quantification, understanding, education, and promoting the existing NDT methods
does equally provide a significant value to the continuity and successful application
of NDT by the general NDT practitioners [36]. Also, there has been a tremendous
development of new NDT equipment, products, and test kits of all kinds stemming
from the work of researchers in academia and research institutions [37, 38]. As such,
it is recommended that NDT academics be strengthened so that they can be engaged
in the full chain of activities through all “Technology Readiness Levels (TRLs)”
(i.e., a method for estimating the maturity of technologies during the acquisition
phase of a program, developed at NASA during the 1970s) as depicted in Fig. 2.4
[37–39]. In fact, NDT academics with, at least, Level 3 knowledge in a range of
testing methods and the capability to communicate with the industrial workforce are
highly warranted. Also, as the technology and the complexity of composite mate-
rials continue to advance, there are currently numerous opportunities for valuable,
challenging research at all the TRLs.
In general, the testing and defects identification and sizing capabilities of NDT
have improved substantially in recent years and they are steadily improving due to
successful research and development, though some more challenging requirements
continue to arise. Also, the development of new materials and the evolving inspec-
tion needs often demand a customized approach to NDT solutions. To this end, more
research and development is required to reduce the limitations of the current appli-
cation, develop new applications not previously thought possible, reduce the need
for shutdown and dismantling by promoting continuous in-service monitoring, and
develop techniques for new materials and processes. Given the fact that all NDT
techniques use different physical principles to detect flaws, it is necessary to under-
stand the physical phenomena guiding their operational principles as well as the
capabilities and limitations of each technique and check if reliable results can be
78 2 Introduction to Nondestructive Testing and Evaluation …

Fig. 2.4 Illustration of the research and development (R&D) opportunities at all technology
readiness levels (TRLs)

achieved in real-life applications. This requires attention to all stages of the NDT
quality chain, from basic research, technology development, and validation through
to the education setups, training, and procedures. Also, it is important to anticipate
future requirements and establish secure long-term programs through established
research and development practices because of the enormous timescales that are
often required to research and develop new techniques. That is, making the most
of available benefits in the future requires immediate long-term and medium-term
planning, to deliver research and development as well as all related activities when
needed in the future.
In summary, NDT is an essential engineering service to reduce the risk of failure
throughout the whole lifecycle of a plant or component. Technologies must be effec-
tive and deployed by suitably qualified individuals. As engineering infrastructure
ages and more complex systems are built, the need for increasing NDT capability
is increasing. Investment in research and development and skills to advance NDT
will assist economic growth for many industrial sectors. Timescales for introducing
new technologies are substantial, and medium- to long-term visions and strategies are
required so that NDT research and development can progress alongside the introduc-
tion of new materials and processes. It is recommended that all parties involved seek
to articulate forward visions, led by industry to foresee the future horizons of NDT and
encourage research and development programs that match planning. The medium-
term objectives should normally include the quantification of NDT performance and
reliability; extended NDT capability (i.e., faster, cheaper, and more sensitive; new
NDT methods for emerging designs and materials; increased automation and robotic
NDT, especially for difficult access; and improved liaison with other disciplines
2.7 Role of Research and Development in NDT 79

to optimize the design for inspection). The longer-term strategic objectives include
more integration of NDT data with operational conditions and duty cycles; far more
real-time automated inspection to achieve defect-free manufacture; extensive online
monitoring and smart structures supported by precision-targeted NDT; and much-
reduced use of disruptive in-service NDT by combining high-fidelity manufacturing
inspection with structural health monitoring in service. All these objectives can only
be achieved by establishing funded research and development networks involving
all key players including centers of expertise, universities, government, industry,
and insurance, the establishment of funding routes for technology transfer including
validation and standards, procedures, and training as well as improve awareness of
opportunities in NDE and provide suitable education and training at all levels.

2.8 Application of NDT: Impact of Globalization

and Operator’s Perspectives

Globalization entails the speedup of movements and exchanges of humans, goods,

services, capital, technologies, and/or cultural practices worldwide. One of the
no0ticeable effects of globalization is that it promotes and increases interactions
between individuals, regions, and countries around the globe. To put this into perspec-
tive, there has been increasing globalization of world trade which accelerated in the
aftermath of the Iron Curtain break-down in 1989 [40, 41], the formation single
market in Europe in 1992 [42] as well as the emergence of China and other BRICS
nations as major economic powers [43]. As an example, China started the market-
oriented reforms in 1978 and the country reached its place as the second-largest
economy in the world by 2010. At that time, much manufacturing moved from
developed countries to other nations such as China, Malaysia, Vietnam, and Thailand
attracted by cheap labor and lesser regulations. It followed that many of the multi-
national companies set up branches and subsidiaries in these countries which signif-
icantly impacted the development of NDT [44]. In particular, design, procurement,
and construction of structures and plants started getting globalized enabling industrial
companies to procure equipment and materials from wherever they appeared to be
the most cost-effective (i.e., increasingly from developing countries) even when the
construction maybe by home personnel or by teams from third countries. At the same
time, it is well-known that the safety, reliability, and availability of plants, structures,
and machinery depends on the whole supply chain of companies and contractors all
around the world [45], each with their own NDT personnel using local NDT service
companies working to the standards and company specifications applicable to the
contract or using NDT companies or personnel from other countries. As such, there
is an increasing mobility of NDT personnel between countries, especially prevalent
in the oil and gas industries with the oil majors calling for NDT to be carried out
by the companies and personnel they use in their home territories. In this context,
80 2 Introduction to Nondestructive Testing and Evaluation …

companies are forced to rely on NDT results carried out in different parts of the world
by companies and personnel they themselves may not know personally.
In general, a successful and consistent application of NDT techniques relies
heavily on personnel skill and their integrity to report the right test results, suggesting
that combined training, exposure, and strict supervision are the way to get there [4].
Also, today’s globalization inclination is directed toward the exigency for certifica-
tion harmonization which means that NDT personnel are being recognized globally
among the countries that have signed the agreement (i.e., certification test results
issued in one country may be recognized in other countries without having to go
through the certification tests again) [1]. In this context, the first step in doing this
is the identification of common standards which represent valuable efforts by some
organized groups of people focusing on improving consistency in the manufacturing
material systems and processes, as well as the resulting products [4]. Given the fact
that the standard specifications are generally established consistent with the agree-
ments between concerned parties and the consensus to use them (e.g., training the
NDT personnel, codes and standards to follow when investigating the quality control
of the manufactured composite parts, detailed description of how to produce some-
thing or how to perform a particular task, etc.). That is, anytime a product or service
is designated as meeting the specification requirements, or a contract requires the use
of certain specifications/codes to validate the product as part of quality control, the
product or service must meet the requirements of that document. As such, standards
or specification codes are of great value to the manufacturing industries and they
offer many advantages starting from those that have already been mentioned above.
Interestingly, the establishment of these codes and specifications is generally flexible
and industries or manufacturers can still introduce their own production standards
that allow them to achieve the mass production of the products and/or services at
much lower costs (but this has always to be consistent with the customer require-
ments). Consistent with the aforementioned, the use of standards and codes in the
manufacturing industries offers some level of economic benefits to the consumers by
consistently providing them with high-performance products. The fact that operators
are bound to use these standards and codes during the test (i.e., because they facilitate
the comparison of results coming from tests in different laboratories worldwide) is
another added advantage. However, one of the most cited disadvantages of codes
and standard specifications is linked to the likelihood of freezing practices that are
based on poor knowledge, slowing the development of better practices. Although
this is generally cited as one of the main drawbacks of using codes and standards, it
is technically not entirely true because the use of standards does not imply a degree
of perpetuity (like dimensional or other reference standards). The technical advances
in a given field usually call for periodic revision of the enforced requirements by the
management team, suggesting that technical developments will also be included in
the revised versions of codes and standards.
2.8 Application of NDT: Impact of Globalization and Operator’s Perspectives 81

2.8.1 Important Events in Academic and Industrial NDT

Application of NDT can be traced back to 1854 when a boiler at the Fales & Gray
Car Works in Hartford (Connecticut-USA) exploded, killing 21 people in total and
seriously injuring 50 others [46, 47]. A decade later, the aforementioned state passed
a law requiring an annual inspection of boilers to ensure the safety of workers and
prevent similar accidents from happening. However, the inspection required was
largely visual because most of the current NDT techniques were not yet developed.
It was only between 1880 and 1940 when the first few NDT methods were developed
(i.e., which could provide more quantifiable results). Oil and whiting are among the
first methods developed and used in the railway industry to identify cracks in heavy
steel parts [48]. This method is believed to be the method precursor of the modern
liquid penetrant test (LPT). The whole NDT industry started taking a clear shape
in 1895 when Röntgen discovered the X-rays. In his first paper, he discusses the
possibility of flaw detection and this was echoed by Lester who started developing
an industrial radiographic machine for metals in 1920. In 1924, Lester successfully
used an X-ray-based system to examine the castings used in a steam pressure power
plant. At that time, several new methods were developed and these were subse-
quently applied in NDT applications. In 1926, the first electromagnetic eddy current
instrument was developed and used to measure the material thicknesses. Around
1927–1928, Sperry and Drake developed the magnetic induction system and used it
to detect flaws in railroad track. A year later, both DeForest and Doane pioneered
the development of the magnetic particle testing method and its testing equipment.
In the 1930s, Robert demonstrates radiographic imaging using γ -rays from Radium.
One of the advantages of this system is that it could easily examine thicker structural
components than the low-energy X-ray machines available at the time.
Around 1935–1940, both Betz, Doane, and DeForest developed the modern LPT
stemming from the aforementioned oil and whiting technique. In the 1930s and 1940s,
a series of eddy current instruments were developed. These instruments could eval-
uate the health status and measure the thickness of conductive components. Around
the same time, industrial use of ultrasonic testing started in USA and Germany. Five
years later, acoustic emission was first developed by Kaiser while simultaneous ultra-
sonic testing of welds was first presented at the Engineering, Marine and Welding
Exhibition of Olympia in London. NDT was fully recognized in 1963 when the
4th international conference was held in London and subsequently the 1st internal
conference on Quantitative Non-Destructive Evaluation (QNDE) in 1973. Looking
at the above-chronological outline of events, it appears rapid progress in NDT was
made between the mid-60 s and mid 70ss. At this same period of time, the X-ray
crawler examination of pipeline butt welds, automated ultrasonic and eddy current
testing systems for plate, tubes and pipes were already in use. In particular, weld
systems in new power plants were all subjected to magnetic particle, radiography, or
ultrasonic testing systems. Quite surprisingly though, all this was achieved in a world
without personal computers, lasers, or robotics that are currently available today. In
the 1970s, in particular, many of the NDT systems were not very different from
82 2 Introduction to Nondestructive Testing and Evaluation …

what we find today. Around about the same time, numerous schemes for personnel
training and certification were growing up and there were already concerns about lack
of harmonization though most NDT personnel had relevant technical backgrounds
in the product they were required to use when doing an inspection.
In summary, NDT started more than a century ago and was an established tool
for testing structures in many countries more than fifty years ago. To this end, it
appears rapid that significant progress was made between the mid-60 s and mid-70 s.
To date, new techniques not dreamt of 50 years ago featuring new technologies such
as personal computers, lasers, and robotics are now prevalent in most of the NDT
systems and have transformed some aspects of NDT worldwide. Apart from the tech-
nology development, additional changes were driven by parallel changes in the world
scene including the globalization of trade, the economic inequality between nations,
and the emergence of new countries as industrial powers, intensified research and
development activities in academia and research institutions, as well as the aging
of safety–critical infrastructure. All these changes have significantly impacted the
NDT businesses globally and on the activities of the international NDT commu-
nity (e.g., the International Committee for nondestructive testing (ICNDT)). Among
the ICNDT to promote the understanding of the importance of NDT, to support the
development of NDT Societies around the world, to educate users on the correct use
of personnel certification, and to pursue the objective of global harmonization and
recognition of third party certification. Although there have been significant tech-
nological development and/or changes in the international NDT community, some
NDT aspects have remained virtually unchanged. These include but are not limited to
the continued use of the more basic NDT methods and the challenges of recruitment
of the knowledgeable NDT personnel, training, certification, and motivation of NDT
personnel. Numerous schemes for personnel training and certification are currently
growing up and there is an increasing concern over lack of harmonization and the
lack of sufficient technical background for most NDT personnel in the product and/or
structures they are required to inspect.

2.8.2 Important Historical Dates in Standards Development

Also known as standards institutions, standards organizations are organizations

whose primary functions are developing, coordinating, as well as promulgating,
revising, amending, reissuing, interpreting, or otherwise producing technical stan-
dards to address the needs of a group of affected adopters. These organizations
are generally classified either by their role, position, or the extent of their influ-
ence on the local, national, regional, and global standardization arena. NDT is also
prescribed by codes and standards for the fabrication of components, safety–crit-
ical parts, and in-service equipment. Therefore, all NDT practitioners must have
a thorough understanding and experience in the interdisciplinary field of NDT. In
addition, NDT personnel should also continuously develop their knowledge with
regards to the evolving technologies and performing up-to-date procedures. It is
2.8 Application of NDT: Impact of Globalization and Operator’s Perspectives 83

important to remember that specific codes, standards, specifications, regulations,

and recommended practices may depend on the country and industry performing
NDT. In general, however, several organizations are involved in the development and
application of standards, including the American Society for Nondestructive Testing
(ASNT); ASTM International (i.e., formerly known as the American Society for
Testing and Materials (ASTM)), and the International Organization for Standard-
ization (ISO). In most of the manufacturing industries, for example, the ASTM is
considered the main standard developer, and it was created in 1898. In fact, this
organization provides an international forum where different standards for mate-
rials design and manufacturing, products development, systems development, and
utilization/calibration are developed, updated, and published to provide the guide-
lines on how these new materials, systems, and services are used in the industries
such as construction, manufacturing, transportation, etc. [4]. On a wider basis, ISO
was founded in 1947 as an independent and nongovernmental federation of stan-
dardization bodies from over 60 member countries worldwide. From 60 member
countries at its creation in 1947, the organization has 165 member countries as of
2021. However, the development of outstanding and highly accurate standards has
come principally from the world of aerospace in which quality and safety are primary
issues. There are currently several organizations providing standards in the aviation
industry, including the Aerospace Industries Association (AIA) (i.e., created in 1919
under its former name the Aeronautical Chamber of Commerce). Given the fact that
many different industries do require different sets of standards, the development of
standards in NDT are generally industry-based and their title will often mention the
application/industry of interest [4]. However, the discussion of the different standards
and code is beyond the scope of this book and only the list of the most important
standards and codes is provided in Appendix A.

2.8.3 Qualification and Certification of Personnel for NDT

All the personnel involved in the application of industrial NDT techniques and the
interpretation of results should be certified because they make critical judgments
and decisions regarding the health of structures that can have significant safety
and/or financial consequences. The industry has a responsibility to employ trained,
competent and qualified staff to operate NDT technologies in use to ensure their
safety and the accuracy of the test results. In some industrial sectors (e.g., aerospace,
nuclear reactor, petrochemical, etc.), qualification and certification recognition are
enforced by law and/or by the applied codes and standards and in less critical indus-
tries, NDT practitioners determine the best NDT methods for a particular inspec-
tion based on different factors as outlined in our previous [1]. Qualification and
certification requirements are generally based on a combination of training, exam-
ination, industrial experience, and when applicable, the visual acuity required for
personnel to properly perform the inspection to a particular level. NDT training
provided to people working in different industries is often based on an accumulation
84 2 Introduction to Nondestructive Testing and Evaluation …

of the training course outlined by the “NDT Body of Knowledge” [49]. The latter
produces documents that provide updated knowledge and skills needed for different
levels of certification (i.e., theoretical and practical training programs) [50]. Also,
several types of examinations and hours of practice on real systems are necessary
to meet the minimum requirements for certification and recertification of the NDT
personnel. Individuals may have to take a written exam, a specific exam, or a practical
exam depending on the type of certification desired. Experience in NDT or NDT-
related fields, as well as on-the-job training programs (i.e., the candidate performs
several hundred hours of practice for the methods they wish to be qualified), are
also considered for the certification of the NDT personnel [4]. It is noted that while
online training has become very popular in recent years, many certifying bodies
still require additional real-time practical training to guarantee a high standard and
quality training.
Usually, the NDT practitioners tend to confuse qualification and certification,
though these two terms are completely different at least from the NDT perspective.
As such, we urge our readers to make a clear distinction between these two terms.
As such, “Qualification” indicates the demonstration of physical attributes, knowl-
edge, skill, training, and expertise required to adequately conduct NDT tasks, while
“Certification” means a procedure, used by the certification body to confirm that
an NDT technician has fulfilled all the qualification requirements for a particular
NDT method, level, and industrial sector, leading to the issuing of a certificate. Two
major approaches are generally considered for personnel certification, viz. employer-
based certification, and personal central certification, and countries often adopt one
over the other [6]. In the employer-based certification framework, the employers
compile their own practice and get them documented for everyone in the company to
follow (i.e., only valid whilst the personnel stays with that particular employer and
not transferrable to a third party). In US industrial sectors, for example, the written
practices are usually based on recommended practice SNT-TC-1A of the Amer-
ican Society for Nondestructive Testing (ASNT). In the personal central certification
framework, NDT operators generally obtain their certifications from the central certi-
fication authority, and this certificate is recognized by most employers, contractors,
and government authorities. Industrial certification standards for the central certifica-
tion programs include but are not limited to ISO 9712 [51] and ANSI/ASNT CP-106
[52]. Another central certification program that is similar to ISO 9712, is the EN 473
[53], which was withdrawn in 2012 when the European Committee for Standard-
ization replaced it with EN ISO 9712 [4]. In the USA, for example, while central
certification schemes do exist, employer-based certification schemes are actually the
norm in the country. However, Level III central certification (see the discussion below
on the NDT certification levels) is more widely used in the European Union (EU),
where certifications are issued by accredited bodies (i.e., independent organizations
accredited by a national accreditation authority conforming to ISO 17024).
As described in the previous paragraph, the aerospace industry sticks to employer-
based certification schemes worldwide, and it is mostly based on AIA-NAS-410 [54]
in the USA and on AIA-NAS-410 in the EU [55]. Although both of these standards
are equivalent and very similar, the latter is often used in conjunction with EN 4179
2.8 Application of NDT: Impact of Globalization and Operator’s Perspectives 85

in the EU, which includes the option for central qualification and certification as
provided by the National Aerospace NDT Board [55]. However, EN 4179 uses three
levels of qualification and/or certification viz. Level 1, Level 2, and Level 3 as opposed
to other standards. Qualified technicians in Level 1 can perform only specific cali-
brations and tests under close supervision and direction of higher-level personnel as
they normally work following specific work instructions for testing procedures and
rejection criteria given by their supervisors and report the test results. Certification
Level 2 comprises both engineers and experienced technicians, who are able to set
up and calibrate testing equipment, conduct the inspection according to codes and
standards (instead of following work instructions), and compile work instructions for
Level 1 technicians. Personnel at this level are also authorized to report, interpret,
evaluate and document the testing results and can supervise and train certified techni-
cians in Level 1. In addition to testing methods, they must be familiar with applicable
codes and standards and have some knowledge of the manufacturing and service of
test structure [4, 55]. Certified NDT personnel in Level 3 are generally specialized
engineers or very experienced technicians who can establish NDT techniques and
procedures and interpret codes and standards. They are often responsible for NDT
laboratories and have a central role in personnel certification as they often have wider
knowledge that covers the materials, fabrication and product technology. Additional
details on the description of the aforementioned three levels of qualification as well
their respective roles and responsibilities are found in ASNT recommended practice
No. SNT-TC-1A [50, 56].
Although the above is perceived to be the general consensus among the NDT
practitioners and engineers, one must always know that there are small differences
between the different codes and standards, regarding personnel responsibility. There
are currently many accredited bodies for training and certification worldwide and
the variability of terms, roles, and responsibilities may be variant depending on
the industry where the technician is designated to work or the accredited body
issuing the certificate/training. A full list of these accredited bodies and the type of
training/certification they provide are outlined in Refs. [1, 4], and interested readers
are directed to these specific studies for more details. Interestingly, these institu-
tions do provide adequate documents regulating the qualification and certification of
NDT personnel and they are constantly updated and adapted to changes and innova-
tions occurring in the NDT and composite materials communities. To this end, the
ASNT published the first edition (ASNT SNT-TC-1A) of the recommended practice
to provide guidelines for the personnel involved in NDT in 1996. This document
underwent several editions until 2006 to include novel techniques, inventions, and
discoveries. In fact, only 5 NDT methods were documented in the first edition (i.e.,
ultrasonic testing, magnetic testing, liquid penetrant testing, eddy current testing,
and radiography). It was in 2006 when the number of the techniques covered in this
document increased from 5 to 13 types of NDT. Infrared thermography was added in
1992 as an emergent technique; it was fully recognized only in 2007 when the ASTM
E2582 concerning the application of flash thermography for inspection of aerospace
composite panels was released [57]. To date, NDT methods that are covered by ISO
9712 include acoustic emission testing, eddy current testing, infrared thermographic
86 2 Introduction to Nondestructive Testing and Evaluation …

testing, leak testing, magnetic testing, penetrant testing, radiographic testing, strain
gauge testing, ultrasonic testing, and visual testing.
In summary, there is the clear global consensus requirement that the qualification
and certification of personnel involved in NDT inspections in different industries
must be carried out in compliance with specific approved rules (i.e., national stan-
dards, international standards, and/or civil laws in the country). Interestingly, these
international, regional, or national standards are constantly updated to include the
qualification and certification requirements for new NDT techniques and update
requirements for the already established ones. However, all the new NDT tech-
niques must be demonstrated to be effective to the satisfaction of the certification
body prior to its qualification and certification requirements being established in the
international, regional, or national standard schemes. Generally, the certification of
NDT personnel does cover the proficiency in one or more of the following methods:
(a) acoustic emission testing; (b) eddy current testing; (c) infrared thermographic
testing; (d) leak testing (hydraulic pressure tests excluded); (e) magnetic testing;
(f) penetrant testing; (g) radiographic testing; (h) strain gauge testing; (i) ultrasonic
testing; (j) visual testing (direct unaided visual tests and visual tests carried out during
the application of another NDT method are excluded). One of the reasons for such
a requirement is because the above methods are considered to be the most estab-
lished ones and provide thoroughly accurate testing results. Although the different
regions/countries tend to have their own requirements for qualification and certifica-
tion of the NDT personnel, the current trend in this era of globalization is for most of
the countries/regions to establish a general standard that would achieve an extensive
harmonization between the different regions due to the close cooperation between
the different regions/countries worldwide.

2.9 The Need for Reliability and Accurate Statistic

Evaluation

In recent years, there has been a constantly growing recognition of the importance of
NDT through this understanding is not universal. In some circles, NDT is regarded
as an on-cost overhead that adds no value, and NDT practitioners and professionals
regularly express discontent over the lack of status of their profession. The value
of NDT arises from the avoidance of exorbitant costs (i.e., economic catastrophes)
and/or safety issues (i.e., human catastrophes) by providing information that helps to
establish the timeline for repairs, replacements, and downtime as well as for mitiga-
tion of risks and potential accidents. The literature presents several examples of major
NDT programs being initiated after an incident has taken place to prevent further
similar occurrences, including on bridge decks, airplane structures such as the heli-
copters’ rotor systems, as well as nuclear power plants and oil and gas pipelines [58,
59]. In particular, there is more a clearly perceived value of NDT when the tech-
nology is used for condition monitoring to drive the plants’ life extension, or reduce
2.9 The Need for Reliability and Accurate Statistic Evaluation 87

statutory outages, or allow the system to run or planes to fly safely. However, orga-
nizations are reluctant to publicize their NDT successes despite the aforementioned
added value because they fear such publications would expose the underlying poten-
tial problems. Although this observation appears to be the overwhelming sentiment
of most NDT practitioners, at least those involved in hands-on tools inspections, it
is important to remember that if we agree on the fact that NDT is important, then all
the techniques involved in the whole process should be reliable. An understanding of
the importance of the reliability of NDT has grown over the past fifty years, although
there was some startling evidence of the unreliability of NDT in the 70’s and 80’s
even in fields where reliability is of paramount importance (e.g., the nuclear industry,
the aerospace industry, etc.) [60].
In the nuclear power field, for example, there was a rude awakening from the
combination of poor results in round-robin tests (US PVRC & PISC1) designed to
investigate the reliability of codified ultrasonic inspection of heavy section pres-
sure vessel welds. There was also the embarrassment of reactor coolant steam pipe
welds leaking shortly after passing an in-service inspection. However, subsequent
careful R&D demonstrated in further trials (i.e., PISC2 & UKAEA Defect Detection
Trials) that properly designed ultrasonic techniques in the hands of appropriately
trained NDT personnel could give satisfactory results and adequate probabilities of
detection. This lead to the introduction of formal Inspection Validation (known as
Performance Demonstration in the USA and Inspection Qualification in Europe). In
the field of aerospace, the most startling example of the lack of reliability relates
to the crash-landing of the Aloha Airlines Flight 243 (AQ 243, AAH 243) on April
28, 1988. Also, Boeing 737-297 suffered enormous damage after the explosion of
an onboard explosive. In the first incident, the USA National Transportation Safety
Board revealed that the most probable cause of that accident was the failure of Aloha
Airlines to properly maintain the aircraft. In their investigation, they determined that
the maintenance program fail to detect the presence of significant disbonding and
fatigue damage in the structures of the airplane which ultimately led to the failure of
the lap joint in S-10L and the separation of the fuselage of its upper lobe. Contributing
to the accident was the failure of Aloha Airlines management to supervise properly
its maintenance force; and the failure of the FAA to require Airworthiness Directive
87-21-08 inspection of all the lap joints proposed by Boeing Alert Service Bulletin
SB 737-53A1039.
Indeed these examples illustrate that the unreliability of NDT can arise from the
technical and the management shortcomings of NDT as well as the execution of the
whole NDT process from its specification to its reporting and follow-up. There are
three important factors to achieve the necessary quality and reliability of inspection
including (a) the responsible engineer must specify his requirements very clearly
in terms of the regions to be inspected and the types of flaws or deterioration to be
looked for (all-encompassing combinations would be prohibitively expensive), (b)
the NDT methods, equipment, and personnel must be capable of the purpose for
which they are being employed, and (c) the selected NDT process must be imple-
mented thoroughly. The successful application of NDT depends on a whole chain of
activities as represented in Fig. 2.5, and the reliability itself depends on every link
88 2 Introduction to Nondestructive Testing and Evaluation …

Fig. 2.5 A typical

illustration of the
nondestructive testing (NDT)
quality chain

in the chain [44, 61]. Over attention to one link cannot compensate for a lack of
attention to another. Much emphasis is given to personnel training and certification.
These are vital links in the chain but training and certification alone cannot guarantee
reliability.
The company with overall responsibility, often the employer of the NDT personnel
or the purchaser of the NDT service must ensure that the full chain of activities
is complete including (a) research and development to prove the capability of the
techniques to be applied for the purpose required (i.e., type, location, nature of
flaw or deterioration to be sought) is accurately conducted; (b) the procedures to
control the inspection are accurately followed; (c) the equipment is consistent with
that used in proving trials; (d) the personnel trained and certified for the specific
tasks; (e) reasonable working conditions which allow the NDT personnel the ability
to concentrate on their task; and (f) appropriate audits and surveillance to check
the correct implementation of inspections. An “NDT Quality infrastructure” has
grown up which provides some of the foundation stones and frameworks with which
NDT quality systems can be constructed. There is a full description of how this
infrastructure is implemented by European organizations on the EFNDT website
[2]. The objective is to develop a better understanding, by users and purchasers of
NDT services, of the various measures available for NDT during manufacture and
in-service.

2.10 Probability of Detection in DNT

The uncertainty of the inspection process is usually characterized in terms of the

probability of detection as a function of flaw size. The flaw detection and its size
determination may either be conducted simultaneously or separately, depending on
the type of NDT technique and the evaluation procedure being adopted. If the flaw
sizing is performed simultaneously or with the same procedure as the detection, the
sizing data could also be used to determine the detection probability. In this case, it
is assumed that there is a reporting level corresponding to a measured relative flaw
2.10 Probability of Detection in DNT 89

depth in the inspection procedure. This reporting level may be of various types (e.g.,
the peak voltage referenced to the calibration in eddy current testing, a combination of
brightness and size of indication in fluorescent penetrant inspection, etc.), suggesting
that the probability of detection (POD) of a flaw of a certain size is thus the probability
that the measurement result exceeds the reporting level. In NDT practices, POD tests
are a standard way of evaluating the performance of NDT techniques. In normal
circumstances, the selection of an NDT technique for a particular test would equally
consider the extent of the POD for that particular technique since it provides the
measure of the reliability of the method to detect a particular type of flaw size [62–64].
In general, POD curves are created from empirical studies to show the reliability of a
particular NDT technique, and the extent of its capabilities in detecting the features
or defects in the test material or structural system. A useful curve for POD’s is the
90% POD with 95% confidence, referred to as 90/95 POD. Figure 2.6 is a typical
example of a POD curve that shows how one NDT may perform more reliably than
another for the detection of flaws of particular sizes.
In general, POD curves of any NDT technique can be obtained by both exper-
imental and model-assisted methods. However, the development of reliable POD
curves depends on many factors (e.g., type of the material, geometry, defect char-
acteristics, inspection technique, etc.) and these requirements put enormous limi-
tations on generating experimental POD curves [65]. In this context, experimental
POD curves are extremely expensive and time-consuming to produce experimentally
because they require an enormous amount of test samples with known defect sizes
and numerous inspection tests by different operators to develop credible statistics. In

Fig. 2.6 Notional probability of detection curve for three methods

90 2 Introduction to Nondestructive Testing and Evaluation …

current NDT practices, NDT and reliability engineers and practitioners are constantly
working to develop effective model-assisted POD curves [66–68], which are easier
and cost-effective. Although the POD is an efficient method to determine the effi-
cacy of the NDT technique, there are often more than one factors to be considered
including the cost and the inspection requirements. As such, an NDT technique may
be chosen over another depending on factors such as the inspection requirements,
the costs of the tests and related instrumentation, as well as the estimated size of the
defects within the composite. As an example, while the visual inspection is generally
unreliable for small defects compared to instrument-based inspections, in some in-
service applications it can be more cost-effective or practical to use visual inspection
frequently than a more sensitive and costly instrument inspection less frequently
to obtain the same service reliability of a component. It is common to specify that
inspections require a signal to noise (SNR) of more than 2.5 for the system sensi-
tivity to the detection criteria of designated features in a calibration standard and
this would normally provide better than 98.7% defects detectability under a normal
curve distribution.

2.11 Conclusions

This chapter introduces the different NDT and evaluation techniques for fiber-
reinforced composite materials. The discussion starts with the terminology,
proceeding to some general requirements of NDT in terms of performance, porta-
bility, and safety concerns. After that, a description of the perception of defects and
flaws vis-à-vis the different NDT techniques is provided. A section was also devoted
to personnel qualifications and certification as well as a brief introduction on the
semantics of the most important formulations used in NDT. In the context of this
book, NDT denotes a descriptive term used for the examination of materials and
components without changing or destroying their usefulness. Although the terms
NDT and NDE are often used interchangeably in most of the literature (including
some references in this chapter), these two terms are different and should be treated
as such by the readers of this book consistent with the definitions outlined in the first
section of the present Chapter. Typical examples of the application of NDT are found
in a number of fiber-reinforced composite structures including aircraft, spacecraft
(i.e., space shuttle), motor vehicles, pipelines, bridge decks, refineries, buildings,
and oil platforms which are all inspected using NDT. NDT is a Quality Assurance
management tool that can give impressive results when used correctly. It requires
an understanding of the various methods available, their capabilities and limitations,
knowledge of the relevant standards and specifications for performing the tests. NDT
can easily help identify materials, products, and equipment that fail to achieve their
design requirements or projected life due to undetected defects and help schedule
repair, maintenance, or replacement activities. NDT is also beneficial as it helps engi-
neers to mitigate unsafe conditions or catastrophic failure of composite structures,
2.11 Conclusions 91

as well as the loss of revenue by providing an optimum window for timely planned
repair and maintenance activities.
Additional benefits of NDT include its susceptibility to being applied to each stage
of the life of the composite from the manufacturing to in-service stages and deter-
mining whether the composite is to be accepted or rejected (i.e., the manufacturing
stage) or repaired (i.e., in-service stage). NDT techniques can then be used to monitor
the integrity of the structure throughout its service life, specifically for (a) accident
prevention and running costs reduction, (b) improvement of product reliability, (c)
determination of acceptance/rejection vis-à-vis specific requirements, and (d) gives
information on repair-maintenance criteria. Although the operation principles of most
NDT techniques did not change, the increasing need for advanced NDT techniques
to test new and complex composite materials and the technological development in
both electronics and digital signal processing (DSP) have prompted the development
of new NDT techniques not thought of about a half-century ago [69]. To date, there
is an increasing demand for the improvement of even more basic NDT methods such
as visual testing [1] as well as the training, certification, and strict control of the
performance of NDT personnel. Additional socioeconomic factors such as global-
ization, trade, the fast development of the emerging countries, as well as the aging
of safety–critical infrastructure have equally impacted the NDT business and the
activities of the international NDT community. The current trend is that major actors
such as ICNDT should support the development of NDT societies around the world,
educate users on the correct use of personnel certification and pursue the objective
of global harmonization and recognition of third party certification and ensure that
specific training for advanced technologies and products is available at all users. In
particular, NDT techniques were not herein described since they represent the topic
of this book and will be addressed in the following chapters of the book by order of
increasing frequency of use in NDT of fiber-reinforced composite materials.

Important Disclosure In this chapter, some figures referring to well-known facts and popular THz
systems were arranged traying inspiration from NDT websites and sources were also referenced
when appropriately.

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Chapter 3
Visual Testing for Fiber-Reinforced
Composite Materials

3.1 Introduction

Also known as visual inspection (VI), visual testing (VT) is an NDT technique that is
performed through vision. That is, the test object must first be illuminated by a light
source whose optical wavelengths are suitable for the human eye. VT is by far the
most common NDT technique used for the inspection of fiber-reinforced composite
structures (FRCS) during the manufacturing and in-service stages. In fact, VT is a
fundamental task for all the activities related to quality assurance as well as data
acquisition, and data analysis during the processing of FRCS and as well as for the
investigation of their design specifications and functional requirements thereof. In
general, testing the finished surfaces in polymer composites visually is important
not only because it is an inspection technique itself but also because it serves as
an aid to any other instrumented or advanced NDT techniques. In fact, VT is the
method every manufacturer uses automatically to verify the structure’s shape/size
correctness and/or soundness without thinking of it as a particular method [1]. It is
fast and inexpensive to perform and it is recommended by most structural engineers
to be used as the initial method of inspection (i.e., the first step in the examination
process) for structural systems, particularly when evaluating the system for obvious
damage indentations or cracks at the surface of the test structure or its interior (e.g.,
porosity, dry ply, mark-off, bow waves, resin-rich areas, and wrinkles) [2]. All these
types of flaws have been thoroughly explained in the first chapter of this book and in
our previous study [3] readers are directed to this part of the work for more details.
In most cases involving the NDT and SHM of FRCS, VT can be classified into
several groups based on the overall visual appearance of the test structure or the
inspection for localized visual defects. Interestingly, almost any structure can be
visually inspected to determine the accuracy of its fabrication. In the manufacturing
process, VT is often used to determine whether the FRCS has been fabricated to the
correct size, whether its individual components are complete, or whether they all have

© Science Press 2022 97

S. Zhong and W. Nsengiyumva, Nondestructive Testing and Evaluation
of Fiber-Reinforced Composite Structures,
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-19-0848-4_3
98 3 Visual Testing for Fiber-Reinforced Composite Materials

been properly incorporated into the final product [4]. In so doing, illumination (i.e.,
the intensity and angle of the light) remains a critical issue for the effectiveness of
VT. It is important to orient the light to optimize the detection. In fact, our experience
in VT and discussions with highly skilled NDT inspectors revealed that the technique
involves more than the use of the human eye [5], but also includes many other sensory
and inspector’s cognitive processes to enhance the quality of the testing results and
improve the structure’s visibility. Additional tools include borescopes which are used
when looking into cavities and magnifiers or microscopes for detailed inspections.
The camera is another important VT tool that is often used to monitor the different
activities in the factory during the manufacturing of composites. Also, digital video
magnifiers and video borescopes are effective tools for improving detailed inspec-
tions. Another method that is of particular interest is the digital image correlation
which uses two different cameras for parallax imaging of surface patterns on a test
object by measuring the relative motion of the surface patterns provided by the two
cameras during loading or mechanical testing.
Although both tap testing (TT) and dye penetrant testing (PT) are not part of VT,
these two methods are generally performed in conjunction with the VT. In particular,
PT uses visible red/fluorescent dye and its successful utilization largely depends on
the inspector’s ability to visually identify the surface features while a successful radio-
graphic inspection depends on the interpreter’s visual judgment of the radiographic
image on the film or video monitor [5, 6], To this end, the success/effectiveness of
VT generally relies on the inspector’s experience and the perception of their eyes [5,
6]. Also, the knowledge of the structural behavior, the material composition, and the
manufacturing process is equally desirable [7]. Although VT seems to work well in
the inspection of FRCS, this technique cannot be used alone for a thorough evalua-
tion of internal damage/flaws unless the test structure is transparent/translucent and
the damage is large enough that it can be visually discernable. In general, accurate
inspection results can be obtained by using some cost-effective tools to extend the
capabilities of the VT. In fact, this is typically only one aspect of the total evaluation
plan. In the inspection of critical structural components, VT is generally supple-
mented by a series of other NDT methods or invasive procedures. Apart from its
inability to detect the missing reinforcement, additional drawbacks to VT include
the technique’s inability to detect the test structure’s internal flaws, particularly in
painted FRCS or FRCS with poor surface quality. In an opaque material, VT is
limited to the detection of surface defects. In composites where the surface has lost
the resin in the surface layer due to environmental attack the method cannot be used.

3.2 Important Dates and Development

As indicated earlier, VT has always been the presumed first testing technique to
be conducted in any NDT practice. In the 1850s, VT was the first technique to be
3.2 Important Dates and Development 99

used in industrial NDT but it was one of the last methods to be formally recog-
nized [8]. The recognition was performed in different periods by different institu-
tions, which provided even some codified standards for VT. Typically, the American
Welding Society (AWS) was founded in 1919, and its primary goal was to advance
the science, technology, and the application of welding-related disciplines in the
manufacturing industry. Since then, the institution has been publishing courses on
its website to prepare prospective visual NDT inspectors to qualify for the inspec-
tion of welds. In the early 1980s, the American Society of Mechanical Engineers
(ASME) was the first to develop a training program for visual inspectors of the
nuclear power plant components. In this regard, the ASME published a 120 h program
addressing all the technology’s concerns with respect to VT and to qualify attendees
as visual examiners [9, 10]. Later progresses include the development proposed by the
American Society for Nondestructive Testing (ASNT) outlining the requirements for
the NDT personnel inspecting general conditions of components (SNT-TC-lA) and
visual inspectors for the components’ mechanical and structural conditions (ANSI-
N452.6). Additional information regarding codified requirements for the examination
and licensing of certain structures are provided in the literature [8–12] and interested
readers are directed to these specific studies for more details. As progress in NDT
continued to advance, direct and remote-based VT were separated and details of
each were provided. The former involves the use of visual aids (e.g., telescopes,
mirrors, cameras, etc.) and is only performed when the eye is situated within 24
inches (610 mm) of radius from the test structure and at an angle not less than 30°
(π/6rad). Figure 3.1 depicts a typical visual testing setup with all the measurements
of the angle and distance from the test object mentioned above.

Fig. 3.1 Representation of the standard distance and viewing angle of the human eye vis-à-vis the
test structure
100 3 Visual Testing for Fiber-Reinforced Composite Materials

In general, remote visual testing (RVT) is divided into three categories viz.
borescopes (i.e., also known as endoscopes), fiberscopes, and video technology. It is
noted that the first generation of endoscopes was used to inspect the bores of rifles or
cannons utilizing a hollow tube and mirror and did not find much use in the inspection
of structural systems in general. It was the second generation that included a relay
lens system in a rigid tube that was later extended to the inspection of other struc-
tures including composite structures [13]. Although this second-generation endo-
scope produced an improved visual image, these systems were mostly limited to
the inspection of structures with straight-line access due to their rigid structure as
depicted in Fig. 3.2a. The introduction of glass fiber bundles has enabled the capa-
bilities of transmitting images through the fiber-optic in the 1950s, which further
enabled the design and implementation of the fiberscope also known as fiber-optic
borescope (Fig. 3.2b) which successfully overcome the earlier limitations of endo-
scopes. Although the imaging of the structural systems was affected by the capa-
bilities of the fiber-optic bundles in the beginning by decreasing the clarity of the
transmitted compared with the rigid lens systems of borescopes from the NDT point
of view, engineers considered this to be a small price to pay compared with the
opportunities that the technology presented. The use of the fiber-optic glass bundles
and their subsequent flexibility provided the visual inspectors with an additional
level of flexibility in terms of remote visual inspection which further decreased the
frequency of destructive testing. Currently, more sophisticated fiber-optic borescopes
can be introduced into very small access holes or channels and provide better quality
images for accurate inspection results. A detailed description of the current state-of-
the-art endoscopic systems used for the inspection of defects in the inner cylindrical
surfaces of the composite materials is provided in Ref. [13] and interested readers
are directed to this specific study for more details.
Advancements in VT systems have made it possible for hard-to-reach composite
structures to be visually inspected with indirect VT equipment such as video cameras,
endoscopes, borescopes as well as unmanned aerial vehicles [8]. In fact, the evolu-
tion of some of these inspection systems (e.g., endoscopes, borescopes, etc.) still
continues to this day trying to address all eyes-related problems (e.g., eye fatigue,

Fig. 3.2 Illustration of the a rigid borescope/endoscope and b typical fiber-optic borescope [8]
3.2 Important Dates and Development 101

anomalies, etc.). In particular, the eye fatigue problems caused by prolonged use
of endoscopes and fiberscopes can be easily addressed by adding devices such as
high-resolution cameras to these systems, and when possible, displaying the inspec-
tion images on projection monitors. As part of the recent improvements, additional
tooling such as cameras are currently being removed from the borescope and fiber-
scope systems due to their bulky nature, and new designs are currently using smaller,
solid-state imaging sensors some of which are known as charge-coupled devices
(CCDs). One of the advantages of the CCDs is that the latter are generally small in
diameter and present high-resolution images. These devices also enable improved
applications of industrial endoscopy and broaden its application possibilities alto-
gether. The CCDs’ ability to record images and save them in an electronic format
is another added advantage that further extends the capabilities of image manage-
ment, manipulations, and retention or retrieval options. Also, the constantly growing
advent of computer systems and digital storage technology, as well as the recording
of images on other permanent media enhances the versatility of the system. In short,
cameras are indispensable devices for visual inspection as they provide a means of
documentation and creating records.

3.3 Theory and Principles

As indicated earlier, light is the most indispensable tool in VT because the human
eye sees nothing more than just patterns of light during the inspection practices [14].
The operation of the VT is such that the patterns of light or depth cues produced
by the surface of the test structure or the interior of the translucent structure are
projected onto the retina of the human eye (2D image) [15] from which a 3D infor-
mation outlining the status of the test structure is reconstructed [15, 16]. The theories
regarding the concepts of visual perception and how the human brain develops a 3D
representation from 2D images began to emerge in the 1800s [17], and research on
visual perception continues to this day [18–20]. The literature [15] provides an in-
depth discussion on this topic in great detail and interested readers are directed to
this specific study for information. It is noted that patterns of light or depth signals
can be created by areas of different illumination including the areas of shadow and
shading, light sources, reflections of light sources (highlights), or reflections of the
surrounding environment which are also known as specular reflections. Users should
be careful to distinguish between all these signals to ensure an accurate diagnosis of
the test structure.
102 3 Visual Testing for Fiber-Reinforced Composite Materials

3.3.1 The Object Factors

In order to understand the physics and the operating principles of the VT technique,
it is necessary to understand the characteristics and operation of the human eye.
The eye is generally compared to a radiation detector because it detects different
wavelengths of light traveling through the iris and reaching the retina to form an
image representation of the test structure. In its operation, the eye performs the
function of a spectrum analyzer that measures the wavelengths (400–760 nm) and
intensity and determines whether the light is from a natural source such as the sun
or from an artificial source such as the flashlight or the lamplight. The light does
generally strike the test structure gets reflected back to the human eye. Reflected light
penetrates the iris (opens and closes to change the shape of the lens, thus varying
the amount of light reaching the retina) and gets focused onto the retina to form the
image. At the retina, a layer of rods and cones with their neurological connections
passes through the rear of the eye via the optic nerve to transmit the neurological
signals to the brain in a form of an image. The brain analyzes this image processes
the signals as perceptions of colors. It is noted that the retina is similar to an array
of small photosensitive cells and depending on the person there is a minimum level
of light intensity (i.e., intensity threshold) that must reach the eye for the latter to
be able to form an image at its retina. Individual cells are connected to the human
brain through individual optic nerves, and just like in an electrical system, the optic
nerves linking the eye to the brain can be compared to a bundle of electric cables.
Additional details about the physiology of the different components of the eye are
presented in the literature [8] and interest readers are directed to this specific study
for more details.
In addition to the basic requirements in terms of the health status of the eye and
the light intensity threshold, contrast is also an important factor and it determines the
differences existing between the different images placed side by side. To this end,
lighting requirements are frequently expressed in terms of ratios because the eye
does only perceives a percentage of change and not an absolute change in brightness.
Also, the retina does generally retain the formed image for a certain amount of time,
which varies according to the size of the object and the speed at which it is moving.
In addition to the previously mentioned, the main limitations of VT which make
the makes background to object ratio of brightness important are generally light
intensity and time thresholds as well as the contrast and the visual angle. Another
important factor is visual acuity which denotes the ability of the eye to distinguish
between very small details on the surface of the test structure [21]. In optics, white
light is considered to have all colors while black indicates the absence of the colors.
However, color is not a characteristic of an object, but rather a perception of the
human eye based on the wavelengths of light striking the eye. As a result, color can
be described as having three measurable properties that determined the level of the
visual acuity of an individual viz. hue, saturation, and brightness [8]. In most NDT
personnel qualification and certification programs, visual acuity test is also required
when applying for certification [1]. Indeed, there are many different kinds of visual
3.3 Theory and Principles 103

acuity tests (e.g., Jaeger Q test, Snellen test, random E test, etc.), and the conditions
for each test are generally described in the personnel certification and qualification
programs as the requirements often differ from one industry to the other.
In summary, the human eye is one of mankind’s most fascinating tools used in VT
practices. While it may need additional tools to perform the inspection (e.g., aided
VT and remote VT), a healthy human eye presents greater precision and accuracy
than many of the most sophisticated cameras or digital image recording devices.
It has unique capabilities of adjusting to the distance of the test structure and has
the ability to work in conjunction with the human brain, conferring to the eye the
capabilities of finding specific details or characteristics in test structure that no other
NDT techniques can find. In particular, the eye has the ability to distinguish between
the different wavelengths of visible light (i.e., the different colors and hues). In the
VT of composite structures, in particular, the human eye can reliably identify various
types of discontinuities in the test composite and accurately determine their visual
characteristics (e.g., size, shape, color, depth, brightness, contrast, texture, etc.) [22].
Although VT is generally used to detect visible discontinuities (i.e., on the surface
of opaque composites and/or the interior of translucent/transparent composites), the
technique may also locate portions of the test structure that require additional evalu-
ation by other NDT techniques and provide a quantitative inspection. In most cases,
inspection factors have been in composite structures [1, 7] which has allowed visual
inspectors to effectively categorize them as major and minor characteristics [23]. In
the manufacturing industry, for example, the surface finish verification criteria, size,
contour, length, and inspection for surface discontinuities in composite parts have
been developed and the classification can be performed by visually comparing the
manufactured composites to the available finish standards.

3.3.2 The Light and Test Structure Lighting

In general, the light wavelengths are measured in angstrom (10–10 m) and nanometers
(10–9 m). And as indicated earlier, the brightness of the light is an important factor
in test environments as the excessive brightness within the field of view lead to an
unpleasant sensation called glare which interferes with the inspector’s ability to see
clearly (i.e., white out the test structure) and make critical inspection decision [8].
Glare is also caused by the opacity or dirtiness of the test structure and in severe
cases, these two features also mask or hide the structure’s fine attributes. Indeed,
the apparent brightness of a test surface depends on the intensity of the light and
the reflectivity of the surface reflecting the light to the eye. In most VT practices,
excessive brightness will interfere with the ability to see and will “white-out” the
object. In contrast, inadequate lighting can cause excessive shadows and result in
insufficient light reflection, and thus, preventing observation of the surface attributes.
In most practice, major VT codes require a minimum intensity of 15 foot-candles
( f c) for general purpose VT and a minimum intensity of 50 f c for critical and fine
detailed VT. However, the illumination engineering society requires illumination of
104 3 Visual Testing for Fiber-Reinforced Composite Materials

Fig. 3.3 Graphical representation of the inverse square law

100 to 300 f c for critical work. The inverse square law is used to determine the
intensity of light noted or measured during the inspection.

I
E= (3.1)
d2

where E denotes the luminance, I denotes the intensity of the light at the source,
d denotes the distance between the source and the surface of the test structure. It
is noted that this equation is accurate within 0.5% when d is at least five times the
maximum dimension of the source. Figure 3.3 depicts the graphical representation
of the inverse square law.
Generally, the surface condition does greatly affect the lighting patterns and influ-
ences the ability of the inspector to properly discern between the individual attributes
of the surface or the interior of the test structure. The surface condition of the test
structure relates to the surface finish including the turning, blasting, burnishing or
polishing, scale, rust, contaminants, and processes such as milling, grinding, and
etching. The shape of the test structure is also another factor that influences the
amount of light reflected back to the eye, as the presence of irregular shapes such as
various angles and curvatures on the test composite determines the amount of light
reflected back to the eye. Additional factors include the size, temperature, texture, and
reflectance of the test structure. Typically, the size of the test structure does generally
determine the scanning procedure and/or the types of additional tooling to be used
in the inspection to ensure the entire structure is viewed or get a closer view of the
details that are otherwise unobservable. Excessive temperatures may cause distortion
in the test results due to the heatwave effect (i.e., heatwave distortion) or thermal
stress. In marine composites, in particular, the image of underwater components is
frequently distorted due to heat waves rising from the core that can interfere with the
imaging of the test composite using the underwater camera as it scans a particular
component during a visual examination. Excessively smooth or shiny surfaces may
also cause the test composite to white out. Also, since the amount of light reflected
from the test composite and the angle at which the light strikes the eye determine
the effectiveness of the test, visual inspectors should avoid spurious factors such
as excessive rust or roughness, or surface irregularities. These factors do generally
3.3 Theory and Principles 105

cause diffusion of the light and limit the light returning to the eye which can only
be corrected by increasing the amount of light or improving the surface condition of
the test structure or by improving the cleanliness of the reflecting surface altogether.

3.3.3 The Human Factors

Apart from the fact that visual examination is generally an inherently imperfect
and unpredictable NDT technique, individual experience is also certain to have a
large effect on the effectiveness of this testing technique. A limited selection of the
human-related factors that have tremendous effects on its performance and accuracy
have been thoroughly investigated and documented in the literature [8, 12]. These
factors are generally divided into organizational factors, task factors, environmental
factors, individual factors, as well as psychological factors, and social factors and the
effects of each vary significantly [24, 25]. Environmental factors, such as ambient
lighting or field temperature, are related to the atmosphere in which the inspection
is performed. Lighting levels between 500 and 2000 lx are typically recommended
based on the difficulty of the inspection task [26]. In many VT practices, flashlights
are generally used to increase the available illumination particularly when the inspec-
tion is performed on structures with higher crack detection rates [27]. Also, extreme
ambient temperatures (i.e., both high and low) do negatively affect the performance
of the inspection during vigilance tasks [28]. The amount of light required for an
adequate visual test largely depends on factors such as the speed or detailed desired
background reflection as well as many other inspection variables or human factors
(e.g., physiological processes, psychological states, and the inspector’s experience,
health, and fatigue) [29]. All of these factors contribute to the accuracy of a visual
inspection with one of the key factors in viewing a lighted test structure being the
difference (contrast) between the light on the object and the background. Research
suggests that a contrast ratio of 3:1 between the test object and the background envi-
ronment is generally desirable for the inspectors to be able to accurately visualize
the test structure and obtain its structural details thereof. If the background is dark,
this ratio should be 1:3 with 3 being the most intense light in both cases mentioned
above.
Also, psychological factors (i.e., can be suffering from tensions, emotions, etc.)
can highly affect the inspector’s performance. Typically, the colors and their subse-
quent patterns surrounding the test structure can have a significant effect on the
inspector’s attitude vis-à-vis the task being performed. In some cases, dark walls can
absorb up to 50 percent of the light used to illuminate the test structure. High contrast
on the pattern being inspected can cause eye fatigue. In fact, inspectors are gener-
ally recommended to use blue colors and avoid brilliant/shinning colors. Additional
human factors affecting the performance of VT include task-related. Task factors are
related to the physical nature of the inspection task and the test structure itself. In
general, both the systematic search pattern for flaws and the inspector-paced approach
has been found to significantly improve the accuracy of the inspection [30]. Although
106 3 Visual Testing for Fiber-Reinforced Composite Materials

the detection rate generally tends to improve with time (i.e., speed-accuracy trade-
off), experience shows that having longer inspection periods can lead to a decline
in performance (i.e., vigilance decrement) [25]. The degree of the decline varies
within the different individuals performing the test, it is most severe when defects
are infrequent and difficult to detect [31]. In fact, this problem can also increase the
rate of false alarms with time since more indications are likely to be found during
longer inspection periods, and inspectors have been observed relaxing their structural
rejection criteria as the number of indications increased [32]. In addition, the act of
seeing something is not a passive activity but rather requires inspectors to keep on
shifting the eye back and forth from one location to another to keep the track of what
is going on or keep on scanning a large area at a rapid pace. This will cause the eye
muscles to get fatigued and the inspector may lose the focus or the image altogether.
Inspector’s fatigue will lead to reduced efficiency of the test and the accuracy in the
interpretation of the visual data may be jeopardized.
In addition, human organizational factors are generally related to the administra-
tive or managerial organization directing and supporting the inspection as well as
the individual organization to adhere to policy and requirements set by the leading
authority. To this end, inspector training is one of the most cost-effective and effi-
cient strategies for improving inspection performance. Inspectors should be given all
the tools they need in terms of knowledge including knowledge about the physical,
procedural, and cognitive aspects of the inspection task [30]. The communication
between the different inspectors and their supervisors should also be improved as
the feedforward and feedback information related to the performance or strategy of
the inspection are proven to significantly improve the accuracy and efficiency of the
inspection [25]. In terms of social factors, research has found that inspector may
relax their rejection policy or tend to ignore some of the steps of the inspection
due to external pressure [33]. Also, consultation among the individual inspectors
has been found to increase performance, suggesting that good cooperation between
the inspectors should be promoted wherever possible to ensure the individuals are
free to exchange the knowledge ensuring a smooth performance in their work [34].
Individual factors such as age, perception, factors have been found to have a consis-
tent influence on the performance of the inspection suggesting that the interaction
between individual factors may be more significant than any single factor mentioned
above [24, 35]. Additional factors such as the experience of the different inspectors
also play an important role in the recognition of abnormal attributes at a faster speed
than novice inspectors [26, 29].
Finally, the perception of the inspector and the viewing angle also play an impor-
tant role. Performing the test in a dark environment for a long time or changing
the lighting levels during the inspection may cause painful glare as the inspector’s
iris takes a long to adjust before it regains the normal vision. Another influence on
perception is appearance caused by factors surrounding the test structure [8, 29].
In terms of the factors related to the viewing angle and the distance from the test
objects, the minimal resolvable angular separation of two points on the test object is
about one minute of arc, suggesting that at about 300 mm from the test surface, the
best resolution to be expected is often 0.09 mm, while 600 mm, the best-anticipated
3.3 Theory and Principles 107

resolution is about 0.18 mm. Additional figures regarding the distance at which the
inspector’s eye needs to be located and the best-anticipated resolution are found in
the “Handbook of Nondestructive Evaluation” [8] and interested readers are directed
to this study for more information.

3.4 Visual Inspection Requirements

The requirements for VT do pertain to the vision of the inspector (i.e., the inspector’s
visual acuity), the amount of light falling on the test structure (i.e., the indication of
the light meter), and the measure of access to the area of the structure being inspected.
In many cases, each of these requirements is detailed in regulatory code or any other
inspection criteria as established by the different countries, regions, and institutions
[7, 36]. Usually, VT requires the use of additional mechanical and/or optical aids to
accurately perform the inspection. Interestingly, several companies are now manu-
facturing gages and other advanced devices to assist in the visual inspections owing to
the fact that VT is so frequently used in all kinds of industries. A detailed description
about all the mechanical aids include (e.g., measuring rules and meter tapes, calipers
and micrometers, squares and angle measuring devices, thread, pitch and thickness
gages, level gauges, and plumb lines, etc.) and gauges (e.g., fillet gauges that are
used in the welding fabrication to determine the width of the weld fillet, undercut
gages, angle gages, skew fillet weld gauges, pit gages, contour gages, and a host of
other specialty items to ensure product quality). In many instances, inspecting the
test material by direct observation is impossible. In this case, inspectors are required
to perform the inspection by remotely viewing the test structure and this requires
the use of optical aids. Optical aids for VT range from simple mirrors or magni-
fying glasses to sophisticated devices and they include mirrors (especially small,
angled mirrors), magnifying devices (e.g., glasses, eye loupes, multi-lenses magni-
fiers, measuring magnifiers, etc.), microscopes (optical and electron), optical flats
(for surface flatness measurement), borescopes and fiber optic borescopes, optical
comparators, photographic records, closed-circuit television (CCTV) systems (i.e.,
which can be used alone or coupled to borescopes or microscopes), machine vision
systems, positioning and transport systems (i.e., which are often used with CCTV
systems), image enhancement (i.e., computer analysis and enhancement).
It is important to ensure the test structure is well illuminated and has a clean
surface, before even thinking of the use of any mechanical or optical aids are used.
Regarding the test itself, the eyeball examination is first performed by an adequate
medical practitioner who issues an examination certificate and the mechanical aids
are used to help to improve the precision of an inspector’s vision. As specifications
and tolerances become closer, calipers and micrometers become necessary (i.e., see
the section on additional measuring devices). In addition, there are various types of
gages used to determine thread sizes, gap thicknesses, angles between parts, hole
depths, and weld features. In particular, optical aids are used to help the inspectors
visualize very small discontinuities. Although these magnifiers are vastly important
108 3 Visual Testing for Fiber-Reinforced Composite Materials

and provide a good resolution to the inspectors to be able to see smaller defects/flaws,
the increased magnification limits the area that can be seen at one time and also
increases the amount of time it will take to look at the entire specimen. As a result,
inspectors should be cautious on which magnifiers to use depending on the applica-
tion, the expected size of the discontinuities, and the time needed to complete the
inspection. As general indicators of the applications of the visual aids, mirrors are
used to see around corners or past obstructions. Rigid borescopes (i.e., combined
with lenses and placed in rigid tubes) are used to see inside the test structures (e.g.,
jet engines, nuclear piping, fuel bundles, complex machinery, etc.). Areas inside the
test structures that cannot be accessed using the rigid borescopes require the use of
borescopes with flexible bundles of optical fibers. Additional information regarding
the use of these devices will be provided in the following sections.

3.5 Test Equipment and Accessories

3.5.1 The Direct Visual-Eyes

The human eye remains the most important in every visual inspection exercise.
However, images captured by the human eye cannot be used in digital format in real-
word and applications requiring the replication of the human eye to obtain a digital
image that can be stored, transported, and analyzed outside the testing area need the
camera. Indeed the camera example can be used as a model to discuss the different
components of the human eye and its operation thereof. In its operation, light emitted
by the source strikes the test object and reflects off the test object, and travels through
the air or any other transparent or translucent media (e.g., water, glass, crystals, etc.).
This reflected light will then strike the human eye and enter the lens before being
focused on the retina at the back section of the eye. Both the cones and rods at the
retina will then transform the electromagnetic radiation energy from the light coming
from the test object into the neurological signals which are then transmitted to the
brain through individual optic nerves. Just like when we focus the lens of the camera
by changing the depth of field and angle, the lens in the eye is also elastic and it
changes the shape as the eye muscle contracts or relaxes to accommodate different
visualization distances of the test objects. In doing so, the iris opens and closes to
regulate the amount of light coming into the eye. After the light passes through the
lens and the fluid in the eye, it strikes the rear of the eyeball and gets focused on
the retina (i.e., both the image focus and its relative position of the retina generally
depend on the shape of the lens and changes in tension of the eye muscles). It is noted
that the retina is in the eye what the image-recording medium of the film is in the
camera. After the image is formed on the retina, it is then temporarily retained before
being passed to the brain through the rods and cones then the optic nerve. The latter
transmits the neurological signals to the brain, which processes and decodes them as
perceptions of colors and details that vary according to the quantity of light, intensity,
3.5 Test Equipment and Accessories 109

and hue on the test object and/or transmission medium. Through these neurological
connections, the brain translates the signals into three-dimensional perception and the
inspector can then interpret the information obtained through vision. However, this
image can only be interpreted by the sole NDT specialist performing the inspection.
However, the above description depicts the operation of a healthy eye inspecting a
lighted object. In many instances, the human eye can suffer damage and deterioration
over time or be inherently defective. As indicated earlier, the iris contacts and relaxes
to adjust the size of the lens and the focus thereof. The latter can become intransigent
with age, reducing the ability of the inspector to adjust the focus. In addition, a
number of eye diseases such as cataracts, stigmas, scars, or scratches that distort or
block light transmission can inflict severe defections on the eye that compromise
the individual visibility. Also, the retina can become detached due to sharp blows,
genetic predisposition, or any other eye disease. Individuals suffering from color
blindness may lose the ability to perceive colors or the optical nerve system can
become damaged altogether. Additional problems such as chemical influences such
as the effects of alcohol, hallucinogens or drugs and substance abuse, as well as brain
cell deterioration or any other neurological impairment, can affect the information
processing system in the brain and limit the perception of the inspector. In electronic
systems, the process of seeing a test object and its surface features resembles the
operation of a CCD system. In a CCD system, light strikes small chips and causes
the electrons to accumulate, resulting in the transmission of signals to a computer
where they are reassembled onto chip arrays that yield an image for the human eye
to perceive. In short, the human eye is the most crucial component in the entire VT
technique, without which the entire VT would be merely impossible. Importantly,
the human inspector’s eye also plays an important role in all other NDT techniques,
including the evaluation of the health status of the test structure prior to, during, and
essentially after the testing is completed.

3.5.2 The Direct Visual Aids

In VT practices, the use of the human eye alone may not be sufficient to discern
the different features of interest on the surface or the interior of the test composite.
As a result, the eye often needs assistance when visualizing the features of interest
which vary significantly depending on the quality of the surface of the test object.
As the name indicates (i.e., direct visual aids), the main condition for direct visual
aids is that the surface of the test structure should first be accessible to the direct
view, suggesting that the primary function of the direct visual aids is to improve the
view of the inspector. There are currently many direct visual aids used in VT inspec-
tions including magnification lenses, mirrors, calipers, and lighting instruments. For
example, enhancement of the view can be achieved by using the magnification lenses
while a change of angle can be achieved through reflective mirrors [8]. Additional
directional lighting or sources of light edges have been found to be effective aids for
the detection and visualization of 3D surface flaws [37]. It is noted that these direct
110 3 Visual Testing for Fiber-Reinforced Composite Materials

visual aids are solely used to enhance the view of the surface of the test composite,
suggesting that their removal does not affect the test structure but rather restores the
direct view again. Hence, their use and the option to return to unaided viewing results
in “direct viewing with an aid”. The following sections provide the most common
direct visual aids used in VT.

3.5.2.1 The Magnification Lenses

Also called magnifiers, the magnification lenses do increase the size of the image of
the target feature and their magnification power (expressed in inches) is calculated
using the following equation:

Pmag = 10/ fl (3.2)

where Pmag denotes the magnifying power of the lens and fl denotes the focal length.
Figure 3.4 depicts a typical example of the operation of the magnifying lens used to
visualize a candle on a piece of paper.
The diopter is also another unit of measurement for the magnifier and it is the
measurement of the refractive power of the lenses that is equal to the reciprocal of
the focal length in meters. In other words, the number of diopters is equal to the
number of magnification times and its principal limitation is the depth of the field
(i.e., inversely proportional). In fact, a micro-focused view of a small object often
produces a magnified image within focus and an out-of-focus background, suggesting
that the magnified image may be blurred and not easily distinguishable. Two main
visual magnification devices are generally used viz. handheld lenses (i.e., and they
are generally made of glass or plastic such as acrylic) and pocket magnifiers or
microscopes. The operation of each of these two devices is described in the literature
[8] and readers are directed to this specific study for more information.

Fig. 3.4 Illustration of the

methods of calculating the
magnifying power of a
magnifying device
3.5 Test Equipment and Accessories 111

3.5.2.2 The Direct Light Source

Additional light sources are generally required when using magnification devices for
the visual inspection of fibrous composite structures. As a result, there are currently
numerous lighting devices that allow light to be concentrated on a small spot which
is often referred to as the test site. To date, the handheld flashlight is considered the
most common of these lighting devices. The device is usually held at some angle to
and within relevant inches of, the test structure. As the actual light intensity reaching
the test surface does generally depends on the distance and angle at which the light
is held vis-à-vis the test surface as well as the light bulb wattage and battery strength.
An additional common source of auxiliary light is the drop light, which is usually a
100-W light bulb encased in a protective case with a reflective shield connected to
a length of electric cable. Just like the handheld flashlight, the actual light intensity
produced by the drop light does equally depend on the angle and the distance at
which the device is held from the test surface as well as its wattage. A light meter
can be placed on the specimen surface, and the actual light intensity measurement
can be made. As discussed, when the distance from the light source to a surface is
doubled, the light intensity is decreased to one-fourth of the original intensity and
this is illustrated by the following mathematical expression:

I1 D2
= 22 (3.3)
I2 D1

where I1 denotes the intensity of the light at the first location, I2 denotes the intensity
of the light at the second location, D1 denotes the distance from the light source to the
first location, D2 denotes the distance from the light source to the second location.

3.5.2.3 Additional Measuring Devices

Although VT is one of the most versatile and powerful NDT techniques, the technique
does equally present a number of obvious limitations such as only visible surface can
be inspected, internal features often go unnoticed, and no quantitative information
is obtained about the properties of the test structure. As a result, its effectiveness
largely depends not only on the knowledge and experience of the investigator but
also on the use of additional tools that can enhance the visibility of the features on the
inspection surface. To this end, the direct VT technique is frequently enhanced by
the use of supplementary tools, especially when measuring some flaw features like
the dimension and the orientation. These tools can also be used to determine the type
of discontinuity and range of inspection for structures having a fixed shape and/or
geometry. There exist a lot of measuring devices that come in different sizes and
configurations including but not limited to line-measuring devices, inside-diameter
(ID) or outside diameter (OD) calipers and micrometers, depth indicators, optical
112 3 Visual Testing for Fiber-Reinforced Composite Materials

comparators, gauges, templates, snap gauges, feeler gauges, radius gauges, temper-
ature gauges, pitch gauges, diameter gauges. Additional measuring devices avail-
able include calipers, micrometers, rulers, compass, measuring tape, angle gauge, a
square, and many others. Importantly, some applications could have a gauge, custom-
made for a specific need or requirement and we cannot talk about each and every one
of them. As such, only a few of them will be discussed here for the sake of brevity.
The straightedge scale (i.e., the typical scale lengths are generally 15 and 30 cm)
has been found to be the most commonly used linear-measuring device. Inside and
outside diameters are measured using micrometers, because they are very accurate
and are available in various resolutions (e.g., can measure diameters up to the nearest
one-thousandth of an inch and in some cases one ten-thousandth of an inch). The OD
micrometer consists of several different parts, including the anvil, stirrup, spindle,
sleeve, thimble, internal screw, ratchet, and knurled knob. It is worth noting that
the essential component is the internal screw. It has been turned to have 40 threads
per inch (i.e., a 0.025 inch movement of spindle per 360° turn of the thimble). The
micrometer may be outfitted with attachments for different applications. A typical
example of this involves a case where a 0.2-inch ball is attached to the spindle to
accommodate the inside radius of a pipe when measuring pipe wall thickness. Also, a
pointed attachment may be utilized when measuring pits or many localized variations
in wall thickness. Improvements have been made and many micrometers are now
being equipped with a digital readout, suggesting that the pain of reading scales and
tiny divisions is less and less necessary.
An additional measuring device is the Vernier caliper which is simply a variation
of the basic caliper and is generally used to measure the outside diameters of round
components. If transfer calipers are used, the calipers are placed with the two contact
points touching opposite sides of a round object. The calipers are removed and
compared to the distance between the contact points as measured on a linear scale.
Vernier calipers ID and OD capabilities, depending on which set of points or jaws
are utilized. The handle that forms part of the stationary jaw has one or two inscribed
scales. There is also a Vernier slide assembly that is integral to the movable jaw. The
correct OD or ID set of calipers or jaws makes contact with the test structure. The
user reads the Vernier scale zero mark upon the stationary scale for the whole unit
measurement. The Vernier scale marks are matched with the stationary scale marks
and the best match-up of lines is utilized to read the linear distance to the nearest
one-thousandth of an inch or millimeter as the case may be. These two basic forms of
calipers have since been replaced with direct read-out dials or digital calipers. Some
digital gauges can be interfaced with a laptop or handheld computer so that a large
number of readings may be stored. Today, most calipers are digital read-out making
the Vernier scale less often used.
Additionally, tape measures (i.e., generally available in 25-foot to 50-foot length)
are also frequently used to measure the lengths. The 6-inch pocket scale is frequently
misused by placing the thumb on one edge of the specimen and abutting the end of
the scale against the soft and pliable thumb flesh. Although the devices are accurate
when used to measure the length of composite structures, is the method is generally
inaccurate when used to measure parts with movable surfaces at the beginning point
3.5 Test Equipment and Accessories 113

of the measurement. If possible, the first whole unit of measurement (i.e., either metric
or imperial) should be aligned with one of the two opposite edges of the test structure
and the other edge should be used to determine the total distance. However, inspectors
should always remember to subtract the first unit of measurement from the total length
measurement collected. Also, depth indicators (dial indicators) are frequently used to
measure the depths of surface discontinuities such as pits, corrosion, or wastage. The
dimension verification can equally be conducted and in either case, the zero-depth
must first be verified to ensure additional depth size can be accurately verified. The
dial indicator or the digital read-out indicator is placed on a flat surface and zeroed.
It is then moved over the depression. The spindle movement indicates the depth of
the depression. The older dial indicator, the sweep hand rotations must be counted
if the movement exceeds one 360° sweep. If a digital indicator is used, one must
note the minimum and maximum points indicating the range of the indicator or its
extensions (e.g., 0 to 1, 3 to 4, etc.). It is a common mistake not to count the number
of rotations or not to note the beginning and end range of the indicator, resulting
in only the last increment of measurement being accurate. Optical comparators are
frequently used in machine shops where close tolerance measurements are desired,
though the accurate and actual measurements would still require linear measuring
devices.

3.5.3 Remote Visual Testing

Also known as indirect VT, RVT is only used when the eye does not have a direct and
clear view of the test structure (i.e., the structure’s test surface) without using any
other device, tool, or instrument to help obtain access. As the name indicates, this
method is a direct opposite of the direct VT when does only provides an examination
of the test surface situated within 24 inches (610 mm) and at an angle not less than
30° with respect to the human eye (Fig. 3.1). Indeed all the codes and standards
guiding the use of VT allow the use of mirrors and magnifying lens to assist with
direct visual examinations, suggesting that when any other these two devices/tools
are used, the test is performed is referred to as direct VT. In contact with the direct
VT technique, an RVT uses visual aids such as cameras, borescopes, telescopes, fiber
optics, or other suitable instruments.
Applications of RVT are multiple and each one of them requires a different
set of tools from the aforementioned list. Although it is not our intention to illus-
trate the operation of all these visual aids for RVT, some important information is
provided with regard to these tools. RVT is often used in the examination of the gun
barrels during the manufacturing and/ in-service stages. This is particularly important
because gunners are often exposed to the dangers surrounding the potential failures
of the guns due to poor inspection. In particular, the failure of a gun barrel (e.g.,
the earliest mortar siege gun of medieval times or the precision-machined barrel of
a modern rifle), can result in catastrophic accidents to the gunners at the very least.
However, the inspector must overcome the obstacles posed by limited access to the
114 3 Visual Testing for Fiber-Reinforced Composite Materials

test structure and/or the provision of adequate illumination to illuminate the area
of interest during the inspection process. In these kinds of applications, the use of
small rigid borescopes containing a series of lenses can easily provide the answers.
Also, the original borescopes used the usual conductors to visualize the inside areas
of the test structure, and the discovery of the glass fiber bundle used as fiber-optic
has given birth to its most advanced form known as the fiber-optic borescope which
transmits. In this configuration, the optic fiber is used to illuminate the inspection
surface as well as the light reflected off the object back to the viewing end in a
form of display. Figure 3.5 presents a typical borescope with a fiber-optic bundle to
transmit the light to the test surface and collect the light from the test surface and
displays the test results in a form of an image. Importantly, both the fiber-optic and
the rigid borescopes are capable of providing access to small openings whereby the
former a fiber bundle with a lens at each end while the latter uses a lens train to
view the test surface. Indeed these two systems are not the only types of borescopes
used in RVT practices, there is also the min-borescope which also uses a fiber-optic
bundle to transmit the light to and from the test surface but with a slightly different
operation compared with the previously described fiber-optic-based borescope [38].
Additional information regarding the use and application of each other two systems
are provided in the literature [8] and readers are directed to this study for more details.
RVT also uses fiber cameras (i.e., also called video borescope) and these use the
fiber-optic bundle to bring the light from an external source to the test site. Typical
examples of video borescopes are provided in Fig. 3.6. The fiber bundle can be as
long as 40 feet and unlike the fiber-optic borescope, the light waves sent from the test
structure to the fiber camera passes through the objective lens, strike a CCD unit, and
gets converted into an electronic signal that is then transmitted to the processor in the
central control unit (CCU) to retrieve the detailed information before its visualized
on large monitors.

Fig. 3.5 Illustration of the

borescope featuring a
fiber-optic bundle to transmit
the light to the test surface
and collect the light from the
test surface back to the
receiving end in a form of a
display
3.5 Test Equipment and Accessories 115

Fig. 3.6 Illustration of the different video borescope produced by different companies: a the video
borescope produced by Olympus, and b the video borescope produced by GE Industrial Technology

Additional tools used for RVT include the charge-coupled device (CCD) cameras
which are also presented in different formats and detailed can be found in the literature
[39–41]. The working principle of the charge-coupled devices was illustrated earlier
in “Handbook of nondestructive evaluation” [8]. In general, nearly all modem RVT
systems allow inspectors to use a variety of cameras based on CCD image processor
technology. Given the fact that there are many different options for such devices,
the use of remote inspection devices ranges from small devices that are designed
to see through very small openings to big devices used for the inspections of the
structures/areas with big openings. In fact, very small orifices in jet engines, tubes,
pipes, culverts, vessels, tanks, rooms, and open areas can all be inspected by simply
using the right video collection and processing device by remote technology. To
this end, digital video borescopes, pan-tilt-zoom cameras, robotic pipe crawlers, and
freewheeling robotic platforms can all perform remote visual inspection applications.
Several types of video borescopes are available including the basic cordless as well
as reconfigurable and non-reconfigurable borescopes with a variety of recording
medium options. The total distance available for inspection is limited by the length
and the light transmission capabilities or distance of the fiber bundle and if the
inspector wants to perform a sharp turn, the fiber bundle should be flexible enough
to allow bending around corners. It is noted that some of the flexible borescopes
have devices that permit the observation terminal of the scope to be moved around
by a control system located at the eyepiece end while others are also connected to
CCTV systems to allow inspectors to capture large pictures and the test results to
be recorded on videotape or digitally. Indeed some of these systems may also be
combined with computers, suggesting that images can be easily improved allowing
the visualization of the details that would not otherwise be observable in the original
inspection images.
In all these systems where the images and videos are involved, the use of advanced
software systems can provide even better visualization results through image/video
manipulation, enhanced measurement, retention, storage, and retrieval. Also, moving
from video analog images to digital images has allowed significant advances in
116 3 Visual Testing for Fiber-Reinforced Composite Materials

image acquisition, dimensional measurement, and data management for RVT. It has
become standard to measure attributes through specialized video probe tips including
the comparison of the different images/videos, the shadowing of the test surface to
improve the quality of the light pattern as well the retrieval of the 3D measurements
and these options are all available with the video borescope instruments. Although
the use of videos/images is generally a successful option for RVT applications, the
main drawback of using such instruments is that slight pixel squares at the maximum
magnification may be barely visible to the human eye when viewing the inspection
results from the monitor.

3.5.4 Image Recording and Devices

An image is an artifact that depicts the visual perception through a photograph or

any other two-dimensional picture that resembles the target object (i.e., usually a
physical object) and thus provides a depiction of it. In general, images may be
two-dimensional (e.g., photograph, screen display, etc.) or three-dimensional (e.g.,
a statue, hologram, etc.). In VT practices, images are captured by all the optical
devices or aids listed above (e.g., cameras, mirrors, lenses, telescopes, microscopes,
etc.) as well as natural objects such as the human eye. Although all these devices
are cost-effective and relatively easy to use. In terms of image recording, cameras
remain the most viable tool to record and save the images in VT. In fact, cameras
are currently replacing the use of video cassette recorders and video tape recorders
owing to the ability for visual inspectors to save the captured images on DVDs,
flash media, and memory cards is another added advantage. In VT, image recording
presents several advantages regardless of the type of the camera, types, and size
of the monitor, as well as the fixturing mechanisms, used to capture the images.
Image is usually a recorded view of the test structure that aids in the evaluation of
the features on its surface and retains the inspection record. Apart from the above-
mentioned media that are used to save images during the inspection of composites,
new advancements are currently being registered and the medium of the future may
well be the digital laser disc or digital tape medium. This is one area of technology in
which the consumer market has driven the commercial market. To date, the electronic
real-time digital format is the norm for image retention, transfer, and retrievability.
This includes flash memory and solid-state (SSD) memory cards. In recent years,
the technology has greatly advanced and there are now available memory devices
in gigabytes and terabytes ranges with improved signal compression and increased
speed of processing. It is noted that memory system performance will undoubtedly
be enhanced by the fusion of conventional commodity memories and new memories
as semiconductor products continue to show a larger variety of high-performance
systems with much higher robustness and persistence.
3.5 Test Equipment and Accessories 117

3.5.5 Image and Video Display Units

In the context of VT, image and video display units are generally referred to as
monitors. A monitor is an output device that displays the information in pictorial
form and it usually comprises the visual display, circuitry, casing, and power supply.
In general, monitors are similar to television screens (i.e., TV screens) but usually
display information at a much higher resolution. Although several research works
confuse the number of pixels in a monitor as being directly related to the resolution of
the image of the test structure, these two terms are completely different and the present
section provides useful details making that distinction clear. In visual inspection, the
display resolution of a digital television or display device is often used to designate
the number of distinct pixels in each dimension that can be displayed. However, the
term resolution actually refers to the pixel density (i.e., the number of pixels per unit
distance or area and not to the total number of pixels) and it is expressed in pixels per
inch. It can be an ambiguous term especially as the displayed resolution is controlled
by all different factors in cathode ray tube (CRT) and flat panel or projection displays
using fixed picture elements (i.e., also known as pixel arrays). In most cases, the term
“display resolution” is generally used for fixed-pixel-array displays such as plasma
display panels (PDPs), liquid crystal displays (LCDs), digital light processing (OLP)
projectors, or similar technologies, and is simply the physical number of columns
and rows of pixels that create the display. A direct consequence of having a fixed
grid display is that, for multi-format video inputs, all displays need a digital video
processor that includes a memory array, also known as the scaling engine to match
the incoming picture format to the display size.

3.5.6 Imaging Software and Digital Cameras

In general, the use of the digital camera is a relatively new form of photograph
technology that uses no film but instead stores images in a digital format. In digital
imagery, images are often stored in the camera’s internal or flash memory, functioning
a small hard disk drive. Likewise, stored images can be deleted if no longer needed
or if the user wants to clean up the memory for future use. In some cases, however,
the camera’s internal memory can be expended by using a removable flash card
memory, allowing full memory cards to be removed and replaced, in the same way, the
miniature floppy disks do. After capturing the images, the latter is then downloaded,
save, or transferred to a personal computer running imaging software linked with
the camera. Using these two units, it is then possible to create images and convert
them to convenient file formats (e.g., JPEG, PNG, GIF, BMP, TIFF, etc.) for use in
myriad applications. In their operation, digital cameras can generally do just about
anything that film cameras can do and they are suited for even doing better than their
film counterparts. Also, their operation is no different from any other still camera viz.
aim at the target structure or object then click the shutter to capture the image. In order
118 3 Visual Testing for Fiber-Reinforced Composite Materials

to take advantage of the full capabilities of the digital camera, the latter should be used
with a computer and adequate imaging software and cables to handle the link between
the different units. In general, cameras sporting removable memory cards such as the
PCMCIA easily allow the removable cards to be inserted into the computer’s card
slot or communicate with the computers through a USB, serial, parallel, or dedicated
cables to transfer the images from the camera to the computer and vice versa. The
photo software is used for jobs ranging from viewing the images stored in the camera
to retouching images or creating zany morphs. Typical imaging software will perform
cropping, color changes, resizing, contrast adjustments, sharpness enhancement, and
adding text to photos.
In VT practices, digital cameras use the CCD as the means of capturing images.
As indicated earlier, these images are then stored temporarily on floppy discs or
memory chips or are archived permanently. The bitmap or other file format can then
be downloaded directly to a personal computer, attached to an e-mail, stored on web
pages, or otherwise transferred for viewing. When choosing a digital camera, careful
considerations should be undertaken regarding its use, resolution, image display,
compatibility with other devices such as computers, print photos (if needed), etc.
Some cameras utilize removable media cards for short-term or permanent archiving.
Typical resolution may vary. CCD pixel arrays with 640 × 480 to 1280 × 960, or
1280 × 1024, 1536 × 1024 up to 1920 × 1080 are available. Many cameras feature
LCD screens built into the camera for on-the-spot viewing of the image, thus allowing
retakes as required. Cameras with built-in viewing panels like small television moni-
tors are the easiest to use because they will not need to be connected to a computer
to work with images. The view screen will let you know immediately whether you
got a good picture, and let you select images to delete when the camera memory gets
full. Reusable storage cards can provide image-capturing capability limited only by
the number of store cards available. An important bonus with a number of cameras
is the ability to connect directly to a television or videocassette recorder for viewing
and recording images on video. Most cameras are compatible with both PC and Mac
computers. Once an image is downloaded to a personal computer, various image
programs allow image manipulations. Enlargements, segmenting, framing, changing
brightness or color, as well as other options allow a wide range of changes to be made.
Image printouts on color printers are producing near-photographic quality prints.
In summary, the flexibility and control over the photos and instant use of pictures
are examples of the advantages of the use of digital cameras in visual inspection.
Interestingly, the technology requires a once-off investment, suggesting that there are
no extra costs for processing pictures activities once the initial investment has been
made in the camera and its related hardware system. However, while the technology
requires a once-off it should be noted that the only ongoing expenses are for batteries,
disks to store images for long periods, and media for printing images. The quality
of the printed product depends on the quality of the paper, printer, copier, and of
course, the resolution of the camera. Digital cameras are generally cost-effective
VT devices, though adding higher resolution, flash, zoom, and video output will
boost the price a little bit high. It is noted that each camera does generally offer
its own suite of features, accessories, and capabilities and users should check the
3.5 Test Equipment and Accessories 119

quality, resolution, and performance of the camera to ensure it can help inspectors
to perform the required inspection tasks adequately.

3.6 Applications to the Inspection of Composite Structures

In general, when a structure or component gets damaged, NDT inspectors must

determine the size, shape, depth, type, and extent of the damage and its restitution
approach [42]. In fibrous composite materials, this is particularly important because
these materials are widely used in aviation, their reliability and maintenance require-
ments are improving to ensure they can continuously perform their design func-
tions without threatening the safety and security of the host system. In this context,
composite damage detectability is becoming increasingly significant and in some
structures, constant inspection, monitoring, and maintenance may be even mandated
by law to guarantee the safety of users [43]. The detectability of impact damage,
closely related to composite structures’ safety and durability, is a fundamental theme
in damage tolerance theory. As for economic concerns, visual inspection remains one
of the most widely used techniques by aircraft designers and operators (i.e., VT is the
main form of assessing the physical and functional condition of civil infrastructure
[44]). In general, VT is relatively fast as a primary method and has a large field of
view for the in-service inspection of fibrous composite structures. In this context,
every NDT engineer will always use VT to appraise the health status of the compos-
ites, and other NDT techniques such as UT, X-ray, THz-TDS will be performed later
to determine the specific internal damage (i.e., size, orientation, and severity of the
damage), such as delamination, debonding, and matrix cracking. The precise NDT
methods often require sophisticated measuring instruments and a particular detec-
tion environment and location [45]. In addition, the cost and skill training is high in
these other NDT techniques than they are in VT. As such, all these facts makes VT
one of the most favored NDT technique to perform periodic inspection in the NDT
of composite structures. Therefore, visual inspection is also one of the important
bases for defining BVID in CFRP composites. As indicated in the previous chapters
of the book, BVID is traditionally defined as a threshold (i.e., usually measured by
the depth of dents) which means that the structure with BVID has a positive margin
for the ultimate load. However, with the emergence of many new materials and the
update of design concepts, this value is usually changeable and this has prompted
NDT engineers and practitioners to continuously research the probability assessment
of the damage in fibrous composites [46, 47].
In general, visual examinations involve the evaluation of materials and structures
from raw product form to the end of their useful lives (i.e., it accompanies that
product/structure from the processing of raw product to the end of the service life of
the result structures). To put this into perspective, when raw materials are produced
from the factory, a VT and/or inspection is conducted to ensure its soundness and
if necessary locate inherent discontinuities that may be the subject of subsequent
repair activities. As the material is further transformed into components, parts, and
120 3 Visual Testing for Fiber-Reinforced Composite Materials

structures through the manufacturing process, VT is used to find discontinuities that

are produced during the primary processing steps. At this stage, any primary product
that is found with inherent problems and discontinuities is either repaired or rejected
depending on the requirement of its final use. Typical examples of composite manu-
facturing defects that can be inspected by VT include dry ply which is a surface
condition whereby fibers are not covered by sufficient resin, leaving very small
pockets on the surface which can become surface porosity when the latter gets
exposed to repetitive abrasions. Additional flaws include the formation of mark-
offs which are the resin-dominated ridges caused by improper tooling or bagging as
well as bow waves (i.e., material waviness near edges or step changes), the resin-
rich surface zones (i.e., indicative of non-uniformity or subsurface variations such
as wrinkles). After the manufacturing process, composite materials are formed into
a final or close to final shape as a result of the various primary processes. The
forming processes of wrought products include forging, rolling, drawing, extruding,
and piercing which also induce additional discontinuities in the composite. Any
discontinuities caused by these methods of forming the product’s final shape are
known as primary-processing discontinuities. As composite materials get worked
into usable components of different shapes and sizes, some of the inherent disconti-
nuities described earlier may appear. These primary-processing discontinuities may
ultimately become defects that may be of the same shape as the existing discon-
tinuities inherent to the product or possibly introduce new ones. As the product
manufacturing proceeds and the product are further developed into its final shape
and appearance, the secondary processes that give the product its final form can also
introduce new discontinuities. At this stage, the product is visually checked continu-
ously for any possible flaws introduced by the manufacturing steps. Indeed the visual
examination continues till when the product is placed into service as it gets subjected
to stresses, corrosion, and erosion while performing its intended function. All the
visual tests will only conclude when the material or structure has reached the end of
its service life and is removed from the source.
It is reminded that the VT is applied using various strategies and accessories to
ascertain the physical condition of the material that became the component, system,
or structure serving the needs for which it was intended. This is particularly important
because after the material is produced, a visual test is generally performed to ensure
that a product will meet the specification requirements prior to its processing into
a product form for use in its intended service. The technology associated with VT
and RVT includes a spectrum of applications in various industries. Among the many
application include the examination of tanks and vessels, buildings poles and pillars,
the pipes and tubes in fossil-fuel power plants, nuclear power plants systems, wind
turbine blades, aircraft and space shuttle structures, transportation systems such as
supercars, various infrastructure systems such as bridges and bridge decks, sports
equipment and many others. As an example, tanks and vessels often contain fluids
(e.g., gases, liquid, steam, etc.) that may be highly corrosive resulting in the product
leaking and endangering the life of users or personnel. Although tank contents are
generally not stored at high pressure, vessels contents are usually chemical substances
under a substantial amount of pressure which may result in the vessel’s materials
3.6 Applications to the Inspection of Composite Structures 121

cracking, distorting, or corroding. These negative effects may even be amplified

when the high pressure is coupled with the corrosive effects of fluids and thermal or
mechanical stresses. In the construction industry where the utilization of composite
structures is involved, the examination of buildings also provides a source for count-
less applications of the RVT. These applications include the location of clogged
piping; examination of heating and cooling (HVAC) heat exchangers; and looking
for cracking, pitting, blockages, and mechanical damage to structural components in
the building. Structural damage that may be present in the support systems, beams,
flooring, or shells, such as cracking, corrosion, erosion, or warpage, can also be
detected using VT.
In the fossil-fuel power plants where composite materials are used in their piping,
tubing, tanks, vessels, and other structural systems, exposure to corrosive and erosive
environments and other forms of stresses require users to regularly check these struc-
tures for their structural integrity to avoid unplanned system breakdown. Although
simple VT may be used to inspect such structures, most of them require the use
of RVT particularly when they are located in confined spaces or positions that are
not easily accessible by the inspectors. In wind turbine blades or any other types
of turbines and generators that are used in fossil-fuel and nuclear power plants are
vulnerable to damage because of many factors including but not limited to wear od the
turbine blade, vibration, elevated working temperatures, pressures, and impingement
of steam, water, or solid particles hitting the blades. Accessing the small passages
and/or openings to reach the damaged sections of the turbine blades becomes a very
tedious job to perform and seriously challenging. However, the ability to perform
remote visual inspections through limited-access ports (i.e., by using any of the afore-
mentioned tools to access confined spaces) reduces the need to shut down the entire
plant where the structure is operating and subsequently the downtime cost and disas-
sembly of major components to inspect them for their structural integrity. To this
end, both the simple VT and RVT techniques are used in these kinds of systems to
examine their components’ structural integrity and ascertain their functional design.
It is important to remember that additional requirements on RVT are implemented
when the water used for shielding and cooling (i.e., to convey heat from the reactor
core to the steam turbines, to remove and dump surplus heat from this steam circuit)
is exposed to the ionizing and radioactive radiation from inside or the contaminated
surface of the power plant system. Some of these requirements include the fact that the
testing equipment must not only be waterproof but should also be tolerant of radioac-
tive and corrosive environments. The process requirements in refineries and nuclear
power plants such as the containment of pressure and temperature require constant
visual monitoring to ensure the structural integrity of fibrous composite materials in
their structural systems as contents and/or application environments may be a source
of corrosion to piping, tanks, vessels, and structures, all of which are in constant
need of monitoring. The evaluation criteria for visual inspection of the types of
structures (e.g., tanks and pressure vessels made of fiber-reinforced composite mate-
rials) are given in both the ASME RTP-1 [48] and Sect. 10 of the ASME Code [49].
Indeed many types of composites, such as polymer matrix composites reinforced with
glass fibers are translucent, suggesting that flaws in these kinds of materials may be
122 3 Visual Testing for Fiber-Reinforced Composite Materials

visually detected with the aid of strong transmitted light. However, opaque materials
such as carbon FRCS as well as some thick sections of translucent materials and
painted materials cannot be inspected with transmitted light [50].
In summary, the raw materials are always checked for inherent discontinuities and
compared with the requirements of material specifications for acceptance. Typically,
new materials and products are first checked by users and/or manufacturers for their
dimensions and attributes such as thickness, diameter, out of round, roughness, or
smoothness. At the manufacturing stage, for example, new composite materials are
also checked from possible discontinuities that may interrupt the normal physical
structure of the composite. The inspector might look for marks or discontinuities
that are generally superficial because only these types of flaws can be located by
observing the variations on the surface of the structure including observable stains,
discolorations, etc. In general, discontinuities on the surface could indicate flaws
other types of anomalies in the material. In this context, discontinuities or lack of
some features that are essential to the usefulness of the composite structure should
be of importance to the NDT inspector in general and VT inspector in particular as
the latter is the first person to appraise the structural integrity of the system before
any other NDT is performed for further investigations [42, 45, 51]. During the visual
inspection of composite materials, inspectors are required to check for the presence
of any of the aforementioned attributes as they would be evaluated against the spec-
ified code, acceptance criteria, standard, or customer requirements [42, 43]. The
following is a typical sequence of observation steps an inspector or examiner might
follow for a general condition visual examination: (1) the observation or identifica-
tion discontinuity, abnormality, or any irregular features on the fibrous composite,
(2) the visual feature is evaluated to determine its validity (relevant or not relevant),
(3) the relevant feature is compared to the adequate standard, code, specification, or
customer requirements to estimate its severity of the test structure or determine its
acceptability by the customers, (4) the decision is made to accept, record or reject
the structural composite. In fact, discontinuities of abnormal features may start as
small marks on the structure (e.g., small corrosion, a slight scratch, splits, small
opening/whole, or any other type of abnraml discontinuities/features in the material
such as porosity, cracks, or inclusions). In the end, these apparently harmless abno-
malities may develop into cracks due to stress concentration under varying loads and
propagate with time. Eventually, there may no longer be sufficient solid material left
to carry the load. A defect is a discontinuity of such size, shape, type, number, or
location that results in a condition that will cause the material to fail in service or not
be used for its intended purpose.

3.7 Evaluation and Reporting of Visual Test Results

Evaluation and reporting of the visual test results are performed after the visual
inspection is completed. However, it is generally difficult to speculate who the entire
process will be performed in detail as the detailed report will largely depend on
3.7 Evaluation and Reporting of Visual Test Results 123

the standards, applicable codes, contract requirements, specifications, and customer

needs [11]. That withstanding, some general criteria apply to all examinations based
on VT. In primis, inspectors should first determine the scope of the inspection, the
procedure of conducting the test as well as the evaluation of the test results, and
the provision of an accurate and legible report in accordance with known or pre-
established standards. Inspection standards are generally established by different
institutions (i.e., detailed information on the different institutions is available in
chapter two of the book) depending on the application (e.g., the energy, nuclear,
transportation, petrochemical, construction, and aerospace industries) and inspec-
tors are advised to follow their institution requirements while reporting their inspec-
tion results. In general, however, the main elements of a final visual inspection
report include information on how the examination is performed, the type of surface
and conditions under which the inspection is performed as well as the method or
tools for surface preparation. The procedure must also indicate whether direct or
remote viewing is used and in case of additional illumination, the display devices
are required, the inspector must also indicate that in their reporting. Importantly, the
sequence of performing the examination, the tabulation of any available inspection
data must also be indicated constant with the general format of the report as required
by the individual institutions. Consistent with the aforementioned, the procedure
should also contain or reference a report of the approach used to demonstrate that
the examination procedure was adequate (i.e., procedure qualification). In general,
an almost negligible difference, 1/32 inch or less in width, or some other counterfeit
imperfection situated on a superficial level to be analyzed or a comparable surface is
viewed as good proof that the methodology is sufficient. To demonstrate the method,
the line or counterfeit imperfection ought to be situated in the most troublesome
area on the structure being analyzed. It is normal to list acknowledgment models
for different item frames in the method. The item structures ought to be indicated to
diminish the quantity of various visual techniques required. Regardless, subbing gear
with that of an alternate producer or changing the subtleties of the test boundaries
might require technique requalification.
The general written report also contains information regarding the date of the test,
the examination procedure used, the illuminators and illumination requirements,
as well as the instruments, equipment, and tools used in the test. The report also
contained a detailed account of the test results and the inspector’s signature and
certification level. Since the VT is often aided by the use of additional tools and
magnifiers, reports of visual examination results may be supplemented by special
recording media or other permanent electronic record forms. In particular, permanent
records for questionable conditions or indications should always be considered by
using standard or digital cameras with sufficient resolution to discern and record the
attribute or condition of interest. Strangely, computerized cameras ordinarily incor-
porate extraordinary PC programs that permit the picture to be imported straightfor-
wardly into the electronic report. Tape accounts are valuable for huge regions that
are being analyzed because it helps in giving proof of inclusion and the assessment
method applied. Camcorder accounts may likewise allow a photo placement to be
caught and recorded straightforwardly on the electronic media report. In general,
124 3 Visual Testing for Fiber-Reinforced Composite Materials

draws are straightforward and can be exceptionally useful in recording assessments

and giving area information with respect to different discontinuities. Outlines have
the disservice of fusing the overseer’s insight and resulting deception that would
not be in a photo. Outlines made physically additionally may not be decipherable.
Photos and electronic pictures ought to incorporate, where conceivable, a scale to
allow the examination of size and distance. Any bewilderment of point between the
scale and the view (i.e., in some cases alluded to as parallax) could twist the genuine
components of a characteristic, intermittence, or condition. The utilization of a scale
will for the most part give a superior viewpoint and result in better precision.

3.8 Advantages and Limitations of Visual Testing

As has been discussed, the visual inspection NDT technique relies on the use of aided
and unaided eye for the detection of flaws on the surface of opaque or the interior
of translucent composite materials. VT is by far the most common testing method
used across all industries and it is inherently part of all other NDT techniques. In
the inspection of composite materials, VT is often performed by direct line-of-sight
viewing of the test structure or used indirectly through the use of the magnifying
lens, optical comparators, safety or magnifying glasses, mirrors, borescopes, and
videoscopes or via remote viewing facilities [7]. The technique is able to detect a
number of defects including cracks, corrosion, misalignment of parts and discol-
oration, etc. As long as inspections are being performed, visual inspection is one of
the most important tools an inspector can have in his arsenal. In general, VT presents
several advantages over other NDT techniques. The technique is generally inexpen-
sive, requires very little to no equipment for the actual testing, is easy to train, most
of its instruments are easily portable, as well as the minimum preparation of the test
structure. It also provides a high-speed inspection facility, relatively good sensitivity
to surface flaws, versatility, applicability to irregular shapes, field mobility, and many
others.
In terms of its disadvantages, VT is generally limited to the detection and charac-
terization of large surface features or flaws. In addition, the inspector can misinterpret
the size and the type of flaws, suggesting that VT is largely a qualitative inspection
than it is a quantitative inspection. The technique also requires a line of sight to the
test surface and adequate lighting for the inspectors to be able to detect and interpret
anomalies of interest. Additional limitations of the VT include the complexity of
the geometry of the test structure (e.g., size, contour, surface roughness, complexity,
orientation of discontinuity, etc.). Although the technique is generally cost-effective,
the use of remote visual equipment required to access interior surfaces and/or provide
adequate viewing angles, resolution, sensitivity, and illumination may be expensive.
Also, a proper interpretation of the test results requires a skillful inspector, suggesting
that the experience using the visual equipment and knowledge of the test structure
are highly warranted for effective utilization of the VT. In most applications, VT is
often found to be self-consistent, and it does eliminate the need for further testing
3.8 Advantages and Limitations of Visual Testing 125

and the associated costs. The technique does also locate areas of the test structure
that may require subsequent inspection by other NDT techniques.
As indicated earlier, the direct VT does provide the clearest view of the inspection
surface, allowing the processing of the full spectrum of light wavelengths that are
available to the eye and the brain. Also, the technique allows the inspectors to easily
observe the color, shadows, textures, and any other visual attributes on the inspection
surface. Its main limitation is that artificial enhancement of the image is not always
possible and access restrictions may limit the view. Also, hazardous environmental
conditions limit the viewing time, viewing angle, or the visualization of the inspection
surface altogether. Aided VT using the camera, videos and photography is highly
advantageous and provides a great record-keeping possibility with an exceptional
resolution and details of the inspection surface. These facilities also provided the
inspectors with the possibility to analyze multiple images simultaneously. However,
the quality of the image or the video (i.e., the degree of resolution and the clarity of
the image or video depending on the equipment used) cannot always be guaranteed
once they have been retrieved and imported into the report. Additional challenges
to aided VT may include limited storage space which may further jeopardize the
quality and/or quantity of the stored images. In case film-based records are used,
inspectors should consider using films with finer-grain size (i.e., resolution, contrast,
and light sensitivity of film-based photographic records all depend on the grain size
of the emulsion) in order to achieve greater detail of the surface of the composite.
This is also important because the decrease in grain size results in a film having a
slower speed (i.e., requiring an increased exposure to light and time to record the
image), while higher-speed films have larger grains.
In particular, photographic techniques, macro-photography may in some cases
yield a sharply focused image while the background may appear out of focus. Fiber-
optic cameras and video borescopes are excellent tools for the inspection of inside
surfaces of tubing or short pipes and short-distance views of turbines. It would be a
poor choice for the inspection of large spaces such as large-diameter pipes, vessels,
tanks, or anywhere where detail at some distance was desired and an additional light
supply could not be provided. The small diameter of the lens can yield near-infinite
focus, but inadequate light would limit the view to the test structure. Inspections
using the CCD cameras are generally performed for boiler tubes but the same types of
inspections can still be performed on larger-diameter pipes or small vessels. However,
users are advised to be careful when using these types of cameras on larger pipe diam-
eters as the latter reduces the ability of the camera head to rest anywhere on their walls
but on the bottom of the pipe, restricting the viewing options. In addition, pushing
a cable does not work well for any distance provided that the opening is sufficient
enough to permit the curling and snaking of the cable. As such, centering devices
and pushrods are necessary to alleviate these problems. However, the main problem
in all these applications involving larger structures is the articulation, suggesting
that only the technique would only be limited to applications where examination for
general conditions is the goal. In particular, structures such as the drain lines, oil
lines, steam and process lines, headers, and vessels can all be internally inspected
with the miniature camera with a light head to lengths of up to 30 m [8].
126 3 Visual Testing for Fiber-Reinforced Composite Materials

Application involving the use of the pan, tilt, and zoom digital camera is mostly
concerned with the structures located at major distances and/or contaminated areas.
When coupled to its light arrangement, this type of camera and light arrangement can
be mounted on a tripod, tractor crawler, push pole, or any other suitable platform to
examine a wide variety of surface configurations. Applications involving the use of a
CCD camera with pan, tilt, and zoom lens are mostly encountered in hazardous envi-
ronments and confined spaces such as the inspection of tanks and vessels. Additional
applications include the inspections of steam headers, sumps, manifolds, pipe system
supports, and large-diameter piping (e.g., sewer and water utility lines)in industries
such as petrochemical, refinery, power generation, transportation (e.g., bridge decks,
shafts, tunnels, etc.), and engineering services applications. Also, the nuclear power
and medical industries may need their contaminated or hostile environment areas
inspected and this type of inspection is best suited to such applications. Industrial
surveillance and law enforcement applications may include security and terrorist
bomb investigations using remote visual inspection means. Inspections featuring the
use of remote visual systems require the use of reference to the delivery systems.
Applications can vary considerably with regard to the opening or the size of the
access path, length of travel, environment, magnification, and lighting requirements.
The basic elements of a remote visual delivery system consist of the camera, light,
tractor, cable, mobility control unit, pan, tilt, zoom controls, and monitor. A small
camera can be affixed to pushrods.
In utilizing remote visual conveyance frameworks, serious constraints might be
experienced when numerous shifts in the course are required (for example the push
bar before long ties facing different turns in the line, shaft, or opening), delivering
the frameworks ineffectual by and large. Albeit a steerable-wheeled farm truck can
arrange many turns with a camera joined to it to show the way to the administrator, the
turns exchange possibly become troublesome especially when the work vehicle is to
the administrator in a more modest opening, and henceforth the more prominent the
impediment to the payload that can be conveyed. Furthermore, slanted points of the
shaft, line, or design would expand the heap and reduction the entrance distance. The
benefit of bigger farm vehicles and going with bigger wheels would be the capacity
to navigate unfriendly territory and more extreme grades. The automated wanderers
that as of late arrived on Mars is a run-of-the-mill model showing that multi-jointed
and complex plans of far-off conveyance frameworks can be intended to squeeze into
little bundles. In general, the heavier the design, the more grating that can be created;
subsequently, the heavier the heap, the harsher the landscape that can be arranged.
There are at present many plans of these distant frameworks with every last one
of them having a recovery framework and an assortment of capacities. Each extra
capacity requires more links, lines, and articulating abilities. Remote-controlled VT
frameworks might wipe out the requirement for link however would require radio
contact consistently. At long last, video screens are the normal showcase gadgets that
are utilized in helping VT and they are the last connection in the video framework
chain. The detail and nature of the signs being looked for in cylinders, lines, and
little vessels do not need a higher goal, and normal screens like the fluid presentation
3.8 Advantages and Limitations of Visual Testing 127

(LCD) can be utilized for the showcase of the review brings about visual assessment
rehearses. Also, the LCD show is more affordable and highly resistant in the field.

3.9 Standards, Codes, and Specifications

All the applications discussed in this chapter are concerned with the use of either
direct VT or aided VT techniques to detect anomalies of the surface or the interior
of composite materials. In most industrial applications, the standards provided by
the American Society for Testing and Material (ASTM) remain a common source
for material specifications. ASTM is a scientific and technical organization founded
in 1898 with the primary goal of voluntarily developing and publishing standards
pertinent to the characteristics and performance of materials, products, systems, and
services as well as the promotion of related knowledge. To date, the organization is
composed of more than 132 technical standards-writing committees, and together,
they have published more than 9,100 standard specifications, tests, practices, guides,
and definitions for materials, products, systems, and services. To date, ASTM stan-
dards are divided into 15 different sections with each section containing several
volumes. All the standards are designed in a way that they represent a common
viewpoint of producers, users, consumers, and general interest groups intended to aid
industries, government agencies, and the general public. Apart from the ASTM stan-
dards, there are many other standards including the American Society of Mechanical
Engineers (ASME), the American National Standards Institute (ANSI), as well as the
American Petroleum Institute (API) among others. In today’s standards development
practices, the aerospace and military standards are continuously being replaced with
more commonly accepted industry-based codes and standards. Although significant
changes have taken place in NDT and new technologies have been devised in recent
years, a closer observation reveals that the VT has had little to no change at all over
time. This probably explains why very little has been done to standardize the VT
of the composite structures used in the industrial sector. However, those seeking
certification in the area of VT are referred to the ASNT Level III Study Guide and
Supplement on Visual and Optical Testing [12]. Currently, significant efforts are
ramping up for different institutions and economic regions to establish some guide-
lines establishing the main details on how and when to use VT methods and it is the
specification writer’s responsibility to ensure that the requirements of specifications
are realistic [7]. This is particularly important because specifications establishing a
level of visual defects that are unnecessary for the process conditions may cause the
equipment to become unnecessarily expensive and time-consuming.
128 3 Visual Testing for Fiber-Reinforced Composite Materials

3.10 Conclusions

The VT of FRCS is very important not only as an NDT technique in itself but also
as a supplementary tool to any other instrumented NDT for the inspection of FRCS.
VT is generally applicable to the examination of most surfaces and is most effective
when the test surface is cleaned prior to the examination (e.g., scale or loose paint
should be removed by wire brushing, etc.). The technique is primarily performed at
optical wavelengths suitable for the human eye’s vision whereby the main features
or damage of interest include the surface porosity, resin-rich areas or resin pockets,
and wrinkles, dry ply, mark-off, bow waves, cracks, scabs, and voids [52, 53]. In
most cases, damage/flaws on the surface of the composites appear to be in the form
of indentations or cracks and less experienced inspectors may confuse these different
types of flaws and their sizes, suggesting that adequate training is required for the
inspectors to be able to use this technique effectively. In the case of dry ply, for
example, fibers are not covered by sufficient resin leaving very small pockets on
the surface that can easily become the surface voids or porosity. Similarly, mark-
off can be ridges formed by improper tooling or bagging of the composite while
bow waves are material waviness near edges or step changes. Additional flaws that
are of interest to VT include resin-rich areas which indicate a distinctively clear
nonuniformity in the resin matrix distribution in the composite. Resin-rich areas
often lead to subsurface material variations and wrinkles. However, wrinkles can
only be detected visually if they extend to a trimmed edge of the test structure or
if the surface of the composite presents a slight out-of-plane change, or by a slight
change in the fiber or resin pattern of the outer play of the composite. Apart from the
inspection of surface damage, internal damage, or flaw can also be visually inspected
if the material is translucent.
Although there are many types of limitations associated with VT, achieving good
access to the test structure and obtaining adequate illumination of the test surface are
considered to be the main limitations when it comes to VT NDT. Indeed, illumination
of the test surface has always been a serious challenge for visual inspection, particu-
larly when the intensity of the light source and the angle at which the light strikes the
test surface (i.e., the adequate orientation of the light to the test structure is required
to optimize the damage or flaws detection) are not adequately chosen. It is reminded
that the image of the surface of the test structure must be delivered to the human
eye for evaluation. In case of poor illumination or poor visibility of the damage by
the naked human eye, visual inspection is enhanced by using additional tools such
as borescopes for looking into cavities and magnifiers or microscopes for close-up
inspections to obtain detailed and accurate inspection results. A typical example of
VT involving the use of magnifiers is the digital image correlation which is a simple
and cost-effective visual method for measuring the sample strain and displacement
[54, 55]. The method uses two cameras oriented for the parallax imaging of the
surface patterns on the test structure to capture the relative motion of the surface
patterns during the loading or mechanical testing. These surface patterns are then
used by the inspector to calculate the full-field surface strain and extract the infor-
mation regarding the health status of the test composite [56, 57]. Additional tools
to aid in a visual inspection include the camera recording which is often performed
3.10 Conclusions 129

as a part of composite processing activities during the manufacturing process. Also,

RVT advances are being driven today by constantly growing consumer demand and
improvements in video technology, though the challenge remains for the inspectors
to fully understand what they are examining the structure for and how the image will
be sent to the eye for interpretation.
Although tap testing and dye penetrant testing are fundamentally different from
the VT, these two methods are often performed in conjunction with VT, particularly
when testing the composite for possible structural defects such as delamination and
disbond that are not visually detectable [58–60]. Although the NDT of FRCS has had
significant advances over the years and new technologies have been developed, VT
has changed very little over time even though it is the primary inspection technique
used in many field applications before any other NDT technique is envisioned. Inter-
estingly, there is a constantly growing development of new mechanical and optical
aids for VT and the applications of this technique to the inspection of FRCS are
expected to grow as its reliability continues to increase to more acceptable levels. At
the technical level, additional visual inspection standards are expected to be devel-
oped to provide relevant guidance in its application to the NDT of composite mate-
rials in the industrial sector [6, 12, 61]. It is believed that this technique will continue
to be an important asset for the NDT community as it remains the very first tech-
nique that any NDT inspector uses to identify areas of the composite structures that
require advanced NDT techniques for accurate evaluation [7]. As computer-related
technologies continue to advance and designers continue to make state-of-the-art
image-gathering packages (i.e., hardware and software systems) that are smaller and
easily accessible by the general NDT practitioners, the limitations of access, infor-
mation storage and complication of use will be further reduced. In military appli-
cations, in particular, VT is dominated by the use of drones, robotic devices, and
automated visual inspection techniques which should continue to bring innovations
to the technology of RVT.

Important Disclosure In this chapter, some figures referring to well-known facts and popular
instruments used in VT were arranged traying inspiration from NDT websites and the sources were
also referenced when appropriately.

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Chapter 4
Ultrasonic Testing Techniques
for Nondestructive Evaluation
of Fiber-Reinforced Composite
Structures

4.1 Introduction

Composite materials have been used in structural engineering for several decades as
they continue to deliver their proclaimed advantages of high-strength-to-low-mass
ratio and resistance to corrosion features to the manufacturing of safe and reliable
structures [1]. Composites are generally manufactured through multi-variable and
complex processes and the resulting material or structural systems are susceptible to
developing flaws [2–4] ranging from small faults to big impact damage [5, 6]. These
flaws are particularly troublesome and they produce significantly different effects
on the health and performance of the composite [7]. In general, flaws are caused
by many different factors including poor materials handling and process control
during the manufacturing process [5, 8]. However, these flaws can also appear in the
composites at any time during their lifecycle including materials processing [9, 10],
manufacturing [6, 11], and/or in-service [12, 13] stages. To this end, users should
understand the nature of the different damage and discontinuities as well as their
detrimental effects on the life of the composite [7, 14]. It is also important for users to
identify and evaluate all structural damage/discontinuities at their incipient initiation
to ensure they are addressed on time because failure to do so will lead to further
material degradation that ultimately threatens the life and safety of the host structural
systems. The current technological advancements mean that there is continuous use
of composite materials for the manufacturing of new and complex structural systems
[6, 15]. Also, studies indicate that the predominance of structural damage increases
with the increasing structural size and complexity (e.g., thick composites, sandwich
structures, complex-shaped structures with complex joints, etc.) [5, 7], and when the
damage starts forming it generally paves the way for more severe material degradation
which causes the composite to lose its ability to fulfill its functional requirements [6].
In this context, composite materials and structures are generally inspected intensively
before they are assembled into final products. At their in-service stage, composite

© Science Press 2022 133

S. Zhong and W. Nsengiyumva, Nondestructive Testing and Evaluation
of Fiber-Reinforced Composite Structures,
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-19-0848-4_4
134 4 Ultrasonic Testing Techniques for Nondestructive Evaluation …

materials are usually inspected by eye (i.e., visual inspection) for general composite
structures and the tap test for honeycomb sandwich structures.
In terms of traditional NDT, advanced testing techniques for composite materials
include ultrasound, X-ray, and to a lesser extent electromagnetic methods [1]. Indeed
these techniques have always combined the above two methods (namely visual and
acoustic tap-testing) as well as ultrasonic testing and X-radiography testing. However,
for any type of NDT to be used as an essential tool to evaluate the health status in
the life-cycle management of composite structures, the technique must meet the
manufacturing process control and quality assurance requirements, and be able to
perform in-service damage inspection and characterization of any possible flaws. To
this end, ultrasound has been by far the main staple NDT technique used for the
inspection of composite structures and materials and it is indeed considered one of
the important NDT techniques for material systems available today. The technique
uses ultra-high-frequency sonic energy to locate and identify discontinuities that are
both on and below the surface of the test materials and provide updated informa-
tion describing their health status. In the manufacturing of composite laminates, for
example, ultrasonic methods have been developed to monitor the curing of polymer
resin and the resin flow in the resin transfer molding while making composite struc-
tures using dry fiber. As described in the first chapter of this book, manufacturing
quality and quality assurance issues of composite materials and systems include
the evaluation and characterization of voids and porosity, as well as the verifica-
tion of ply orientation and stacking sequence. Additional quality control issues of
composite materials include but are not limited to the identification and evaluation
of delamination defects and damage, as well as the detection of foreign objects and
fiber waviness embedded in the composite. As such, one of the primary needs for
NDT is the inspection of structural composites is to help users to be able to detect,
quantify, and characterize damage and discontinuities in structural composites and
solid laminates (e.g., impact damage, BVID, blisters, corner splits, disbonds caused
by exposure to localized heating, moisture ingress, and damage/degradation of the
composite due to anomalous overload, etc.). Additional utilizations of NDT tech-
niques include the detection and characterization of matrix microcracking caused
by repeated excursions to cryogenic temperatures in the aerospace industry. Indeed
these are not the only uses of NDT in structural engineering as many different types
of damage and discontinuities are susceptible to compromise the life and safety of
structural systems. Extensive literature related to these types of defects and damage
has been provided in [16] and in chapter one of this book and readers are directed
to these specific documents for more information. Ultrasonic testing may or may
not be able to detect and evaluate all the defects presented in the aforementioned
studies and documents. As such, a brief description of the common types of defects
and discontinuities that are commonly detected and evaluated by ultrasonic testing
in structural composites is provided in the following paragraphs of this section of
the book.
Consistent with the aforementioned, voids and porosity in composite laminates
have been the persistent quality issues and porosity implies a distribution of small
4.1 Introduction 135

voids in the resin matrix of polymer-based composites. Generally speaking, porosity

is typically the result of a non-ideal curing process, such as the inadequate evacuation
of volatile gaseous matters released during the curing process that led to the entrap-
ment of microscopic or macroscopic gas bubbles in the resin matrix. In other words,
porosity does arise in the composite material as a result of the improperly controlled
manufacturing process such as improper air control during cure, loss of cure pres-
sure or inadequate volatile gas bleed off from the resin. In the deep thicknesses of
the composite where there are predominantly resin-rich layers between the plies (or
the resin pockets that are usually found at the intersections of fiber tows in woven
composite laminates), clusters of porosity usually take the shape of larger and longer
voids (of up to 100 μm or greater), which compromises the composite’s mechanical
properties (e.g., interlayer shear strength, tensile and compressive strength, trans-
verse bending strength, and fatigue strength, etc.). In general, voids tend to elongate
in the fiber directions at the ply interfaces and studies indicate that ultrasound testing
is generally the primary NDT technique that provides reliable results when it comes
to the detection and characterization of porosity in composite materials [17, 18]. In
most of the composite manufacturing practices, the verification of the ply layup or
stacking sequence in a solid laminate is very important because significant errors in
plies layup or stacking sequence can lead to the composite part not meeting its design
requirements and hence its possible rejection during the manufacturing process or in
severe cases, requiring a destructive test by cutting and polishing a cross-sectional
surface and by examining the fiber orientations with optical microscopy to validate
the laminate layup sequence. However, destructive testing is generally not advocated
for, as it renders the composite part useless and causes significant materials and
economic losses. Interestingly, this verification of the ply stacking sequence and the
detection of ply layup errors or ply orientation can be done non-destructively by
using ultrasonic testing because ultrasound signals reflected from a certain depth in
the interior of the composite laminate are generally sensitive to the orientation of
fibers in the plies and plies in the composite [19]. As such, the ultrasonic testing
technique can easily be used to map out the stacking sequence and/or orientation of
the plies as well as to detect their layup errors in the composite [6, 19, 20].
In recent years, automatic composite manufacturing processes are constantly
using both tape-laying and fiber-placement machines not only to reduce the large
amount of labor required in hand layup but also to minimize the number of human
errors that come along with the hand layup processes. Although the automatic
composite manufacturing process provides viable solutions toward eliminating small
errors and defects by creating consistency in the manufacturing process, some defects
and imperfections such as gaps and overlaps of fiber strips may still exist in machine-
made composites and may still not be easily detected by the general NDT techniques.
However, the good news is that even though these defects in machine-made compos-
ites cannot be easily detected by the general NDT techniques, they generally do not
pose any significant threat to the life and safety of the composite unless they exceed a
certain threshold level which is often determined by the load requirements and their
distribution throughout the entire composite [21]. To this end, it is generally under-
stood that the size, distribution, and severity of defects or discontinuities in composite
136 4 Ultrasonic Testing Techniques for Nondestructive Evaluation …

materials or structural systems must be detected in these machine-made composites

(i.e., manufactured using the tape-laying or fiber placement machines) to ensure they
will not pose any problem depending on the design and the intended application. In
fiber-reinforced composite laminates, for example, the waviness of the fiber tows,
both in the vertical direction (i.e., out-of-plane) or in the horizontal direction (i.e., in-
plane) can degrade the stiffness and strength of the designed structure. The wrinkles
of the plies can be the result of thermal expansion due to temperature profile anoma-
lies during curing. The propagation of ultrasonic waves in the test composite can be
strongly affected by the geometric distortion associated with the waviness of the plies
since ultrasonic waves are elastic waves, making it difficult to detect some defects
in fiber plies such as waviness during the manufacturing process of the composites.
To overcome this problem, several ultrasonic testing-based methods, including one-
sided, pitch-catch contact mode ultrasound and air-coupled ultrasound have been
developed [18].
As soon as composite structures are developed and the manufacturing process
is completed, they get deployed in the field for their services. In their service life,
composite structures may suffer various damage and material degradation-related
issues caused by the applied load (abnormal, overload, etc.), mishandling of the
composite from point A to point B, and harsh environment (e.g., excessive radiation,
elevated temperatures, corrosion caused by chemicals and/or solid particles, etc.)
[1, 6, 16]. Some of the main concerns with in-service NDT of composite structures
include but are not limited to low-velocity impact damage of composite laminates
and honeycomb sandwiches due to hail damage, tool drop during maintenance/repair
activities, bird strike, and impacts of runway debris [16, 22]. Impact damage of a
solid laminate generally occurs in the form of a series of delamination (mostly in
carbon fiber-reinforced composites) that increase in size as the depth increases from
the impact surface [1, 22, 23]. At each ply interface, the delaminations often consist
of two lobes aligned with the fiber direction in one of the plies. Unlike metals,
impact damage of a composite laminate can exhibit little or no visual indication a
phenomenon that is often referred to as barely visible impact damage [1, 24]. The
latter corresponds to impact damage that does not involve large structural degrada-
tions, although they can cause a complex net of matrix cracking and delamination
inside the composite, with limited fiber breakage, evolving to fatigue fractures and can
decrease the residual strength and durability of the structure leading further damage
growth and potentially catastrophic failure as the component remains in service [16,
22]. The detection and characterization of impact damage are therefore of great
interest to the NDT of composite structures. Ultrasonic reconstruction of impact-
induced delamination damage zone has received considerable attention from NDT
researchers and practitioners over the past years and has led to much success [25].
Adhesively bonded composite structures such as honeycomb sandwiches are also
susceptible to impact damage [26]. Low-velocity impacts of honeycomb sandwiches
with composite laminate facesheets can lead to the crushed or buckled core, disbonds
between the facesheets and the core, and delaminations in the facesheet [27, 28]. The
morphology of the damaged core usually assumes the shape of an upwardly curving
arc [26–30]. It is not unusual for the honeycomb core fracture or buckle line to
4.1 Introduction 137

occur at a depth that is a substantial fraction of the core thickness. It is also not
unusual to have the damaged core remain bonded to the face sheet after the impact
[27]. Importantly, brittle honeycomb core materials (e.g., glass fiber cells, etc.) tend
to fail by fracture and crushing, whereas ductile honeycomb cells (e.g., Aluminum
cells) fail by an accordion-style buckle collapse [21, 31]. The permanent deformation
of the honeycomb cells in an aluminum honeycomb sandwich with a carbon or
glass composite facesheet can easily result in a separation or disbond between the
deformed core and the facesheet when subjected to low-velocity impact. In the NDT
of impact damage in honeycomb sandwich structures, contact mode ultrasonic testing
is generally ineffective, but a water-coupled or air-coupled transmission mode UT
can readily map out the damage zone. The adhesive bond between the facesheet
and the honeycomb core may also fail when the surface of the sandwich structure
is exposed to sudden heating of a localized area, such as that of hot exhaust gas or
a fire. Apart from the use of transmission UT for the detection and characterization
of disbonds in honeycomb sandwich structures, these types of damage can also be
imaged using other advanced NDT techniques such as infrared thermography, digital
shearography and terahertz imaging among others.
In summary, this chapter presents the major types of damage and defects in fiber-
reinforced composite structures (i.e., which are substantially different from those
encountered in their metallic counterparts) and the ultrasonic techniques used for their
nondestructive detection and characterization. The defects discussed include manu-
facturing defects such as porosity, artificial object inclusions, errors in ply layup,
errors in ply orientation or stacking sequence, ply waviness, and service-induced
delamination, disbond, crushed core, low-velocity impact damage, and microcracks.
However, the application of NDT techniques for the evaluation and characterization
of internal damage in fiber-reinforced composite materials is often challenging due
to their complexity, different size, and anisotropic nature as there are many concur-
rent phenomena during the composite laminate failure process. This chapter aims to
analyze the ability of ultrasonic-based NDT to identify and evaluate manufacturing
defects and internal damage in solid composite laminates and honeycomb sand-
wiches is discussed. The techniques addressed include novel processing of C-scan
images in water-coupled ultrasonic testing, application of air-coupled ultrasound,
and electromagnetically generated shear waves to exploit their strong interaction
with fiber direction. The performance of different types of ultrasonic testing tech-
niques for composites structures are investigated and a comprehensive summary of
the performance and limitations of each of them are highlighted. In terms of instru-
mentation, this chapter discusses laboratory systems, stationary systems used in the
manufacturing environment, and portable inspection systems for field applications.

4.2 Operation and Variants of Ultrasonic NDT

In the NDT of fiber-reinforced composite plastics, structures are routinely inspected

using ultrasonic scanning systems and facilities in the manufacturing environment
138 4 Ultrasonic Testing Techniques for Nondestructive Evaluation …

for quality assurance purposes. The same kind of inspection is performed on the
composite while in service regularly to ensure it continues to perform its design
functions and that its structural integrity is maintained. To this end, the anisotropic
and inhomogeneous nature of fiber-reinforced composite structures makes ultrasonic
NDT an interesting and yet challenging research topic [32, 33]. Ultrasonic testing
(UT) uses sound waves to inspect the test structures for their quality and ascertain
their health status. These sound waves are generated by mechanical vibration from a
transducer that converts an electrical signal into mechanical motion and vice versa.
It all starts with the operator sending a short pulse of electrical energy or a tone
burst to the transducer which in turn generates a pressure pulse. If this transducer is
coupled to a composite structure, the former will create an ultrasound wave in the
latter and this ultrasound will travel at a particular frequency and velocity depending
on the material constituents of the composite. In most ultrasonic NDT tests for fiber-
reinforced composite materials, the frequency used will usually be between 1 and
5 MHz. This means that the typical speed of ultrasound waves across the composite
laminate stack is close to 2.8 mm/ms which corresponds to a wavelength equal to
2.8 mm and 0.56 mm at frequencies equal to 1 MHz and 5 MHz, respectively. In
general, also, common composite ply thickness could be in the range of 0.1–0.35 mm.
Consistent with the aforementioned, it is clear that higher frequencies will reduce
the wavelength, making the inspection more sensitive to small features and/or flaws
and the interpretation of potential features in individual plies of the composite. The
relationship between the frequency and wavelength of the ultrasound wave is given
by the following mathematical expression:

f
λ= (4.1)
c

where λ denotes the wavelength of the ultrasound wave, f is the frequency of ultra-
sound wave and c is the speed of the wave. Also, the transmission of the ultrasonic
signal A0 is subjected to attenuation along the transmission path, suggesting that the
amplitude of the received signal will significantly differ from that of the transmitted
signal, and hence, the following mathematical expression:

A = A0 exp(−αx) (4.2)

where A is the pressure amplitude after transmission in the propagation medium,

A0 is the initial pressure amplitude, α is the attenuation coefficient expressed in
nepers per unit distance, and x is the transmitted distance which in NDT may well be
the thickness of the propagation medium or test structure [23]. Consistent with the
aforementioned, the actual attenuation of ultrasonic wave occurring in the composite
is a measure of the material consolidation and can be calculated for each thickness
x of the composite crossed as follows:
4.2 Operation and Variants of Ultrasonic NDT 139
 
A0
U TAtt = αx = ln (4.3)
A

In practice, however, the attenuation of the ultrasound wave is always measured

in decibel (dB) units and is calculated using the following expression:
 
A0
U TAtt = 20 log (4.4)
A

This mathematical expression of calculating the attenuation of ultrasound wave

indicates that any change of signal strength by a factor of 2 will induce an equivalent
attenuation of 6 dB while that by a factor of 10 induces an attenuation equal to 20 dB
in the ultrasound signal. It is noted that the attenuation of the ultrasound wave is
directly proportional to the frequency of the input signal. Typically, the attenuation
of ultrasound signal in a composite laminate could be in the range of 1.5–2 dB/mm
at 5 MHz, whereas at 1 MHz the values of the attenuation could be half of that. In
addition to the frequency of the input signal, the values of the attenuation are also
dependent on the specifics of the material constituents and their arrangements in the
composite (e.g., fibers, resin, fiber-to-resin ratio, ply type, and layup). These same
values are also dependent on the specifics and operating parameters of the ultrasonic
inspection equipment. In particular, it is well known that the composite consolidation
is generally compromised by the presence of voids or porosity in the composite which
ultimately increases the attenuation level of the ultrasound signal. To this end, the
measurement of voids or porosity levels in the test structure is often determined by
measuring ultrasonic attenuation. In fact, this kind of attenuation level is often used
in some applications as one of the acceptance criteria of the composite components.
However, if this type of test is to succeed, calibration curves must be developed for
the specific equipment, and the level of dB loss as a function of porosity for each
thickness of composite should be established. In general, a typical criterion set by
most industries is that less than 2% porosity is acceptable for the manufacturing
processes [1]. Using the same criterion, porosity levels should not exceed 4% as
such high porosity levels can significantly decrease the performance of the resulting
composite structure [34].
In ultrasonic NDT practices, the detection and characterization of flaws in
composite laminate (e.g., delamination, cracks, holes, foreign inserts, etc.) is a func-
tion of the transmission or reflection levels of the ultrasound waves across the material
system. However, it should be noted that the level of transmission and reflection of the
ultrasound waves is dependent on the acoustic impedance (Z 1 ) difference between
the different materials at the flaw/composite interface [35]. This acoustic impedance
is defined as follows:

Z = ρv (4.5)
140 4 Ultrasonic Testing Techniques for Nondestructive Evaluation …

where ρ is the material density and v is the particle velocity (i.e., the acoustic
velocity). The transmission at the aforementioned interface is given by the following
mathematical expression:

2Z 2
T = (4.6)
Z2 + Z1

and the reflection at the same interface is given by the following mathematical
expression:

Z2 − Z1
R= (4.7)
Z2 + Z1

where Z 1 denotes the acoustic impedance of the first material and Z 2 denotes the
acoustic impedance of the second material at the interface [36]. Using these same
equations and the typical values of the acoustic impedance of air and polymer
composites, a composite-to-air interface will have a transmission coefficient of
0.00017 and a reflection coefficient of 0.9998 [34]. This very high reflection and
very low transmission further justify why delamination and disbonding are easily
detectable with ultrasonic NDT. Using the same analogy, foreign inserts or inclu-
sions that are not bonded to the matrix of the composite will be easily detected
by ultrasonic systems in general, but the detection is uncertain if the inclusions are
bonded unless they present a significantly clear difference in their acoustic impedance
with respect to the host composite or polymer matrix.
Although the fundamentals governing the interaction of ultrasonic waves with
fiber-reinforced composite materials have been extensively documented in the liter-
ature [33], the particulars of some composites may require ingenious ways of getting
the ultrasonic transducers into contact with the test structures or sending ultrasonic
waves into the composite [37]. To this end, ultrasonic NDT includes many variants,
the principal ultrasonic methods include through-transmission ultrasonic (i.e., in
which two axially aligned transducers measure the degree of attenuation of the signal
through the composite), pulse-echo (i.e., in which a single transducer is used to send
and receive the elastic waves), and pitch-catch (i.e., single-sided ultrasonic measure-
ments in which two probes are used, one for sending and the other for receiving ultra-
sonic signals) [38, 39]. In addition, ultrasound methods can also include guided-wave,
resonance, and bond-testing methods. Interesting, significant subtle distinctions on
what can be done and how the signal can be used still exist within these designations.
Figure 4.1 depicts the different configurations of the above-mentioned ultrasonic
NDT variants viz. the through-transmission ultrasonic, pulse-echo, pitch-catch, and
guided-wave methods. Although all these methods are equally in ultrasonic NDT
of composite structures, the literature indicates that through-transmission ultrasonic
system is one of the most frequently used methods for this purpose. In this method,
an ultrasonic signal is sent from a transmitting transducer to a receiving transducer,
penetrating the test composite as illustrated in Fig. 4.1a [40]. The quality of the
test composite is obtained from the signal strength (i.e., attenuation, scattering, etc.)
4.2 Operation and Variants of Ultrasonic NDT 141

Fig. 4.1 Typical ultrasonic configurations: a through transmission ultrasonic, b pulse-echo, c pitch-
catch, and d guided waves

received at the receiving end of the testing facility. The presence of defects or damage
of any kind (e.g., porosity, inclusions, wrinkles, etc.) does decrease the quality of the
composite which also increases the acoustic attenuation and reduces the strength of
the measured acoustic signal.
Additional changes are also observed when the input frequency of ultrasound
waves changes from high to low and from low to high. To this end, a significant
decrease in the ultrasound frequency does also decrease the attenuation of the input
wave by the test composite, making the inspection method more penetrating for
thicker composites, but also less sensitive to subtle features such as small defects
or inclusions. In general, the high impedance mismatch existing between the solid
and the air makes delamination and disbonds easy to detect when using through-
transmission ultrasonic because these types of damage will nearly block the entire
signal, a phenomenon that the receiving transducer can easily detect. The penetra-
tion power of through-transmission ultrasonic NDT makes it particularly useful for
the inspection of sandwich structure composites with honeycomb or foam cores or
very thick or any other kind of ultrasonic signals attenuating composite structures.
However, users of through-transmission ultrasonic systems should always know that
the technique will often not be easy to apply as it requires access to both sides of the
test structure. In fact, the two transducers must be aligned with each other and also be
normal to the surface of the test structure such that the scanning system must maintain
the orientation on curved parts. The signal that is detected by the receiving trans-
ducer is usually plotted as a function of position and is called a C-scan display (i.e.,
amplitude image of bidirectional scanning). To this end, the through-transmission
142 4 Ultrasonic Testing Techniques for Nondestructive Evaluation …

ultrasonic C-scan display will show the area in the test composite where a certain
distinct feature may be located, but it does not indicate the depth of the feature in the
test composite.
The pulse-echo method is a single-sided ultrasonic testing method in which a
single transducer is used as both the transmitter and the receiver [41]. One of the
main advantages of pulse-echo is that the time of each echo may be used to determine
the depth in the structure at which a defect occurs, and thus the precise location of the
damage in the through-thickness direction may be inferred. At any single measured
point, the measurement provides an inspection output called an A-scan, which is a
plot of signal amplitude versus time. The A-scan is commonly used by inspectors to
interpret the condition of the test material. The signal is a time base response of the
reflected ultrasonic waves from within the test structure. The typical interpretation is
to check for a strong echo from the back wall of the part to show good transmission.
Also, the inspector will look for echo indications from internal locations between
the part’s front surface and its back wall to indicate inclusions or delamination. If the
part has porosity, the back-wall echo will be reduced or lost, although there may not
be a significant reflection from the scattered internal porosity, as there could be from
a foreign insert or delamination. Interpretation of the A-scan will provide the depth
location of defects from the time-of-flight (TOF) display based on the velocity of the
material. The interpretation of the strength of an internal reflection signal relative to
the loss of the back signal reflection is used by inspectors to assess the defect type. In
particular, pulse-echo can be used with a handheld instrument at any particular point
on the part, or in a scanning mode with the transducer riding on the surface, in a water
tank, or with a water squirter system. When a one-dimensional (line) scan is made
and an image of distance versus time with the signal amplitude is shown in grayscale,
the output is called a B-scan (i.e., amplitude image of a unidirectional scanning). B-
scans are useful for identifying internal echo locations, such as inclusions or feature
steps in a part, such as ply drops and out-of-plane distortions such as wrinkles.
In standard ultrasonic systems, their electronics involve a “time gate” that isolates
the regions of the A-scan in which amplitude is measured. When a value from the time
gate (e.g., the intensity of the signal at the back wall of the test material) is plotted as a
function of x and y positions on the material, the output is called an amplitude C-scan
(i.e., similar to that of the through-transmission ultrasonic system). The gate may also
be internal (i.e., the signal between the front and back walls of the test sample) or a
full gate (i.e., the signal after the front surface that includes the back wall). In all these
cases, a signal such as a peak value in the gate will be recorded for the C-scan display
and the C-scan images obtained from each of these different gate configurations may
be slightly different depending on the type of the damage or flaw and their effect on
the reflected signal. Another common plot is the time-of-flight C-scan, in which the
grayscale is the depth (i.e., time to the signal times the velocity) in the part at which
the reflected signal is greater than a prescribed threshold above the noise floor. In
most cases, NDT practitioners will display both the amplitude and the time-of-flight
C-scans to interpret the data. In all the applications involving material testing with
the pulse-echo, the placement of the gate and threshold level can make a significant
difference in the ability to detect defects of interest. Specifications, standards, and
4.2 Operation and Variants of Ultrasonic NDT 143

procedures established by designated NDT experts are used to calibrate inspection

systems to ensure accurate and clear inspection results.
In the pitch-catch method, two ultrasound transducers are used with one of them
being used as a transmitter and the other one as a receiver. However, unlike the
through-transmission ultrasonic method, the pitch-catch transducers may be on the
same side of the part or oriented in a number of ways for the ultrasound to progress
from one transducer to the other. The interpretation is usually based on changes in
detected signal strength or frequency and calibrated against a known test sample.
Two other options for ultrasound that are commonly used are resonance and bond
testing. In the resonance mode, the ultrasonic transducer is used in a continuous
or repeated tone burst operation. Placing the transducer on a part will cause an
impedance change to the transducer operation. The impedance effect is picked up as
a change in the amplitude and phase of the transducer signal as it is moved over the
part. Resonance scanning can be very sensitive to changes in the composite thickness
or sandwich structure quality. The frequency used for resonance inspection is usually
in the low hundreds of kilohertz. In the bond-testing instrument configuration, a pitch-
catch arrangement is used with the low-frequency transmission, often in the tens of
kilohertz range, from the transmitter to the receiver on a single side of the structure.
Bond testing is most applicable to thin laminate layers such as the facesheets of
sandwich structures.

4.3 Types of Ultrasonic Waves

The detection and characterization of structural flaws and discontinuities are the
oldest and the most common application of industrial ultrasonic NDT. The laws of
physics that govern the propagation of sound waves through solid materials have
been used to detect hidden cracks, voids, porosity, and other internal discontinu-
ities in material systems including metals, composites, plastics, and ceramics since
the 1940s. In ultrasonic NDT, high-frequency sound waves reflect into the plane of
incidence when they come into contact with structural flaws or discontinuities in
more predictable ways, producing distinctive echo patterns that can be displayed and
recorded by portable instruments to identify and characterize flaws or discontinuities
in structural materials. The technique is completely nondestructive, highly accurate,
and safe to use. As a result, it is also a well-established testing technique in many basic
manufacturing processes, and service industries, especially in applications involving
structural composites and metals. In these types of materials, various types of sound
waves propagate following different motion patterns which give rise to the classifica-
tion of these sound waves based on the type of motion involved. In ultrasonic NDT,
three types or modes of ultrasonic waves are generally considered including volume
waves (i.e., separated into shear or transversal waves on one hand and compression
or longitudinal waves on the other hand), surface or Rayleigh waves, and guided
waves such as Lamb waves [37]. In most ultrasonic NDT practices, volume waves
144 4 Ultrasonic Testing Techniques for Nondestructive Evaluation …

(i.e., longitudinal waves and shear waves) are the most common modes employed in
flaw detection in ultrasonic NDT.

4.3.1 Longitudinal Waves

Longitudinal waves (LWs) are also known as compressional or pressure ultrasonic

waves and they are the same types of sound waves that are audible to the human
ear. In the longitudinal waves, particles of the test structure vibrate back and forth
parallel to the direction of propagation of the wave. These waves propagate through
the medium as a series of alternate compression and rarefaction and they are the most
widely used waves in the ultrasonic NDT of materials. This mode of propagation
is exhibited when the medium of propagation has no boundaries (i.e., it has infinite
span), and both pressure and density of the test structure fluctuate periodically due to
their propagation mode. LW propagate by pushing the molecules of the test material
in the same direction as the movement of the wave, as shown in Fig. 4.2. The velocity
of the ultrasonic LWs is different depending on the type of material being tested. In
copper plates, for example, their velocity is estimated to be 4760 m/s, making them
the most rapidly propagating ultrasonic waves used in NDT [37, 42]. The depth of
the defect is determined by analyzing the wave velocity and its propagation pattern
with the test structure.
In composite materials, LWs are easily coupled from the transducer to the test
composite by applying a liquid or gel couplant between the test composite and the
transducer, and they are considered the most staple of ultrasonic NDT for material
property evaluation and/or flaw detection and sizing [1, 33, 43, 44]. The propagation
of LWs is generally independent of the fiber directions in the plies of the composite.
Additionally, their interaction with the characteristic ply thickness (typically 120 μm)
is generally weak since their wavelength in the single MGz range is much greater

Fig. 4.2 Graphical illustration of parallel motion response of the test material when subjected to
longitudinal ultrasonic waves, showing the compression and rarefaction (reduced density) regions
[37]
4.3 Types of Ultrasonic Waves 145

than the thickness of the ply itself, though distinct echoes from the ply interfaces can
appear at higher frequencies (i.e., 30 MHz and above) [45]. Also, UT systems do
generally use broadband pulses, suggesting that resonance phenomena are smeared
out due to the broad frequency bandwidth.

4.3.2 Shear Waves

Shear waves (SWs) are also known as transverse waves and they are part of the
volume waves, which at equal frequencies, propagate slower and at shorter wave-
lengths than their LWs counterparts. In the SW, particles of the test structure vibrate
perpendicularly to the direction of the propagation of the waves as shown in Fig. 4.3.
In this case, the medium undergoes shear deformations periodically and the particle
motion is at right angles to the movement of the wave, In ultrasonic NDT, SWs
are usually used for angle beam ultrasonic testing (e.g., to detect discontinuities in
both the front and rear surfaces of the composite and are therefore suitable for pipe
inspections). As is the case with LWs, the velocity of SWs also varies with the type
of material being tested (e.g., estimated to 3040 m/s and 3100 m/s in aluminum, and
stainless steel, respectively). SWs often become LWs when they are reflected from
an interface [46, 47].
Although SWs are quite effective in the characterization and evaluation of
composite materials, the fiber direction in the composite plies interacts sturdily with
the in-plane vibration of normal incident SWs due to the high degree of anisotropy of
fiber-reinforced composites. In particular, SWs are generally decomposed into two
components (i.e., both parallel and perpendicular waves with respect to the direction
of the fiber in the composite) when the shear vibration of the incident wave is at an
angle with the fiber axis. Indeed these two components propagate in the composite
sample at different speeds in the through-the-thickness direction of the composite
(i.e., the parallel component propagates at a greater speed than the perpendicular

Fig. 4.3 Graphical representation of a perpendicular motion response of material particles

subjected to shear ultrasonic waves, showing the wavelength [37]
146 4 Ultrasonic Testing Techniques for Nondestructive Evaluation …

component). The transit time delays an SW pulse through an anisotropic composite

material depending on the layup sequence and orientation of the different plies in
the composite laminate. In the transmission mode, SWs are highly sensitive to indi-
vidual layups and/or stacking errors particularly in the cross-polarized configuration
(i.e., the polarization of the transmitting and receiving transducers is kept perpen-
dicular to each other). Unlike LWs that only need the gel couplant to be coupled
from the transducer to the test composite, the coupling of SWs is more difficult
and requires a highly viscous coupling layer such as honey. In conductive materials
such as CFRP composites, SWs can be generated using electromagnetic acoustic
transducers (EMAT) [48]. If the material is not conductive, EMAT can still be used
by an aluminum foil that will have to be placed in between the composite and the
EMAT transducer to generate the SWs before the latter can find their way into the
composite. The aluminum tape must be removed after testing. In the manufacturing
of composites, the composites may be sandwiched in between two layers of metals
and SWs may be generated in the metal blocks with EMAT [49] particularly when
using the UT systems to test the composites for uncured prepregs or resins.

4.3.3 Rayleigh Waves

Rayleigh waves (RWs) are also called surface waves and these are ultrasonic waves
that penetrate the material only to the sub-surface distance that is approximately
equal to one wavelength (at any given frequency) and all their energy is practically
attenuated within this depth. In general, surface waves travel along the surface of
the tested material at velocities equal to those of SWs. RWs travel along the flat or
curved surface of thick solids without influencing the bulk of medium below the
surface and they are, therefore, useful for detecting cracks that break the surface of
the test component whereby the particles of medium describe elliptical orbits and
during their propagation. These types of waves are also useful for testing pieces
with intricate rounded surface features. Any defect in zone α as shown in Fig. 4.4,
would rest deeper than the wavelength (λ) of the test signal, and would likely not be
detectable by RW [47]. In 2014, Aleshin et al. [50] examined various methods and
devices for proficiently introducing ultrasonic signals (i.e., focusing on surface and
plate waves) into the pipelines with thicknesses ranging between 6 and 20 mm.

4.3.4 Lamb Waves

The lamb waves are produced in thin metal, whose thickness is comparable to the
wavelength of ultrasonic waves. Lamb waves (LMWs) are also referred to as flexural
or plate waves and they are vibrations that occur from the upper to the lower surface
(i.e., up to several wavelengths in thickness) of the tested material, usually a plate
(composites or metals), so they are also called Plate waves. They propagate not
4.3 Types of Ultrasonic Waves 147

Fig. 4.4 Graphical representation of the limited detection area of surface waves, showing how they
are confined mostly to the surface of the test structure [37]

only through the full thickness of the tested material but are capable of propagating
from a single point of excitation over significant distances within the material, as
shown in Fig. 4.5. Since LMWs travel through the solid in a way that is significantly
like the behavior of electromagnetic waves within a waveguide, the characteristics
of transmission vary from material to material. The velocity of LMWs in the test
structure is determined by many factors including the density, plate thickness, and
elastic properties of the test material [37, 51].
In ultrasonic NDT, LMWs propagate in selective directions due to their anisotropic
nature and this makes them highly effective for the inspection of composite materials.
In particular, their intrinsic advantages of ultrasonic guided waves, an ability to
inspect for different types of defects and travel through a structure having non-
uniform cross-section, which makes them powerful tools for NDE of adhesive joints
[52]. In 2005, Leonard et al. [53] explored the use of “helically propagating Lamb

Fig. 4.5 Graphical representation of ultrasonic lamb waves (plate waves) showing how they move
through the test structure of a certain thickness that is directly related to the wavelength [37]
148 4 Ultrasonic Testing Techniques for Nondestructive Evaluation …

waves” transmitted and recaptured with longitudinal transducers. In this study, the
authors provide a detailed description of a “meridional-array scheme” used to test
the concept of using ultrasonic tomography to detect the location and extent of
discontinuities (i.e., simulated wall-thinning) in pipelines. The study also investigated
improved reconstruction programs for the assessment of helical array signals where
“the transmitters and receivers are located at the circumferential parallel rings”, which
further confirmed that the frequency compounding technique reduces the noise and
artifacts leading to the collection of clearer images.
In summary, ultrasonic NDT uses a variety of ultrasonic waves, including longi-
tudinal, transverse, guided waves, or surface waves [33, 54]. Of these modes, the
longitudinal wave is the most commonly used for through-transmission ultrasonic
and pulse-echo C-scans. Transverse waves are often used in metallic inspections such
as welds because of the generally isotropic behavior of metals and the shorter wave-
length of shear waves relative to longitudinal waves to provide higher sensitivity. For
polymer composites, the significant anisotropy in the layup makes shear waves more
difficult to use effectively. Guided waves, which include Lamb waves, are used in
composite inspection. These waves are sometimes referred to as “structural waves”
and can require considerable interpretation when used for NDT. Surface or Rayleigh
waves are useful for surface cracks in metals, but they have not seen much application
for composites.

4.4 Types of Ultrasonic Transducers

In general, there are five general categories of ultrasonic transducers viz. straight
beam, angle beam, dual element, delay line, and immersion transducers that are
commonly used in NDT. Straight beam or contact transducers are used in direct
contact with the test structure and they introduce sound energy perpendicularly to
the surface. These types of transducers are generally used for locating voids, porosity,
and cracks or delaminations that are parallel to the outside surface of the test structure
as well as for measuring thickness. Angle beam transducers are generally used in
conjunction with plastic or epoxy wedges (i.e., angle beams) to introduce longitudinal
or shear waves into the test composite at a designated angle with respect to the
surface. Delay line transducers incorporate a short plastic waveguide or delay line
between the active element and the test component. They are generally used to
improve near the surface resolution. They are also used in NDT applications involving
components at high temperatures where the delay line protects the active element
from thermal damage. Immersion transducers are designed to couple sound energy
into the test material through a water column or water bath. They are generally used
in automated scanning applications and/or in situations where a sharply focused
beam is needed to improve flaw resolution. The last type of the list is the dual
element transducers which utilize separate transmitter and receiver elements in a
single assembly. These types of transducers are often used in applications involving
rough surfaces, coarse-grained materials, detection of pitting or porosity, and they
4.4 Types of Ultrasonic Transducers 149

offer good high-temperature tolerance as well. Additional details on the advantages

and limitations of these transducers and the subsequent specifications about the range
of frequencies they can handle and their sizes are available in the literature [55–57]
and interested readers are directed to these specific studies for more information.
Conventional longitudinal wave ultrasonic transducers designed for flaw detec-
tion and thickness gaging operate as a piston source of high-frequency mechan-
ical vibrations or sound waves. Their operation is such that as a voltage is applied,
the piezoelectric transducer (i.e., crystal) deforms by compressing in the direction
perpendicular to its face. After the applied voltage is removed, the crystal springs
back and generates a pulse of a certain level of mechanical energy which is also called
ultrasonic wave when the transducer is coupled to a test material. In the same way, the
crustal will generate a voltage across its faces when pressed by a certain pressure of
an arriving ultrasonic wave. That is, a single transducer can act as both a transmitter
and a receiver of ultrasonic pulses. An array is simply an organized arrangement of
multiple crystals (i.e., in different sizes, frequencies, number of crystals, and shapes)
with the primary advantage of increasing the inspection coverage area and/or the
speed of a particular inspection. Ultrasonic transducers industrial NDT applications
are typically constructed around piezo-composite materials, which are made up of
many tiny, thin rods of piezoelectric ceramic embedded in a polymer matrix. There
are also composite transducers, though these are more challenging to manufacture,
which generally offer a −10 to −30 dB sensitivity advantage over their piezoceramic
counterparts of similar design. In phased array ultrasonic systems, transducers are
generally categorized based on the types (i.e., angle beam, delay line, direct contact,
and immersion transducers), frequency, as well as the number and size of elements. In
most ultrasonic NDT applications, the standardized inspection codes will determine
the type of transducer that the NDT operator uses for a particular application [37]. In
the case where there are no standardized specifications or customer requirements, the
operator will select a suitable transducer based on prior experience and knowledge.

4.5 Ultrasound Generation and Coupling

with the Composite

As indicated earlier, the use of ultrasonic waves for the testing and evaluation of
fiber-reinforced composite structures is generally generated by piezoelectric trans-
ducers. The process is such that these transducers convert electrical signals into
mechanical motion and vice versa. The frequency of the generated mechanical
motion is controlled by several construction parameters of the piezoelectric trans-
ducer including the thickness of its crystal, construction of its housing, as well as its
electrical signal characteristics. Transducers are made in a range of sizes and they
are sometimes equipped with lenses for focusing the ultrasound if desired. In most
applications, the desire is to have transducers with larger diameters because they
have greater power. However, these types of transducers may not be effective for the
150 4 Ultrasonic Testing Techniques for Nondestructive Evaluation …

detection of small flaws or in operation near edges of the composite structure. In

these kinds of applications (e.g., the detection of small defects and operation near
the edges of the composite), small diameter transducers may be required. In most of
the applications involving the inspection of composite structures, transducers with
beams in the 6–12 mm diameter range are commonly used. In practice, however,
the entire diameter is not used during the inspection. A typical transducer with the
above-mentioned size of the beams can only be focused on something in the order
of 1–2 mm in size at the depth of interest in the test structure. In their application,
transducers are usually categorized as broadband or narrowband. This classifica-
tion is generally based on the type of pulse they utilize and the way they send this
pulse into the test material. To this end, broadband transducers have a narrow pulse
with broad frequency content while narrowband transducers have a higher output
pulse with a specific frequency. The broadband transducers are typically used for
applications involving the use of pulse-echo ultrasonic systems because they can
resolve in-depth features at the near and far surfaces of the test composite. In partic-
ular, though, narrowband transducers are used for the inspection of thick composites
and sandwich structures (i.e., highly attenuating structures of the ultrasonic signals)
because they offer significantly higher power and are generally useful for applications
involving the use of through-transmission ultrasonic systems.
Apart from air-coupled ultrasonic systems, efficient composites inspection prac-
tices require that the ultrasonic waves from the transducers be tightly coupled to the
test structure particularly where localized or point testing is required [1]. There are
currently many substances that are used to get the ultrasonic signal into the test struc-
tures for localized or point testing purposes including water, gel, or grease depending
on the application. Typically, water coupling (e.g., water squirter or bubbler systems)
is used by the immersion ultrasonic scanning systems for composite structures as
illustrated in Fig. 4.6. In Fig. 4.6a, the composite part is immersed in a water tank for
scanning, which provides excellent coupling. In this application, water bubbles must
first be removed from the tank and the surface of the test structure to obtain accurate

Fig. 4.6 Typical examples of ultrasonic scanning systems: a a laboratory immersion tank with test
samples and b a water squirter system
4.5 Ultrasound Generation and Coupling with the Composite 151

results. In Fig. 4.6b, water squirters that use high-pressure water flow around the
transducer in a nozzle are attached at the end of a pair of opposing articulating arms
on large supporting systems or gantry towers to be able to stream the water coupling
to the structure. In this application, users may be required to add a surfactant to
the water to improve wetting, but users should be careful because this may not be
allowed on many composite structures. The scanning may also be performed with a
surface-following transducer in contact or in a water bubbler such that there will be
a layer of coupling water present on the surface of the test composite. Sometimes, it
is sufficient to use a water mist on the surface and a transducer with a rubber shoe or
housing to guarantee its smooth sliding over the surface of the test composite.
In air-coupled ultrasonic NDT systems, the air is used as the coupling medium
for a noncontact inspection using piezoelectric transducers. Noncontact testing is
particularly important because it helps to avoid the issues with water coupling systems
involving the handling of water and uniform surface wetting or if the water coupling
would not be good for the test structure. However, this type of application comes
with several disadvantages associated with the high impedance mismatch between air
and solids. As indicated earlier, this high impedance mismatch between the different
materials causes a significant loss of the acoustic energy at the different interfaces
(i.e., interface between the composite and the foreign inserts with distinct acoustic
impedances or interface between the air and the solid materials), resulting in poorer
signal to noise available for the inspection. However, in an application involving
the use of low frequency (i.e., typically with 50 and 500 kHz range) such as the
inspection of the sandwich structures, transducers can transmit sufficient intensity
that can penetrate the test structure and be able to detect and characterize critical
defects whose sizes may be in the order of 25 mm mark.
In terms of the scanning speed, applications involving automated inspection of
composite structures using mechanical scanning systems are performed at a rate
that is fully dependent on the pulse repetition rate of the transducer, the required
data spacing for flaw detection, and the speed of the mechanical system involved.
In most cases, however, the time of transit in the test structure/material is in the
orders of a few to tens of microseconds, suggesting that the pulse repetition rates of
a few tens to a few hundreds of kilohertz would be acceptable for such applications.
Again, for such applications, the data spacing between the different measurements
for most composite inspection practices is usually one-third of the smallest required
flaw size detection. If the minimum size of the target flaw detection capability is in
the order of 6 mm, the data spacing between the different pulses would be 2 mm.
After the detection of the abnormal features in the test structure, inspectors may use
finer data spacing for their accurate interpretation or during the system development
activities. Also, the overall composite inspection will have a wide scanning rate
range depending on how often the mechanical scanner changes direction during its
operation. Applications involving single transducer scanning methods can achieve
a scanning rate ranging from 1 to 3.5 m2 /h, and this scanning rate can only be
increased by using a scanning system with multiple transducers arranged for specific
purposes. In the case of curved composite structures or structures with complex
152 4 Ultrasonic Testing Techniques for Nondestructive Evaluation …

shapes, transducer arrays may be set at prescribed orientations to remain normal to

the curvature at specific locations in the radii and the part moved past them.
An improvement over the use of individual transducers is the recent development
of phased-array transducer systems which include several elements (e.g., from 16
to over 128 elements) in a linear arrangement as illustrated in Fig. 4.7 [58]. Phased
arrays have revolutionized ultrasonic NDT, by forming an ultrasonic beam using 64
or 128 small piezoelectric elements and allowing an almost unlimited combination
of arrays [59], and improving inspection times by an order of magnitude (i.e., it can
reach up to 14 m2 /h scanning area), as well as improving resolving power using
innovative algorithms [60]. Larger arrays that allow the inspection of areas that are
as large as 200 mm × 200 mm × 25 mm in a single shot and frequency range of
0.4–1.0 MHz have been designed [58]. In its operation, the phased-array electronic
systems will pulse multiple small (e.g., 1 mm wide) elements in a timed sequence
to create an ultrasonic beam with directional or focused properties based on the
time phasing of the transducer pulses and the relative spacing of the elements. The
phased-array instruments can send the ultrasound beam inside the test structure either
at angles equal to the normal on the test surface (E-scan) or different from the normal
to the test surface (S-scan) using the phasing method. In most cases, the sequencing
will utilize four to eight elements in the array for each beam focus and then step
along the array to create multiple ultrasonic beams in sequence. As an example, an
array with 1.5 mm wide elements may pulse four elements simultaneously, creating
a 6 mm wide transducer beam. Interesting, transducers in the phased-array system
can still be controlled individually, suggesting that the pulsing sequence can even be
performed in steps as small as one element and this can create beams that are scanned

Fig. 4.7 A large, conformable ultrasonic phased-array probe consisting of 1024 piezoelectric
elements for performing wide-area inspections [58]
4.5 Ultrasound Generation and Coupling with the Composite 153

at only 1.5 mm apart for high resolution, or stepped by four elements to generate
beams that are 6 mm apart, depending on the application and the specific geometry
of the test structure.
Another method of generating ultrasonic waves is by using the photothermoelastic
effect from laser energy [61–63]. Its operation is such that a laser pulse of appropriate
wavelength and intensity is sent into contact with the surface of the test composite,
gets absorbed, and generates an ultrasonic pulse in the material. Upon reflection,
ultrasonic waves create movements on the surface of the test material which are
detected by laser interferometric measurements. Laser ultrasonic presents several
advantages over other ultrasonic NDT techniques. The method is noncontact and can
be quite rapid depending on the laser repetition rate (i.e., the typical laser repetition
rate usually ranges from 100 to 600 Hz). Interestingly, the ultrasonic waves are
generally generated in the test structure normal to the test surface even though the
beam may come from any angle, which makes the scanning of complex contour
shapes very easy. Another advantage is that the scanning system can use mirrors
to scan the beam at a certain distance away from the test structure, which further
reduces the number of mechanical/moving parts on the system. Although the system
can efficiently and quite easily scan complex contour shapes on the test structure,
there is a limitation to the amount of off-normal angle that can be tolerated. In
practice, laser ultrasonic systems usually cover the scanning angle of approximately
±30◦ on the test structure before being repositioned for another coverage. Also, a
second scan may be needed with a new orientation of the beam relative to the position
of the test component to obtain accurate scanning results for structures that are highly
contoured or have sharp angles. However, laser ultrasonic systems remain extremely
expensive compare to their piezoelectric counterparts. Additional limitations include
the inability to generate ultrasound in some materials and/or insufficient sensitivity
in some types of materials (i.e., compare to their piezoelectric ultrasonic testing
systems). Laser ultrasonic is particularly not applicable to the inspection of sandwich
structures for the core inspection because of its single-sided inspection approach.
In summary, the performance of ultrasonic systems does depend on the adequate
generation of ultrasonic waves and their good coupling from the production to the test
structure and from the test structure to the detection system [64]. Several coupling
techniques have been proposed to deal with common coupling problems but ideally,
the coupling medium should be infinitely deformable and possesses invariant elastic
properties [1]. Although they might not always be compatible with the test structures
[65, 66], fluids such as water, air, and oil have been proven capable of providing
such divergent qualities [38, 64]. In order to address the problem of incompatibility
of the coupling agent and the test structures, additional coupling techniques such
as direct coupling, rapid surface deposition of heat, or electromagnetic generation
of ultrasound waves have been proposed. Although these techniques are largely
beneficial, they also present their drawbacks that might even jeopardize the accuracy
of the test results and depending on the application, these drawbacks cannot be
ignored [1]. In the direct coupling, possible development of time-varying stresses
has been identified to be the major challenge [67] while electromagnetic acoustic
154 4 Ultrasonic Testing Techniques for Nondestructive Evaluation …

transducers (EMATs) are generally less efficient than piezoelectric transducers and
require high electrical conductivity and favorable geometry of the test structure as
well as a large magnetic field to function properly [68]. In the rapid surface deposition
of heat, excessive heat can induce undesirable thermal stress into the test composite,
a phenomenon that is often called ablation [69]. In conclusion, adequate couplants
should be safe, odorless, non-sticky, and easy to apply and remove after testing, and
being even cheaper would be another added advantage.

4.6 Ultrasonic NDT Instruments for Composites

The use of ultrasonic NDT for the inspection of composite structures can be a very
complex process. However, it is vitally important that inspection data be as thorough
and accurate as possible in order to detect potentially dangerous flaws before they
become critical problems, a process that can only be achieved by using the best
possible ultrasonic inspection equipment that can help inspectors to capture and
analyze the highest quality data as efficiently as possible. In terms of instrumentation,
ultrasonic systems for composite structures do generally range from small portable
manual ultrasonic flaw detectors to large fully automated factory scanning systems.
Generally speaking, these systems can be divided into three main categories including
compact and handheld flaw detectors for point measurement, intermediate systems
that are portable enough and capable of scanning a local area and producing images,
as well as stationary large scan systems for high throughput factory inspection that
can effectively scan the whole composite components. Various models of handheld
ultrasonic flaw detectors are available from most NDT instrument vendors. A typical
example of a flaw detector is the Epoch series [70–73]. These are ultrasonic flaw
detectors that are compact and portable instruments based on a microprocessor and
are generally ideal for shop and field applications. They display ultrasonic waveforms
that are easily understood by a trained operator and used to detect and classify the
flaws in test structures. Epoch series comprises a waveform display unit, an ultrasonic
pulser also known as the receiver unit, a data logging module, a measuring hardware
system as well as a software system to capture and analyze the measured ultrasonic
signal. In order to optimize the performance of the transducer, the system offers to
possibility to control the amplitude, damping, and shape of the pulse and subsequently
the receiver gain and bandwidth to enhance the instrument’s signal-to-noise ratio.
Additional ultrasonic NDT instruments for composite structures include large
stationary ultrasonic scanning systems that use water jet (squirters) such as the
AUSS-5 have been developed by major aircraft and many other large composites
manufacturers [34]. In order to meet the current growing demand for intermediate
ultrasonic NDT systems that are portable enough for the on-aircraft application and
can provide quantitative scan data, significant efforts have been made to develop
new and state-of-the-art systems including the development of the mobile automated
scanner (MAUS) system by the then McDonnell Aircraft Company (Boeing) [74].
This system is portable, multi-modal, and can scan a large area of airframe structures.
4.6 Ultrasonic NDT Instruments for Composites 155

Interestingly, the system incorporates ultrasonic pulse-echo, ultrasonic resonance,

and eddy current scanning capabilities and features a scanning speed of up to 37
m2 /h. The system generates C-scan formatted data for interpretation and archiving.
There have also been efforts to develop portable instruments for acquiring ultrasonic
scan images manually without a motorized scanner by merging the position data
from simple position encoders and the ultrasonic data from flaw detectors [75]. In
particular, the recent development and advances in ultrasonic phased-array systems
have further enabled encouraging portability and inspection speed in field applica-
tions. Also, NDT scanning devices and instrumentation with phased-array ultrasonic
testing capabilities are now providing the most accurate readings in the least amount
of time for the inspections of composite materials.

4.7 Ultrasonic NDT Methods for Composite Structures

Ultrasonic NDT is indeed one of the excellent NDT techniques for all kinds of
composite structures and is widely applied in the aerospace and marine sectors. The
technique features different variants including pulse-echo for the characterization
of echoes reflected from flaws or discontinuities, resonance testing (i.e., exploits the
phenomenon of half-wave resonance whereby a suitably excited resonant target such
as a pipeline wall exhibits longitudinal resonances at certain frequencies character-
istic of the target’s thickness), time of flight diffraction (i.e., detects diffraction from
flaw tips), through-transmission for mapping ultrasound attenuation, and phased
array ultrasonic inspection that requires only one multi-element probe to achieve the
same results as conventional techniques that require several different probes [76].
Interestingly, reflections and/or attenuations of ultrasound waves caused by disconti-
nuities in the test composites (e.g., delamination or any other types of discontinuity)
can easily be identified and distinguished from others (e.g., void areas, areas of
porosity, and disbonds). Test results are displayed in a variety of formats including
A-scan, B-scan, C-scan, D-scan, G-scan, P-scan, X-scan, Z-scan, TT-scan as well as
S-scan and many more [77, 78]. The literature [1, 78] presents detailed information
about all the available presentation modes and their respective descriptions.

4.8 Applications of Ultrasonic Inspection of Composite

Laminates

Ultrasonic NDT of solid composite laminates is often based on the back-wall echoes
of the sample except in particular cases where the back surface of the composite struc-
ture may be curved or contain a complex geometry that does not provide a usable
back-wall echo during the inspection. As indicated earlier, ultrasonic NDT is consid-
ered one of the most effective NDT techniques used to examine fiber-reinforced
156 4 Ultrasonic Testing Techniques for Nondestructive Evaluation …

composite materials for any potential flaws/defects and/or damage and be able to
reduce the risk of accidents associated with their failures [79]. Ultrasonic NDT is
currently one of the most frequently used and accepted worldwide NDT techniques
that are proven to provide effective and reliable results at relatively low cost [80, 81].
In particular, the mismatch in acoustic impedance between different materials (e.g.,
air, water, solids, etc.) has made high-frequency ultrasound an attractive solution for
the inspection of composite structures [82]. In particular, the anisotropy of fiber-
reinforced composite materials can hereby be characterized using ultrasonic, thanks
to the detectable dissimilarities observed in elastic wave propagation in different
directions. Also, the recently observed progress in the acquisition and subsequent
processing of high fidelity ultrasonic data has now enabled 3D characterization of
a range of defects and structural features in fiber-reinforced composites [6]. These
include discrete damage, porosity, delaminations, ply-by-ply fiber orientation, layup
stacking sequence, and many others [83–85].
Consistent with the aforementioned, the literature suggests that pulse-echo and
through-transmission are the most common techniques being used in UT NDT prac-
tices. Interestingly, both of these techniques use high-frequency sound waves (1–
50 MHz) to detect internal flaws in composite material [86]. Studies have reiterated
that pulse-echo ultrasonic can readily locate defects composite structures although
it is usually applicable to homogenous materials [86]. The method is easy and guar-
antees accurate results especially because the operator is only concerned about the
transit time of the wave and the energy loss due to attenuation and wave scattering
on defects. In terms of applications, ultrasonic pulse velocity measurements have
demonstrated tremendous benefits when it comes to the detection of large defects
and their subsequent location, imaging processes, and quality control [87]. Another
method that is quite interesting and which has equally drawn tremendous attention
among researchers and engineers is the through-transmission ultrasonic. This method
is different from other conventional UT methods in the sense that it keeps the trans-
ducer and receiver off the surface of the test composite and at a fixed distance away
from the test composite [88, 89]. This is particularly advantageous when analyzing
samples with complex geometries since the latter do not easily allow for the contact
of a traditional transducer and receiver to the surface of the component under test
[90].
In recent years, remarkable progress has been observed in ultrasonic-based
inspection, which has subsequently enabled the identification of damages in
composite plates as a 3D array based on the 3D interaction between ultrasound and
defects [81, 83, 91]. UT can also be implemented using a network of piezoelectric
transducers that are permanently embedded in the structure which serves as point
sources/receivers of the elastic waves [83]. These techniques are often referred to as
in situ NDT&E or SHM [92] and have been successfully applied by several authors
for the inspection of composite materials [93, 94]. Additional methods include but are
not limited to the use of acoustic [95] and guided/Lamb waves [93, 96]. In [97], the
authors used an acousto-ultrasonic system to verify its effectiveness experimentally
by testing a set of composite laminates subjected to low-velocity impact damage
and reported encouraging results. The popularity of guided wave UT relies on their
4.8 Applications of Ultrasonic Inspection of Composite Laminates 157

superior accuracy of damage detection and localization [83] and several examples
have been presented whereby guided/Lamb waves were used for the detection and
localization of impact damage [93, 98], debonding/delamination [96], and many
others in various wing box structures. Although UT systems have had tremendous
progress in recent years, conventional piezoelectric ultrasonic transducers require the
use of couplants making it impossible for scanning large samples or samples at high
temperatures [99]. However, couplants can be eliminated by using the most recent
non-contact ultrasonic detection methods namely laser ultrasonics [100, 101] and
Electromagnetic Acoustic Transducers (EMATs) [102, 103], which easily remove
the need for couplants, and thereby provide the potential to perform simple and fast
scanning inspections on composite components [104]. UT can equally be used to
measure composite material characteristics, such as thickness, velocity of ultrasonic
waves and density of the composite. The sample thickness and the longitudinal
velocity of ultrasonic waves are obtained by measuring the time-of-flight directly,
while the density and the attenuation are calculated by analyzing the frequency of
the first two echoes [105]. This is particularly enabled by ultrasonic waves with
displacements throughout the thickness of a material and are particularly important
when testing areas of the material systems that cannot be accessed directly such as
in-depth defects and the internal surface of pipelines [106, 107].
In recent years, studies involving the use of UT systems for the inspection of
composite materials have been dominated by the development of long-distance UT
methods to evaluate the defect far-field of the material (i.e., region starting at a
distance of several wavelengths away from the defect). These methods are capable
of estimating the position and depth of the defects over a distance of several meters
away from the measuring sensors [99]. The evaluation is performed by analyzing
changes in the reflection and/or transmission of guided waves as they interact with
the discontinuities or flaws in the test sample [99, 108, 109]. Although these methods
have been thoroughly successful in characterizing defects in thick composite plates
[6] small and hallow defects often present a lower reflectivity rate which limits the
size of detectable defects by using this far-field approach to certain ranges [99]. The
amplitude of the wave that is transmitted past a defect can also be used to estimate its
depth as a larger reduction in the amplitude signifies a deeper defect. However, very
small defects and/or defects that are not orientated perpendicularly to the direction
of wave propagation are hardly detected [108, 109]. This is particularly a problem
when detectors are located far away from the damage, as diffraction around the
defects often prevents changes in transmission from being picked up [110]. Any
damage that arises from stress-corrosion phenomena is generally not of a singular
occurrence nature but rather multiple damage occurring in the structure each of which
features a different depth [99, 110, 111]. The interaction of ultrasonic guided waves
with these groups of defects leads to a significant reduction in the amplitude of the
reflected waves and complex measurements [99]. Interactions, therefore, tend to be
dominated by the relative depth of the defect that is first encountered by the incident
wave, and the defect separation [112, 113], with the overall transmission tending to
be dominated by the deepest defect [99, 110].
158 4 Ultrasonic Testing Techniques for Nondestructive Evaluation …

As indicated earlier, the acquisition and processing of high-fidelity UT data have

reached a satisfactory level and this advancement has enabled users to achieve both
the 3D visualization of many types of discontinuities and the mapping of other
structural features in composites [114, 115]. In this context, many discrete (local-
ized) and non-discrete (global) discontinuities and/or features such as inaccurate
ply-by-ply fiber orientation, delamination, ply-layup sequence, local overloading,
and through-hole can now be detected and characterized [116], and good results
have been reported in the inspection of CFRP composite laminates with a thick-
ness up to 15 mm depending on the composite density, the wave penetration and
ply layup patterns [117]–[119]. A typical example illustrating this kind of in-depth
examination of thick fibrous composite is shown in Fig. 4.8 (i.e., several ultrasonic
echoes reflected from eight internal surfaces of a nine-ply CFRP laminate). Apart
from the aforementioned examples, UT is also able to determine the exact values of
the elastic constants, which provides the inspector with the capabilities to charac-
terize the material’s anisotropy and monitor the damage evolution. However, these
types of measurements require additional experience from the NDT inspectors since
these enhanced characterization techniques for thicker structures still have limita-
tions that are not yet resolved [82]. To this end, the authors in Ref. [105] successfully
applied a pulse-echo UT (C-scan) to examine the mechanical damage in a cross-ply
[0/90]S— GFRP through ultrasonic maps and image segmentation processing tech-
niques. In their study, they developed a method for simultaneous measuring the
thickness and the density of GFRP laminate plates with ultrasonic waves in C-Scan
mode in a form of maps. The method used three different signals in immersion,
pulse-echo, and C-Scan modes. The maps obtained based on the density show the
heterogeneity of the material at high resolution at the pixel level and concluded
that their method was highly efficient assessing and evaluating the damage levels in

Fig. 4.8 Ultrasonic echoes from a 9-ply CFRP composite laminate at 5 MHz (indicating both the
front and back-wall echoes) and the peaks of the different reflections from the internal ply surfaces
[6]
4.8 Applications of Ultrasonic Inspection of Composite Laminates 159

 
ρafter loading −ρbefore loading
Fig. 4.9 Ultrasonic measurements of changes in the relative density ρbefore loading of a
[0/90] S composite laminate at different loading stages [105]

composite structures after the manufacturing and after the mechanical loading. Their
findings are reported in Fig. 4.9.
Another interesting research direction has always been the efforts by NDT inspec-
tors and practitioners to examine the weak and/or zero-strength adhesive bonds using
ultrasound waves (mostly Lamb waves) that travel alongside a small thickness-to-
wavelength ratio (i.e., in thin plate-like structures) due to the relatively large time
duration of the ultrasonic pulse signal. Although this method’s feasibility has been
extensively proven at the laboratory scale, the implementation of this type of exam-
ination is particularly challenging and when it is possible, it is generally limited
to the study of thin fibrous composite plates (usually less than 2 mm thick) with
parallel sides alone [120, 121], suggesting that their applications to thick compos-
ites with thick composites and composites involving complex geometries would be
highly welcomed by the NDT&E community. Among the many challenges reported
include a significant attenuation of ultrasonic waves, which drastically affects the
instruments’ spatial resolution particularly because the operating frequency is not
sufficiently high (<10 MHz). As a result, most attempted examinations of thicker
structures have been conducted at frequencies ≤ 1 MHz [122–124], whereby the
early studies [82, 116, 122, 125] have suggested 0.5 MHz as being the optimum
frequency for the inspection of thick GFRP composites having a thickness up to
50 mm. It is noted that when using such a small frequency, the system’s in-depth
resolution will be reduced and it is necessary to increase the energy in the ultra-
sonic inspection beam to achieve better inspection results [66]. The synthetic pulse
technology can be used to compensate for this problem by altering the transmitted
160 4 Ultrasonic Testing Techniques for Nondestructive Evaluation …

spectrum to generate the desired spectrum at the receiving end of the inspection
system [126].
In 2013, the authors in Ref. [65] used an advanced phased-array UT system
to evaluate CFRP composites. Their evaluation methods featured the theory and
the procedure of the method developed in an earlier study [127] to improve the
characterization of standard reflectors (16 mm thick) in aerospace CFRP composites.
An earlier study used swept lower frequencies (0.4–1.0 MHz) to inspect a 25.4 mm-
thick GFRP composite using a matrix/array of transducers (32 × 32 elements), and
generated a back-wall echo with a satisfactory SNR [66]. In this study, the authors
indicated that although their UT system was successful in inspecting thick composite
structures such as those used in marine applications, they also indicated that the
inspection of such composites using ordinary UT systems is generally difficult. To
overcome this problem, their study used a UT system that was developed for the
US Army to inspect thick composite materials for armored vehicles. This system
was an extension of the existing PARIS ultrasonic flexible array system, which was
originally developed for inspecting thin composite aircraft structures. The extension
was designed to increase ultrasonic penetration by fabricating an array that operates
at lower frequencies and higher voltage and employing a synthetic pulse technique.
Among the many advantages of this UT system with flexible sensors arrays is that it
can rapidly inspect large areas and produce images of the inspection results that are
easy to interpret. Nevertheless, these two studies [66, 127] used an acoustic coupling
fluid (typically water or gel, or oil) to obtain the UT measurements, which would
not be possible for some industrial applications due to challenges such as the size
or the shape of the test structure or risk of contamination. As a result, air-coupled
ultrasounds were among the proposed solutions for such applications, though it uses
low frequencies (50–0.8 MHz) [128].
In their study, Hsu and Bernard [129] analyzed the spectral transmission of air-
coupled ultrasonic waves (D-scan) in thick CFRP composite plates where the thick-
ness of the composite was increased from 1 to 51 mm. Although they obtained satis-
factory results, they also reported that there was a significant reduction in the trans-
mission amplitude of approximately 80% between these two extreme thicknesses. In
a similar study [122], the author two ultrasonic through-transmission systems were
evaluated viz. immersion and air-coupled UT systems. The frequency ranges were
1–10 MHz and 120–400 kHz for the immersion and the air-coupled UT systems.
The purpose of their study was to find the limitations of the techniques and compare
their practical use for evaluation of the quality of up to 60 mm thick laminates of
either glass-fiber or carbon fibEr. Additional results were obtained using the single-
sided pulse-echo technique. GFRP samples were made by resin transfer molding
and their shape was slightly curved as they are used as springs. In the manufacturing
process, the air was trapped in the laminate and caused an unacceptable content of
porosities. In this context, both through-transmission techniques were used to find
critical defects although the immersion technique proved to have higher resolution
and sensitivity. However, the air-coupled UT system was preferable to use because it
did not require water or any other liquid coupling but only atmospheric air was used
as the coupling medium. In addition, the through-transmission technique was more
4.8 Applications of Ultrasonic Inspection of Composite Laminates 161

robust and gave better overall pictures of the areas with higher porosity content. The
thick carbon fiber laminates were made by vacuum consolidation. The laminates were
used for lightweight military vehicles in an ongoing project. As such, it was critically
important to be able to find some major production defects such as delamination and
voids as well as in-service defects such as impact damage. The initial results suggest
that the ultrasonic techniques were well-suited for finding these defects and more
detailed results were found a few months as the composite progressed into its service
life. GFRP parts from windmill blades were also tested using these two techniques
and delamination defects within the laminate and debond between the skin layer and
laminate itself were found. In the end, some of the specimens were cut up to verify the
position and size of the different defects, and the results strongly agreed with the real
values in most cases. In Ref. [128], the authors successfully examined a sandwich
structure with a thickness of over 50 mm and a low-density foam core. At first, their
test failed when using two air-coupled transducers at 100 kHz but later succeeded
to detect a 10 × 30 × 3 mm defect located midway (i.e., at 25 mm deep) within a
sandwich structure by using a hybrid system combining both a conventional contact
transmission probe and an air-coupled receiver. Herein, a hybrid system helped the
authors to exploit the high penetration of a contact method and the inspection flex-
ibility of a non-contact approach. In this configuration, the emitter contact probe
allowed the authors to have high ultrasound energy injected into the structure while
the non-contact receiver probe provided more degrees of freedom to the authors to
be able to follow up the panel profile, usable with a low weight receive-side manip-
ulator without the need for a squitter water supply, heavy pneumatics or rollers for
the contact.
Although most of the aforementioned studies focused on the quality inspection
with their main purpose being to establish the health status of the structural composite
under investigation, it was also important for NDT inspectors to have additional
information related to the damage including the size, orientation, and effect of the
load capabilities of the structural system. To this end, the first quantitative ultrasonic
study of a very thick composite was presented by Fortunko and Fitting [130] who
developed a broadband ultrasonic pulsed-echo system with an improved SNR and
they successfully inspected a 50 mm-thick GFRP composite containing two interface
layers. The authors were able to evaluate all the individual loss components attributed
to the diffraction, and attenuation of the pulsed-echo ultrasonic waves as well as and
the transducer system over a broad frequency range between 10 kHz–10 MHz, noting
a severe attenuation loss of over 200 dB at 3 MHz in filament-wound structure. The
authors also pointed out a lessened attenuation occurring at 0.4–2.5 MHz both in
wound filaments and in unidirectional GFRP composite laminates. In some work
related to the examination of mine-hunting vessels of the Royal Australian Navy,
authors in Ref. [131] conducted a comprehensive study focusing on the inspectability
of thick composites using pulsed-echo ultrasonic. The authors were able to inspect
several GFRP specimens with a thickness of up to 220 mm and found that there
was a through-thickness attenuation of 110 dB at 0.5 MHz. They further studied the
variation in ultrasonic attenuation during flexural fatigue loading of GFRP beams
and reported encouraging results.
162 4 Ultrasonic Testing Techniques for Nondestructive Evaluation …

In a later study [132], the authors used low-frequency pulse-echo ultrasonic system
to investigate fatigue damage in thick GFRP used in large ships. These authors were
capable of monitoring the initiation and growth of fatigue-induced damage using
ultrasonic waves during cyclic flexural loading of GFRP composites between 7 and
38 mm thick. In fatigue loading, for example, the GFRP subjected to high stresses
(i.e., above 50% of the static failure stress) induced extensive damage that consisted
of debonding of the surface glass fiber tows together with a complex array of cracks
and delaminations within the composite. This type of damage was easily detected
using ultrasonics. Also, cyclic loading the composite to relatively low fatigue stresses
(i.e., below 50% of the failure stress) caused much less damage. In a subsequent
investigation, short cracks developed within the resin-rich regions between the glass
fiber plies and within the fibers tows were also detected using the same system,
further highlighting the efficacy of UT NDT systems. Although the aforementioned
features were easily detected by low-frequency pulse-echo ultrasonic system, they
indicated that it was difficult to detect cracks induced by low-stress fatigue because
they mostly grew parallel to the transmission path of the ultrasound waves. The
ability to detect damage induced by either low or high fatigue stresses improved
with increasing thickness of the GFRP. To make their study more valuable to the
NDT community, these authors went on and established a detectability framework
outlining a “go” and”no-go” chart for the examination of GFRP hulls (the first of its
kind) as illustrated in Fig. 4.10. It is indicated that even though these detectability
limits were established from targeted inspections of a known area and provide a
useful guide for a particular examination, they do not provide standard statistical
NDT&E reliability results.

Fig. 4.10 Presentation of the detectability framework establishing the flaws detectction limits for
the UT technique as provided in Ref. [132]
4.8 Applications of Ultrasonic Inspection of Composite Laminates 163

At low frequencies (i.e., ultrasonic frequencies ranging from 50 to 200 kHz), UT

NDT is often used for the testing and evaluation of several construction composites
such as timber and concrete [133, 134]. Several studies have reported encouraging
results regarding the attenuation levels as well as the surface velocity measurements
of ultrasonic waves during the curing process of fiber-reinforced concrete structures
[1]. Variable wave speeds and attenuations were also used to detect flaws up to
25 mm in diameter were detected at 50–100 kHz in timber laminates of over 400 mm
thickness [133]. Indeed the transmissibility of ultrasound waves in the composite is
determined by its attenuation coefficient, but this parameter is also believed to be
variable for the same types of materials manufactured using different techniques [6,
116, 135]. As indicated earlier, the currently developed structural composite mate-
rials require the use of thick sections, which are susceptible to many manufacturing
defects due to thermal gradients and non-uniform resin bleeding during the curing
process. The authors in Ref. [136] developed a UT system and used it to detect and
evaluate manufacturing defects in thick composites based on the transmissibility of
ultrasound waves. In their study, they used epoxy-based composites with 150- and
200-ply thick (i.e., the maximum up to 20.8 mm thick) were prepared with four types
of defects (viz. embedded Teflon inclusions, interlaminar grease spots, fiber fractures,
and porosity). A through-transmission technique employing an unfocused trans-
mitting and a focused receiving ultrasonic transducer was found suitable for thick
composites. Improvement techniques were used to enhance the initially obtained
images of these. Although this technique significantly improved the contrast of the
image, the authors observed that the dimensional fidelity may not be observed. In the
end, they indicated that the best results were obtained by a combination of thresh-
olding, logarithmic transformation, and contrast stretching. Also, the definition and
sharpness of the UT images increases as the discontinuity or feature of interest gets
closer to the receiving focused transducer. In addition, porosity averaged through the
thickness was also correlated with the average density and ultrasonic transmission,
thus showing the potential for quantitative nondestructive determination of porosity
in thick composites. To visualize the defects, the authors used the median filtering
and contrast stretching algorithm to improve the visual clarity (SNR) of the image
obtained by ultrasonic C-scan of thick composites [137].
In metal matrix composites (MMCs), the test specimens tend to provide
outstanding transmission medium to ultrasound waves [138, 139]. In Ref. [138], for
example, the authors fabricated a series of silicon-carbide (SIC) reinforced aluminum
metal-matrix composite forgings (i.e., about 76 mm-thick forgings) and examined
their structural integrity using a conventional point inspection UT system when
subjected to fracture testing. A-scans of ultrasonic backscatter were recorded, and
the velocities of longitudinal and shear waves and the mean density were measured
from which elastic moduli were computed. Tensile and fracture toughness specimens
were made, and respectively subjected to mechanical testing followed by careful
metallographic and fractographic examinations. The correlation of mechanical test
results, fractographic and metallographic evaluations, and observed ultrasonic back-
scatter and reflection phenomena indicate that an inhomogeneous distribution of
SiC significantly degrades mechanical properties. Furthermore, the nonuniformity
164 4 Ultrasonic Testing Techniques for Nondestructive Evaluation …

of SiC concentrations is shown to be detectable by ultrasonic examination. As part

of their conclusions, these authors indicated that the ultrasonic method showed great
promise for differentiating between regions in a composite sample that has varying
mechanical properties. In Ref. [140], the authors summarized some of the chal-
lenges of making ultrasonic measurements in thick composites (140 mm) composite
of unknown construction and, in particular, in determining non-destructively the
matrix of elastic constants of such materials. Their procedure relied on the point-
source/point-receiver measurement technique (i.e., an approach that generated both
compression and shear waves) by which various wave modes were simultaneously
generated over a broad angular spectrum in a test composite. These authors also
described in detail the procedure they used to analyze the measured wave speeds to
determine the elastic symmetry of the test composite and its matrix of elastic moduli.
Although they reported having obtained ultrasonic signals of moderately low quality,
they also indicated that they were capable of obtaining all the information pertinent
to the features they were investigating.
In a similar study [141], the authors studied the trend of the in-thickness attenua-
tion of ultrasonic waves in thick GFRP composites. In their study, they increased the
thickness up to 150 mm of a highly-porous GFRP structure (i.e., the voids content was
increased up to 30%) and analyzed the effects of these two features (i.e., the content
in voids with the increaseing thickness) on the ultrasound attenuation coefficient,
interlaminar shear strength and mode I interlaminar fracture toughness properties. A
pulse-echo ultrasonic technique was used to measure the amount of attenuation of
ultrasonic waves in the GFRP sample and observed that this increased linearly with
the increasing thickness while the attenuation also increased rapidly with the void
content, and these measurements were used to further test the accuracy of models
proposed by Martin and by Hale and Ashton for calculating the attenuation coefficient
of porous composites. Although these authors reported satisfactory results of their
tests, they also indicated that there was a poor agreement between the measured and
calculated attenuation coefficients largely because of the multiple scattering effects
of the ultrasonic waves and the nonuniform distribution and size of the voids in the
test composite. To date, there is no single UT-based NDT technique that has been
proven to be capable of providing an accurate porosity measurement notwithstanding
the shapes of the pores and fiber/resin matrix composition [142, 143]. As such, any
advances in this area would indeed be highly welcomed by the NDT community as
they would help with addressing many questions that have still not been answered
to this day.
In most NDT practices, the application of UT inspections for composite struc-
tures is considered the prevailing technology for the detection of surface-breaking,
near-surface, and sub-surface defects. However, the main challenges for composite
UT inspection are the anisotropic properties of composite materials and the high
attenuation of the UT waves in the the-through-the-thickness direction of composite
structures [144, 145]. In addition, the multiple layer structure with thin resin layers
at the interface also generates undesirable structural noise [145]. Reported research
has demonstrated a good detection capability with UT when only a single defect type
such as delamination [146], porosity [147, 148], and fiber orientation (i.e., both the
4.8 Applications of Ultrasonic Inspection of Composite Laminates 165

in-plane [147] and out-of-plane waviness [149]) is present in the composite struc-
tures. In this context, some of the ultrasonic wave features such as wave attenuation
and frequency shift can be used to identify some of these types of defects (e.g., delam-
ination, porosity, etc.) inside the composites. To evaluate the fiber orientation, wave
attenuation, or phase shift of ultrasonic waves during the wave propagation process,
inspectors should first map out these features with position information using B-scan
and C-scan images. However, the identification of the delamination defect within
wavy composites is seldomly reported to be evaluated with a high signal-to-noise
ratio (SNR). Local rich resin often develops as waviness blocks the resin movement.
As such, both the refraction and scattering of the ultrasonic waves occur when they
propagate through the regions of high waviness concentration with thick resin layers.
When ultrasonic waves (both longitudinal and shear) propagate through the wavy
region and interact with delamination, due to acoustic impedance mismatch between
air within delamination and composite material, they will be reflected with possible
mode conversion at the delamination [150].
Indeed, the composite inter-ply wave reflection, together with the wave refraction
and the wave scattering caused by waviness, introduces difficulties for defect detec-
tion and characterization in composite materials. To improve detection and charac-
terization capabilities of UT systems for ceratin discontinuities such as delamination
and resin-rich pockets in composite structures, relevant signal features should be
discerned and extracted to suppress the interference from waviness features of the
composite. To extract the wave features (i.e., both in the time domain or frequency
domain) to reliably detect and characterize the defects within composite structures,
wave reflection from delamination, fiber waviness, and resin-rich layers must be
fully understood. In principle, ultrasound wavelength has a critical influence on the
probability of detecting a discontinuity, including delamination and porosity [151]
and in general, the delamination defects that are longer in size than one-half of the
wavelength can reliably be detected by UT systems [81]. It follows once the ultra-
sonic frequency exceeds a certain threshold, the detectability of delamination will
be independent of inspection frequency. However, the authors in [144] proved with
both theoretical and experimental investigation, that inter-ply reflection amplitude of
ultrasound is frequency-dependent when propagating in multilayer composite. The
inter-ply reflection reaches the maximum when the inspection frequency matches
the resonance frequency of a single ply. In most cases, it should be possible to differ-
entiate them in B-scan images at different frequencies due to the different frequency
dependence of ultrasound reflection of delamination and resin layers. Nevertheless,
discoveries in Ref. [144] are built on ideal models of the plane-wave incident to the
surface of a flat ply with evenly distributed lamina and inter-ply resin layer along
the in-plane direction, suggesting that no waviness is investigated. Although other
studies considered fiber waviness in their investigations [152], only simplified models
with little consideration of inter-ply reflection were established based on ray tracing
theory. Therefore, the fine details of a complex structure, including the fiber wavi-
ness, uneven inter-ply resin distribution, lamina material anisotropy, and defects, can
only be addressed using a dedicated numerical model to enable easy and effective
inspection by UT systems.
166 4 Ultrasonic Testing Techniques for Nondestructive Evaluation …

Indeed new structural applications of fibrous composites require the use of thick
sections that are manufactured through multi-variable and complex processes. The
resulting structures are prone to several types of flaws (i.e., due to several factors
such as thermal gradients and nonuniform resin bleeding during the curing process)
[2, 3, 153] ranging from tiny faults to ply waviness and big impact damage [5, 6],
with some of them being more severe than others and with significantly different
effects on the overall performance of the composites [7]. Ply waviness (i.e., one or
more of the plies buckle and generate internal wrinkles/waviness) do occur during the
manufacturing process during the layup and curing of composite laminates as a result
of the nonuniformity in ply stiffness, local buckling, lamination residual stresses, an
incorrect curing procedure, unintended foreign bodies or inserts or thermal expansion
anomalies [154]. In general, however, these types of defects may occur in the interior
of the composite laminates without showing any surface indication that it actually
happened. If not detected and fixed at the earliest possible, localized ply waviness can
be detrimental to the stiffness and strength of the laminate. To this end, composite
laminate should particularly be investigated for possible ply waviness during the
manufacturing process to guarantee its functional design and eliminate the possibility
of having catastrophic failure while in service. Interestingly, ultrasonic testing can
effectively detect these types of defects and allow users to take relevant measures or
course of actions to this effect. However, a subtle ply waviness with a large aspect
ratio (i.e., length to height ratio of the wave) does not scatter the ultrasound strongly
and can be difficult to detect. It may be discernible on a B-scan image, mainly by
the presence of a region behind the waviness that contained disturbed waves. That
withstanding, ply waviness are rather easier to detect using oblique incident ultrasonic
waves, owing to their characteristics shape. Consistent with the aforementioned,
several studies have used the UT with oblique incident ultrasonic waves for the
evaluation and characterization of ply waviness in composite laminates. In fact, the
use of oblique incident ultrasonic waves was found to be more effective than the use
of normal incident longitudinal ultrasonic waves in detecting the ply waviness [155].
Typically, a pitch-catch configuration of two Rayleigh wave transducers (for steel)
held together in a head-to-head configuration can be used to generate these types of
waves in CFRP composite laminates. The method is also used for the detection and
characterization of ply waviness in the manufacturing of wind turbine blades.
In general, ply waviness (i.e., also known as out-of-plane waviness or winkles) are
more prevalent/or a big concern in large composite structures such as wind turbine
blades as it causes them to unexpectedly fail while in service [154], especially those
occurring in the thick glass composite skin (up to 40 mm) near the trailing edge of
the blade. To this end, being able to detect ply waviness while during the composite
manufacturing process will undoubtedly reduce the risk of catastrophic failure, and
characterizing the wrinkles would minimize the repaired area, thus increasing the
efficiency of the repair and the design. Several studies [18, 149, 154] have demon-
strated the feasibility of UT for ply waviness where different imaging algorithms
were implemented. A study conducted in Ref. [149] the authors proposed a method
to detect and quantify the waviness in composite wind turbine blades using the UT
system. They used air-coupled UT systems to facilitate faster and easier scans through
4.8 Applications of Ultrasonic Inspection of Composite Laminates 167

a two-step process. The detection of the ply waviness was performed with a single-
sided air-coupled UT system and the characterization was performed with the help of
high-frequency contact probes. The severity of the wave was defined with the help of
the aspect ratio (i.e., several samples with different aspect ratio waves were manufac-
tured to verify the effectiveness of the method). A comparison between the measured
and simulation results (i.e., finite element model for the wave propagation in wavy
composites) revealed a strong agreement. In an earlier study [18], a multi-frequency
ultrasonic method was proposed to detect and characterize delamination and rich
resin in thick composites with waviness defects. The authors were able to detect and
differentiate the side-drilled holes and rich resin was differentiated experimentally in
the B-scan images with various filtering frequencies, demonstrating the effectiveness
of the proposed method for the detection and characterization of delamination and
rich resin in thick wavy composite structures.
In general, attenuation and ultrasound velocity measurements allow the detection,
but not the identification, of ply waviness [156]. Given the fact that large thickness
and glass fiber-reinforced composite structures do attenuate significantly ultrasonic
waves, inspectors are generally advised to use low-frequency air-coupled ultrasound
(i.e., in the 100–200 kHz range) to detect and characterize ply waviness in wind
turbine trailing edge. In this case, the oblique incidence pitch-catch configuration
was again found to be more effective in detecting the ply waviness in thick glass
composites. To this end, two air-coupled transducers tilted approximately 13° from
the normal incidence direction were mounted symmetrically in a pitch-catch config-
uration with the wave propagation direction oriented perpendicular to the length
direction of the ply waviness. The two transducers were then moved in unison to
perform a manual or motorized scan of the sample surface. In air-coupled ultrasonic
testing, the specular reflection from the top surface of the test composite can easily
surpass the signal associated with the internal ply waviness. The specular reflection
signal must therefore be thoroughly blocked to detect the damage signal. A simple
approach to eliminating the specular reflection is to mount the two transducers in a
block of foam, with two channels drilled at the desired angle and separated appropri-
ately in distance. In a recent study [157], the authors used the air-coupled pitch-catch
UT system to scan an image of a 25 mm thick glass composite laminate for ply wavi-
ness at a frequency of 120 kHz and reported encouraging results. Ref. [156] indicated
that it is generally easy to identify ply waviness in composite laminates using UT
systems, but inspectors should always take the deviation of the ultrasonic beam into
account for accurate results. They proposed two different methods to be able to detect
such deviations and they revealed that these deviations produced an asymmetrical
behavior in the responses obtained using oblique incidence angles (i.e., by analyzing
the patterns in the incidence angle ranges which were sometimes superimposed).
They also indicated that the double scanning technique allows to determine the devi-
ation of the energy maxima of the transmitted acoustic field. In both cases, the study
of induced deviation reveals that it is sensitive to the presence of ply waviness. They
concluded that these methods have been experimentally validated and their potential
use, depending on the thickness of the component.
168 4 Ultrasonic Testing Techniques for Nondestructive Evaluation …

4.9 Ultrasonic Inspection of Sandwich Structures

Adhesively bonded sandwich structures are attractive structural components for

aviation, space, and marine applications, thanks to their advantages of lightweight,
design flexibility, high specific stiffness, and specific strength. Sandwich structures
are primarily made of facesheet (skin) and core structures which generally encom-
pass a myriad of materials both composite and metallic. To keep our discussion
focused, we will only concentrate on composite sandwiches of the CFRP facesheet
as well as Nomex or fiberglass honeycomb core sandwich structures. In terms of their
applications, these structures are particularly important and are indeed ubiquitous on
airplanes and are frequently used as flight control surfaces on aircraft, such as rudder
skin panels, spoilers, elevator trims, flaps, slats, trailing edge, and for making engine
nacelles. Sandwiches of GFRP facesheet and honeycomb core are widely used as
fairings, floorboards, and for making radomes. A portion of mixed composite and
metallic sandwiches (e.g., CFRP facesheet and Aluminum honeycomb core) are also
used in space applications whereas the foam-cored sandwich structures are used in
helicopter blades and in boat building. In general, ultrasonic NDT of sandwich struc-
tures can be divided into two categories viz. the inspection of manufacturing defects
for quality assurance purposes and in-service inspection for damage originated from
natural or human causes during the operation or maintenance of the structure [158].
At each of these two stages, flaws are indeed different and their consideration by
users is different.
The major manufacturing defects of great concern observed in sandwich
composite structures include but are not limited to the formation of delamination
in the composite facesheet, the appearance of disbonds between the facesheet and
the core as well as the inclusion of artificial inserts and formation of voids and
porosity in the composite skins. The formation process and causes of each of these
defects have been discussed previously and readers are directed to section one of
this chapter for more information. At the in-service stage, sandwich structures often
suffer damage or degradation that require the users to perform a periodic inspec-
tion to ensure they are operating as designed and schedule maintenance or repair
activities if necessary. Low-velocity impact damage that defies visual inspection is
considered one of the major concerns in composite sandwich structures. Apart from
low-velocity impact damage, additional damage can be caused by static overloads,
fatigue, and environmental factors such as water and moisture ingress, extreme heat
and temperature excursion, damaging radiations (e.g., UV light), extended chemical
attack, and lightning strike, etc. In composite sandwich structures with glass fiber
or Nomex honeycomb core, impact damage often causes the honeycomb cell walls
to fracture or buckle, and subsequently, a catenary-shaped damage profile appears
below the skin-to-core adhesive bondline. In the worst-case scenario, the lowest point
of the fracture can be situated well below the impacted facesheet, sometimes at a
depth of almost one-half of the core thickness [159, 160]. Although the low-velocity
impact damage rarely causes a disbond at the adhesive fillet between the facesheet
and the core, it can cause a series of delamination to form in the facesheet if the
4.9 Ultrasonic Inspection of Sandwich Structures 169

latter is a multi-ply laminate. The damage morphology of foam-cored composite

sandwich with CFRP or GFRP facesheet generally resembles that of an impacted
honeycomb core. Figure 4.11 illustrates the typical types of damage that are often
observed in composite sandwich structures composed of a honeycomb core between
two laminated carbon skins after an impact.
In most cases, however, impact striking the composite sandwich structures often
causes extensive cell breakage and buckling, which leads to the formation of fracture
regions and large voids in the inner sections of the foam. Similar to honeycomb
sandwich structures with composite facesheet, the foam-cored sandwich can also
be inflicted with substantial internal damage without leaving visible indication on
the surface (i.e., barely visible impact damage) [1, 14]. In terms of their operation,
fractured and crushed honeycomb cores in a sandwich are generally sources for
nonlinear mechanical responses and nonlinear energy dissipation. In particular, when
a damaged sandwich is subjected to a compressive static load, the load–displacement
curve becomes nonlinear and the loading and unloading curves combine to form a
hysteresis loop. The area enclosed by the loop is a measure of the energy dissipation
or the severity of the damage. In contrast to an undamaged sandwich composite
structure, the latter would display a linear load–displacement curve with little or no
hysteresis, and a higher slope or stiffness than the damaged case. In many instances,
the mechanical hysteretic behavior of the damaged sandwich structures can indeed
be used as a qualitative NDT to estimate the degree of internal damage in a sandwich
composite structure [160, 161]. In quantitative NDT, ultrasonic testing techniques
are used to identify and characterize internal flaws in these types of composites, and
the following are the major classes of ultrasonic testing that are frequently used.

Fig. 4.11 Typical types of damage were observed in a composite sandwich structure composed of
a honeycomb core between two laminated carbon skins
170 4 Ultrasonic Testing Techniques for Nondestructive Evaluation …

4.9.1 Through-Transmission Ultrasonic NDT

Through-transmission ultrasonic inspection uses two transducers, one on each side

of the area to be inspected. The ultrasonic signal is transmitted from one transducer
to the other transducer. The loss of signal strength is then measured by the instru-
ment. The instrument shows the loss as a percent of the original signal strength or
the loss in decibels. The signal loss is compared to a reference standard. Areas with
a greater loss than the reference standard indicate a defective area. As indicated
earlier, honeycomb sandwich structures are widely used on aircraft flight control
surfaces such as rudder, aileron, spoiler, and flap. In general, facesheets of honey-
comb sandwich structures are typically thin composite laminates whose interior
mostly consists of honeycomb cell walls made of Nomex, fiberglass, or aluminum.
In ultrasonic NDT practices, the hollow structure of honeycomb sandwiches does
not lend itself to effective ultrasonic pulse-echo inspection; instead, the literature
indicates that through-transmission ultrasonic scan has been the most widely used
and effective mode for inspecting flaws and damage in honeycomb or foam sandwich
structures [21, 38]. Also, the lightweight and large size of sandwich flight control
structures cannot facilitate the inspection using immersion ultrasonic scan. In most
UT practices, though-transmission UT based on water squitter systems have been
the most widely used for the inspection of aerospace sandwich structures.

4.9.2 Air-Coupled Ultrasonic Inspection of Sandwich

Structures

In the area of significant advancements in materials manufacturing technology and

their air-coupled ultrasound NDT, there have been considerable advances in the tech-
nology of transduction. Engineers and researchers have made significant progress
in improving the performance and capabilities of air-coupled piezoceramic trans-
ducers, composite transducers, and electrostatic capacitive transducers in the last
two decades [162]. In particular, air-coupled through-transmission ultrasonic scan
has proven to be a highly effective testing technique in the NDT of aerospace honey-
comb sandwiches. The typical frequency range for air-coupled through-transmission
ultrasonic inspection is 100–400 kHz using planar or focused transducers separated
by a typical distance of 100 mm [21] and this frequency can even go as low as 50 kHz
in some applications [161]. Also, the technique has been applied at a transducer sepa-
ration of as much as 250 mm on thick and curved structures such as sections of the
engine nacelle. Although air-coupled ultrasonic presents a number of obvious advan-
tages (e.g., noncontact, non-contaminating, and free from liquid or gel couplants),
the technique does equally present subtle challenges to the engineer seeking to use
it for flaws detection or materials characterization.
Indeed one of the most troublesome consequences of the large disparity in the
sound wave speed and density between air and solids (i.e., large acoustic impedance
difference) relates to the energy coupled from one propagation medium to the other
4.9 Ultrasonic Inspection of Sandwich Structures 171

[64, 163]. The energy transmission coefficient from air to a CFRP solid laminate is
only estimated to be about 0.04% as compared to 75% for the water–solid interface.
As a result, to overcome this extremely inefficient energy transfer between a gas
and a solid and obtain accurate and reliable inspection results, the system should be
operated at very high gain and often aided by external low noise pre-amplifiers or
the transmitting transducer should be driven with a high voltage long tone burst to
increase the initial energy content (i.e., the penetrating power) of the sound wave. To
date, the combination of the low transmission efficiency and the long pulse length
has continuously prevented the usual pulse-echo mode of flaw detection from being
achievable. As a result, accurate inspections can only be achieved from the measure-
ments performed in through-transmission (send-receive) mode when access to both
sides of the test structure is possible. Restricting measurements to the lowest portion
of the ultrasonic band (typically ≤ 500 kHz) could also increase the penetration
capability of ultrasonic waves.
Although the energy transmission efficiency of their sound wave is low, air-
coupled through transmission ultrasonic scans have proven to be valuable in the
NDT of sandwich structures, and the fact that these structures provide two-sided
access is another added advantage that makes air-coupled ultrasonic transmission
appropriate NDT technique for such an inspection. However, the transmission of an
airborne ultrasonic wave through empty cells of a honeycomb sandwich structure
encounters four air–solid interfaces before it reaches the receiving end of the system,
which makes it largely undetectable. As a result, the transmitted ultrasonic energy
goes through the structure along the cell walls. It is noted that the usual construc-
tion of the honeycomb core involves hexagonal cells and each cell is enclosed by
two double walls and four single walls. A double wall is where the adhesive layer
joins one cell to the next adjacent cell in the structure. Studies demonstrated that
the double-walls areas are often found to be the locations for the highest transmitted
amplitude in honeycomb panels containing large cells as the thickness of the double
walls provides a sufficient transmission medium for airborne ultrasonic waves [159,
161]. It is also noted that the large ratio of the acoustic impedances of solid and air
makes much of the air-coupled ultrasonic energy transmitted through a sandwich
panel be dominated by resonance phenomenon whereby high transmissions occur at
the frequencies where the thickness of the test structure matches integral multiples
of a half wavelength.
In theory, the transmission of a monochromatic plane wave is non-zero only at
the resonance frequencies while in reality, the finite bandwidth of the tone burst
ultrasonic waves makes the contrast not as severe though the resonance effects still
dominate the transmission process through solid plates [161]. The above phenomenon
is not only observed in more complex honeycomb sandwich structures, such as struc-
tures containing embedded solid metallic inserts serving as attachment hard-points
(i.e., extraordinarily high transmission through the cylindrical insert was observed at
certain frequencies as these inserts exhibited a strong resonance in its length mode)
[164]. A comparison between the challenges and advantages of the air-coupled ultra-
sonic scans indicates that its performance for the detection of flaws and damage in
172 4 Ultrasonic Testing Techniques for Nondestructive Evaluation …

honeycomb sandwiches still holds one of the highest probabilities of detection among
the NDT techniques used for the inspection of composite sandwich structures.

4.9.3 Inspection of Composite Sandwich with Perforated

Facesheet

Advanced composite materials such as sandwich structures have continuously

remained the main substitute for traditional materials such as aluminum and steel
in various industries fabricating the key structural components of systems such as
airplanes and marine ships. Sandwich structures present several advantages including
great stiffness to weight ratios, steadiness under compressive forces, improved fatigue
life, as well as good thermal and acoustic isolation properties, and many others. Sand-
wich structures often come in different designs the simplest is known to be a single
layer sandwich structure which consists of the core and two face sheets. Additional
designs may involve the insertion of an additional sheet into the core (i.e., internal
sheet) to form a two-layer sandwich panel. In general, however, a sandwich structure
comprises two relatively thin, stiff, and strong faces divided by a relatively thick
lightweight core (e.g., honeycomb core, foam core, and cellular metal) [165]. A big
number of core materials and core configurations have been proposed these days.
Although the most often used core materials are foams and honeycomb, foam cores
are also used when the waterproof, sound, and heat insulation qualities of cores are
required [166]. Considering the above-mentioned properties, sandwich structures
are being considered for applications in many airplane structures, particularly where
durability and damage tolerance are most warranted. As a result, understanding the
opposing effect of in-service events is highly important to curb any potential threat
and/or safety issues to the users. The use of composite structures in sensitive fields
where high reliability is required (e.g., domestic and international flight, etc.) requires
uses to have accurate information about the health status of the composites under
intricate dynamic loads [1]. As a result, these structures are often monitored using
ultrasonic NDT to ensure the composite remains healthy during its operation to avoid
failure or extreme structural deformation that could threaten the safety of users before
they are repaired or replaced.
In some applications such as the engine nacelle of the aircraft system, some honey-
comb composite sandwiches have perforated facesheet for acoustic noise control
purposes [167–169]. However, the inspection of honeycomb sandwich structures
with perforated facesheet cannot be performed using any water squirters as water
would penetrate into the perforation rendering the entire structure useless. In current
applications, sandwich structures with perforated facesheet are waterproofed by
applying acrylic tapes (about 50 mm wide) over the entire surface. However, this is
generally a manual operation and requires the taping and un-taping operation which
is generally tedious, labor-intensive, and costly. In case air-coupled UT systems are
4.9 Ultrasonic Inspection of Sandwich Structures 173

used, perforated honeycomb structures may be inspected without any surface prepa-
ration as the air-coupled UT systems do not require the use of liquid couplants. Also,
special transducer types are used to avoid the problems associated with the enor-
mous loss of ultrasonic energy at the air–solid interface in air-coupled UT [40]. The
effectiveness of the air-coupled UT system for the detection of flaws in perforated
honeycomb sandwiches was demonstrated experimentally by testing a sandwich
panel of 3.8 in. (ultrasoni10 mm) sized honeycomb cells and a facesheet with perfo-
ration spacing of approximately 3 mm. The test panel contained artificial disbonds of
12 and 25 mm diameters. The panel was scanned with a pair of 120 kHz air-coupled
transducers in the through-transmission mode. The scanned image clearly showed
the disbonds, as well as the honeycomb pattern inside the sandwich. The presence
of the perforation on the facesheet did not interfere with the ultrasonic detection and
imaging of the disbond flaws and the honeycomb cells. It has been demonstrated
in the laboratory that sections of engine nacelle with perforated facesheet can be
inspected with air-coupled through-transmission UT scan in the frequency range
between 100 and 200 kHz at a large standoff with the transducers separated by up
to 250 mm to clear the curvature of the test structure [157]. An air-coupled UT can
effectively detect flaws in perforated honeycomb sandwiches, but the low frequency
and the long tone-burst length can limit the pulse repetition rate and subsequently the
throughput of the scan. Additional research is still needed in applying air-coupled UT
to high-speed industrial production inspection of aerospace composite structures.

4.9.4 In-Field Inspection of Honeycomb Sandwich Structures

In general, several UT systems capable of performing C-scan imaging in the field

have been developed, although the enhanced capabilities came with the associated
challenges including greater complexity of the test kits, higher training require-
ment, reduced portability, and higher costs. In-filed inspection of honeycomb sand-
wich structure normally uses two non-contact modes of ultrasonic inspection viz.
laser-generated and detected ultrasound, and the other is air-coupled ultrasound. The
former has already matured to a degree that industrial implementations are in now
place while the latter is still developing and finding increased industrial applica-
tions. The primary difficulty of field inspection of honeycomb sandwich structures
is the large test area involved. As an example, both Boeing and Airbus require only
visual inspection to detect impact damage in honeycomb composites. The NDT of
honeycomb sandwich flight control surfaces has traditionally been carried out with
a tap test. A hearing-based manual tap test is still widely used for the testing of
aircraft sandwich structures to this day though the tap test can often be subjective
and/or unreliable results. To solve this problem, instrumented tap tests have been
developed involving automatic and semi-automated tap tests with imaging capability
[170]. Generic ultrasonic flaw detectors are of limited use on honeycomb sandwich
structures in the field, but air-coupled ultrasound has been developed and tested on
aircraft in recent years. In Ref. [171], for example, the application of air-coupled
174 4 Ultrasonic Testing Techniques for Nondestructive Evaluation …

ultrasonic technology to the NDT of debonding defects of honeycomb sandwich

composites was proposed. The authors based on the air-coupled pulse compression
signal, the C-scan of honeycomb sandwich composite with an embedded debonding
defect is carried out, and the accuracy and effectiveness of air-coupled ultrasonic
testing technology are verified. In Ref. [172], the authors used UT guided waves and
surface-bonded piezoelectric wafer transducers to identify disbond and high-density
core regions in a honeycomb sandwich structure. In order to apply air-coupled ultra-
sound on aircraft honeycomb structures, the transducers are mounted on a yoke so
that through-transmission UT can be performed on flight control surfaces with two-
sided access. A portable air-coupled UT set-up with ultrasonic transducers mounted
on a yoke is adequate to appraise the damage to the structure. However, more quan-
titative inspection and the detection of more subtle defects would require a system
with scanning and imaging capability. Although computer-controlled and motorized
scanners have their inherent advantages, these systems are generally complex and
cumbersome and their implementation of in-field is largely difficult and sometimes
impossible. To this end, recent studies are focusing on the implementation of simple
manual scanners with position encoding to apply air-coupled through-transmission
UT to the inspection of honeycomb sandwich structures [75]. In this study, a portable
hand-scan system was used to image the damage and repairs on rotor blades, flaps,
and trailing edges of honeycomb sandwich structures.

4.10 Performance Comparison of Ultrasonic NDT

UT-based NDT techniques are considered the most widely used and well-established
NDT techniques for the detection and characterization of various types of flaws
and discontinuities in fiber-reinforced composite structures. However, UT-based
NDT techniques have also been the subject of intense criticisms due to the limi-
tations that they inflict on the plants (i.e., structures are generally removed from the
process before tests are conducted) and the cost of the maintenance downtime while
inspecting in-service components (i.e., the entire process needs to be shut down
which further inflicts some economic loss pertinent to many hours the systems has
to spend out of operation). Attempting to address these challenges, researchers and
engineers have implemented major modifications, including the improvement of the
methods of sending ultrasonic waves into the test structural system (i.e., through
the air, electromagnetic induction, laser, etc.). Consistent with the aforementioned,
several approaches have been developed including contact testing techniques [173];
immersion or ‘water delay line’ testing technique [173]; air-coupled also known as
the airborne UT technique [64, 174]; laser UT technique [175]; and EMATs technique
[48]. Indeed, all these approaches present their peculiar advantages and disadvan-
tages depending on the application considered by the UT systems users. Typically,
some of the most targeted UT tests such as localized or point testing can be achieved
using water, gel, or grease coupling but achieving and maintaining constant coupling
via these substances does add considerable time to the successful completion of a
4.10 Performance Comparison of Ultrasonic NDT 175

UT inspection [38]. Although air-coupled UT can be still applied to the inspection

of structures while they remain in service (i.e., air-coupled UT does not require any
additional acoustic couplants to transfer ultrasonic waves from the transducer to the
rest structure nor from the test tructuretothe receiver and this highly improves the
inspection speed and efficiency), overcoming the high impedance mismatch occur-
ring at the transducer/air and subsequent air/component interfaces is not a trivial
process, and requires several modifications to achieve accurate tests results.
Additional improvements in the UT-based inspection systems include the increase
in the UT systems’ scanning speed, spatial resolution, and advanced defects detection
capabilities, which prompted the design of fully portable UT systems that can be
used in the field even in structures with complex geometries where accessibility
to the structure is partially limited. Also, one of the most interesting advances in
the recent development of the FlawInspecta system. The system features a high-
speed ultrasonic array imaging arrangement that uses a relatively low-cost ultrasonic
array driver for its operation [176]. It also allows for the simultaneous scanning of
a large area and helps to overcome the problems of coupling [177]. UT systems
remain excellent tools for use in assembly lines during the manufacturing process
of fibrous composite structures to ensure high-quality structures are obtained and
potential risks associated with the service life stages are minimized. However, UT
inspections present a few challenges including the difficulty of set up, the level of
skills required for the NDT personnel to be able to accurately scan the test fibrous
composite, and the need for adequate test samples to ensure accurate testing. In
addition, although the capabilities of UT-based inspection techniques have been
demonstrated at certain frequencies, studies employing appropriately-sized deeply
buried flaws are still warranted to determine the reliability of use in thick composites
and sandwich structures. Advancements in the development of UT systems are still
limited by the lack of sufficient lower-frequency, higher power evaluation systems
which are likely to be overcome soon with the constantly observed cost reduction of
phased array UT probes.

4.11 Current Trends and Prospects of Ultrasonic NDT

In many industries, UT NDT is widely accepted in all its variants for quality control
and the testing of fiber-reinforced composite materials. The technique is extremely
advantageous as it can accurately detect several types of material internal defects and
hidden discontinuities that may be located deep below the surface. Applications range
from thickness measurements of thin fiber-reinforced composite materials such as
composite plates to internal testing of large and thick structures such as turbine rotors.
While significant development in the design and manufacturing of the transducers
and coupling wedges that generate waves of several types (e.g., longitudinal, shear
and surface waves, etc.) into the test materials have been made, there is currently
ongoing research to enhance the defects/flaws sizing [178], global standardization of
the testing procedure [1], the utilization of advanced signal processing techniques to
176 4 Ultrasonic Testing Techniques for Nondestructive Evaluation …

improve the quality of the measurement results [179, 180] as well as the integration
of the cutting edge technology such as AI and system integration or data fusion [181–
183] for automatic diagnosis and prognosis of fiber-reinforced composite structures.

4.11.1 Sizing of Flaws Using Ultrasonic NDT

In recent years the use of UT NDT for flaw sizing is gaining popularity in the NDT
community and many studies are focusing on this topic in the literature [178]. This
is particularly important because it helps composites users to make a viable decision
on whether flaws that are located in the interior of the component (i.e., remote from
any surface) or growing from inaccessible surfaces constitute a condition for the
replacement or maintenance scheduling. To this end, several techniques are currently
being used to be able to identify the exact size of the flaw. The techniques are grouped
into amplitude, temporal, imaging, and inversion-based techniques. The principles,
applications, and limitations of each of these techniques, as well as approaches to
assessing the performance of the techniques, were recently reviewed [178, 184] and
the gaps and challenges in sizing flaws using presently available industrial settings
were discussed. The study also provides important updates on the cutting-edge studies
that are currently pushing the boundaries in terms of the resolution to be able to size
even smaller flaws. Although many techniques have been implemented thus far,
more robust sizing techniques that can cope with non-ideal scenarios and be applied
with confidence in composite structures are still needed. Additional development
should include automatic flaw sizing techniques and accommodate the fast-moving
development of new UT techniques [185]. Information about their suitability and
performance for the different flaws and material properties could be encapsulated
in an expert system as it was recently done for infrared thermography [186]. There
are also ongoing efforts for the quantification of the damage severity in composite
materials [187] as well as the prediction capabilities of the durability of composite
laminates [188] part of ongoing structural health monitoring efforts to prevent failure
before happening.
Automation of time-consuming tasks, quantification, and picking out the ideal
image slice from a 3D dataset is starting to be performed by artificial intelligence
(AI). Many high-end ultrasound systems already integrate some level of AI and most
new systems on all tiers moving forward will likely integrate increasing levels of AI.
In the current era of information technology and the fast development of advanced
digital systems, digital products and services are constantly disrupting traditional
industries at all levels. The latest generation of smartphones, tablets, and wearable
devices play an essential role in advancing technological avenues, providing higher
flexibility, and improving productivity levels. Opportunities arising from the adoption
of the Internet of Things (IoT) are getting understood and embraced by virtually
all types of industries and NDT techniques and manual UT NDT systems are one
example of such an application [189, 190]. Additional trends in UT NDT include the
development of new UT techniques combining different UT techniques as discussed
4.11 Current Trends and Prospects of Ultrasonic NDT 177

in section two of this chapter [181], or fusing data from different NDE methods
for accurate feature discrimination and/or feature extraction [182, 183]. These new
systems present several advantages over their traditional counterparts as they include
an increasing ease-of-use with user-friendly and intuitive user interfaces, higher
accuracy and efficiency by reducing errors and rework in workflows, establishing
traceable procedures with less effort and potential for errors while equally enabling
unobstructed data sharing for collaboration and quality assurance purposes.

4.11.2 Signal Processing Techniques

In engineering, signal processing (SP) is a well-known term by most engineers and

it signifies in a broad sense as a transform that converts the signal data into useful
information using a digital computer. Figure 4.12 depicts a general representation
of a schematic diagram of an NDT signal processing system and outlines its basic
building blocks. As indicated in our earlier chapters, researchers solely focused on
improving the accuracy and the spatial resolution of inspection equipment to iden-
tify smaller defects in the earlier years of NDT systems. In other words, most of the
studies on the improvement of the performance of NDT systems were solely focused
on transducers and electrical equipment (i.e., also known as analog signal processing)
[1, 191]. However, the recent years have been marked by the desire to use intelligent
signal processing and automated processes to improve the reliability and content
of information obtained from traditional methods (i.e., information captured from
sensors). Interestingly, many of these studies relate to the use of signal processing
(SP) concepts, which have already been used successfully in other engineering areas
such as radar, sonar, and geophysics. In recent years, several SP techniques have been
introduced in NDT to solve some of the existing problems (e.g., improve the measure-
ment accuracy, reduce the load imposed to the operator, etc.). To date, users only
focus on the outcome of the evaluation as the use of SP helps them to create a decision
support system that accurately identifies, characterize/measures, and classifies flaws

Fig. 4.12 Illustration of a an NDT signal processing system, and b the main building blocks of an
NDT signal processing system
178 4 Ultrasonic Testing Techniques for Nondestructive Evaluation …

and defects in the test structure with an impartial and standardized performance that
provides an accurate health status of the test structures.
It is often a difficult task to locate defects in layered composite structures using
UT NDT because ultrasonic waves encounter various mechanisms (e.g., dispersion,
backscattering, attenuation, distortion, etc.) upon the interaction with these struc-
tures. As a result, the processing of the measured ultrasonic signals is necessary for
the signal-denoising and defect estimations to improve the defects detection accuracy
and the reliability of UT NDT [179, 192]. However, one of the major limitations of
UT NDT is the inability of the general UT NDT users to develop and apply adequate
signal processing methods for the processing of noisy ultrasonic signals in order to
estimate the size of the defects or the damage in composite structures in an effective
way [193]. The application of adequate signal processing techniques is perceived
to be one of the major breakthroughs of ultrasonic NDT because signal processing
techniques increase the probability of defect detection, provide an effective means of
analyzing the received ultrasonic signals and their automation can further enhance
the reliability and repeatability of the testing process [192, 194]. Ultrasonic signal
processing is generally performed in two major steps viz. denoising the measured
ultrasonic signal and detection of flaws/defects using the parameter estimation tech-
nique [195]. The denoising of the signal increases the signal-to-noise ratio (SNR)
and thereafter defect/flaws information is extracted using the appropriate parametric
estimation. There are currently various signal processing techniques that are used to
improve the accuracy of the defect estimation and characterization in UT NDT. These
include but are not limited to cross-correlation [196, 197], Hilbert transform (HT)
[180], variational mode decomposition (VMD) [180], autoregressive analysis (AR)
[198], split spectrum processing (SSP) [199], wavelet transform (WT) [197, 200],
Hilbert–Huang transform (HHT) [197, 201], and Wigner-Ville distribution (WV)
[202, 203]. Each of these methods can work in the time domain and/or frequency
domain. Readers are directed to these specific studies for information about the use,
operation, and mathematical formulations of each of these techniques. The same
studies also provide information about their advantages and limitations and UT
users are always advised to choose the appropriate method or develop new ones
depending on the requirements in terms of the expected level of noise, attenuation
of the signal, and the wave scattering by the test composite structures. In the era
of information technology, the current trend is moving toward the implementation
of machine learning and data fusion techniques [183, 204] for feature extraction to
automatically characterize composite structures.

4.11.3 Standards for Composite Structures

In general, the testing and evaluation of fiber-reinforced composites by UT NDT

has always made it possible to locate quite small defects even in complex and thick
structures. Today the sensitivity of UT instruments has increased so much that in
many instances the minimum size of the internal defects that can be located by these
4.11 Current Trends and Prospects of Ultrasonic NDT 179

systems is mainly limited by the grain size of the test material. In order to make the
fullest use of this highly sensitive method of inspection, standards (i.e., local, regional
and international standards) have become essential to ensure the technique can be
used for critical (i.e., primary and secondary loadbearing components) composite
structures. Ultrasonic NDT techniques for composite materials involve several stan-
dards including but not limited to ASTM E237392 which gives the requirements for
developing a time-of-flight (TOF) ultrasonic examination, ASTM E258093 which
provides the standards and regulations for the inspections of flat composite panels and
sandwich structures for the aerospace applications; as well as ASTM E298194 which
gives the standards for the testing of filament-wound pressure vessels in aerospace
applications. Additional standards include ASTM E164-13 which provides the guide-
lines and standard practice for contact ultrasonic testing of weldments and ASTM
E2700-14 which provides the guidelines and standard practice for contact ultrasonic
testing of welds using phased array UT systems [1]. In particular industries such as
aerospace, nuclear and chemical industries, specific techniques have been developed
in conjunction with their standard procedures, and a full list of these standards is
provided at the end of this book in Appendix A.

4.11.4 Integrated Inspection Systems

Ultrasonic NDT techniques are based on the multi-physics effect such as the effect of
the isotropic materials on the sound propagation speed as well as the spatial variation
of the acoustic impedance within the composite or sound propagation media. To this
end, NDT engineers are constantly seeking for solutions to improve the performance
of the existing UT NDT systems by combining different NDT techniques (i.e., inte-
grated inspection systems) [205, 206], improving the coupling method (e.g., direct
coupling, rapid surface deposition of heat, or electromagnetic generation of ultra-
sound waves) [1] or by combining different sensors (i.e., integrated ultrasonic sensor)
[207]. A typical example of such applications where is the use of the ultrasonic vibra-
tion technique illustrated in Fig. 4.13. The technique is also called ultrasonic modal
analysis technique (UMAT) and it features the aspects of ultrasonic and vibration
NDT techniques.

Fig. 4.13 Illustration of ultrasonic vibration NDT technique

180 4 Ultrasonic Testing Techniques for Nondestructive Evaluation …

This is a new ultrasonic guided wave method to provide a robust signature of a

structure that has recently been introduced into the UT NDT. The technique bridges
the gap from transient high frequency guided wave analysis to more traditional low
frequency ultrasonic modal analysis. In general, ultrasonic guided waves can detect
very small defects but it is very slow and requires that ultrasonic waves be sent
from many positions when performing the inspection. In contrast, vibration-based
UT systems are fast and only requires one position to send ultrasonic wave but
their resolution is low as they can only detect very large defects. Finally, UMAT
systems can detect small to medium defects, they are very fast and requires only
one single position to send ultrasonic waves into the test composite. An interesting
test result of a composite structure using ultrasonic modal analysis technique is
shown in Fig. 4.14. The high-frequency ultrasonic resonances and modal pattern or
operating deflection shape (ODS) depend on the ultrasonic loading function. The
sensitivity optimization is also possible here, again, by selecting adequate mode
and frequency for the phase velocity dispersion curve space. The ultrasonic modal
analysis technique is particularly useful in the manufacturing of hundreds of complex-
shaped components and follow-up later in their in-service environment for structural
health monitoring purposes. Although this method is highly effective and works out
quite well for some specific applications, both the structural and boundary condition
variability of the test structure often poses serious challenges which jeopardize its
application and/or accuracy.

Fig. 4.14 Illustration of the importance of mode selection in ultrasonic vibration (i.e., ultrasonic
modal analysis) concept
4.11 Current Trends and Prospects of Ultrasonic NDT 181

The operation of this system is such that the steady-state controlled vibrations are
induced by specific guided wave excitation mode. The selective guided wave mode
excitation is achieved by phased annular array transducer activation. The vibration
sensitivity is related to guided wave sensitivity, based on stress/displacement wave
structure. The analysis of vibration patterns and resonant frequencies under guided
wave mode and frequency tuning is performed to detect defects or changes in the
boundary condition. An additional example involving the integration of NDT systems
relates to the recently developed NDT method called acousto-ultrasonic [208]. As
the name indicates, the acousto-ultrasonic method denotes an NDT technique that
combines some aspects of AE with the ultrasonic simulation of stress waves. The
technique uses the analysis of simulated stress waves to detect and map out variations
in the composite’s mechanical properties. Unlike most NDT, acousto-ultrasonics is
less concerned with flaw detection than with the assessment of the collective effects
of various flaws and material anomalies. Acousto-ultrasonics is mainly used to assess
the significant strength and toughness reducing effects that can be wrought by combi-
nations of essentially minor flaws and diffuse flaw populations in laminated and
filament-wound fiber-reinforced composites. That is, acousto-ultrasonics assesses
integrated defect states and the resultant variations in properties such as tensile,
shear, and flexural strengths and fracture resistance. Generally speaking, properties
such as the fiber-reinforced composite’s matrix cure state, porosity, fiber orienta-
tion, fiber volume fraction, fiber-matrix bonding, and interlaminar bond quality are
factors that underline acousto-ultrasonic evaluations. The investigation of a robotized
system integrating laser ultrasonic and air-coupled ultrasonics for the inspection of
aeronautical components [209]. In some applications, piezoelectric sensors may also
be replaced by thermos-acoustic and plasma-based sensors due to their large band-
width, which opens new possibilities for materials characterization using ultrasonic
spectroscopy. However, these two types of sensors generally have lower sound pres-
sure levels, so their possible application in NDT is limited compared to piezoelectric
transducers. Additional sensors such as the micro-hollow cathode discharges can also
be used but the control of their acoustic emission bandwidth also needs improvement.

4.12 Advantages and Limitations of Ultrasonic NDT

Indeed, UT is a versatile type of NDT and by far the most suitable method for
detecting and sizing flaws that are embedded or that are growing from inaccessible
surfaces within composite structures (i.e., flaws far beneath the inspection surface),
thanks to the ability of ultrasonic waves to propagate through thick and solid compos-
ites. In fact, when defect assessment calculations require a value for how far into a
component a defect has grown, ultrasonic testing is indeed the main method used for
this purpose [178, 210]. Ultrasonic testing can also be used to detect various types
of flaws, such as cracks and inclusions in a wide range of materials (i.e., virtually all
types of composites structures), compared to methods such as eddy current testing
which require the test structure to be conductive [1]. Perhaps the most interesting
182 4 Ultrasonic Testing Techniques for Nondestructive Evaluation …

feature of UT is that it uses ultrasonic waves and these types of waves are inher-
ently safe, compared to methods like radiography which uses ionizing radiation and
thus requires multiple types of protection [6, 38]. Also, “off-the-shelf ” UT systems
are widely available and often portable, suggesting that they are suitable for on-site
testing (e.g., the inspection of pipes) [211]. Low-ultrasound frequency resonance
techniques are limited in their use to examine solid laminates. However, these types
of devices are relatively cheap, simple to apply, and suitable for the detection of
disbonds in honeycomb and foam-sandwich composites.
Applications of ultrasonic NDT for the inspection of composite structures
presents several challenges including but not limited to the skills shortage and
aging knowledgeable workforce, complex user interfaces of the currently available
ultrasonic systems, complicated data interpretation, and often required advanced
signal processing to extract the most viable information, incomplete traceability, and
obstructed data sharing to list but a few [189, 190]. In some applications involving
the manufacturing of composites with a complex shape and a ply drop layout (e.g.,
composite fan blade and aerofoil), the use of ultrasonic NDT systems may be difficult.
The reason is that fiber wrinkling can easily convert to either in-plane or out-of-plane
waviness due to uneven pressure and heating during the manufacturing process of
such composite structures, blocks the resin flow in the wavy region and thick resin
layers form between the fiber layers, and hence, the uncertainty of wave scattering
intensity and direction at the waviness regions. This uncertainty increases the diffi-
culty of echo signal interpretation [212]. Additional challenges of the ultrasonic
NDT techniques include but are not limited to the fact that ultrasonic systems still
require the use of liquid or gel couplants and are affected by material properties such
as surface roughness, attenuation, grain structure, acoustic impedance, etc. Also,
the beam parameters such as near field, focusing limits, and beam spread are still
governed by aperture and frequency. In addition, phased array ultrasonic systems
have some specific limitations including the generation of unwanted grating lobes,
inadequate beam profiles, dead elements (i.e., individual elements failing), and sweep
restrictions among others [213]. Additional limitations include the interpretation of
data is highly operator dependent, difficult to find small pitting conditions, not very
effective at inspecting areas close to accessories, and requires a detailed, qualified
procedure which are not always available particularly for the case of phase array
ultrasonic systems. Apart from the shortcoming of the UT systems themselves, addi-
tional challenges for this technique in the testing and evaluation of fibrous composite
materials are caused by materials internal micro and macro scales.
In general, resin-rich layers cause inter-ply reflections between the front-wall
and the back-wall echoes when ultrasonic wave propagates in composites. At each
interface, for example, the interface between two consecutive layers (e.g., layers 1 and
3) provides the incident ultrasonic spatial pulse length larger than the ply thickness,
there is significant interference to the ultrasonic signal from the neighboring layer
(i.e., layer 3). This interference is more complex in a typical multi-ply composite
and the interply reflection will be stronger at resonance if the ultrasonic wavelength
matches the odd number of layer thickness. Consistent with the aforementioned,
fiber wrinkling can easily convert to either in-plane or out-of-plane waviness due
4.12 Advantages and Limitations of Ultrasonic NDT 183

to uneven pressure and heating during the manufacturing process of the aerospace
composite structures with a complex shape and a ply drop layout (e.g., composite
fan blade and aerofoil). Resin-rich areas are the consequences of the blockage of the
resin flow in the wavy region and thick resin layers form between the fiber layers.
In this context, both the magnitude and the distribution of the waviness features
and the inter-ply resin layer show a strong unevenness and randomness, resulting
in the uncertainty of wave scattering intensity and direction at the waviness profile.
This uncertainty increases the difficulty of echo signal interpretation when using UT
systems for NDT tests [18].
In addition, material anisotropy is a common problem of composite materials and
this is consistent with their nature and manufacturing process. In general, material
anisotropy presents another challenge for composite UT inspection. In the immersion
testing (i.e., the test composite is completely immersed into water with the latter
being used as the coupling medium), for example, complex wave refraction and
mode conversion pattern will develop on the water-composite interface depending
on the incident angle (Fig. 4.1d). If longitudinal waves reach the composite-water
interface with a normal incident angle (i.e., perpendicular to the test composite), the
only waves that will refract are longitudinal ones. However, a skewed incidence will
generate both refracted quasi-longitudinal (QL) and transverse (QT) waves in the
composite. In this case, the multiple refracted waves will continue to interact with
the composite layers, suggesting that very complex signals will be acquired due to
the wave reflection, refraction, and mode conversion and the interpretation of such
signals will be utterly difficult. As a result, ultrasonic waves impinging the surface
of the composite at normal incident angles are generally the best to use in any UT
inspection setup as they help to reduce the difficulty of signal interpretation and
processing that come with angled ultrasonic waves.

4.13 Conclusions

Great breakthroughs on the use of ultrasonic NDT for the inspection and evaluation of
fiber-reinforced composites structures have taken place in the last two decades. The
advances in the testing and interpretation of the testing results were made possible
because of increased understanding of the behavior of ultrasound signals in these
kinds of materials and the subsequent interpretation of test results, as well as the
tremendous leaps forward in computational power and efficiency. Ultrasonic NDT
methods have been the primary inspection technique for aerospace composite struc-
tures in the past two decades. Indeed the close relationship between ultrasonic param-
eters and the elastic and mechanical properties of the composite material makes UT
the ideal NDT method to detect flaws in these types of materials. In particular, conven-
tional ultrasonic methods will continue to be an important part of the entire ultrasonic
NDT practices and new ultrasonic testing systems are also coming to the fore. These
include the constantly increasing use of ultrasonic phased arrays and laser ultrasound.
The ability of an ultrasonic phased array to electronically steer and focus the beam
184 4 Ultrasonic Testing Techniques for Nondestructive Evaluation …

has distinct advantages in the inspection of anisotropic composites, in addition to

the benefits of greater scan speed and imaging capability [1]. Indeed one of the most
interesting advances in the development of phased array ultrasonic systems is the
recent development of the FlawInspecta system, which features a high-speed ultra-
sonic array imaging arrangement that uses a relatively low-cost ultrasonic array driver
platform [176], allows a simultaneous scanning of a large area and helps to over-
come the problems of coupling [177]. Also, the technologies of laser-generated and
detected ultrasound have matured to the large-scale industrial application [175, 209].
The progress of ultrasonic NDT for composite structures is expected to record pace,
both in the fundamental development of the field station but also in the technological
development of implementation and application.
Among the many factors contributing to such advancements include the devel-
opments in computational capabilities of the systems and the understanding basic
principles of ultrasonic systems, the phased array and focusing developments in
plates and pipes (i.e., animations and practice), the demonstration of optimal mode
and frequency selections for penetration power, fluid loading influences, and defect
detection sensitivities. Ultrasonic testing remains an important NDT technique for
fiber-reinforced composite materials and several factors such as the understanding
of the behavior of ultrasound waves in anisotropic media (i.e., slowness profiles and
skew angle influence), the development of ultrasonic tomographic imaging methods,
the comb sensor designs for optimal mode and frequency selection (i.e., linear comb
and annular arrays) as well as the implementation of time-delay comb-type trans-
ducers for phased array composite plate inspection. In aircraft composite structures,
for example, the recent demonstration of feasibility studies in lap splice, tear strap,
skin to core delamination, corrosion detection, and other applications, the introduc-
tion of ultrasonic modal analysis testing (i.e., linking guided waves to modal vibration
analysis) as well as the discovery of the guided wave ice detection and deicing studies
initiated have all contributed to the immense development of ultrasonic NDT in the
airspace industries.
Although ultrasonic testing has had immense development and applications for
the testing and evaluation of composite materials, challenges still exist. Typical
examples include dealing with complex anisotropy and wave velocity and skew
angle as a function of direction, the viscoelastic influences, and the limitation of
the penetration power due to the anisotropy, viscoelasticity, and inhomogeneity of
the composite materials. Additional challenges include the complications in optimal
mode and frequency selection and appropriate transducer designs, the differentiating
critical composite damage such as delamination defects from structural variability
during fabrication (including minor fiber misalignments, ply-drops, inaccurate fiber
volume fraction, and so on) as well as the challenges of using guided wave inspec-
tion for composites where the properties if the of the composite are unknown to the
users. Some of the new directions of ultrasonic NDT point to the development of
cost-effective distributive sensor networks and sparse arrays for a line of sight anal-
ysis, tomography, phased array work, and ultrasonic vibrations. In addition, current
studies are also the development of a more detailed quantitative characterization
analysis in addition to the defect detection and location analysis for screening. In
4.13 Conclusions 185

the era of information technology and artificial intelligence, the integration of ultra-
sonic systems with wireless and energy harvesting technologies is also underway.
Emphasis on lightweight and easy-to-use ultrasonic systems are equally of great
interest to the NDT engineers and such systems are currently being developed by
several manufacturers.

Important Disclosure In this chapter, some figures referring to well-known facts and popular THz
systems were arranged traying inspiration from NDT websites and sources were also referenced
when appropriately.

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Chapter 5
Infrared Thermography Testing
and Evaluation of Fiber-Reinforced
Composite Materials

5.1 Introduction and History of IRT

In the current age of technological advancements, longer, bigger, and significantly

complex fiber-reinforced composite structures are used in a number of structural
systems including wind turbine blade (WTB), bridge decks, helicopter’s rotor struc-
tures, marine hulls, and airplane wing-spars and this extended applications of fiber-
reinforced composite structures does increase the likelihood of developing flaws at
the different stages of their life cycles as well as the manufacturing and mainte-
nance difficulties. In terms of maintenance difficulties, for example, the literature
[1, 2] suggests that mechanical fasteners and adhesive bonding systems can only be
utilized in fiber-reinforced composite materials and hardly in other types of compos-
ites. Adhesive bonding is preferable compared to mechanical fastening because of
the continuous connection within these types of composites, whereas no fibers or any
other reinforcements in the composite are cut or damaged while drilling holes for
rivets/bolts, large stress concentrations are also susceptible to occur at each discrete
fastener hole [3]. All these types of flaws severely degrade the structure’s load-
bearing capacity and would lead to catastrophic failures if left unchecked [2]. To
this end, improving the manufacturing quality of the material constituents and the
design protocols of such structures would reduce the ratio of possible flaws per unit
area (i.e., potential flaws developing during the manufacturing and in-service) and
guarantee an improved performance [4]. However, flaws such as impact damage,
delamination, cracks, disbonds, as well as random porosity/voids and undesirable
materials/parts/debris will almost certainly occur either during the manufacturing or
the in-service stages of the composite as the latter gets subjected to operations in harsh
and complex environments [5]. However, most of the flaws occurring in composite
structures are often difficult or even impossible to spot by the necked eye, requiring
the use of additional NDT techniques to guarantee their structural integrity. In fact,
the use of reliable and cost-effective NDT techniques to localize and characterize the
flaws at their incipient initiation in primary and secondary load-bearing composites

© Science Press 2022 197

S. Zhong and W. Nsengiyumva, Nondestructive Testing and Evaluation
of Fiber-Reinforced Composite Structures,
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-19-0848-4_5
198 5 Infrared Thermography Testing and Evaluation of Fiber-Reinforced …

would save resources, eliminate unplanned breakdown, and provide a timely window
for repair-maintenance activities which are necessary to ensure continued fulfillment
of their design functions.
There are currently many NDT techniques for fiber-reinforced composite mate-
rials [2, 6], of which infrared thermography (IRT) has shown far greater advantages
including superior inspection speed, higher spatial resolution, and sensitivity, as well
as easy detectability of inner flaws for materials with improved heat conduction capa-
bilities [7]. Unlike ultrasonic or electrical testing, IRT is completely non-contact [2]
and apart from the conventional variant that uses optical excitation during the inspec-
tion of composites, other thermal sources such as eddy current, laser, microwave,
and ultrasound have been developed which has further increased the capabilities and
the scope of application of IRT while equally making it a versatile NDT technique
[5]. IRT has been used in the NDT field for many years. In a recently published book
on “Infrared Thermography and Thermal Nondestructive Testing” [8], signs of using
IRT as an NDT technique were traced up to the beginning of the last century when
the first infrared (IR) detector was patented [2]. The book also provides an exhaus-
tive list of the important dates in the development of the IRT systems from 1770 to
2010 and interested readers are directed to this specific study for more information.
Some of the historical events in the development and implementation of IRT systems
include the development of the first IR detector in 1914 [9] and the proposal for using
a complete IR thermographic system for the detection of forest fires in 1934 [10].
In the meantime, the first industrial applications involving the use of IRT to check
the heating uniformity of steel strips were conducted years later by Nichols [11]. In
1962, an innovative study on the IRT NDT system was implemented to check the
fuel elements and the heat transfer process of a nuclear reactor [12]. In the 1960s,
the very first commercial IR system (AGA Thermovision) entered the market. This
system was first used for the inspection of electric/electronic components was later
modified and used for the testing of the Polaris rocket motor and nuclear reactor fuel
elements [12, 13]. At this time, IRT system already presented potential features for
us in the inspection aerospace structures and it was around the same time when the
manufacturing of fiber-reinforced composites structures started flourishing.
As IRT systems and the development of advanced composite materials started
getting improved and well-recognized around the world, the American Society for
Nondestructive Testing (ASNT) published in 1966 the first edition of the recom-
mended practice providing important guidelines for the NDT personnel (ASNT SNT-
TC-1A). However, the document provided guidelines from only five methods (i.e.,
ultrasonic testing, magnetic testing, liquid penetrant testing, eddy current testing, and
radiographic testing) and did not include any recommendation for IRT because the
technique was still in its infancy and information regarding its practical relevance in
NDT was poorly understood. It was only in 1992 that the ASNT added guidelines for
IRT as an emergent technique [14]. IRT was fully recognized in 2007 when ASTM
released the guidelines for the application of flash thermography for the inspection
of aerospace composite panels (ASTM E2582) in 2007 was released [8]. However,
the first approaches were not very encouraging as they were mostly qualitative and
5.1 Introduction and History of IRT 199

interest was often directed toward other NDT techniques such as ultrasonic and radio-
graphic testing which are more quantitative [2]. Indeed this happened mainly because
many of the IRT users at that time did not have sufficient knowledge regarding the
output of the IR imaging devices and the thermal behavior of the test structures. Also,
there were no well-established testing procedures and much less the interpretation of
the thermograms. In the early 1980s, IRT received renewed attention after the devel-
opment of comprehensive theory on heat transfer mechanisms [9], which marked the
beginning of the proliferation of ideas regarding the development of IRT hardware
and software for effective and accurate IR data measurement and interpretation. To
date, many different variants of IRT have been developed some of which use different
measurement techniques and/or excitation sources, making the IRT one of the most
effective and well-recognized NDT techniques in structural engineering [8, 14].
Several applications have been reported in condition monitoring, predictive main-
tenance, and general NDT practices [15–18]. In all these applications, IRT users
should know that there is always a strong relationship between the measurement of
thermal properties and the detection of hidden flaws because a flaw, such as delami-
nation or an artificial insert, will cause a noticeable shift in the local material proper-
ties, while a more widespread concentration of micro-defects, such as porosity, can
cause a variation in the bulk thermal properties. Examples of typical flaws in fiber-
reinforced composite materials that can be detected by IRT systems include but are
not limited to delaminations, skin-to-core (e.g., in honeycomb or sandwich panels)
disbonds, voids, porosity, foreign inserts, trapped water, moisture ingress, variations
in thickness and any other geometric details, as well as variations in thermal or other
physical properties. IRT is considered one of the most reliable and practical tools
that provides a significant economic benefit, thanks to the recent development in
computer technologies, signal processing techniques, heat conduction, and transfer
mechanisms, the development of advanced composite materials with improved emis-
sivity, and the development of sophisticated IR devices at a relatively low cost [8,
19]. In fact, most major aerospace companies are now using IRT as their primary
inspection method for the evaluation of composite materials [8, 14]. Also, the use
of TNDT may be complemented by other NDT methods, such as ultrasonic, eddy
current, and laser methods (i.e., these techniques may involve similar hardware and
physical principles). In most cases where the use of complemented NDT is involved,
the practice is referred to as “data fusion” and readers are addressed to [20, 21] for
more details. The purpose of using such a combination is to reduce the effects of the
weaknesses of one NDT method by using the strength of the other.

5.2 Generalities and Basic Concepts of IRT

IRT is an NDT technique that is used for the inspection or the imaging of mate-
rials and products by sensing their infrared (i.e., below red) radiation. It is noted
that when invoking the term “NDT”, within the context of its general meaning of
discovering a fault in a generic structure without destroying it or compromising its
200 5 Infrared Thermography Testing and Evaluation of Fiber-Reinforced …

normal operation, we may be facing two types of undertakings: (a) ascertaining the
proper functioning of a device when it goes into operation, or simply; (b) assessing
the absence or the presence of flaws inside the component material. In fact, the
literature uses several denominations (e.g., a tool, an instrument, a method, a tech-
nique) when referring to IRT because of its broader usage in the testing of devices,
structures, parts, and component materials. Indeed IRT includes all of these denom-
inations but not a single one of them is able to depict a complete notion of it and its
usage. Also, IRT is sometimes referred to as an instrument, being confused with the
infrared imaging device, and is often identified with its shorter-term under the name
of “Thermography”. However, from a rigorous point of view, the correct term to
identify this NDT technique remains IRT, since using the term thermography alone
would mainly imply a map of the material’s temperature distribution (i.e., distribution
of the material temperature signatures), without indicating how it has been obtained
(i.e., infrared imaging). In fact, apart from the infrared device, the temperature map
can also be obtained by using some other devices such as liquid crystals and many
others.
IRT is a science dedicated to the acquisition and the processing of thermal
information from a non-contact infrared measurement device/detector (e.g., infrared
detectors, thermal detectors, quantum detectors, and photoconductors). In the NDT
community, IRT is indeed a non-contact inspection technique that relies on a number
of physical principles in line with predefined theoretical formulations and practical
approaches to obtain a full description of the material structure under test. In prac-
tical terms, IRT includes an infrared (IR) detecting device to sense the thermal energy
that is radiated from the test objects in the infrared band (i.e., below red); and such
energy, with the aid of specific software and basic relationships, is transformed into
a video signal and, finally, into the object surface temperature map. Naturally, this is
a simplified description of the way the final temperature map of the test material is
accomplished; suggesting that, in reality, the process is rather complicated because
it involves many different disciplines including heat transfer, electromagnetism as
well as electronics and signal treatments to list but a few. IRT is being used in a
broad number of application fields and for many different purposes; indeed, any
temperature-dependent process may benefit from the use of an IR device. In other
words, an IR imaging device should be considered as a precious ally to consult
for diagnostics and preventative purposes, for the understanding of complex fluid
dynamics phenomena, or for material characterization and procedures assessment,
which can help improve the design and fabrication of products. IRT may accompany
the entire life of a product, since it may be used to control the manufacturing process
(online process control), to nondestructively assess the final product integrity, and
monitor the component in service. Indubitably, for the success of any application,
it is most important to choose the most adequate IR camera and test procedure, as
well as image processing and data analysis depending on the application [5]. Also
depending on the type of addressed task, two basic approaches can be used: active
or passive.
5.2 Generalities and Basic Concepts of IRT 201

5.2.1 Passive Thermography

Passive thermography is conducted out on components that in operating conditions

become either hot or cold as a prerequisite of their proper or improper functioning
(i.e., the test structure is not in thermal equilibrium with its surroundings or the
features of interest present a different temperature level from that of the environ-
ment/background in which they operate or simply the features of interest are naturally
at a higher or lower temperature than the background). In passive thermography, the
inspection does not require the use of any external thermal stimulus to activate the
temperature differences between the features of interest (e.g., defects) and the actual
structural system surrounding these features (e.g., healthy section of the structure)
[22]. In other words, the heat flow, due to the intrinsic generation of heat by the
test structure is exploited to assess a correct functioning or a malfunctioning of that
particular structure. Indeed passive thermography is useful and cost-effective and
some of its applications include but are not limited to the inspection of furnaces and
boiler systems, electrical appliances and switchboards, surveillance of people on a
scene and medical diagnosis as well as monitoring the functioning of the refriger-
ation systems [23]. In particular, the application of passive IRT to the monitoring
of the functioning of switchboards is facilitated by the exploitation of Ohm’s law,
an increase in the electric resistance of a component triggers a subsequent increase
of its temperature and by using an IR camera, it is possible to distinguish between
the overheated connections or wires amongst many, as well as defects associated
with other problems [14]. A typical image of a passive IRT system obtained from a
switchboard is provided in Fig. 5.1.
Indeed an IR imaging device can be fully exploited for the professional servicing
of industrial installations (i.e., fulfilling predictive maintenance and repair) predictive
maintenance to discover a problem before it becomes crucial and, often, expensive.
In fact, before a component fails, it generally heats up because of energy dissipation;
excess heat is usually the first sign of trouble in electrical or mechanical apparatuses,
and, in many cases, overheating may be due to problems such as loose connections,
overloaded or imbalanced circuits, defective breakers, damaged switchgear, faulty
fuses, material defects, and excessive friction to list but a few. An IR imaging device
is the best diagnostic tool available to quickly appraise and fix potential problems
with breakers, interconnections, wire crimps, damaged bearings, worn-out gears, and
loose or corroded connections (i.e., most observed in the transition time leading to
severe safety hazards and productivity losses). Since electrical distribution systems
are often interconnected (i.e., one system may be the foundation for many other
subsystems), a failure in an electrical system may cause communication, fire safety,
security, and mechanical systems to fail as well. IRT systems are therefore used to
inspect the electrical power lines. This kind of inspection can be equally be performed
using either helicopters or airplanes with an IR device mounted to them for quick
scanning of the electrical infrastructure. Also, drones are sometimes used instead of
helicopters or airplanes for the inspection of PV systems.
202 5 Infrared Thermography Testing and Evaluation of Fiber-Reinforced …

Fig. 5.1 IR thermographic diagnostics of electrical facilities a electrical connections inside a

switchboard (see the overheated wires), b bus overheating at a hydropower station, and c overheated
contact joint at an electrical substation

In the aerospace industry, passive IRT is being routinely used by aircraft manufac-
turers to assess or detect the presence of water inside the honeycomb aircraft panels
or the airplane fuselage panels upon landing. In this context, water trapped inside the
honeycomb aircraft panels can be detected passively (i.e., no external heat source
applied) for a certain time after the airplane has landed owing to the large difference
between the ground air temperature (i.e., temperature difference usually ranges from
−20 °C to +20 °C) and the air temperature at cruising altitude of about 10,000 m
above the ground often found to be as low as −60 °C. It is important to indicate that
frozen water (ice) often maintains a low temperature for a relatively long time and
the corresponding temperature patterns are quite conclusive. Figure 5.2 demonstrates
that passive TNDT was able to detect water trapped not in composite cavities, but
also in aluminum honeycombs.
Apart from predictive maintenance, passive IRT may be advantageously exploited
for finding hot spots in thermos-elastic stress analysis and locating damaged areas
using a technique called Stress Pattern Analysis by Thermal Emission (SPATE) or
Thermographic Stress Analysis (TSA), The latter was invented in the 1990s and
detailed information regarding its use and setup is provided in Ref. [24, 25]. It is
also important to indicate that historically, the pulp-and-paper industry was one of
the first successful application areas for passive TNDT. It is worth noting that often
people refer erroneously to passive IRT when dealing with inspection of building
5.2 Generalities and Basic Concepts of IRT 203

Fig. 5.2 Illustration of the IRT of water ingress in a honeycomb composite structures of a Russian
Tupolev-204 airplane and b honeycomb aluminum air inlet of an Ilyushin-96 airplane (these
structures were tested 1 h after landing) [8]

envelopes. Engineers often make this error because they think they are not using any
means of thermal stimulation while, in fact, they are often using the sun or natural
stimulus associated with the weather changes in their inspection routines. Indeed,
the sun is exploited for heating up a surface and for performing active thermography
testing! A successful application of the passive IRT requires a concise establishment
of the testing scheme by considering the access to the sample surface and the most
effective way to detect the subsurface defects.

5.2.2 Active Thermography

In the active thermography, the inspection concerns an object or a material structure

that is initially in thermal equilibrium with its surroundings, and then a certain amount
of energy is introduced in it by using an external heat source (e.g., optical radiation,
electromagnetic stimulation, mechanical ultrasonic waves, etc.) to produce a thermal
contrast that is able to highlight the features of interest. Its configuration is such that
the external active heat source is either applied at the same side as the IR camera or at
the opposite side in transmission configuration [26]. It is noted that the defect depth
quantification largely depends on the heat conduction capabilities of the test structure
from the surface to the inner sections and its reverse reflection back to the detectors
[27]. There are currently several types of heating styles including surface heating
204 5 Infrared Thermography Testing and Evaluation of Fiber-Reinforced …

(the surface of the test structure is optically heated), volume heating (the sample
is volumetrically heated using external excitation such as microwave heating), and
abnormal heating (the features of interest are selectively heated) [2]. The NDT of
materials with an IR imaging system generally consists of thermally stimulating the
test structure followed by the monitoring of its surface temperature variation (e.g.,
using an IR camera) during the transient heating or cooling phase. The analysis of
the measured thermographic data is generally performed by relating the stimulation
to the heat conduction within the test structure [9]. Figure 5.3 provides a typical
example of the dynamic character of active IRT where the evolution of time versus
the differential temperature signal (T ) over the defect in a wind turbine blade
(WTB) thermal protection coating. The graph shows that the maximum variation in
the temperature (T = 3.03 °C) over the delamination occurs at 65 ms after flash
heating has started. At 2 s, the graph sows that the temperature variation has dropped
to 0.004 °C which is nearly back to its equilibrium state.
Consistent with the aforementioned, the relativistic heat conduction theory
predicts that the most general equation governing the temperature variation in thermal
stimulation of material structure (i.e., a form of heat-conduction equation that does
eliminate the paradox of instantaneous propagation) is Cattaneo’s equation [14, 28].
Its mathematical expression is as follows:

∂T
Q + tτ = −κ∇T (5.1)
∂t

where Q denotes the heat flux, T denotes the temperature,t indicates the structure’s
heating time and tτ and κ the structure’s relaxation time, and the structure’s thermal
conductivity coefficient, respectively. Considering the fact that there is a conservation

Fig. 5.3 Illustration of the differential temperature signal vs. time in the detection of delamination
between the coating and the substrate in WTB—Parameter specification: a-thermal diffusivity,
λ-thermal conductivity, and l-coating or substrate thickness [8]
5.2 Generalities and Basic Concepts of IRT 205

of energy (i.e., consistent with the first law of thermodynamics), the Eq. (4.1) above
can be rearranged to obtain the hyperbolic (telegraph) equation:

1 ∂2T 1 ∂T
2 ∂t 2
+ − ∇2T = 0 (5.2)
Vh α ∂t

where α and Vh represent the material’s thermal diffusivity coefficient and propa-
gation speed of the thermal waves, respectively. Also, the value of the propagation
speed of the thermal wave Vh is determined using the following equation:

α
Vh = (5.3)
tτ

Interestingly, putting aside the relativistic theory and considering the case where
the heat propagation velocity tends to infinity (Vh → ∞) or the material relaxation
time tends to zero (tτ → 0), the hyperbolic expressed in (4.2) further becomes the
classical parabolic Fourier’s heat conduction equation [29]:

∂T
− α∇ 2 T = 0 (5.4)
∂t
Considering the mathematical expression provided by Eq. (5.4), it is that the heat
propagation through a material system is generally governed by its static thermal
properties [8]. Although most of the studies focus on thermal stimulation using heat
(i.e., positive thermal simulation), it is also possible to perform a thermal simula-
tion using cooling (i.e., negative thermal simulation). Positive thermal simulation
of heating is generally preferable because it provides a higher power density and
the heating parameters are easy to control than cooling. In this context, most of the
examples provided in this book also use positive thermal simulation by virtue of the
material available in the literature on this subject.

5.2.3 Classification and Factors Determining Classes

of Active IRT

As indicated earlier, active IRT is mostly used in NDT applications where an external
stimulus in terms of thermal energy is required in order to induce relevant thermal
contrasts in the sample in between the regions of interest. The following types of
heating are common in active IRT: (1) radiation (optical) (2) convection (using hot
gas or liquid) (3) microwave (4) mechanical (sonic) (5) electrical resistive and (6)
electrical induction [8]. Active IRT is generally applied to the inspection of fiber-
reinforced composite materials for the detection and characterization of subsurface
206 5 Infrared Thermography Testing and Evaluation of Fiber-Reinforced …

defects/flaws and also to detect the areas of the sample with different properties
below the surface [30]. In particular, some subsurface anomalies are very subtle
and the signal levels associated with them can be lost in the thermographic data
noise [31]. In this case, different post-processing methods can be used to improve
the SNR of thermographic data for accurate detection and characterization of flaws
[2]. Active IRT includes many techniques which are classified based on properties
such as the heating function, excitation sources, and the heating style [8]. A detailed
classification of the different types of active IRT is provided in the following sections.

5.2.3.1 The Heating Function

As opposed to passive thermography which does not require the use of any active
heating system, active thermography requires external heat sources to stimulate the
materials under tests and create a measurable temperature difference between the test
materials and internal features of interest. There are generally many types of external
heating sources used in IRT systems including heat guns, hot water/air jets, eddy
currents, ultrasonic vibration, hot water bags, and many others. In general, however,
optical thermal sources such as high-power photographic flash, high-power cine-
matographic lamps, laser beam, and quartz line IR lamps are used to stimulate. The
common types of active IRT are stepped thermography (ST-IRT), pulsed thermog-
raphy (PT-IRT) [27, 32], lock-in thermography (LIT-IRT) also known as modulated
thermography (MT-IRT) [33], pulsed phase thermography (PPT-IRT) [27, 34], and
frequency modulated thermography (FMT-IRTT) [35, 36]. Figure 5.4 illustrates the
common types of active thermography, and the duration of the heating is indicated
by the solid line. Figure 4.1a indicates that the PT-IRT heats or cools down the test
structure by using a short duration energy pulse and the trend of temperature dissi-
pation and reflection by the discontinuities in the sample are measured by an IR
camera. In some papers, PT is often referred to as burst thermography (BT-IRT),
flash thermography (FT-IRT), and square pulse thermography (SPT-IRT) depending
on the duration of the heating pulse vis-à-vis the cooling phase. In fact, SP-IRT
literally uses a square pulse as an excitation source represented in the dotted line in
Fig. 5.4a. In Fig. 5.4b, the ST is characterized by a long pulse that is used to step heat
the test structure while the users observe the temperature’s rising process to iden-
tify any possible features in the heat distribution patterns. In Fig. 5.4c, the LIT-IRT
uses a periodic thermal excitation and both the phase and magnitude of the reflected
thermal wave are derived even at considerably low peak powers. It is noted that the
PPT used the pulse as an excitation and phase analysis in frequency domain, which
is actually a link between both the PT and LIT-IRT [34]. Also, the phase analysis of
both the BT-IRT and the SPT-IRT are referred to as the burst phase thermography
(BPT-IRT) and the square pulse phase thermography (SPP-IRT), respectively. In
Fig. 5.4d, the FMT-IRT utilizes a frequency modulated excitation source to extract
simultaneously the phase information from several thermal waves obtained from a
single measurement.
5.2 Generalities and Basic Concepts of IRT 207

Fig. 5.4 Illustration of the different types of thermal excitation functions of a PT-IRT and SPT-IRT,
b ST-IRT, c LIT-IRT, and d FMT-IRT

5.2.3.2 The Excitation Sources

As indicated earlier, thermal excitation sources are only used in active thermography
testing. These thermal sources are classified into optical, electromagnetic, acoustic,
and stress/strain excitation. Interestingly, these thermal sources also give the origin
of the different denominations for classes of IRT methods. These include the optical
IRT which uses optical excitation sources such as flashlights and lamps to name but
a few. The same optical IRT is also named laser thermography if the laser beam is
used as the thermal source to replace a flashlight or lamp. There is also eddy current
thermography (ECT-IRT), which uses induced eddy current as thermal sources to
heat conductive composite materials (e.g., CFRP, GFRP with conductive particles
embedded in the polymeric matrix, etc.). Conduction thermography is also another
type of thermal excitation source which uses electrical current for the thermal source
when testing conductive composite material systems. Additional IRT techniques
based on excitation sources include magnetic induction thermographic technique,
which uses a magnetic field to heat samples made of ferromagnetic materials [37],
and microwave thermography (MWT-IRT), which uses microwave radiation to heat
samples made of dielectric materials [38]. These techniques also include vibrother-
mography uses mechanical variation as the thermal excitation to generate heat into
the test composite. In general, vibrothermography is in some cases referred to as
ultrasound thermography when an ultrasound or sonic system is used as the thermal
excitation source (i.e., a high-frequency oscillation is amplitude-modulated at a low
frequency and the detection lock-in system, which is synchronized with the amplitude
208 5 Infrared Thermography Testing and Evaluation of Fiber-Reinforced …

varying input signal, records the amplitude and phase of the surface temperature of
the test sample). Finally, there is the thermoelastic stress analysis, which uses strain
or stress of the test material as thermal sources. Apart from some limited exceptions,
all the aforementioned types of IRT methods can normally be applied as PT-IRT, ST-
IRT, LIT-IRT, PPT-IRT, and FMT-IRT. However, the most dominant IRT methods
in the NDT and SHM of composite materials are the EC-IRT technique, microwave
thermography testing technique, and ultrasound thermography testing technique, and
only these methods are considered in this chapter. Additional information regarding
the classification of the different thermal sources available in [5, 14] and interest
readers are directed to these specific studies for more details. In conclusion, all these
excitations sources are inherently built and operate based on different physical prin-
ciples, suggesting that they all have different advantages and disadvantages, which
may increase the difficulty both in the testing of the composite and the utilization of
the IRT systems themselves depending on several factors such the level of expertise
of the operator as well as the application setup and many others.

5.2.3.3 The Sample Heating Style

In a normal IRT NDT, there are generally many kinds of thermal sources used to
heat the test samples including but not limited to optical, electromagnetic, mechan-
ical waves (i.e., ultrasound/sonic waves, etc.). Interestingly, all these heating sources
present their peculiar advantages and disadvantages and they all operate under
different heating styles. In fact, some of them do generate heat on the surface of
the test material (i.e., surface heating) while others generate heat inside the test
structure (i.e., volume heating) [5, 27]. In the optical thermal sources, for example,
heating elements are required to elevate the surface temperature of the test structures
and the methods for the determination of the depth of the defect depth under reflec-
tion mode are built on the heat conduction from surface to inside and its reverse
reflection [5, 39]. As a result, these types of heating styles are generally referred
to as surface heating thermography as they only require the heating of the surface
of the test material while the IR camera captures the IR images. Additional surface
heating thermography examples include conduction thermography and ECT-IRT
which are generally used for ferromagnetic metal material or conductive composite
materials (e.g., CFRP or PMC whose polymeric matrix has been rendered conductive
by adding some conductive particles such as CNT, etc.) where the skin depth is very
small due to the great permeability [5]. Thus, it can be classified into the surface
heating thermography family. In contrast to optical thermal sources, both induction
current and microwave excitation sources will volumetrically heat the test sample
with small conductivity such as CFRP or alike, hence the denomination “volume
heating thermography” [40]. The stress or strain-based heating mechanisms are also
part of the volume heating thermography as they also heat the test sample volumet-
rically. Apart from the surface and volume heating where the defects are generally
heated uniformly using their corresponding heat sources, in some cases defects do
not generate heat or do generate excess heat than required. In this case, the heating
5.2 Generalities and Basic Concepts of IRT 209

processing is literally abnormal and related defect depth quantification methods are
built on the abnormal conduction of heat from the inside to the surface of the test
structure, hence the denomination abnormal heating thermography.
Indeed, all these sample heating styles present their peculiar advantages and disad-
vantages. Although the discussion of the advantages and disadvantages of these
heating styles is largely out of the scope of the present book, it is worth mentioning
some of the most important ones. Typically, one of the most important advantages
of the volume heating thermography is that the thermal waves only have to travel
half the distance (i.e., the heatwave travels from the defect to the surface) than with
optical methods in reflection mode in which the thermal waves have to travel from
the surface to the defect and back to the surface. In their recent study, Yang and He
[27] indicated that the characterization methods for the volume heating thermog-
raphy are similar to those used in transmission and reflection modes because the
test sample is heated volumetrically and the heat conduction is quite uniform into
the features of interest. In some cases, just inside defects or features of interest are
selectively heated while the host material is not. This also comes back to the same
abnormal heating thermography or most precisely selectively heating thermography.
A typical example of selectively heating thermography (i.e., abnormal heating ther-
mography) is microwave thermography, particularly when used for water detection
in concrete structures. Similarly, heat is generated mainly from the friction of crack
tips in vibrothermography. As such, IRT methods with different thermal sources
can be classified as surface heating thermography or volume heating thermography.
Additional information on sample heating style in IRT testing of composite materials
is provided in Refs. [5, 27, 40] and interested readers are directed to these specific
studies for more details.

5.2.3.4 The Relative Position of Modules

In general, nearly every IRT system involves three main modules viz. IR camera,
sample, and the excitation source. Assuming the position of the sample remains
unchanged, a change in the relative position of the IR camera or the excitation source
vis-à-vis the position of the sample provides the possibility of having two different
configuration modes viz. reflection and the transmission mode. In the former, the
excitation source and the IR camera are positioned on the same side of the sample
while in the latter these two units are located on the opposite side of the sample. The
ability to change the relative position of the thermal excitation source or the IR camera
and keep the position of the sample unchanged provides the IRT with the possibility
of inspecting in-service structures even when there is no direct access to both sides of
the test structure [17, 22]. Although the excitation does not block the IR camera view
to sample surface in transmission mode, the reflection mode is particularly practical
for the in-filed NDT as the test structures may be located in confined spaces, harsh
environments, and nearly inaccessible areas where the possibility of having access
to both sides of the test structure is significantly reduced. However, only inclusions
close to the surface could be detected reliably in reflection mode, hence the lateral
210 5 Infrared Thermography Testing and Evaluation of Fiber-Reinforced …

size of defects along the whole cross-section of the samples could only be determined
by using the transmission measurements. Also, while the transmission mode may
generally yield more accurate results for thin-skinned structures than the reflection
mode [41], the latter does generally enable a high resolution for applications involving
surface heated optical thermography which facilitates the determination of the defect
depth.

5.2.3.5 The system’s Relative Motion

In applications where there are movements involved, the camera, excitation source,
or even the test sample might be changing their relative positions one at a time or as a
group while others remain in their positions. As such, IRT systems can be classified
into static IRT systems and scanning IRT systems. One of the major challenges of
static IRT systems is that their inspection areas are determined by the area they are
capable to heat in a static position and the camera view. In this context, scanning
IRT systems could provide valuable solutions to this problem since at least one of
their modules (e.g., excitation, IR camera, the test sample, etc.) must move during
the inspection allowing the inspection system to cover a considerably wide area of
the test composite. The scanning configuration can be applied where the point source
or the line source moves in the IR camera view. The former is particularly possible
due to the development of sufficiently capable IR cameras that allows the view of
large areas of the composite samples whereby only the heating source is needed at
different positions while the IR cameras cover all the area in their focal angle. A
classic example of such an application is the flying spot laser thermography, which
uses a laser beam to locally heat the surface of the test composite while a fixed
IR camera captures the temperature field of the scanning area [42]. In Ref. [43],
the authors used a flying spot laser lock-in thermographic (LLIT-IRT) system to
detect and evaluate several surface-breaking fatigue cracks on the surface of uncoated
steel plates with limited surface emissivity. The scanning laser spot thermography is
mainly used to detect and characterize cracks in metal and semi-conductor structures
and is generally based on lateral heat conduction [43, 44]. A more effective type
of heating that surpasses the spot source is the line source, which heats the test
structure by linearly scanning its sections in the camera view [5]. The literature
reports several studies which use the linear scanning style to heat the test structure
and these include Ref. [45], where a linearly-focused continuous-wave laser beam
is scanned towards a direction perpendicular to the beam covering the whole surface
of the test structure and the thermal image was observed by a fixed thermo-tracer.
Authors in Ref. [46] proposed a new line laser lock-in thermography (LLIT-IRT)
technique for instantaneous inspection of surface cracks in semiconductor chips.
This new line LLIT-IRT system featured a line scanning laser source, a high-speed IR
camera with a close-up lens, and a computer to control the scanning movements. The
proposed line LLI-IRT system scans a line laser beam onto a target semiconductor
chip surface and measures the corresponding thermal wave propagation using an IR
camera. In ref. [47], a whole-electronic line-focus light-scanning apparatus using a
5.2 Generalities and Basic Concepts of IRT 211

multiple column light-emitting diodes (LED) array coupled with a focusing lens was
presented. Although the LST-IRT performs well and provides encouraging results,
most of the studies on this topic indicate that the system set-ups are still limited by the
camera view especially when inspecting large components or performing an online
inspection. Scanning thermography also involves cases where both the IR camera
and the thermal excitation source move along the test material [48]. However, the
use of these configurations for large-scale composite components is still limited,
suggesting that it is important for both the excitation and camera to be relatively
moved to sample. The line scanning thermography (LST-IRT) is a classic example
of such a configuration where the IR detector moves in tandem with the heat source
alongside the test sample (i.e., a line heat source is used to thermally excite the
surface of the sample to be inspected and an IR camera is used to record the transient
surface temperature variation produced by the discontinuities in the sample) [49,
50]. Its advantages include the ability to provide a quick and efficient methodology
to scan large composite structures, and these features make LST-IRT desirable for
applications involving large-scale testing and uniform heating of the test components
(i.e., due to the lateral motion of the individual units of the testing kits). It also
allows image processing capabilities that improve distinction among defect region,
image noise, and sound area, which further provides the technique with the clearest
representation of any prospective fault or defect in the test composite [51]. ECT-IRT is
also another kind of IRT technique that can be configured in scanning thermography
as presented in refs. [52–54].

5.3 Thermal Properties of Materials

The intensity of the IR radiation emitted by objects is mainly a function of their

temperature characteristics (i.e., the higher the temperature, the greater the inten-
sity of the thermal/IR energy emitted by the object). Also, materials are generally
characterized by different thermal properties and behave differently when heated
to certain temperature levels. As a result, several applications can take advantage
of this feature to study the properties and integrity of materials. Indeed the versa-
tility of fiber-reinforced composite materials does generally present many different
thermal properties that cannot all be discussed in this section. To keep our discus-
sion focused, we offer to discuss the most relevant and useful thermal properties of
fiber-reinforced composite materials (i.e., thermal conductivity, thermal effusivity,
and thermal diffusivity).

5.3.1 Thermal Conductivity

In composite materials, thermal conductivity is an intensive property (i.e., bulk prop-

erty) and it denotes the ability of a material to conduct heat. Heat transfer occurs
212 5 Infrared Thermography Testing and Evaluation of Fiber-Reinforced …

at a lower rate in materials of low thermal conductivity than in materials of high

thermal conductivity. Thermal conductivity is generally designated with the symbol
κ and is equal to the ratio of the heat flux Q̇ (i.e., the ratio between the thermal
energy and the unit area per unit time) divided by the object’s temperature gradient
∇T (i.e., the variation of the temperature per unit length T /L). In other words, the
material’s thermal conductivity represents the quantity of thermal energy that flows
in that material per unit time through a unit area with a temperature gradient of 1°
per unit distance. It is mathematically expressed as follows:

L Q̇
κ= (5.5)
T
In general, the magnitude of the material thermal conductivity is determined
by both its molecular configuration and thermodynamic state. As such, the most
general definition foresees a thermal conductivity that is a tensorial quantity. Pure
crystalline substances, for instance, do exhibit very different thermal conductivity
levels along different crystal axes, due to the differences in phonon coupling along a
given axis. In wooden materials, the level of their thermal conductivity varies with the
heat flux direction (i.e., non-isotropic) [14, 55]. Also, in the absence of convection
phenomena, air and other gases are generally isotropic and good insulators (i.e.,
they have low thermal conductivity), suggesting that many insulating materials are
generally obtained by superimposing a large number of small gas-filled pockets that
prevent large-scale convection. The reciprocal of the material’s thermal conductivity
is the material’s thermal resistivity (i.e., a heat property and a measurement of a
temperature difference by which an object or material resists a heat flow):

x
Rθ = (5.6)
Aκ

where Rθ denotes the thermal resistance across the thickness of the sample, x
the thickness of the sample (i.e., measured on a path parallel to the heat flow),κ
the sample’s thermal conductivity, and A the cross-sectional area perpendicular to
the path of heat flow. In some literature, the term “thermal conductance” is often
used including in some of the references listed in this book, and this may represent
the quantity of the heat that passes through a given plate in a unit time when the
plate’s opposite faces differ in temperature by one degree. The reciprocal of thermal
conductance is thermal resistance and interested readers are directed to refs. [14,
55–57] for more details about these terms and their meaning in the context of IRT
of composite materials.
5.3 Thermal Properties of Materials 213

5.3.2 Thermal Diffusivity

The material thermal diffusivity denotes the rapidity with which a material adjusts
its temperature to that of its surroundings. That is, thermal diffusivity describes the
rate at which a material with a non-uniform temperature approaches equilibrium.
It is generally indicated with the symbol α and is defined as the ratio between the
thermal conductivity κ and the product of density ρ (mass per unit volume) times the
specific heat capacity C p (i.e., the amount of heat needed to raise the temperature of
1 g of a substance to 1 °C) at constant pressure.
κ
α= (5.7)
ρC p

Thermal diffusivity measures the ability of a material to conduct thermal energy

relative to its ability to store thermal energy (i.e., high diffusivity means heat transfers
rapidly). It is noted that the specific heat is the measure of the energy Q necessary
to raise a unit mass m of material by one degree of temperature T :

Q
Cp = (5.8)
mT
The product ρC p is also referred to as the specific heat capacity per unit volume
and represents the thermal property that is present in the classical parabolic Fourier’s
heat conduction equation expressed in Eq. (4.4).

5.3.3 Thermal Effusivity

In thermodynamics, the material’s thermal effusivity (i.e., also referred to as the heat
penetration coefficient of the material) is generally represented using the letter e and
it denotes the measure of the material’s ability to exchange its thermal energy with its
surroundings. Using the mathematical formulation, the material’s thermal effusivity
is defined as the square root of the product of the material’s thermal conductivity and
its volumetric heat capacity.

e= κρC p (5.9)

The literature often uses several terms such as “thermal responsivity or inertia of
a material” to indicate the material’s thermal effusivity including in the references
of this book and the same formulation is maintained.
214 5 Infrared Thermography Testing and Evaluation of Fiber-Reinforced …

5.4 Infrared Measuring Devices

In general, IRT measuring devices feature the same basic principle of combining a
heater and an IR imager, as well as a particular data processing algorithm or, in some
cases, a set of algorithms and they are normally classified as thermal imaging or
point temperature measuring systems. The former can also be subdivided into quan-
titative or radiometric systems (i.e., measuring temperatures) and qualitative or non-
radiometric systems (i.e., thermal images only). Although very few non-radiometric
thermal imaging systems are currently used in thermal imaging practices, hybrid
systems involving the radiometric systems that measure the temperature at a small
center spot in the image and fully radiometric systems that measure the temperature
of the entire thermal scene using a thermal camera are much more common [58]. In
particular, non-radiometric or quantitative IRT systems involve the use of calibrated
instruments and can only provide accurate radiometric temperatures from the thermal
image if the correction factors are properly chosen. Although these types of systems
require calibration for the specific range(s) of temperature, improved accuracy and
repeatability of the measured data are achieved if the system is calibrated to several
narrow ranges rather than one broad range. Although point or spot radiometers do
not provide an image, they are generally cheap and can be extremely useful in many
types of NDT applications particularly where accurate, quick, and real-time radio-
metric measurements across a wide range of temperatures are needed. While some of
these instruments do not have the background correction feature, many of them have
emissivity correction capabilities which further improve their distance to spot size
ratio and hence their measuring accuracy. Spot radiometers also come in a variety
of wavebands to match the specific needs of the test materials, surface temperatures,
and the imaging environment.
As can be anticipated, the absence of the images in spot radiometer measurements
makes it difficult for NDT engineers to determine the exact area they are measuring.
As a result, some data may be a tribute to a wrong area which jeopardizes the estab-
lishment of an accurate evaluation of the material systems. Interestingly, some non-
imaging IRT devices include a laser-aiming device to assist with the determination of
the measurement area though the area may be larger than the small spot illuminated
by the laser resulting in the temperature of a larger area being averaged into the
single measurement if the projected laser beam is not used. In general, the waveband
response of most spot system detectors is normally longwave as most manufac-
turers seek to obtain systems that can accommodate a wide range of applications.
However, the mid-wave systems can also be filtered to detect narrower wavebands
for specialized applications such as measuring temperatures of thin-film plastic or
glass, especially during the manufacturing process. In the in-situ application, spot
systems can also be fixed on a temperature monitoring spot to constantly monitor
the process temperature for the applications where certain temperature requirements
determine the quality of the manufactured products. In some cases, for example,
thermal data can be correlated with temperature, thickness approximation, moisture
5.4 Infrared Measuring Devices 215

content, material integrity, material type, or structural components presence detec-

tion. In some applications, spot radiometers are often combined with automated
visual systems, to obtain a powerful information system, but they should not be
considered a substitute for an imaging system even though they both may have their
place in many NDT applications.
In most of the advanced NDT applications, engineers tend to use a line scanner
instead of a spot radiometer. Line scanner is very useful for many fixed-mounted
NDT inspections. Line scanner uses a single detector or small linear array of detectors
over which the scene is scanned. If the line scanner views a moving object, such as a
rolling drum, an image can be created suggesting that this instrument is particularly
useful when inspecting structures that are moving at a constant speed because the
image is built up continuously as the structure passes the detector using one line at
a time [5, 58]. Line scanners are particular a good choice in applications where the
measurements of very high-quality thermographic images are required at a low cost
(i.e., compared with automated full imaging inspection IRT systems). However, line
scanners can be very difficult to operate if users do not have a clear understanding
of how the entire imaging systems work [30, 59]. To begin with, the purpose of
the IRT imager is to detect the IR radiation coming from (or through in the case of
non-opaque targets) the object being inspected, often referred to as the target. The
radiation coming from the target is focused by the thermally transparent optics onto
a detector, which is sensitive to this “heat” radiation. A response from the detector
produces a signal, usually a voltage or resistance change, which in tum is read by the
processing electronics of the system to create a thermal image on a display screen
(e.g., LCD screen or viewfinder). In this seemingly simple process, NDT inspectors
easily view the thermal image (i.e., thermograms) that corresponds to the thermal
energy coming from the surface of the test structure in a non-contact fashion. In case
the image is not clear, additional steps such as signal processing or the correction for
emissivity and background temperatures can also be implemented.
In summary, there are several types of FPA systems and they are classified as
thermal or photonic depending on the characteristics of the detector. In general,
photonic or photon detectors come in both long-wave and mid-wave configurations
and they do involve cooled detectors, which actually count the number of photons
received in a specific amount of time called the integration time. These systems
have very reliable radiometric and excellent imagery. In contrast, thermal detectors
are generally long-wave and do not have to be cooled down during their operation,
although their temperature must always be stabilized to ensure their smooth opera-
tion. In fact, thermal detectors change their temperature as a result of the incoming
thermal radiation to keep their operating temperature stable. The most typical thermal
detectors use the micro-bolometer technology, which measures the variations in elec-
trical resistance relative to its temperature. In recent years, technological advances
have enabled the design and implementation of very reliable radiometric and excel-
lent imagery systems from thermal imagers using micro-bolometer detectors making
IRT techniques one of the most reliable and effective NDT techniques [5, 33]. To
conclude, IR imaging systems are generally made up of several common compo-
nents, including lens, detector, processing electronics, controls, display, data storage,
216 5 Infrared Thermography Testing and Evaluation of Fiber-Reinforced …

data processing, and report generation software, and filter. The difference between a
visible image and an infrared image is that the visible image is a representation of the
reflected light on the scene, whereas, in the infrared image, the scene is the source
and can be observed by an infrared camera without light. Images acquired using
IR cameras are converted into visible images by assigning a color to each infrared
energy level. The result is a false-color image called thermograms.

5.5 Emissivity and Reflected Temperature Measurement

Emissivity plays an essential role in IRT practices and is considered the most impor-
tant calibration parameter for temperature measurement using IRT. Emissivity is used
to characterize the optical properties of materials taking into account the amount of
energy emitted compared to an ideal blackbody at the same temperature and is repre-
sented by the symbol ε. Therefore, low-emissivity materials emit less IR radiation
than materials with high emissivity at the same temperature [60]. In reality, the emis-
sivity of real objects is generally wavelength dependent and is represented by the
symbol ελ , which is referred to as “the spectral emissivity coefficient”. In fact, a real
object emits only a part E λ of the radiation emitted by a blackbody E λb at the same
temperature and at the same wavelength:

Eλ
ελ = (5.10)
E λb

In some non-blackbody structures, the emissivity does generally not vary with
the wavelength and they are referred to as greybodies. A comparison between the
spectral radiant emittances of a blackbody, a greybody, and a real body at the same
temperature is presented in Fig. 5.5. It is observed that the radiation distribution of
a real object depends on the wavelength while that of a greybody remains similar to
that of a blackbody but is scaled down for the radiated power by factor ε.
In NDT practices involving the use of IRT, accurate determination of the thermal
emissivity is particularly essential in low-emissivity materials for accurate tempera-
ture measurements with an IR imaging device. In objects with high emissivity, minor
variations in the chosen emissivity values are generally not a big problem since
such variations will only cause minor changes in the resulting surface temperatures.
However, in low-emissivity objects, such as polished steel or aluminum, small varia-
tions in emissivity values do generally lead to large variations in the resulting temper-
ature measurements making the entire temperature measurement more complex and
largely unreliable. In most material systems, the general procedure for the measure-
ment of emissivity values is provided in the literature [14, 20, 61] and can be used
when the application requires such a measurement. In primis, the test structure is first
heated to bring its temperature to the level that will be reached under real working
conditions. A thermocouple can be used to obtain a reference temperature, although,
for low temperatures, it is more common to use the same infrared device to be used
5.5 Emissivity and Reflected Temperature Measurement 217

Fig. 5.5 Presentation of the

values of emissive power for
black, grey, and real surfaces

in the temperature measurement, sticking a piece of electrical tape with known emis-
sivity on the sample. The former method is called the contact method and the latter
is called the reference emissivity material method. Once the real temperature of the
heated piece is known, the sample is measured again with the infrared device, but
this time on the surface of the object rather than on the electrical tape. The config-
uration of the emissivity is then changed until the real temperature is measured and
the final configured emissivity is the emissivity of the object. Indeed, the described
mechanism represents the basis for emissivity measurement and interested readers
are directed to these specific studies [62–64] for more information.
In summary, accurate determination of the emissivity values does increase the
likelihood of getting accurate IRT test results. Although the emissivity values of the
most commonly used materials are generally provided in the literature, these values
may not useful when dealing with an IR system. This is particularly because these are
the values of the parameter ε that is simply termed emissivity without any information
about the direction and the wavelength used to obtain them. Also, the state of the
viewed surface is often not indicated. Instead, the data presented in the literature
only highlights the terms like polished, cast, rolled, oxidized, heavily oxidized, etc.,
and emissivity values range inside very large intervals which do not provide any
guarantee in terms of accuracy. To this end, it is always advisable to directly measure
the values of the emissivity of the test object with the same IR camera according
to the standards provided in Ref. [65]. In fact, almost every IRT system possesses
the software to calculate the value of the emissivity and the procedure consists just
consists in comparing the radiation emitted by the material sample and that emitted by
a blackbody at the same temperature. Since it is always advisable to work with high-
emissivity surfaces, users are generally advised to increase the surface emissivity
values of highly polished test surfaces by deposition of thin films of paint or grease.
This is generally an easy operation to perform and can be done in the laboratory or in
the field provided that the coating does not affect the surface performance of the test
structure. Since most of the composite parts will at some point include a protective
218 5 Infrared Thermography Testing and Evaluation of Fiber-Reinforced …

coating of the surface, IRT users should envision using opaque paints as they can
easily fulfill both requirements viz. surface protection and facilitation of IRT tests.
Also, other expedients such as fine sandblasting should be considered where the
paints would not be considered and adequate measures should be taken to prevent
undesired reflected radiation from hot surroundings by means of adequate screens.

5.6 Established IR Thermographic NDT Techniques

Applications involving the use of IRT for the inspection of fiber-reinforced compos-
ites (i.e., with known and relatively uniform thermal conductivity, specific heat,
and diffusivity) use these materials’ capability to deviate from their normal thermal
signature to seemingly irregular thermal signature due to the presence of defects, like
disbonds, delaminations, and slag inclusions. As stated earlier, IRT testing involves
the use of passive and active IRT, and both of these techniques are well-developed
and widely used with well-established procedures and guidelines. As one of the
well-established NDT techniques, IRT has been in development in various coun-
tries around the world for many years and is primarily used for the inspection of
composite structures in various industries including aerospace, power generation,
civil engineering and buildings, smokestacks, electrical installations, petrochemical,
automotive and art objects to name but a few, In this section of the chapter, the
application of different types of IRT are discussed and extensive examples of their
applications in these industries are provided supported by numerous illustrations and
an extensive bibliography for additional references.

5.6.1 Optical Thermography

Optical thermography uses external optical excitations such as flash, lamps, and laser
beams. In the latter case, however, optical thermography is referred to as “laser ther-
mography” and for simplicity and convenience, these two methods are separated in
this book to ensure our readers are given accurate information. Indeed their principle
should be considered the same bearing in mind that the source of heat is different. To
this end, we also acknowledge that classifications of IRT methods are often difficult
to perform. In fact, for most NDT engineers, only pulsed thermography (PT) and
lock-in thermography (LIT-IRT) are considered to be the only IRT variants and they
assume that other variants of IRT as described above remain practically the modifi-
cations of either PT-IRT or the LIT-IRT because they include either different heating
procedures and/or different data processing algorithms. Although we partly agree
with this characterization, there are indeed other aspects of these variants that make
them distinctly unique and thus the classification adopted in this chapter. Optical ther-
mography involves several subclasses of IRT including PT-IRT, LIT-IRT, PPT-IRT,
and FMT-IRT.
5.6 Established IR Thermographic NDT Techniques 219

5.6.1.1 Pulsed Thermography

PT simply consists of stimulating the test composite structure with a heating pulse
(i.e., using flash lamps or cheaper halogen lamps) and subsequently monitoring its
surface temperature variation during the transient heating or cooling phase. That is,
subsequent to the application of a short and high-energy thermal pulse to the surface
of the test composite, the temporal evolution of the temperature of the surface of
the test is measured using an IR camera allowing the surface and subsurface defects
to be detected. Applications involving the use of halogen lamps often require an
extended/longer time of heating the test structure and hence the name long pulse
thermography (LPT-IRT) for some or step pulse thermography (SPT-IRT) for others.
In fact, the term PT-IRT is also used to indicate LPT-IRT, without any distinction
including in some of the references of this book [14]. Apart from the use of flash and
halogen lamps for thermal simulation, the latter can be performed using additional
means such as scanning lasers or hot air jets although these two methods are only
used on relatively massive structures for a quick appraisal of their health status and
do generally produce a uniform heat flux over the entire surface of the structure.
Thermal stimulation can also be performed by cooling instead of heating, and this is
mainly achieved by means of cold air jets.
In their system setup, the variation of the temperature of the structure by using any
of the aforementioned thermal sources induces a rapid change in the material temper-
ature after the initial thermal perturbation. The thermal energy then propagates by
diffusion from the surface to the inner sections of the test composite while the infrared
camera continuously monitors the temperature variation over the viewed surface.
The presence of a defect or any other flaw in the composite will reduce the diffusion
rate, and defects appear in thermal images/ thermograms as the areas of different
temperatures (i.e., appear as dark stains in the temperature map) with respect to the
surroundings or sound areas of the composite once the thermal energy has reached
them (Fig. 5.6). In the case of homogeneous material and uniform surface heating,
the temperature is equally distributed across the entire composite (Fig. 5.6(a)) while
the presence of a defect interferes with the heat flow causing local surface temper-
ature variations (Fig. 5.6b and c). As such, defects detectability/visibility of defects
in composite structures depends on several factors, which include material charac-
teristics (i.e., thermal contrast), environmental conditions and instrument sensitivity
as well as the thermal properties of the composite (thermal conductivity, thermal
diffusivity) and the geometry of the defect [2, 66].
Since the propagating thermal energy does take some time to reach the inner
sections of the test composite, deeper or buried defects will be observed later and
with a reduced contrast compared with subsurface flaws. To this end, it is possible to
notice that the shallower inserts (Fig. 5.6b) are better outlined than the deeper ones
(Fig. 5.6c). In fact, several studies [5, 14, 33] indicate that the observation time t
is a function (in a first approximation) of the square of the depth z and the loss of
contrast Closs is proportional to the inverse of the cube of the depth z at which the
defect is located in the test structure. The above studies also provide the empirical
mathematical derivations which can be used to explain their findings:
220 5 Infrared Thermography Testing and Evaluation of Fiber-Reinforced …

Fig. 5.6 Thermal images of healthy and defective glass–epoxy composite materials: a healthy
composite, b buried defect at p = 1 mm, and c Buried defect at p = 4 mm [14]

z2 1
t∼
= , Closs ∼
= 3 (5.11)
α z

where,α is thermal diffusivity. These two expressions generally highlight show two
main limitations of the PT-IRT. It is observed that detectable flaws will generally
be shallow and their contrasts will be weak. In most cases, however, an empirical
rule proposed by Maldague says that the radius of the smallest detectable defect
should be at least one to two times larger than its depth under the surface [33,
67]. In a similar study [68], a critical investigation into the geometrical limitations
to the defects detection (i.e., artificially inserted defects) in fibrous composites by
means of IRT was conducted and the authors found that the thickness of the defect is
equally an important factor determining the defect detectability. In particular, a large
radius defect could be hardly distinguishable if it is very thin (e.g., kissing bonds);
conversely, a defect of a smaller radius and large thickness may be easily detectable.
In addition, surface temperature gradients are generally caused by hidden defects
but are also highly affected by local variations of the emissivity on the surface of the
material as well as the extent of achieving uniform heating when conducting the test.
As a result, it is always advisable to apply advanced post-processing procedures to
5.6 Established IR Thermographic NDT Techniques 221

the thermograms in order to improve their quality and obtain accurate information
about the defect parameters such as size, depth, and thermal resistance.

5.6.1.2 Lock-In Thermography

Also called optical lock-in thermography (OLT-IRT) or modulated thermography

(MT-IRT), LIT-IRT was first introduced by Carlomagno and Berardi in 1976 [69].
It is a phase-sensitive IR thermographic technique that uses low-frequency thermal
stimulation of tested objects. The technique is based on the application of periodic
thermal energy input to the surface of the test composite. Its principle of operation
is such that the energy (generally irradiated by halogen lamps) is delivered to the
surface test sample in a form of a periodic thermal wave. The thermographic system
is coherently coupled to the thermal wave source that is operated to produce a sinu-
soidal temperature modulation of the surface of the test structure. This modulation
is obtained from a nonlinear electrical signal produced by the lock-in module, which
also allows for frequency variation. As the resulting heatwave continues to propagate
into the sample some of it is reflected when it encounters a defect or any other form
of inhomogeneities (i.e., where the heat propagation parameters change), causing a
phase shift with respect to the input heatwave (i.e., surface wave). In the process, the
system collects a series of thermal images and compares the modulated heating to
the measured temperatures by extracting the sinusoidal wave pattern at each point of
the image, and defects or flaws can easily be identified. It is noted that both halogen
lamp and IR camera must be located on the same side (facing the sample) in classical
LIT-IRT.
Using the photothermal methods applied to the lock-in amplifier to filter the
stationary component of the heatwave, the harmonic incident heat delivered at the
surface of the test structure (i.e., only for homogeneous and semi-infinite mate-
rial) results in a time-dependent thermal wave propagating inside the test structure
according to the following relationship:
   
ηQ i z z
T̃ (z, t) = √ exp − exp i ωt − = A(z) exp i(ωt − ϕ(z)) (5.12)
2e ω μ μ

where T̃ (z, t) is the periodic temperature component, η represents the absorbed part
of the incident heat Q i , e is the material thermal effusivity, A(z) is the amplitude of
the wave, ϕ(z) is the phase shift of the thermal wave traveling inside the material, and
μ is the thermal diffusion length (which also determines the depth range for defect
detection). The value of the thermal diffusion length is calculated from the thermal
diffusivity α and the wave frequency f = ω/2π, as
 
α 2κ
μt = = (5.13)
πf ωρC p
222 5 Infrared Thermography Testing and Evaluation of Fiber-Reinforced …

where, κ is the thermal conductivity of the composite material being tested, ρ denotes
the density of the composite material being tested, C p denotes heat capacity of the
composite, α denotes thermal diffusivity of the composite material being tested, and
f frequency of the thermal wave. As indicated earlier, when the incident heatwave
encounters discontinuities in the sample, it will reflect back to the surface of the
sample. The reflected wave will then interfere with the surface wave, producing an
oscillating interference pattern that can be measured in terms of amplitude A(z)
or phase angle ϕ(z)[59]. In fact, that is where the denomination amplitude images
and phase images come from in LIT-IRT. In general, the sensitivity of the phase to
local variations of illumination and/or of the surface emissivity is negligible, which
is also one of the advantages of using LIT-IRT. However, the depth resolution of a
test conducted using the LIT-IRT is generally determined by the thermal diffusion
length μ because of its mono-frequency excitation features, and the maximum depth
that can be reached for a phase image that corresponds to 1.8 μ [14, 70, 71]. In
this framework, the detection of defects located at various depths in the test sample
requires the repetition of the test at various frequencies, which is a time-consuming
process. The maximum thickness of the material which can be inspected by LIT-
IRT starting from the stimulated surface, depends on the period of the simulated
heatwave (i.e., the longer the period or simply the lower the frequency, the deeper
the penetration) and on the thermal material properties (i.e., thermal conductivity
and volumetric specific heat) [14].

5.6.1.3 Pulsed Phase Thermography

Pulsed phase thermography (PPT-IRT) is a relatively new approach (i.e., it was origi-
nally developed in 1996) that simultaneously combines advantages of the traditional
infrared thermography techniques of PT-IRT and LI-IRT [72]. In fact, the PPT-IRT
is a phase analysis of the PT-IRT in the frequency domain and is built on thermal
wave propagation (i.e., after heating the test composite, attenuated and dispersive
waves are found inside the material close to the surface region) [5]. Periodic and
non-periodic waveforms can be estimated by adding up purely harmonic waves oscil-
lating at different frequencies. The frequency content of an ideal temporal pulse of
null duration has a frequency spectrum with uniform energy distribution between all
frequencies belonging to the interval from 0 to ∞. Although the thermal pulse in
carbon fiber-based composites is different from that of an ideal temporal pulse, it can
be recognized as a sum of thermal waves. As indicated earlier, thermal waves prop-
agate to the inside consistent with the surface heating style. Each one of the thermal
waves has a different frequency ω = 2π f, thermal diffusion length μt , and speed
v. To put this into perspective, we consider a semi-infinite specimen (i.e., planar
specimen) onto which a uniform source deposits periodically heat with modulation
of angular frequency x, the mathematical study is reduced to a one-dimensional
problem, and the equation describing the resulting temperature T as a function of
depth z and time t due to this stimulation is expressed as [34]
5.6 Established IR Thermographic NDT Techniques 223
   
2πz 2πz
T (x z, t) = T0 e−z/μ cos − ωt = T0 e−z/μ cos ωt − (5.14)
λ λ

According to thermal wave propagation theory, both the thermal diffusion length
μt and its propagation speed v can be expressed by the following equation:
 
2α 2k ω √
μt = = , and v = 2λ = 2ωα (5.15)
ω ωρC p 2π

where k denotes the material thermal conductivity,ρ is density,C p is heat capacity, α

denotes thermal diffusivity, λ = 2πμ. These expressions indicate that μ is inversely
proportional to x, suggesting that high modulation frequency thermal waves prop-
agate nearer but faster limiting the inspection to close to the surface of the test
composite while low-frequency thermal waves propagate deeper but slowly. If the
thermal diffusion length μt is greater than d, the variation of the thermal wave at this
frequency cannot be detected.
In terms of the signal processing techniques, the latter are generally based on
differential processes but PPT also uses the discrete Fourier transform (DFT) when
dealing with the phase analysis. The differential phase spectra are obtained by
subtracting the defect-free phase spectrum from defect phase spectra and then using
the phase spectra or differential phase spectra to extract the different features of the
test structure. at either the blind frequency (i.e., the frequency at which the defect
becomes visible or differential spectrum arrives at zero) [73] or the differential phase
spectra [5, 34] (i.e., from the min phase or frequency to min phase).

5.6.1.4 Phase or Frequency Modulated Thermography

In terms of their performance and applicability in the inspection of structural compos-

ites, each of the aforementioned thermographic methods (PT-IRT, LIT-IRT, and PPT-
IRT) presents its fors and againsts. Typically, the PT involves the utilization of high
power excitation sources with a short-pulse to obtain the results with a high signal-to-
noise ratio (SNR) and this kind of power may damage the composite sample. Also,
users should be careful when interpreting the results because the surface tempera-
ture gradients do not only depend on the presence of hidden defects but also some
other parameters such as the local variations of emissivity and non-uniform heating.
Although the phase angle can limit the sensitivity of LIT-IRT to local fluctuations
in illumination and/or surface emissivity, the depth resolution of this type of IRT
technique is determined by the thermal wavelength. In this context, the detection
of defects and/or damage situated at various locations in the test sample is gener-
ally a time-consuming process because tests are conducted at different frequencies
to accommodate all the depths (i.e., defects/damage locations) in the sample [74].
In addition, one should also be aware of the trade-off between the defect/damage
detection depth and the depth resolution to ensure accurate test results and guarantee
224 5 Infrared Thermography Testing and Evaluation of Fiber-Reinforced …

the effective utilization of the LIT-IRT system. To this end, low-frequency thermal
waves can penetrate deeper into the sample, but they do not provide adequate depth
resolution that could help identify the small defects. The scenario is exactly the oppo-
site when using, high-frequency thermal waves because of the reduction in thermal
diffusion length and thermal wavelength. The use of phase images in PPT provides
the same benefits the phase images in LIT-IRT, but users should always know that
the energy amplitude of the results reduces with the increasing frequency. Although
PT-IRT, LIT-IRT, and PPT-IRT present good inspection results, these methods are
often confronted with several limitations including inspection depth, dissimilarity in
heat distribution during the heating process, depth resolution, limited sensitivity, and
broadband frequency. To deal with some of these drawbacks, the frequency modula-
tion (FM) technique was introduced in IRT in the 1990s (i.e., used in photoacoustic
and photothermal fields at its inception) [75]. There are currently many different
FM-based techniques developed after this initial implementation in the 1990s and
each presents its advantages and disadvantages. At the beginning of the twenty-first
century, for example, several IRT methods based on linear frequency modulated
(LFM) and different signal processing methods were proposed [74, 76]. To achieve
adequate energy localization using pulse compression techniques through the reduc-
tion of the width of the CC peak while increasing its height, the binary phase coded
(BPC) modulation can be used [77]. In [78], a novel 7 bit Barker coded binary
phase excitation was proposed. In [79], quadratic frequency modulation (i.e., non-
stationary nonlinear frequency modulation) was proposed in IRT. This technique
offers the ability to obtain more energy deposition, better depth resolution, improved
dynamic range, and sidelobe reduction which are all beneficial for effective/accurate
IRT tests. In a similar study [74], the authors extracted the amplitude and phase
information at various frequency components in captured IRT image sequences (i.e.,
phase and amplitude information was using the Fourier transform on each pixel of the
thermogram sequence). In Ref. [80], the authors investigated the possibility of using
the pulse compression method (i.e., this method is generally used in radar systems) to
evaluate and characterize the flat-bottom holes at various depths in a mild steel plate.
In their study, they processed the reference signal with the sample signal to obtain the
time delay between the different flat-bottom holes through the correlation algorithm.
In [76], the authors illustrated the utilization of the thermal wave radar and the cross-
correlation matched filtering technique to anlayze the thermogram sequences in the
frequency domain. The aim was to develop a novel subsurface imaging modality
based on the IRT technique with extended depth-resolution dynamic range. The
authors indicated that the cross correlation peak delay times can build an accurate
relationship with the thickness of the sample/defect or the depth/location of the
defect in the test structure. However, these authors indicated that the cross correla-
tion peak delay times decrease with the increasing thickness, suggesting that the
use of this method for the imaging or testing of thick fibrous composite struc-
tures should be carefully investigated to ensure accurate results are obtained. In
Ref. [81], the authors proposed an emissivity-normalized, higher-dynamic-range
contrast parameter known as cross-correlation phase (time-domain phase) based
on cross-correlation matched filtering and Hilbert transform. They aimed to obtain
5.6 Established IR Thermographic NDT Techniques 225

an emissivity-normalized system that they named “thermophotonic radar imaging

system” with exquisite advantages over the phase LIT.

5.6.2 Laser Thermography

Laser thermography is optical thermography [42, 82], which uses a laser beam as
the thermal source to heat the test sample. In other words, laser thermography uses a
raster-scanned pulsed laser to scan the surface of a sample, while a thermal imaging
camera detects any change in thermal profile arising from any surface-breaking
defect present, where only one side of the defect is heated. This technique exists
under many different variants including laser pulsed thermography (LPT-IRT), laser
pulsed phase thermography (LPPT-IRT), laser lock-in thermography (LLIT-IRT),
and laser frequency-modulated thermography (LFMT-IRT). Each of these techniques
presents its advantages [5, 43, 83], and interested readers are directed to these specific
studies for more information about their theoretical background and application
performances for the inspection of composite structures.

5.6.3 Eddy Current Thermography

Eddy Current Thermography (ECT-IRT) is an integrative technique that combines

eddy current and thermographic NDTs (i.e., is based on electromagnetic induction
and Joule effect heating) to provide an efficient method for flaw detection in structural
systems. The technique is applicable to electrically conductive material and has
the ability to detect surface and subsurface defects. ECT-IRT presents many other
advantages over other types of IRT techniques viz. it is non-contact, provides high-
speed inspection, full-field, and high spatial resolution in the range of μms [2].
As indicated earlier, ECT-IRT is also a type of volume heating thermography and
is generally applied to the inspection of CFRP due to its small conductivity and
great skin depth [27, 40]. The technique can be traced back to the 1990s. In this
year, the first thermographic NDT technique using transient temperature distribution
under the Joule effect heating (i.e., by either an induction current or an electric
current) was presented to the NDT community [84]. At the beginning of the twentieth
century, a novel thermographic NDT technique based on the singular method and
combined with the LIT-IRT technique was proposed by the authors in Ref. [85].
In subsequent studies, several other ECT-IRT-based methods were proposed [86–
89]. These include the thermal-inductive technique [86], electromagnetic-thermal
technique [87], tone burst eddy current thermography (TBEC-IRT) [88], eddy current
lock-in thermography (ECLIT-IRT) [89], eddy current pulsed thermography (ECPT-
IRT) [90], and eddy current step thermography (ECST-IRT) [91]. In its configuration,
ECT-IRT is generally built on induction heating, heat conduction, and IR imaging
device. Its operation is such that the electric current passing through the coil will
226 5 Infrared Thermography Testing and Evaluation of Fiber-Reinforced …

induce eddy currents and generate resistive heat in the test composite. The extent of
these eddy currents are governed by penetration depth also referred to as skin depth,
which is based on skin effect and calculated as follows [5]:

1
δ=√ (5.16)
πμσ f

where, f denotes the frequency of the excitation signal, σ the electrical conductivity,
and μ the magnetic permeability for the test composite. Generally speaking, skin
depths vary with the type of electromagnetic materials. Typically, the skin depth is
significantly great (i.e., about 50 mm under 100 kHz excitation) for CFRP whose
conductivity values are about 100 S/m. To this end, the volumetric heating styles
generally give better heating results compared to other types of heating styles [27].
At the same time during the induction heating process, the IR camera captures all
pixels of IR radiation as an image with a sampling frequency and the image sequence
is sent to a computer system for subsequent analysis. It is noted that the defects
in the sample do generally heat up and exhibit significant temperature differences
more than homogeneous materials due to locally enhanced eddy current density
or interrupted conduction of the heat. Eddy current thermographic techniques are
divided into several categories viz. eddy current pulsed thermography (ECPT-IRT)
[90, 92], eddy current step thermography (ECS-IRT), eddy current lock-in thermog-
raphy (ECLIT-IRT) [93], and eddy current pulsed phase thermography (ECPPT-
IRT) [94], depending on the heating function and the signal processing techniques
involved. In composite materials, only the feasibility of the ECPT-IRT, ECLT-IRT,
and ECPPT-IRT have been investigated [5, 27, 40] and their performance has been
documented.
In summary, available literature on the development and applications of EC-
IRT indicates that this technique can be performed using eddy current step heating
thermography (ECSHT-IRT), eddy current pulsed thermography (ECPT-IRT), eddy
current pulsed phase thermography (ECPPT-IRT), and eddy current lock-in thermog-
raphy (ECLIT-IRT). Although eddy current frequency-modulated thermography is
still at the development stage, the technique is expected to be realized soon and
transformed into a full-field NDT technique. As the name indicates, EC-IRT does
combine the advantages of eddy current testing and thermography NDT (e.g., the
technique is non-contact, full-field, fast, high efficiency, etc.). Its effectiveness has
been most demonstrated when using it with conductive composites, especially for
CFRP. Although the radio frequency ECT-IRT is rarely seen in the literature, this
technique is potentially effective especially for the inspection and characterization
of CFRP. Additional information about each of the aforementioned eddy current-
based thermographic methods are available in the literature and interested readers
are directed to these specific studies for detailed information.
5.6 Established IR Thermographic NDT Techniques 227

5.6.4 Microwave Thermography

Generally speaking, the principles of microwave thermography (MWT-IRT) mainly

includes microwave heating and 3D heat conduction. In MWT-IRT practices,
microwave heating is a new heating technology that uses dielectric loss (i.e., a process
within a family of electromagnetic heat techniques such as induction, radio frequency,
direct resistance, or IR heating). In contrast, the heat Q generated by dielectric loss or
the Joule heat will be conducted from inside to the surrounding material in 3D heat
conduction. This technique is particularly important for the testing and evaluation
of composite materials during the manufacturing process because of its ability to
provide a quick and relatively uniform heat distribution, as well as an effective volu-
metric and selective heating capabilities of the sample are some of the most important
advantages of MWT-IRT. Its equipment is also capable of providing fast to on and
off positions, pollution-free measurements and, compact/self-contained measuring
devices, which are all beneficial especially when performing inspections on test struc-
tures in the field [5]. Importantly, microwave leakage can certainly be kept well below
government recommended levels, and the allowable microwave heating frequencies
are either close to 900 MHz or 2450 MHz. Indeed, these frequencies are internation-
ally recognized as the safest to use and the fact that they do not interfere with the
communication infrastructure is another added advantage [95]. In NDT, microwave
radiation has been used associated with IRT in many different applications including
the detection of mine and buried objects [96] and the evaluation/characterization of
composites materials among others [97–99]. In terms of their operation, the physics
behind MWT-RTT is mainly the dielectric loss that occurs in dielectric materials such
as GFRP composite materials. In such materials, the microwave heating process is
volumetric heating (i.e., also known as dielectric loss heating). Considering GFRP
composites, for example, the material dielectric loss in the microwave radiation field
will generate heat, and the dissipated power per unit volume P in the dielectric
medium can be expressed as follows [95]:

P = 2π f ε0 ε E 2 (5.17)

where f and E denote the frequency and the RMS value of the electric field of the
microwave radiation, ε0 denotes the dielectric constant or permittivity of the air, and

ε denotes the relative loss factor, which clearly quantifies the power dissipation in
the test material. The temperature change per unit over a heating time t by the power
dissipation of continuous microwave is given by the following equation [95]:

Pt ωε0 ε E 2
T (t) = = t (5.18)
ρC p ρC p
228 5 Infrared Thermography Testing and Evaluation of Fiber-Reinforced …

where, ρ and C p denote the density and heat capacity of the material. In this equation,
it is clear that the general heat conduction within the dielectric material is a time-
dependent heat diffusion equation. A closer look at this same expression indicates that
when using constant microwave parameters for a composite material with constant
properties, the temperature increases linearly with time (i.e., during a short period
of time).
In IRT NDT, the application of MWT-IRT was first proposed by Leveque and
Ambrosio in the 1990s [100, 101]. The earliest concrete example outlining the
use of the MWT-IRT for the inspection of concrete structures is presented in Ref.
[149]. In this study, the authors indicated that when microwave radiation is applied
to the concrete structure with wet cracks, water in the cracks can be selectively
heated by the microwave and cracks can be easily located by the inspectors. To
date, several MW-IRT techniques have been developed stemming from the afore-
mentioned initial concept though utilizing different heating functions. According to
the microwave heating function, microwave thermography can be achieved through
microwave pulse thermography (MWPT-IRT), microwave time-resolved thermog-
raphy (MWTRT-IRT) which is also known as microwave step thermography (MWST-
IRT), and microwave lock-in thermography (MWLIT-IRT). In MWP-IRT, one small
period of microwave excitation pulse is used to heat the test material and the temper-
ature rises and decreases in the heating and cooling phases, respectively. The phase
analysis is carried out in the frequency domain. In MWTRT-IRT/MWST-IRT, a long
pulse is used to step heat the test material/structure and the temperature increase
is observed in the heating phase. In MWLIT-IRT, a periodic amplitude modulated
microwave is used to heat the test sample and the periodic temperature change is
captured [102]. Consistent with the aforementioned, we can easily conclude that
both the MWPT-IRT and MWST-IRT analyze the temperature of thermal imaging in
the time domain, which is affected by surface emissivity variations and non-uniform
heating. However, the MWLIT-IRT obtains the test information in the frequency
domain such as phase, which can suppress the influence of the surface emissivity
variations and non-uniform heating. The only downside associated with the MWLIT-
IRT is that their inspection systems require a long measurement time and they are
relatively complex which makes them difficult to carry for field applications.

5.6.5 Vibrothermography and Ultrasound Thermography

In contrast to classical thermography, vibrothermography is a term coined by the

authors to describe a concept and related techniques whereby the internal integrity
and uniformity of materials and components is interrogated by observing the heat
pattern produced by the energy dissipation which occurs when a specific vibratory
excitation is applied to the test structure. In other words, the energy is delivered to the
surface of the test structure by optical means, in vibrothermography arrangements
the test structure is mechanically excited using elastic waves (e.g., sonic or ultra-
sonic oscillations) that induce mechanical vibration. Generally, vibrothermography
5.6 Established IR Thermographic NDT Techniques 229

consists of the study of thermographic (heat) patterns that are recorded or observed
in real-time during such an excitation. In case ultrasonic waves are used as the exci-
tation source, vibrothermography is referred to as ultrasound thermography. Its oper-
ation consists of the propagation of damped acoustic waves along with the material
which converts mechanical energy into thermal energy. In the vicinity of the flaws
(e.g., cracks, delamination, artificial inserts, etc.), the energy dissipation becomes
bigger due to friction between the faces of the flaw and/or stress concentration in the
surrounding area. It is clear that this mechanical excitation behaves like a selective
inner heat source that selectively heats defect features and diffuses from inside the
test structure towards the source and gets detected as a temperature variation by an
IR camera [103, 104]. The attenuation of elastic waves in a solid due to internal
mechanical losses was first reported in the 1970s (i.e., for both the continuous and
pulsed ultrasound injection), prompting the development of vibrothermography as an
NDT technique for material and structural systems [105, 106]. The lock-in principle
of modulating the frequency of the excitation source and evaluating the response
vis-à-vis the modulation frequency was first applied to vibrothermography in the
1990s [5], and the lock-in vibrothermography was proposed thereof [103]. Right
at the beginning of the twenty-first century, UBPT-IRT [158, 159] and ultrasound
frequency-modulated thermography (UFMT-IRT) [160] were proposed. Presently,
several types of ultrasound thermography methods are used as part of the IRT NDT
including ultrasound lock-in thermography (ULIT-IRT), UBPT-IRT, and ultrasound
frequency-modulated thermography (UFMT-IRT). The following sections present
both the theoretical background and detailed information about each one of these
types of vibrothermography systems. Examples of applications are also listed in the
section on applications of IRT to the inspection of composites structures.

5.6.5.1 Ultrasound Lock-In Thermography

In ultrasound lock-in thermography (ULI-IRT), the lock-in principle of modulating

the excitation source and evaluating the response consistent with the modulation
frequency is used with ultrasound IRT system to improve the IRT output signal [107].
In some studies, the ULIT-IRT is also referred to as the attenuation mapping method
as it is a defect selective “dark field” IRT technique. The ULIT-IRT presents several
advantages over other types of IRT including a high probability of defect detection
(POD) since only defects produce a signal while other features are suppressed. It
basic principle of operation is shown is presented in Ref. [108]. In order to perform
the ULIT, the inspector modulates the ultrasound amplitude at a frequency that fits
the propagation of the thermal wave in the test composite (i.e., lock-in frequency).
A defect warms up periodically in the ultrasound field at the modulation frequency,
it becomes a transmitter of a thermal wave that propagates to the surface where it is
detected after the sequence of images has been filtered by the Fourier transformation
(FFT) performed at the modulation frequency. All these advantages contribute to the
fact that only defects are shown in the thermal images (i.e., hence the denomination
of defect-selective imaging) [5]. ULIT-IRT acts like a thermal contrast agent working
230 5 Infrared Thermography Testing and Evaluation of Fiber-Reinforced …

Fig. 5.7 The basic principle

of ULIT-IRT—The
ultrasound frequency is
typically 20 kHz and the
lock-in frequency is about
0.1 Hz. The thermal wave to
be extracted from the stack
recorded by the IR camera
has a lower frequency [108]

on defects with enhanced mechanical losses and both amplitude and phase can be
obtained from the test results. The phase contains the propagation time of the thermal
wave from the defect to the surface, suggesting that it is actually used to determine the
depth where the defect is located. Figure 5.7 presents the basic principle of ULIT-IRT.
The ultrasound frequency is typically 20 kHz, lock-in frequency 0.1 Hz. Thermal
wave to be extracted from stack recorded by IR camera has the lower frequency.
In contrast to optically excited LIT-IRT, the depth penetration range of ultrasound-
activated LIT-IRT does depend on several parameters including the input power
and/or the noise level in the detector. Interestingly, this penetration depth is not limited
by the interference of thermal waves because the detected thermal wave has moved
only one way. However, the frequency dependence √ of the thermal wave attenuation is
described by the thermal diffusion length μ = 2α/ω where α is diffusivity and ω
the modulation frequency is still an important quantity which also affects depth range.
According to this relationship, it appears that only defects that are close enough to
the surface can be detected at a higher frequency. In fact, this depth range can be
adjusted through the modulation frequency, suggesting that several images obtained
at different modulation frequencies can still be used to obtain in-depth information.
One of the problems encountered during the inspection of rectangular composite
plates with low attenuation of ultrasonic waves is the effect of standing elastic waves.
Although this effect is a disadvantage for the ULIT-IRT, it is strictly vital for the
proper functioning of many musical instruments where it causes a superposition
of a confusing pattern. As such standing waves appear only when the ultrasound
frequency matches the resonance frequency of the test composite, this effect can be
eliminated by modulating the ultrasound frequency [109]. Instead of performing such
measurements one after the other, an amplitude modulation containing the relevant
thermal wave frequencies of interest can be used. The authors in Ref. [72] were the
first to report this approach in the 1990s, and it was later applied to the inspection of
real-time structures in the early 2000s [110]. The idea is to use a burst instead of a
sinusoidal modulation and hence the development of ultrasound burst thermography
(UBT-IRT) and subsequently ultrasound burst phase thermography (UBPT-IRT).
Although the UBPT-IRT will be discussed in the following section it is important
to highlight some of the facts that lead to its development. As indicated earlier, its
first denomination was “ultrasonic burst thermography” which implies that a burst
is used instead of a sinusoidal modulation. If the burst is long enough, its frequency
5.6 Established IR Thermographic NDT Techniques 231

spectrum contains low enough frequencies to achieve the required depth range and
provide relevant in-depth information of the different features in the test structure. If
the burst is too short to be more like a pulse, this spectrum has most of its intensity
at higher frequencies where the range is too short to reveal defects or features in the
in-depth direction. In that case, the ultrasound energy heats the defects/flaw without
providing information about them and the stack of images resulting from burst exci-
tation is Fourier transformed with respect to several thermal wave frequencies. The
resulting phase angle images provide information on several depths from just one
measurement. To this end, it is clear that the UBPT features the advantages of both
lock-in and pulse thermography. UBPT-IRT allows for fast measurements while the
full potential of phase images is maintained. To avoid confusion, it should be repeated
that UBPT requires high-frequency ultrasound excitation for efficient conversion of
elastic energy into heat in defects. Also, this frequency must be smeared out by
modulation or sweeping fast enough in order to avoid resonance patterns (i.e., unless
one wants to see them) and the duration of the burst must be optimized in terms
of range and material properties. In terms of applications, the ULIT-IRT is mostly
used for the inspection of aircraft composite structures [5, 111]. Important details
and relevant examples are provided in the section on applications of the IRT.

5.6.5.2 Ultrasound Burst Phase Thermography

As indicated earlier, UBPT-IRT was developed as a combination of both the UB-IRT

and ULIT-IRT and is a defect-selective and fast thermal imaging tool for damage
detection. In its operation, the UBPT-IRT only uses short ultrasound bursts as the
excitation source to cause the crack surfaces to rub or clap, thus inducing frictional
heating (i.e., in the same way the UBT-IRT does), and the heating up followed by
a cooling down periods of the test sample are captured by an IR camera in a form
thermal images [111]. Interestingly, the UBPT-IRT derives the phase angle images
using FFT (i.e., both the amplitude and the phase information are obtained from
Fourier Transformation of the temperature response) [112, 113], and hence, the UBP-
IRT combines the advantages of both ULT-IRT and UBT-IRT [108]. In general, the
phase image does provide better detection contrast than the amplitude image since it is
less sensitive to local optical features such as the non-homogeneous emissivity of the
test surface. Given the fact that the transform analysis of an ideal Dirac pulse δ(t) in
the time domain provides an infinite flat spectrum in the frequency domain, it follows
that the UBP thermal signals of many frequencies are injected from the defects. In
fact, the sequence of infrared images to process witnessing the temperature changes
following the ultrasound is excited into the sample. In terms of signal processing, the
temporal evolution f (x) is first extracted from the image sequence (where x denotes
the index in the image sequence) for each pixel (i, j). After that, the discrete Fourier
transform is computed using the following expression [113]:
232 5 Infrared Thermography Testing and Evaluation of Fiber-Reinforced …

N −1
1  
F(u) = f (x) exp −j2πux/N = R(u) + jI (u) (5.19)
N x=0

In this equation, R(u) and I (u) denote the real and imaginary components of F(u),
respectively, and N denotes the image sequence number. Lastly, both the amplitude
and the phase are computed for each of the transformed terms as follows:

|F(u)| = I 2 (u) + R 2 (u)
I (u) (5.20)
(u) = arctan R(u)

In general, its working frequencies range from 0 and to 1 x (i.e., x denotes the
time interval between images, 1/x is the sampling rate). This technique presents
many advantages over other types of IRT NDT techniques. Typically, the UBP-IRT
provides images with a better SNR, and hence defect detectability (i.e., due to the
phase information) is significantly better than temperature images taken from the
recorded sequence. Information describing the defects and/or any other features of
the composite is extracted from the local spectral components of recorded signals.
In fact, this information is extracted in a way that is similar to that used to extract
the defect information from the lock-in signals but with improved robustness against
coupling problems and with reduced measuring time delays. Also, the signal charac-
terizing the defects is generally contained in a limited spectral range while the noise
remains distributed over the whole spectrum (i.e., with the possibility of reducing it
as well). In conclusion, the UBP-IRT allows users to perform faster inspections than
using the ULIT-IRT while the advantages of phase images are the same (i.e., easy
depth-resolved recognition of defects, suppression of inhomogeneous emissivity,
suppression of unnecessary temperature gradients, etc.) [112]. Additional examples
outlining the applications of the UBPT-IRT to the inspection of composite structures
are provided in the section on applications.

5.6.5.3 Ultrasound Thermography Based on Frequency Modulation

In general, ultrasound excited thermography allows for defect selective imaging

using thermal waves that are generated by elastic waves. The thermal excitation
mechanism involved is local friction or hysteresis which turns a dynamically loaded
defect into a heat source and is identified by a thermography system. If the excitation
frequency matches the resonance of the vibrating system, temperature patterns caused
by standing elastic waves can occur [114]. Ultrasonic thermography is versatile and
involves two major types of frequency modulation. The first is the mono-frequency
ultrasonic wave modulated by the frequency-modulated lock-in signal and is referred
to as ultrasound frequency modulation thermography (UFMT-IRT) [164]. The second
frequency-modulated ultrasound thermography (FMUT-IRT), and as the name indi-
cates, FMUT-IRT uses is the frequency modulated ultrasound as the excitation source.
Technically speaking, UFMT-IRT is derived from the optical frequency-modulated
5.6 Established IR Thermographic NDT Techniques 233

thermography (OFMT-IRT) [114–116], while FMUT-IRT can be applied either as

the UBP-IRT with pulse modulation and phase analysis or as the ULIT-IRT with
periodical modulation and phase analysis and get named frequency-modulated ultra-
sound burst phase thermography (FMUBPT-IRT) and frequency-modulated ultra-
sound lock-in thermography (FMULT-IRT), respectively. In terms of their operation,
experiments indicate that the UFM-IRT features the same sets of advantages as those
observed with the OFMT-IRT, while the FMUT-IRT is generally used to avoid the
standing wave pattern when applying the mono-frequency excitation [5]. Indeed,
standing wave patterns are commonly observed when the mono-frequent excitation
is applied to a sample and this frequency matches the resonance of the vibrating
system. In some cases, standing elastic waves may appear as temperature patterns
(i.e., due to hysteretic losses in the elongation maximum) causing misinterpretations
of the inspection results by the operators. In some other cases, the defect could be
hidden in a node (i.e., blind spot) while the standing wave maximum might appear
as a defect. The latter is generally considered the worst case scenario associated with
standing elastic waves as it can completely obstruct the visualization of some flaws
when their positions coincide with the blind spots. In order to avoid this problem,
UFMT-IRT was proposed as its excitation is a frequency modulation ultrasound and
standing wave patterns are easily superimposed by the fields of propagating waves
which provide exceptional sensitivity to the areas where only nodes existed before
[114, 116]. Examples of the studies outlining the applications of ultrasound ther-
mography based on frequency modulation to the inspection of composite structures
are provided in the section on applications.

5.7 Scanning IR Thermographic NDT

As part of structural damage assessment systems, scanning IR thermographic NDT

methods are also being developed to evaluate the health status of composite struc-
tures from the material processing to the in-service stages of the final products [117,
118]. The literature survey indicates that the two most popular scanning IRT methods
are line scanning thermography (LST-IRT) and scanning eddy current thermography
(SECT-IRT). The former is an emerging NDT technique and its system utilizes both
a line heating source that thermally excites the surface of the test composite structure
and an IR detector that measures the transient variations in the surface temperature to
identify regions of increased heat resistance (i.e., regions of increased heat resistance
are associated with the material defects and damage such as interlaminar disbonds,
delamination, matrix crazing, and/or any other material degradation or discontinu-
ities present in the test structures) [118]. As the name indicates, the SEC-IRT uses the
features of an eddy current thermographic technique configured in scanning config-
uration, where the induction coil moves over the sample at optimal speeds and the
temperature on the sample is captured using an IR camera in the form of video
images [5]. The details and principles of operation of each of these two techniques
are provided in the flowing sections.
234 5 Infrared Thermography Testing and Evaluation of Fiber-Reinforced …

5.7.1 Line Scanning Thermography

Originally, line scanning thermography (LS-IRT) is a dynamic IRT technique that

was patented by NASA in 1999. In NDT of material systems, this technique
has been successfully applied to the detection and characterization of defects and
damage/material degradation in fibrous composite materials [51, 119, 120]. As the
name indicates, its principle of operation is such that the heat source is moved across
the surface of the test structure at a constant speed and an IR camera is used to record
any temperature variations during the heating process. The IR detector moves in
tandem with the heat source and the camera’s field of view is adjusted for the latter
to be able to capture the entire region above and below the position where heat is
being deposited. The initial temperature distribution measured from the unheated
regions of the test sample is used as the reference while the temperature recorded
in the heated region is used to evaluate the cooling behavior after heat subsequently
deposition which enables users to detect any discontinuities (i.e., dissimilarities of
the features on the surface of the interior of the sample) or material property changes
that might be present [48, 49]. Figure 5.8 presents the schematic representation of a
laser LST-IRT system, the propagation of the thermal waves along the surface and
through the thickness as well as the thermal wave propagating patterns after the line
laser beam scanning process.
In terms of the applications of LST-IRT to the inspection of composite struc-
tures, Ley et al. [122] demonstrated that the LST-IRT can effectively evaluate the
severity of impact damage. In this study, the authors were able to prove that the
LST-IRT images provide accurate information about the region affected by impact
damage by comparing their results with those obtained by ultrasonic testing systems.
In Ref. [51], Ley and Godinez-Azcuaga presented their investigation into the theory
and applications of LST for the inspection of structural systems in which an entire
section was dedicated to the inspection of aerospace composite and sandwich struc-
tures. Indeed one of the most interesting studies is the work presented by a group of
researchers from the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST)
[121]. In this study, the authors implemented an LS-IRT remote inspection system
to examine internal delamination in wind turbine blades. The remote delamination
inspection was achieved by mechanically scanning a line laser beam and simultane-
ously capturing the corresponding thermal waves from the test WTBs. Interestingly,
the study also reports having been able to quantify and classify the different types of
damage by analyzing laser-induced thermal wave propagating patterns. In order to
examine the feasibility of the real-time application of their LS-IRT system, both the
laboratory and full-scale tests were performed using a CFRP plate, a 10 kW GFRP
wind turbine blade, and a 3 MW GFRP wind turbine blade. The test results demon-
strated that the 10 mm diameter internal delamination located 1 mm underneath the
blade surface was successfully detected even 10 m far from the target blade with a
laser scanning speed of 2 mm/s. Figure 5.9 depicts the schematic representation of
their systems measurement setup.
Additional studies involving the applications of LST-IRT include the work
reported in [49] and [50], the feasibility of using LS-IRT to examine the bonding
5.7 Scanning IR Thermographic NDT 235

Fig. 5.8 Illustration of a typical a configuration of a laser-based LST-IRT system, b propagation

of laser-induced thermal waves along the surface and through the thickness using a scanning line
laser beam, and c thermal wave propagation patterns after line laser beam scanning according to
the structure conditions, (i.e., intact, internal delamination and surface damage) [121]

quality in the inner sections of WTB, and samples with similar geometry, material
composition, and layer structure were investigated. Three types of samples viz. a flat
GFRP composite laminate and sandwich panels with simulated defects as well as a
section of a WTB were tested. Results indicated that the LST-IRT does indeed provide
a quick and efficient method to evaluate large composite structures such as WTBs.
An optimized dynamic LST for aircraft structures was also presented recently in Ref.
[123]. An Application of line scanning thermography for the detection of interlam-
inar disbonds in sandwich composite structures [117]. In a recent study, WTBs have
also been inspected using a laser-based LST-IRT under rotating conditions [124]. A
laser-based LST-IRT system with an advanced scanning algorithm was used to detect
and analyze faults in WTB. Although the sensor was based on ultrasonic testing tech-
nique and generated noise in the measured signals, their algorithm was able to filter
the noise and eliminate false alarms and accurate results were reported. Today, LST-
IRT remains a well-established NDT technique and several algorithms have been
implemented in recent years to improve its scanning speed [125], spatial resolution
236 5 Infrared Thermography Testing and Evaluation of Fiber-Reinforced …

Fig. 5.9 Illustration of a the laboratory-scale test setup of the proposed LST-IRT system, and b
the remote inspection test of the proposed LS-IRT system setup [121]

[126] as well as spatial calibration [118] which are highly important features of LST-
IRT allowing for accurate extraction of the spatial information from the measured
images.

5.7.2 Scanning Eddy Current Thermography

As indicated earlier, scanning IRT has been used for years with laser spot heating
and with an IR camera recording the temperature distribution on the surface of
the test structure. As a vertical the flaw perturbs the lateral heat flow when the
sample moves across a fixed-line heat source at a constant speed or vice versa,
the flaw can be made visible by evaluating the local changes of the infrared image
5.7 Scanning IR Thermographic NDT 237

(e.g., with spatial derivation). Similar to line scanning thermography, ECT-IRT can
be set up in scanning configuration and hence the denomination “scanning eddy
current thermography (SECT-IRT)”. In this configuration, an induction coil moves
to heat the sample at an optimal speed, while the IR camera measures the temperature
changes on the sample in a form of video images. The measured video images are
retrieved from the IR camera system and the pixel columns are used to generate a
new image sequence. Images are adjusted based on the shift between their times
of recording, and the sequence denotes the temporal variations of the temperature
following a short heating pulse. Since the features of the sample are generally not
easily visualized, users are recommended to use algorithms such as FFT to process
the newly obtained image sequences to extract the features of the test samples. There
are several applications of this technique that have been reported in the literature
[52]. In [52], the authors developed a line SEC-IRT system featuring a fixed linear
induction coil and a fixed IR camera to examine a sample moving along the camera
and coil to identify the air gaps between adhesive bonded plates. The authors also
used a linear actuator to move the sample alongside these two fixtures at a constant
speed as well as the conversion algorithm to extract one column of pixels parallel
to the coil and create an image at a specified distance from the heat source. Using
all the pixel columns and creating a separate image from each one of the individual
columns, a new IR image sequence was created. The obtained image sequences were
evaluated using the scanning PPT-IRT technique.
In a recent study [127], the application of a SECT-IRT system for imaging damage
in CFRP plates was demonstrated. In scanning induction thermography, the induction
coil moves over the sample at optimal speeds, and the temperature developed in the
sample due to Joule heating effects is captured as a function of time and distance using
an IR camera in the form of video images. The authors indicated that even though
CFRP plates have a relatively lower electrical conductivity compared to their metallic
counterparts, enough heat could still be generated enabling an effective application
of the scanning induction thermography technique for their inspection. In addition,
measurable temperatures could still be achieved using relatively low currents, when
compared to metals. However, results indicate that some structural features (e.g.,
holes, joints, corners, etc.) behave like large flaws and produce high thermal contrast,
which limits the ability of users to detect real flaws. To overcome this problem, users
should accurately know the structural arrangements of their test samples and use
advanced image processing algorithms to reduce the effects of structural features
and improve the accuracy of the test results. Line SECT has been used to detect
flaws such as broken fibers and delamination in carbon fiber-reinforced composite
plates by monitoring IR radiation from the surface of the test sample after heating
is applied [128]. In a similar study [129], surface-breaking cracks were excellently
detected after they are selectively heated by using inductive line scanning.
238 5 Infrared Thermography Testing and Evaluation of Fiber-Reinforced …

5.8 Applications of IRT-NDT for Composite Structures

IRT techniques have always been viewed as the most successful type of NDT tech-
niques for composite materials. To this end, several applications have been reported
featuring the use of IRT for the evaluation and characterization of composite mate-
rials. Indeed there are several types of IRT techniques, though they are always based
on the collection/measurement of temperature gradient responses by IR camera
and the resulting thermograms being analyzed to extract the information about the
damage [130]. Figure 5.10 illustrates the procedure used by NDT engineers and
practitioners to estimate the size of the damage from the thermograms and Fig. 5.11
shows a continuous-wave thermograph following an impact strike on a thin GFRP
laminate and the visual indentation zone it caused on the composite. Although IRT
is generally flexible, provides users with highly intuitive images (i.e., images that are

Fig. 5.10 Illustration of the method used by IRT users to evaluate the apparent size of the defect
in the composite after an IRT image is taken: a 7 × 7 × 0.1 mm3 PTFE insert in 2 mm-thick CFRP
specimen, depth 0.2 mm, heating time 10 ms, observation time 0.1 s (the source image), b same as
(a), PCA image, 2nd component, and c 25% material loss, 40 mm defect diameter, 10 mm-thick
AISI 1010 steel, halogen lamp heating, phasegram [17]

Fig. 5.11 Representation of the a image produced by a continuous-wave IRT system following
impact damage on a thin GFRP laminate, and b a photograph of the impacted region, defined by
the heavy black line [132]
5.8 Applications of IRT-NDT for Composite Structures 239

easily interpretable to identify defects and/or damage), and can perform quick and
real-time inspections for relatively large areas even while the structure is in-service
[56], the test data measured by an IR camera is often affected by some spurious envi-
ronmental or system embedded factors (e.g., external reflections, system noise and
calibration deleterious effects, variations in the optical properties of the specimens,
and uneven heating, etc.) [2]. In some cases, these factors produce abnormal thermal
patterns in the recorded thermograms and may contribute to the erroneous interpre-
tation of the test results or complicate the inspection process altogether. As such,
several signal processing techniques have been devised and are constantly used to
limit their deleterious effects in the measured thermal images, improve the thermal
contrast and enhance the damage identification and evaluation capabilities of the
testing system. An extensive review of the different signal processing methods used
to enhance the quality of the IRT data along with their application requirements and
conditions are provided in the literature [17, 131] and interested readers are directed
to these specific studies for more information.
As indicated earlier, the literature reports many different variants of IRT and their
most common forms are those that use optical excitation sources owing to their rapid
and relatively cost-effectiveness systems compared to other types of IRT variants.
Although IRT testing techniques can inspect different types of surface and subsurface
discontinuities in the fibrous composites when combined with some of the advanced
signal processing techniques [18], these techniques are still not highly sensitive to in-
depth flaws as well as surface and subsurface micro-cracks with dimensions ranging
from 10 μm to a few millimeters [6]. This withstanding, it is important to indicate
that the literature often cites laser thermography as an exception to this observa-
tion, because laser thermography can generally detect small size defects as well
as cracks that are perpendicular to the sample’s surface (intralaminar), albeit it is
limited to near field heating. Also, ultrasonic or sonic waves stimulated thermog-
raphy provides a fast, full-filed, and accurate evaluation of the surface and near-the-
surface micro-cracks, thanks to its ability to administer frictional heating through
the interaction of its ultrasonic waves with the material’s internal features [133]. In
some cases, ultrasonic or sonic waves stimulated thermography is also referred to
as vibrothermographic methods or ultrasound thermography and they include ultra-
sound frequency-modulated thermography (UFMT-IRT), UBPT-IRT, and ultrasound
lock-in thermography (ULIT-IRT).
In contrast to classical IRT techniques, vibrothermographic methods excite the
test sample mechanically by sending ultrasonic or sonic waves to the test sample
through a coupling medium. In this context, an ultrasonic transducer is fixed or
coupled to the surface of the test sample and the propagation of the damped acoustic
waves along the material converts the mechanical energy into thermal energy that is
measured by an IR camera to reveal discontinuities in the sample. In this framework,
it is easy to identify discontinuities in the test structure/sample because the energy
dissipation is bigger in the vicinity of the discontinuities than in any other place on
the test structure, because of the friction between the faces of the discontinuity and/or
stress concentration in the surrounding area. This mechanical excitation operates as a
selective inner heat source, located just at the defect site, which diffuses from inside
240 5 Infrared Thermography Testing and Evaluation of Fiber-Reinforced …

to the surface of the test structure and can be detected as a temperature variation
by utilizing an IR camera (i.e., the thermograms are collected by the IR camera
from the surface, not from the interior of the test structure) [104, 134]. Additional
details explaining each of the different variants of the vibrothermographic methods
are provided in Ref. [104] and in Ref. [5]. Although vibrothermographic techniques
are new and not widely adopted IRT NDT in the entire NDT industry, the literature
indicates that these techniques are highly effective in the detection and sizing of
cracks and delamination flaws in fibrous composite structures.
In Ref. [104], a group of researchers from Universidad del País Vasco used a lock-
in vibrothermographic system to identify and evaluate deeply buried delamination
defects in a 10 mm thick opaque sample. In their study, they were able to demonstrate
that the phase and the natural logarithm of the surface temperature above the delami-
nation defect behaved linearly as a function of the square root frequency and that the
slope of this linear relation was directly proportional to the depth of the delamina-
tion defect in opaque samples. After the inspection, their results were compared with
those obtained from the classic IRT and the real-time measurement and found that the
lock-in vibrothermographic technique provided more accurate results. Based on the
high accuracy of their inspection results, the authors in [104] also indicated that it was
also possible to develop an inverse procedure that could reconstruct the whole shape
of the delamination defect showing the exact size (i.e., length, width, and depth) by
analyzing, not only the values at the center of the delamination but the complete
phase and amplitude thermograms. In 2012, Trudnowski constructed a model to
inspect wind turbine blades using vibrothermography [135]. In this study, Trud-
nowski’s aimed to determine the overall feasibility, accuracy, reliability, and optimal
test procedures for vibrothermography and reported satisfactory results. Although
the performance of vibrothermography is less affected by non-uniform heating, the
excitation of the test sample with acoustic waves involves high-power, bulky contact
transducers and may generate chaotic acoustic wave propagation, which often makes
the thermal acquisition process non-reproducible [18, 133]. As such, a combination
of both ultrasonic stimulated and nonlinear ultrasonic IRT with the local damage
resonance effect often helps to overcome this challenge by increasing the selectivity
of the damage in the composite samples [18, 136], and further studies are currently
being conducted to investigate the quantitative capabilities of this combinational
approach.
IRT techniques featuring the use of electromagnetic excitation include several
variations such as eddy current simulated thermograph and microwave thermog-
raphy. Although eddy current stimulated thermography is most used for the detection
and sizing of surface and subsurface flaws (e.g., cracks, delamination, interlaminar
disbonds, porosity, voids, etc.), this technique can also be used to study the fiber
arrangements and patterns in CFRP [27]. Similarly, microwave thermography is still
a developing method in the NDT community, though it is particularly an effective
NDT technique. Typically, microwave thermography is highly sensitive to superficial
types of damage and defects such as open discontinuities and damage with trapped
water [102, 137]. It is noted that the complexity and the heating power levels of the
microwave thermographic excitation sources may often damage the test composite
5.8 Applications of IRT-NDT for Composite Structures 241

if the power of the radiation used to excite the test sample is not carefully considered
(i.e., the power microwave radiation should be carefully regulated to ensure the safety
of the test sample) [102]. As a response to the non-uniformity heating, researchers are
currently working on material-based thermographic methods as alternative strategies
to current external thermal excitation sources for composite materials. These new
techniques rely on the measurement of internal heating via the Joule effect orig-
inated by applying electrical current either directly to main fibrous reinforcement
or through the insertion of materials such as metals inserts, carbon nanotubes, and
shape memory alloys. Extensive research is currently being conducted to improve the
thermal characteristics of material-enabled thermography and further investigate the
effects of embedded thermo-resistive components on the host material’s mechanical
properties.
In terms of their application to the inspection of composite materials, IRT tech-
niques have been successfully proven capable of detecting several types of discon-
tinuities (e.g., defects, damage, and material degradation) in composite materials
including moisture ingress, delamination, impact damage, voids, porosity, barely
visible impact damage (BVID), interlaminar disbonds, ply separation, and fiber-
matrix cracking in aerospace’s primary and secondary load-bearing composites,
where significant thermal diffusivity difference between these materials and the
different flaws such as air and water entrapment produced excellent and accurate
NDT data [6, 56]. IRT is also used to identify cracks caused by thermal stress in
fibrous composites, delamination between ceramics thermal barrier coating, and the
composite substrate of the turbine blades in the jet engines (i.e., a turbine blade is
an individual component that makes up the turbine section of a gas turbine or steam
turbine and is responsible for extracting energy from the high temperature, high-
pressure gas produced by the combustor) [18, 20]. In honeycomb panels, the IRT is
used to investigate the level and gravity of skin-to-core debonding, water ingress, face
sheet delamination, as well as honeycomb cell wall damage, absence of adhesives,
and core crushing among others [138]. In metal composites, IRT is primarily used to
detect fatigue cracks, pores and voids, corrosion, metal inclusions, and welded sheets
without metal diffusion also known as kissing bonds [14, 18]. In Ref. [49] the feasi-
bility of using line-scanning thermography (LS-IRT) for the inspection of the bond
quality in the inner sections of WTBs and other samples with the same geometry,
material, and layer-wise structural compositions as those used in the fabrication of
wind turbine blades were investigated. In their study, three different types of samples
(i.e., sandwich panels with fabricated defects, flat GFRP laminates with fabricated
defects, and sections of a wind turbine blade shell where the bar is located) were
used. Their objective using the sandwich panels (laminate/adhesive/foam) in their
study was to investigate the possibility and the conditions under which the LST-IRT
can distinguish between the different interfaces of the sandwich panels. Test of flat
GFRP intended to investigate the possibility and the conditions of using LS-IRT to
assess the material transition, as well as the presence of voids and subsurface defects
found at the sandwich panel sections. The investigation of the wind turbine blade
shell intended to investigate the bond quality between the shell and the spar. All
the tests were successful, the conditions of these types of tests with LST-IRT were
242 5 Infrared Thermography Testing and Evaluation of Fiber-Reinforced …

established and the inspection results indicated that the LS-IRT technique provides a
quick, reliable, and efficient solution for the scanning of larger composite structures
such as WTBs.
In Ref. [139], a group of researchers from the University of California (Depart-
ment of Structural Engineering) used the IRT systems (LIT-IRT and PT) to estimate
the depth location of defects in WTBs. Their study sought to address the problem of
detecting deeply buried defects in test samples using LI-IRT and they were able to
detect defects that were otherwise impossible to find using PT in composite structures
(i.e., they used the multivariate outlier analysis to suppress the noise floor and enhance
the defects detectability). In the second part of the study, they developed a depth esti-
mation model based on PT featuring a three-dimensional heat flow near the defects,
and obtained results show excellent agreement between the theory and the proposed
model. The authors in Refs. [134, 140] provided many examples explaining the status-
quo and the applicability of IRT systems to the testing and evaluation of WTBs both
during the manufacturing and in-service stages and readers are encouraged to read
these studies for more information. In thick fibrous composite structures, IRT is best
suited for detecting and monitoring near-the-surface defects/flaws [141], and stress
analysis (i.e., under dynamic and static loading) [142–144]. Usually, discontinuities
located at significant depths under the surface of the composite components tend to
produce less heat fluctuation than the surface and subsurface discontinuities making
their monitoring and/or characterization by IRT extremely difficult and in some
cases almost impossible. In addition, conventional heat data processing methods
(processing techniques solely based on the analysis of the images generated by the
heat distribution in the sample) do not allow a reliable evaluation of the material
damage, especially for the composite components where the temperature variation
is considerably small [144] and/or thick-section composites where uniform heating
is hardly achieved [6]. In this context, traditional processing methods based on heat
distribution data should always be coupled with some advanced signal process tech-
niques to extract the maximum of information from the IRT data and achieve a
representative/accurate evaluation of the test structures.
Although the ability to evaluate some of the through-the-thickness discontinu-
ities in fibrous composites of up to 15 mm thickness using IRT has been recently
confirmed [145], the literature suggests that results at this depth come at a greater cost
to the SNR, which, together with the already present uncertainty of this technique in
determining the size of the near-the-surface flaws, raise questions about its ability to
provide useful results when used for testing and evaluation of thick fibrous composites
[6]. To this end, Rajic [146] reiterated the ability of principal component thermog-
raphy to detect simulated delamination beneath 4.5 and 12 plies of a 50-ply CFRP
laminate. Figure 5.12 shows marked a significant reduction in inspection reliability
through 12 plies, which would correspond to a depth of less than 2 mm in a typical
aerospace CFRP composite. In a later study, Vavilov [17] attempted to identify and
characterize defects in CFRP composites of up to 15 mm thickness, but he could not
manage to detect defects below a depth of 4 mm, even using the through-transmission
technique. Additional studies have confirmed having little success in increasing the
5.8 Applications of IRT-NDT for Composite Structures 243

Fig. 5.12 Typical detection of a thin piece of Teflon underneath the a 4th, b 5th, and c 12th ply of
a CFRP specimen using IRT [17]

inspection depth to just over 5 mm, but only a few studies could achieve the char-
acterization of discontinuities beneath this depth because of the rapid dissipation of
heat in the test samples with the increased thickness [147, 148]. Among the chal-
lenges mentioned include the choice of heat sources, the level of measuring system’s
isolation from ambient light, the loading conditions, and temperature variations as
well as the image processing technique involved. Also, the difficulty of heating big
structures uniformly and avoiding the rapid dissipation of heat over a wide area poses
a significant threat to the applicability of this technique, which already presents a
depth limitation for the defects situated at a depth less than 5 mm from the surface
of the structure.
Several applications involving the use of LIT-IRT for the inspection of composite
structures have also been documented in the literature and some of them are worth
mentioning. In the evaluation of the aerospace structures, for example, several studies
using LIT-IRT for aerospace structures can be found [149–152]. In Ref. [153], the
use of PT and LIT-IRT for the inspection of several different types of materials (e.g.,
metals, plastics, plaster, composites, hybrid composites, and sandwich structures)
and different types of bonding (e.g., coatings, sandwiches, and joints). In Ref. [154],
applications involving the use of LIT-IRT for the inspection of CFRP were discussed.
In Ref. [111], the ULIT-IRT was used to inspect the cover of an access hole for
aircraft maintenance after being exposed to impact damage that destroyed the outer
edge next to the screws. In their investigation, the authors demonstrated that the
phase image of the optical lock-in thermography (OLIT-IRT) was dominated by
the holes for the screws while the ULIT-IRT image showed mostly the defect area
where the boundaries were rubbing against each other. In this very same work,
the authors equally demonstrated that the OLIT-IRT image displays mainly the fiber
directions for the [−45◦ /+45◦ ] CFRP composite samples with no external indication
of the impact damage, while the ULI-IRT image showed only the impact. In their
conclusion, the authors pointed out that the obtained phase angle images revealed
all the areas of hidden corrosion, cracks in rows of rivets, disbonds, impacts, and
delaminations in aircraft composite structures.
In power generation systems inspection, LIT-IRT is often used for the evaluation
of WTB to detect a number of defects/flaws such as delamination (i.e., both the
244 5 Infrared Thermography Testing and Evaluation of Fiber-Reinforced …

skin-skin delamination and skin–core delamination) and cracks [155–157]. PPT-IRT

is by far the most commonly used IRT NDT technique to inspect aircraft structures
[34, 158, 159]. In 1997, the first review outlining the applications of PPT-IRT for
aeronautical sandwich structures was published in 1997 [34, 158]. Recently, PPT
has been investigated for other industrial fields. PP-IRT is concurrently employed to
identify low-velocity impact-induced (LVI) damage [160]. In civil engineering, fiber-
reinforced plastic strengthened concrete structures were also inspected using PPT-
IRT and reliable defect detection was reported [161]. In this study, the general trend
between defect depth and blind frequency was observed, but the longer heating period
of 30 s (as opposed to flash heating) made precise identification of the blind frequency
difficult. In power generation systems, GFRP-based WTB were also inspected using
PPT-IRT [162] and results (i.e., phasegrams,) indicate that it was possible to identify
the different constituents of the base material (e.g., the plastic, composite, and foam
material) by using different phase values. However, it was later revealed that PP-IRT
was still limited and unable to detect some defects/damage such as impact damage
or subsurface defects whose thickness is significantly smaller than their diameter.
In terms of the applications, PT-IRT has been commonly used for assessing
composite structures in many industries, which include but are not limited to
aerospace, power generation, civil engineering and buildings, smokestacks, electrical
installations, petrochemical, and automotive industries. In the aerospace industry, for
example, several studies have been reported [130, 163–165] demonstrating the appli-
cation of PT for the inspection of aircraft composites. In power generation systems,
PT-IRT has been extensively used for the inspection of WTB. In Ref. [166], for
example, the authors used PT-IRT to test a GFRP sample with embedded defects
(i.e., foreign matter and air inclusions) at different depths. In Ref. [167], the authors
used the PT-IRT to evaluate and characterize a series of defects (e.g., air bubbles, edge
bonding, etc.) in a GFRP blade. The 1st and 2nd derivatives were used in the quanti-
tative calculation and sizing of the defects during the analysis of the test results. The
results indicate that it is better to use the 1st derivative than the original to analyze the
deep defects. In Ref. [168], the authors used glue to intentionally create some struc-
tural defects between supporting spars and GFRP shells with different thicknesses
were inspected by using PT-IRT in the laboratory. Their results indicated that the PT-
IRT could readily detect the defects in such structures located at about 15 mm below
the GFRP shell. In a similar study [65], the glue defects were intentionally created
in GFRP blades and they were equally detected and obtained results were in good
agreement with the real-time defects. In Ref. [169], a PT production-ready system
was designed for the evaluation of wind turbine blades as end-line manufacturing
quality control. Upon its completion, the system was used to detect a number of struc-
tural imperfections including structure inhomogeneity, improper resin impregnation
during the manufacturing process. Interestingly, additional in-service flaws were later
detected by the aforementioned system which was not intentionally inserted by the
wind turbine blade designer showing yet an additional capability of the system.
In thick composite structures, PT-IRT has been predominantly used for the inspec-
tion of subsurface flaws such as delamination and disbonds in fiber-reinforced bridge
decks [170]. Air-filled and water-filled disbonds between the wearing surface and the
5.8 Applications of IRT-NDT for Composite Structures 245

underlying FRP bridge deck could be readily detected [171]. IRT techniques have also
been used in the detection and evaluation of the debonding defects in FRP strength-
ened concrete structures [172, 173]. Apart from the debonding defects, additional
flaws such as voids, moisture zones, water ingress, artificial inserts, resin-rich/starved
regions, and many other types of composite flaws are also detected using IRT tech-
niques. An analytical model for defect depth estimation in composite materials using
PT was recently developed based on experimental data [174]. Interestingly, not only
does this model predict the depth of flaws/damage within composite materials, but it
also predicts the temperature contrast on the surface of the composite, accounting for
defect depth, size and opening, thermal properties of the material and defect filler,
the thickness of the component, and intensity of the excitation energy. A similar
study was also published recently where the authors focused on the estimation of
damage thickness (i.e., the thickness of air gaps inside composites) in fiber-reinforced
composites using PT. Although there has been tremendous progress in the applica-
tion and improvement of PT, the data obtained by an IR camera in PT are often
contaminated by different noise sources, which include external reflections, varia-
tions in the optical properties of the test structure, and non-uniform heating. These
noise effects in thermal images produce abnormal thermal patterns and make the
detection of flaws more complicated and impossible in some cases.
Advanced processing techniques have been developed to reduce the noise effects
in thermal images, thus enhancing the flaw detection and quantification capabilities
of PT [2]. An extensive review of such signal processing techniques was recently
provided in Ref. [17] and a thorough explanation of these signal processing tech-
niques and their basic principles were also provided in Ref. [18]. Among the many
classical advances include thermal signal reconstruction (TSR) [175, 176], dynamic
thermal tomography (DT-T) [177, 178], principal components analysis (PCA) [107,
179], independent components analysis (ICA) [180, 181], and differential absolute
contrast (DAC) [182, 183]. In Ref. [17], the basic principles of operation of the
PT were summarized where all information describing the theory, signal processing
techniques, as well as the practical implementation in the testing and evaluation
of aerospace composite structures, are presented. In Ref. [130], a novel single-
sided thermographic NDT technique based on the conversion of the decaying front-
surface temperature signals into an artificial function having clear maxima/minima
was presented to determine the material diffusivity. The artificial inflection point is
generated by multiplying the front-surface temperature evolution by nth power of
time (where 0 < n < 0.5), followed by the optimization of n). The method is used
as an analytical solution of the diffusivity calculation and the characterization of
discontinuties caused by low-velocity impact in CFRP composite plate. Part of their
conclusions, the authors demonstrated that the PT-IRT’s accuracy is also affected by
non-uniform backgrounds which are generally observed in most thermal images. In
order to address this problem, several solutions have been presented and the most
common is the use of the mathematical morphology (MM) that is particularly used
to remove the backgrounds when analyzing the test results of geometrical structures
[184]. After removing the backgrounds from the original data, an improved test was
achieved and the defects in the CFRP specimen are more clearly identified.
246 5 Infrared Thermography Testing and Evaluation of Fiber-Reinforced …

5.9 Performance Comparison of IRT and Other NDT

Techniques

The comparison between the different IRT NDT and other types of NDT techniques
is not an easy task to perform because such a comparison requires a structured
framework whereby the techniques being compared must operate under the same
conditions and on the same sets of tests samples. Such comparisons are not gener-
ally available in the literature, and where there are, they are often limited to two
or three techniques at a time, suggesting that a thorough comparison is generally
difficult to achieve. Nevertheless, some of the performance comparisons can still be
established even when tests are performed under different conditions. The following
sections present the major performance comparisons of the IRT methods based on
the heating style and the excitation sources. Importantly, the performance compar-
ison performed herein does not consider the efficiency of the IR cameras because
most of the currently used IR cameras are generally all full-field devices and they
present both high resolution and high sensitivity. These devices can also achieve
a reasonable quantification of the defects/flaws thicknesses and depths, thanks to
the technological advancements in IRT. Using some typical examples, comparisons
between the performance of the IRT and other NDT techniques are also established.

5.9.1 Different Heating Functions

As indicated earlier, four main types of heating functions are generally used with IRT
NDT techniques (i.e., FMT-IRT, LIT-IRT, PP-IRT, and PT), and each one presents
its own advantages and disadvantages. Although the FMT systems are the most
complex and consequently expensive, they present several advantages including fast
inspection capability, emissivity independence, elimination of non-uniform heating,
greater depth and resolution, and better detectability of flaws in the test composites.
These systems also have a high signal-to-noise ratio allowing users to obtain clear
inspection images with fine details that represent the features of interest. In general,
FMT-IRT systems are considered the most advanced systems of the IRT, and the
fact that users can extract multiple amplitudes and phase images from a single run
of experiments is another added advantage [35, 185]. Although the PT-IRT NDT
is fast and easy to deploy in the field, the method is particularly time-consuming
when testing thick composite materials because it generally needs a long time to
heat such materials and the surface temperature gradients are not only caused by
hidden defects but also affected by local variations on surface emissivity and non-
uniform heating. As such, small flaws may be undetected. Additionally, PT-IRT users
should be careful when using this technique for the testing of composites with low-
temperature resistance levels because this technique may cause significant damage
to the test material due to the high energy levels generated by PT systems.
5.9 Performance Comparison of IRT and Other NDT Techniques 247

Unlike the PT that requires high energy to heat the test sample, the LIT-IRT
requires less energy to operate because of the lock-in technique, which provides
higher sensitivity to the LIT-IRT as compared with the PT-IRT. In addition, the
phase angle has the advantage of being less sensitive to local variations of illumina-
tion and/or surface emissivity, though users always have to account for the trade-off
between the penetration depth and the resolution. While this problem of depth versus
resolution can easily be solved by repeating the experiments at different frequen-
cies, this operation is generally a trial and error process and hence time-consuming.
Another interesting technique is the PPT-IRT which combines the advantages of
PT and LIT-IRT. Perhaps the most interesting feature of this technique is that its
performance is independent of the surface emissivity and the non-uniform heating
is generally not a problem. Additional advantages of the PP-IRT include but are not
limited to its faster inspection capability (i.e., faster than the LIT-IRT) because it uses
a short pulse as excitation and contains wide frequency spectra. This technique does
also has a greater depth penetration capability with a better spatial resolution, and a
better defect detectability than PT-IRT. The only disadvantages seem to be the fact that
the energy of the output signal decreases with the increase of frequency, suggesting
that tedious post-processing algorithms are required to obtain better quality images
at high frequencies. Additional information regarding the advantages and disadvan-
tages of each of these heating functions of IRT are provided in refs. [36, 185, 186]
and interested readers are directed to these specific studies for more details.

5.9.2 Different Excitation Sources

Although many studies have been published focusing on the use of IRT techniques
for the inspection of composite structures, only a few studies [5, 185, 187, 188] have
focused on the performance comparison of the individual IRT NDT techniques and
the present section presents their major finding. In general, ultrasound thermography
involves abnormal heating (i.e., abnormal heating thermography), while both optical
thermography and laser thermography are based on surface heating thermography.
It has also been demonstrated that both the ECT-IRT and microwave thermography
are based on volume heating thermography [5]. In terms of their performance, laser
thermography can be applied to the inspection of fibrous composite structures from
long-distance through a spot scan or line and is sensitive to surface crack due to
lateral heat conduction [82, 124]. Ultrasound thermography, optical thermography,
microwave thermography, and laser thermography are generally used to inspect all
types of composite structures while EC-IRT only works for conductive composite
materials such as CFRP or any other composite whose matrix has been modified by
adding conductive particles. Although ultrasound thermography is generally sensi-
tive to inner friction and therefore defect-selective technique, the former does require
a contact surface with the test structure while the optical thermography, laser ther-
mography, EC-IRT, and microwave thermography are non-contact. In addition, there
are currently not enough quantitative studies outlining the performance of ultrasonic
248 5 Infrared Thermography Testing and Evaluation of Fiber-Reinforced …

thermography, and very often optimal inspection parameters must be found exper-
imentally. Among all the IRT-based techniques, microwave thermography remains
the most immature technique to this day, and its theory, system development, and
applications to the inspection and characterization of composite structures. Although
microwave thermography is relatively the newest technology, it has demonstrated
tremendous capabilities in the detection of water-filled defects. Similarly, optical
thermography is generally employed to identify and characterize lateral flaws (e.g.,
delamination, disbond, etc.) while laser thermography is generally suitable for the
imaging of test structures for surface discontinuities (e.g., cracks, burns, blisters,
etc.). ECT-IRT is sensitive to discontinuities like cracks and lateral defects, and
it is capable of indicating the carbon fiber configuration patterns in CFRPs. Just
like ECT-IRT, microwave thermography can detect crack and lateral discontinuities,
and as indicated earlier, this technique is especially effective in detecting electrically
conductive inclusions (e.g., water, metals, etc.). Perhaps the most effective technique
is ultrasound thermography as it can easily detect most types of flaws and damage
but requires a contact surface with the test structure for its measurements. Addi-
tional information on the comparison performances of the different IRT techniques
based on the heating style for the inspection of composite materials are available in
the literature [5, 188] and interested readers are directed to these studies for more
information.

5.9.3 Comparison with Other NDTs

Although not specifically targeting the different types of IRT techniques hitherto
presented, the performance comparison between IRT and other types of NDT tech-
niques has been reported in several studies focusing on the evaluation and characteri-
zation of composite structures, including wind turbine blades [189, 190], low energy
impact detection in CFRP laminate composites [191, 192], 3D CFRP and many
others [2, 189, 193, 194]. In the inspection of wind turbine blades, for example, the
authors successfully compared the performance capabilities of detecting delamina-
tion defects in wind turbine blade samples by using ultrasonic, shearography, ther-
mography, and X-ray CT techniques. Two GFRP samples were manufactured with
several Teflon inserts and the aforementioned methods were used to detect them in
the samples and the efficacy of each of the NDT techniques has been analyzed and
comparison among their capabilities for such an application has been carried out. It
was observed that IRT has the highest potential of application to the inspection of
wind turbine blades but users should always take into account its limitations for high-
thickness measurements. The authors also indicated that the performance of X-ray
CT largely depended on the thickness of delamination and the size of the test sample,
suggesting that the development of dedicated X-ray CT systems capable of inspecting
large composite structures should be envisioned should users desire to adequately
evaluate its performance in the inspection of the wind turbine blade. Although ultra-
sonic testing is generally capable of detecting delamination and providing sufficient
5.9 Performance Comparison of IRT and Other NDT Techniques 249

in-depth information, the complex signal processing, longer acquisition times, and
the need for contact surface between the transducer and the test structure largely
reduce its potential for big parts inspection such as wind turbine blades. Among all
the techniques investigated, shearography presented limited sensitivity to delamina-
tion defects and implementation in the field even though its systems are generally
more expensive with lots of moving parts.
In the examination of composite materials for low energy impact damage, a recent
study investigated CFRP laminates subjected to a series of low energy impacts from
4 to 12 J using both pulsed eddy current [191] and eddy current pulsed thermog-
raphy [192]. They reported that eddy current pulsed thermography achieved better
test results showed additional advantages including high-speed and large area scans
among others. Recently increased utilization of 3D CFRP composites in aircraft
construction makes them vulnerable to developing defects in the 3D joint areas.
Indeed these types of defects are particularly difficult to inspect and require highly
effective NDT techniques for their visualization. In Ref. [195], several NDT tech-
niques including laser line thermography, ultrasound C-scan, vibrothermography,
pulsed thermography, and laser spot thermography were used to inspect and charac-
terize the micro-porosities in 3D CFRP composite. Although the microscopic inspec-
tion does allow users to clearly examine the interior of the composite structure in
detail, this type of inspection technique is generally time-consuming and cannot be
used to inspect large structures. In fact, the same types of problems are also observed
when using the micro-laser spot thermography. Although the noise and coupling
ultrasound testing is not able to detect the micro defects, classical pulsed thermog-
raphy is equally not suitable for micro-defects inspection because of noise, coupling
and resolution. In the same study, it was also observed that the micro-laser line ther-
mography could clearly identify a few surface and subsurface micro porosities, but
the penetration depth was limited due to fluctuations in the energy diffusion of the
laser line. Among all these methods, micro-laser line thermography is viewed as the
most promising technique for micro defects detection and characterization. Table 5.1
summarizes the comparison between the major NDT techniques.
In summary, the information presented in Table 5.1 indicates that the performance
of each NDT technique is different depending on the test structure and inspection
methodology being followed. In this context, some inspection techniques and subse-
quently the methodologies are ideally suited for some NDT applications while they
are less so for others. As such, the information presented in this section and the perfor-
mance comparison of the different NDT techniques provided allow us to highlight
the following observations with regard to the applicability of IRT to the inspection
of composite structures. The IRT can quickly inspect large fibrous composite parts,
allowing users to conduct a preliminary investigation to identify most of the near-the-
surface discontinuities and further establish the grounds for additional investigations
having some primary information on what to expect when conducting advanced NDT
tests. However, this technique is sometimes incapable of successfully inspecting
thick fibrous composite parts for deeply buried features that might be threatening the
long-time usage in structural systems. To this end, studies are currently investigating
250 5 Infrared Thermography Testing and Evaluation of Fiber-Reinforced …

Table 5.1 Summary and comparison for thermography using different thermal sources with other
major NDT methods for composites inspection
NDT techniques Strength of the different NDT
techniques
Ultrasound-echo/Phased Provides great depths testing
array/Linear array capabilities, high-resolution test
data, many deployment options
Guide wave Possibility to perform large areas Tests results are affected by
test in a single measurement
Acoustic emission In-service, passive, can inspect
large areas in a single
measurement, and it is generally
a global type of NDT
Shearography It is a non-contact, full-field, fast, Sensitive to the test part
and highly sensitive NDT
method
Eddy current It is generally a non-contact
technique, instruments and tests
are cost-effective, and requires
no surface treatment before and
after the test
Microwave It is generally a non-contact
technique, its instruments
provide high resolution, and is
generally suitable for the
inspection of dielectric materials
Optical thermography It is a non-contact technique,
full-field equipment available,
high resolution, high sensitivity,
quantification, fast, cost-effective
tests, and instruments
Limitations associated with the
different NDT techniques
Tests results are affected by
attenuation of the sound by the
test composite, requires a
coupling medium for contact
testing, non-sensitive to surface
defects
attenuation of the sound by the
test composite and the system
requires a coupling medium for
contact testing
Noise, bad quantitation,
generally not sensitive to static
defects, hence it is often
considered more an SHM
technique than an NDT
technique
movements (test structure
should be steady), small
thickness/stiffness, require
unique test set-ups, expensive,
hard to quantitatively analyze
It is only applicable to
conductive or semi-conductive
materials, requires a scanner to
perform the measurements, is
generally sensitive to lift-off,
and its resolution is generally
low
They require a scanner to
perform the test, near-field, the
quality of their measurement
results is influenced by the level
of the instrument lift-off
It is generally a surface heating
method, can only achieve small
depth penetration (i.e., limited
to the inspection of subsurface
defects), and is generally not
sensitive to cracks
(continued)
5.9 Performance Comparison of IRT and Other NDT Techniques 251

Table 5.1 (continued)

NDT techniques Strength of the different NDT
techniques
Laser thermography It is a non-contact technique,
full-field equipment available,
high resolution, high sensitivity,
quantification, fast tests, far
distance (test structures can be
located at several meters from
the test equipment)
Eddy current It is a non-contact technique,
thermography full-field equipment available,
high resolution, high sensitivity
to defects and damage, accurate
characterization of
discontinuities, fast tests, inner
heating
Microwave thermography It is a non-contact technique,
full-field equipment available,
high resolution, high sensitivity,
provides accurate quantification
of defects and damage, fast tests,
both uniform heating, and
selective heating can easily be
achieved
Ultrasound thermography Full-field equipment available,
provides high-resolution data,
high sensitivity to damage and
defects, accurate quantification
of damage and defects, fast tests,
and the possibility to perform
selective heating
X-ray/Gamma-ray Provides high-resolution data
and it is generally a non-contact
technique
Limitations associated with the
different NDT techniques
In the small heating area, the
users require a scanner to
perform the inspection, the
method is generally suitable for
surface crack
Only used to inspect conductive
or semi-conductive material,
non-uniform heating effect,
excitation system complex,
near-field heating, small heating
area
Their heating systems are
complex and produce
electromagnetic radiation that
could be harmful to users if no
necessary precautions are taken
It is generally a contact NDT
technique (except for airborne
ultrasonic systems), requires
additional tools to hold the
sample, and lacks quantitative
studies
X-ray radiation hazards,
operation complex, scanner
required

the synergistic combination of multiple NDT techniques (also referred to as multi-

physics NDT) to obtain a complete and accurate diagnosis of the composite. Although
the application of multiphysics NDT for the inspection of structural composite is
potentially beneficial, there is currently no clear framework on which NDT tech-
niques to combine to obtain optimum results. This is particularly because most NDT
techniques have different performances depending on factors such as the types of
materials being investigated, the environmental setting, the spatial resolution of the
system, and many others. In this context, NDT engineers and practitioners should
present a well-structured framework on how to combine different NDT techniques
and the different requirements to each combination if a more reliable, more accurate,
and complete structural diagnosis of the health of the composite is to be achieved.
This type of NDT methodology featuring multiple techniques would allow users
252 5 Infrared Thermography Testing and Evaluation of Fiber-Reinforced …

to achieve a thorough validation and/or complete diagnosis of structural systems in

general and fibrous composite structures in particular by taking advantage of the
redundancy or the complementarity of the NDT measurements.

5.10 Current Trends and IRT Research Prospects

A glance into the literature indicates that more than three centuries have passed since
the first stone was posed by Herschel outlining the foundation of the IR radiation and
the subsequent development of IRT as an NDT technique for materials and structural
systems. IRT had been a subject of dispute and investigation with great enthusiasm
and wide skepticism. Today, the technology’s usefulness has been amply demon-
strated leading to a proliferation of infrared devices of different sizes and different
performances to fulfill the requirements of the multitude of users in the vast variety
of applications and industries [196]. Just like most of the other NDT techniques,
IRT is currently enjoying some of the novel development, and the major trends and
current burning topics include the use of thermographic techniques featuring new and
multiple physics, the development of advanced signal processing techniques, inte-
grated IRT systems as well as the development of IRT standards and many others.
The present section of the chapter presents some of the important updates on these
aspects as they constitute the major focus of IRT development for material evaluation
and characterization.

5.10.1 New Physics and Multiple Physics

Generally speaking, the development of any NDT technique and/or system stem from
physics and the choice of the NDT technique is dependent on the type of material
being tested and the performance/accuracy of the required test results. In fact, the
evaluation and characterization of different test materials do involve different sets of
physics and subsequently the NDT techniques. Quite surprisingly though, the first
NDT techniques which are generally considered as conventional NDT techniques
have always been developed for metal and their alloy. However, the physical proper-
ties of metals and their alloys are completely different from those of composites due
to a number of factors such as their anisotropic behavior in parameters caused by fiber
reinforcement and their multi-layered structures. In addition, composite structures
are manufactured using several types of materials, suggesting that the physics and
NDT for composite structures should normally be different from those for metals
and their alloys. In recent years, some new physics and multiple physics-based ther-
mographic NDT techniques were introduced for composites including EC-IRT and
vibrothermography based on volume heating. Although these methods seem to work
better for metal structures and their alloys, they also produced accurate results when
used with composite materials. Typically, ECT-IRT uses induced eddy currents (i.e.,
5.10 Current Trends and IRT Research Prospects 253

which have a skin depth and whose magnitude vary with different materials) to
heat the sample and its heating effect/style may be different depending on the mate-
rial being tested. In ferromagnetic materials with large electrical conductivity and
permeability, the skin depth is very small on the order of μm. The skin depth for the
cast iron is generally estimated to be 45 μm for an excitation frequency of 100 kHz,
suggesting that the heating style for such materials is considered surface heating (i.e.,
heat conducts from the surface to the inside of the test structure). In case there is some
sort of discontinuity that blocks the heat conduction into the composite material, this
heat will reflect from the defect to the surface where it is detected and analyzed to
obtain information about the type, location, and orientation of the discontinuity that
blocked its propagation [197]. In the case of CFRPs whose conductivity is generally
equal to 1000 S/m with no magnetic field applied, the skin depth for CFRP compos-
ites is significantly large and is equal to 50 mm for the same amount of excitation
frequency. In this case, the heating style is volumetric and the thermal abnormity
caused by the defect (i.e., when there is a defect) will immediately transfer from
the defect to the outside/surface of the test structure [107]. Indeed this is only the
physics behind the eddy currents involved in the ECT-IRT for composite structures,
and users of other types of new physics (e.g., sound/ultrasound, electromagnetic
wave, etc.), and/or multi-physics (e.g., thermosonics field, thermoelastic effect, etc.)
in CFRP/GFRP are also different from that those metal structures and their alloys,
suggesting that users should always ensure the new physics and related NDT are
accurately interpreted and analyzed particularly when dealing with the evaluation
and characterization of composite structures.

5.10.2 Signal Processing Techniques

In engineering, signal processing (SP) is a well-known term by most engineers and

it signifies in a broad sense as a transform that converts the signal data into useful
information using a digital computer. Figure 5.13 depicts a general representation
of a schematic diagram of an NDT signal processing system and outlines its basic

Fig. 5.13 Illustration of a an NDT signal processing system, and b the main building blocks of an
NDT signal processing system
254 5 Infrared Thermography Testing and Evaluation of Fiber-Reinforced …

building blocks. In the earlier years of NDT systems, researchers solely focused
on improving the accuracy and the spatial resolution of inspection equipment to
identify smaller defects. In other words, most of the work on the improvement of NDT
systems was solely focused on transducers and electrical equipment (i.e., also known
as analog signal processing) [2, 59]. However, the recent years have been marked by
the desire to use intelligent signal processing and automated processes to improve
the reliability and content of information obtained from traditional methods (i.e.,
information captured from sensors). Interestingly, many of these studies relate to the
use of signal processing (SP) concepts, which have already been used successfully in
other engineering areas such as radar, sonar, and geophysics. In recent years, several
SP techniques have been introduced in NDT to solve some of the existing problems
(e.g., improve the measurement accuracy, reduce the load imposed to the operator,
etc.). To date, users only focus more effectively on the outcome of the evaluation as
the use of SP helps them to create a decision support system that accurately identifies
and classifies flaws and defects in the test structure with an impartial and standardized
performance.
In recent years, several SP algorithms have been developed to improve the IRT
signals and an extensive review of the SP techniques for IRT data was recently
provided in refs. [17, 18, 198]. These signal processing techniques are generally
used to improve the SNR of the thermographic images, eliminate noise, increase the
SNR for extracting the abnormality information of defects, enhance the contrast of
detection images and improve the assessment accuracy. Meanwhile, the inspection
time can be further reduced. [27, 199]. Some of the main examples of the signal
processing used to enhance the SNR of thermographic images include but are not
limited to thermographic signal reconstruction (TSR) [175], independent compo-
nents analysis (ICA) [90, 107, 200, 201], principal components analysis (PCA),
wavelet transform [202], tucker decomposition [203], support vector machine [204],
and pattern recognition [205, 206] are being and will be used in thermography for
composites. Additional signal processing algorithms devised to enhance raw thermal
images and characterize flaws in composite materials include but are not limited to
principal component thermography (PCT), slope, correlation coefficient (R2 ), and
cross-correlation matched filtering (CCMF) among others. These algorithms were
compared based on the number of defects detected, the contrast between the defec-
tive and the normal areas as well as their data processing speed, to determine the
algorithms that return the best quantitative performance and results are documented
in the literature [131, 207]. Although each of these algorithms will not be discussed
separately in this book, the operation and/or application of some of these algorithms
is worth mentioning. Typically, the CCMF is a classical algorithm in radar field and
has been introduced in thermography field. With the help of CCMF, a lot of new
methods and applications were developed.
In a recent study [81], the authors developed a thermal wave radar (TWR)
by combining linear frequency modulated continuous wave excitation and CCMF
signal processing based on Hilbert transform to detect human dental demineraliza-
tion lesions and osteoporotic bone loss. In their results, they reported a significant
increase in a depth-resolution dynamic range of subsurface defects. In a similar
5.10 Current Trends and IRT Research Prospects 255

study [208], the same TWR imaging system based on CCFM was also used to inspect
CFRP composites and users reported encouraging results. A Hilbert Transform-based
time-domain phase analysis scheme was introduced for testing and evaluation of sub-
surface defects in a mild steel sample in 2014 [209]. In Ref. [210], the authors reported
having used a truncated-correlation photothermal coherence tomography (TC-PCT)
based on Hilbert transform and CCMF to obtain an enhanced 3D visualization of the
surface features of the test structure. In a later study [211], both the slope and the R2
algorithms have recently been applied to find defects within a composite structure,
whereby the authors focused on restoring competitive and comparable results with
amplitude and phase maps that were used to analyze thermal data. In a recent study
[212], pulsed inductive thermal wave radar (PI-TWR) was also proposed by intro-
ducing the CCMF in eddy current pulsed thermography and achieved a significant
improvement in the dynamic range, depth resolution, emissivity variation reduc-
tion, and detectability of subsurface defects and inside delamination for the NDT
applications. In fact, the above authors were able to demonstrate the non-uniform
heating effect and lateral blurring effect can be all suppressed through CC phaseg-
rams, allowing easy visualization of the shape and orientation of the damage in
the test structure. Additional signal processing techniques used when analyzing IRT
NDT data include the principal components analysis (PCA) and independent compo-
nents analysis (ICA) [107, 213], which were used to process transient temperature
responses before the reconstruction of the thermograms to improve the characteri-
zation of delamination and impact damage in CFRP composites. In Ref. [214], the
optical flow was used to capture and evaluate the thermal/heat flow patterns over a
relatively larger range. The algorithm was used in conjunction with the PCA methods
whose primary function was to specifically and manually select the pixel-level tran-
sient thermal behavior from a highlighted area. In their conclusions, the authors
indicated that the flow area increased as the impact energy increased, suggesting
that this method could be used to quantitatively evaluate the magnitude of impact
damage.

5.10.3 Integrated Inspection System

In the current era of technological advancements, several NDT systems can easily
be integrated to obtain a more robust system that further increases the scope and the
applicability of the IRT NDT systems [215]. Typically, one of the main advantages of
the IRT NDTs is that they are generally based on multi-physics effects including but
not limited to optical-thermal, eddy current heating, microwave heating, and ther-
moelastic effects among others. In particular, using these physical effects to induce
heat into the test structure does offer unique advantages and they provide the IRT
NDT systems with the capabilities of applying the localized heating at a location of
interest and faster inspection rates as compared to traditional raster scanning tech-
niques [216]. Interestingly, all these physical effects can equally be used to perform
independent testing through their original testing methods. However, this has not been
256 5 Infrared Thermography Testing and Evaluation of Fiber-Reinforced …

largely been explored even though such applications would create greater opportu-
nities for hybrid IRT systems. In general, these physical effects are only used to
create thermal waves in the test sample and the actual testing is performed using an
IR camera. If these sample excitation signals can be properly utilized in the field, it
would create opportunities for integrated systems. As an example, if a large amount
of eddy current induced in the material could equally be used to perform an ECT-
IRT this would create a validation method for the testing results produced by the
IRT using this kind of sample excitation signal. The same thing would well work
for sonic thermography or vibrothermography where the original signals could be
used to perform independent testing and used as a validation method for the IRT
testing results. Indeed, such an application has already been experimented with in
Ref. [217] whereby the authors developed a hybrid system that could simultane-
ously perform both the induction thermography and eddy current inspection in a
single measurement. In their research, they argued that, in most IRT tests, the elec-
tromagnetic induction phenomenon is only used to create the thermal waves in the
sample when testing it with an IR camera even though this large amount of current
induced in the material can also be used to perform eddy current inspection simultane-
ously. Their results indicate that the penetration depth of each technique is generally
different depending on the electromagnetic and thermal properties of the material
being inspected, and further added that the most important benefit of this combina-
tion is that the information provided by the eddy current can be used to confirm the
position and the nature of the defect (i.e., detailed inspection) found by the induc-
tion thermography (i.e., quick inspection to detect the presence of discontinuties). In
Ref. [83], the authors also combined both the laser spot imaging thermography and
ultrasonic measurements to determine the size, location, and orientation of fatigue
cracks and obtained encouraging results.

5.10.4 Standards for Composites

Indeed, IRT standards play a very important role in IRT is among the most estab-
lished NDT techniques for composite structures. However, there are several kinds
of standards some of them focusing on the thermal imaging instruments themselves,
their calibration, and performance; and others focusing on using the instruments
themselves. There are also other standards related to the training and qualifications
for the engineers and technicians involved in thermal imaging. To this end, IRT stan-
dards and practices vary in different places of the world and applications. Typically,
the International Organization for Standardization (IOS) has recently developed the
ISO 10878:2013 (Non-destructive testing—Infrared thermography—Vocabulary),
and three more IRT standards are currently under development. Also, the ASME’s
standard E2533-09 covers all the established NDT techniques used for the inspec-
tion and characterization of fiber-reinforced composites including IRT. Similarly, the
ASME’s standard E2582-07(2014) describes the procedure for detecting the subsur-
face damage in composite panels and repair patches using flash thermography. There
5.10 Current Trends and IRT Research Prospects 257

are certainly other standards that cover the use of IRT as applied to the inspection
and characterization of fiber-reinforced composite structures and the most impor-
tant ones are provided in Ref. [5]. Consistent with the aforementioned, it appears
the role of standards continues to grow as this equipment finds its way into more
and complex applications in industry, science, and commerce. Similarly, the calibra-
tion of IRT equipment is finally coming into view as a critical component of both
the selection and maintenance of thermal imagers. IRT users are seriously consid-
ering IRT devices that are capable of fundamentally reporting traceable tempera-
tures, suggesting that IRT users will soon begin to see manufacturers updating their
specifications accordingly.

5.11 Advantages and Limitations of Using IRT

As indicated earlier, IRT is a generally well-established NDT technique that is highly

effective and very easy to use for the inspection of material and structural systems.
However, IRT is not without its drawbacks and may, in some cases, require sophis-
ticated system configurations and data analysis to obtain accurate results. Although
researchers have provided valuable information outlining the different advantages
and limitations of IR thermographic techniques, a useful summary covering all the
types of IR thermographic techniques is very crucial to help IRT users to make
informed decisions about the type of IRT methods to use and what to expect as a
potential outcome of their tests. To this end, one of the first advantages of IRT is
that the technique is non-contact (i.e., the devices used are not in contact with the
source of heat nor the measuring devices), suggesting that extremely hot structures
or dangerous products (e.g., acids, oven, etc.) can be inspected safely while equally
keeping the users out of danger. In addition, IRT provides two-dimensional thermal
images, which makes a comparison between the different areas of the test structure
possible. IRT is most of the time performed in real-time, which enables not only high-
speed scanning of stationary structures but also the acquisition of the temperature
profiles from fast-moving structures and fast-changing thermal patterns. IRT does
not use any of the harmful radiation as X-ray imaging does, which makes it is suitable
for prolonged and repeated use. Additional advantages include the fact that it is a
very fast and very versatile inspection method. In many applications, for example, an
experienced and trained thermographer can almost immediately determine the health
status of the test structure by simply viewing the thermal image with the right equip-
ment, and good thermographers can create a good thermal image in seconds. Today’s
IR measuring devices (e.g., radiometers, IR cameras, etc.) are capable of providing
accurate temperature measurement and most of the current thermal imaging systems
can resolve temperature differences of less than 0.04 °C. In-camera processing allows
sophisticated field analysis in a package that weighs less than a pound. To this end,
the aerospace industry is currently augmenting, and in some cases supplanting, their
ultrasonic and X-ray NDT systems with IRT systems to determine the location of
subsurface flaws and inclusions in state-of-the-art composites [14]. Using similar
258 5 Infrared Thermography Testing and Evaluation of Fiber-Reinforced …

techniques, a roofing contractor can locate areas of wet roof insulation for replace-
ment. In some applications, finding some faults such as loose connections in electrical
systems or malfunctioning due to overheating, IRT is an excellent tool to aid in this
regard. Applications where heat is a by-product of the environmental setup (i.e., heat
generated by the process itself) or where the test structure undergoes a certain level
of thermal cycle, IRT may very well have the ability to provide information about
the operation and/or the structural integrity of this component.
As indicated earlier, IRT is not without limitations and they can be summed up
rather briefly. Generally speaking, only the surface of the test structure can be seen
thermally, suggesting that the measured thermal pattern is the result of either subsur-
face differential heat transfer or surface heat reflection. As discussed earlier, some
material surfaces are so thermally reflective that they require additional surface prepa-
ration with a high-emissive coating. If the reflective surface cannot be made more
emissive, the subsurface condition may not be detectable, or the internal tempera-
ture will have to be increased until the surface temperature is sufficient to overcome
the limited capability to emit. It is generally challenging to obtain and maintain
uniform heating throughout a specimen and the fact that only the straight/direct
viewing angle/corridor is required, which limits the applicability of the technique.
The thermal image must be interpreted which requires knowledge of the application
along with training and experience in thermography. Also, although fast and afford-
able IRT hardware has recently become available, an IR camera is still an expensive
device, and obtaining a camera with a resolution and a high spatial resolution is
not an option for low-income industries. IR images can also be difficult to interpret,
and users generally require specific training to use IRT systems (i.e., hardware and
software). IRT is also highly dependent on working conditions (e.g., surrounding
temperature, light reflection, airflow, humidity, etc.) and must be used in controlled
environments to obtain accurate inspection results. References [8, 58, 59] provide
good documentation on this topic and interested readers are directed to these specific
studies for more information.
In summary, IRT NDT presents many advantages and disadvantages associated
with this type of NDT technique. Some of its advantages include but are not limited
to the ability to inspect a large surface area of the structure and the fact that it does not
need any coupling part. This latter advantage allows for the inspection of structures
where only one side of the part is accessible to inspection. The main disadvantages
of thermal imaging include the need for sensitive and expensive instrumentation, the
need for highly skilled inspectors to run the instruments, as well as the lack of clarity
of defects that fall too deeply under the surface of the material. As far as the image
is concerned, every pixel in the sensor array acts like a single element detector with
its own thermal response curve (offset and gain). If this is maintained and a single
object with a homogeneous temperature distribution is placed in front of the camera,
we should be able to see each pixel of the array giving out the same signal, in terms
of digital level, or grey level, or color level [14]. Instead, a raw image often appears
affected by non-uniformity, and often this image is almost unusable without the due
software corrections. This obviously gives rise to several problems including fixed
pattern noise, bad pixel, vignetting, as well as the apparition of different offset and
5.11 Advantages and Limitations of Using IRT 259

gain of the pixel among others. In addition, the surface finish does play a significant
role in establishing the accuracy of this method in terms of size determination. This
is plainly explained by the fact that any variations in the features of the sample
on the surface (e.g., clean, dirty, rough, etc.) affect the sample’s emissivity (and
absorptivity) coefficient, which subsequently affect the temperature measurement of
the system [14, 153]. Furthermore, the size of the defect is often difficult to detect
since the system does have some limitations when it comes to the discrimination
of the interface between sound and defective zones. This is because the temperature
difference on the entire damaged region reaches its maximum value at the center of the
flaw and decreases laterally going toward the healthy regions of material in a kind of
bell-shaped way. This effect increases in the presence of overheated and underheated
areas on the surface [14, 218]. Nevertheless, these features can be avoided by carefully
choosing the type of excitation source, the surface orientation as well as the distance
between the sample and the stimulation source [14, 20]. Interestingly, the defect
depth can easily be estimated with some level of confidence in getting it right owing
that to deviations from the ideal evolution of surface temperature corresponding to
the energy input [14].

5.12 Conclusions

IRT aims at the detection of surface or subsurface features of composite materials

(e.g., fiber misalignments, voids, slag inclusions, etc.), based on temperature differ-
ences on the test surface during the monitoring by an IR camera even when only one
side of the test structure is accessible. IRT technique is viewed as one of the most
valuable NDT tools for online control and structural health monitoring of the mate-
rials and structures operating in environments with different levels of mechanical
stresses (i.e., reliability test), thanks to its ability to provide a quick online appraisal
of the health status of structures, thus avoiding the waste of time that would otherwise
be spent when conducting the back-and-forth testing to investigate the performance
of newly installed structures or designed materials under impact loading. In addition,
IRT is also capable of detecting several types of damage and/or material degradation
effects (e.g., impact damage, delamination, disbonds, holes, corner splits, etc.) that
occur during the material’s service life. IRT instruments are generally easy to operate
and the fact that they can provide useful information for the material characterization
that can be evaluated through the visualization of impact-induced thermal signals,
specifically when analyzing the initiation and propagation of the impact damage,
is another added advantage. Additionally, IRT techniques present several advan-
tages, which include greater inspection speed, higher resolution/sensitivity, as well
as the accurate and fast detection capabilities of the material or test structure inner
defects/damage due to heat conduction and require no couplants. In this context, IRT
can be used to test nearly all kinds of material and structural systems without fear of
contamination by the test systems.
260 5 Infrared Thermography Testing and Evaluation of Fiber-Reinforced …

Apart from conventional optically excited thermography, novel IRT techniques

based on totally different mechanisms such as laser thermography, ECT-IRT,
microwave thermography, and ultrasound thermography are being extensively used.
All these techniques are highly effective in testing and characterizing composite
materials and important information pertinent to their strengths and limitations are
provided in this chapter. Although their disadvantages cannot be listed in this conclu-
sion, some of the general disadvantages of the IRT techniques include the fact that
they all require highly sensitive instrumentation and skilled inspectors. Also, their
performance vis-à-vis the detection and characterization of deeply buried flaws is
generally limited, though some methods such as PPT-IRT can have a reasonably
good depth penetration capability. Additional challenges include fixed pattern noise,
bad pixel, vignetting, the apparition of different offset and gain of the pixel varia-
tions, surface roughness, cleanliness, uniformity of existing paint, and other surface
conditions which are more likely to induce substantial changes in the sample emis-
sivity (and absorptivity) coefficient. All the factors combined generally affect the
temperature measurement of the system and the IRT tests will undoubtedly yield
inaccurate test results. Although great progress has already been achieved, the appli-
cation of IRT to the inspection of thick composite does not provide accurate results
except the inspection of sandwich panels with high levels of water content, or large
voids. If IRT is to work with thick composite structures, users should investigate the
possibility of using an active through-the-thickness heat source, because most of the
currently available heating methods can hardly heat the interior of the sample and
still be detected of the surface with the information about the internal features of the
test structure. In addition, the aforementioned technological advancements enabling
continued development of new and state-of-the-art devices that are highly sophisti-
cated, more ergonomic, lighter in weight, and user-friendly continue to create oppor-
tunities for new applications, which also requires constant upgrading of the testing
methodologies and data analysis procedures.

Important Disclosure In this chapter, some figures referring to well-known facts and popular THz
systems were arranged traying inspiration from NDT websites and sources were also referenced
when appropriately.

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Chapter 6
Terahertz Testing Technique
for Fiber-Reinforced Composite
Materials

6.1 Introduction and Background Information

Also referred to as terahertz (THz) waves or T-ray, THz radiation are part of the
electromagnetic waves and their frequencies between 0.1–10 THz, which is the
spectrum between the microwave (µ-wave) and infrared (IR) [1]. THz waves have
generally been studied in scientific settings for a very long time in the areas such as
astronomy and analytical sciences. However, the literature indicates that the tech-
nology has been hardly used outside of the scientific communities because of the
inefficiency, complexity, and high cost of the THz emission and detection devices [2,
3]. This condition is often referred to as the “THz gap” by the scientific community
[3]. After several decades of research and development, the infamous THz gap has
now been closed up, and a huge variety of THz systems are becoming commer-
cially available. In addition, the availability of the THz systems in the markets
coupled with the recent technological advancements in photonics, semiconductors,
nanotechnology, and ultrafast electronics have enabled cutting-edge THz research
and advanced THz systems are now being manufactured and applied in many indus-
trial sectors, particularly in the NDT and structural health monitoring (SHM) of struc-
tures and material systems. Quite surprisingly though, the last decade was marked
by a faster development of the THz systems and both researchers and engineers
made significant progress in their improvement by quickly adopting these systems in
their research and constantly providing their most updated state-of-the-art applica-
tions (i.e., with many in the scientific and engineering communities getting familiar
with their utilization, but the leap from the lab to the first in-field application was
not far off). Today, THz technology is finding use in an increasingly wide range
of applications including information and communications technology (ICT), NDT,
security/monitoring system; SHM, quality control of food and agricultural prod-
ucts, biology and medical sciences, global environmental monitoring, and ultrafast
computing to list but a few.
THz systems are particularly fascinating because THz waves are capable of
penetrating materials that can absorb both visible and IR light. As a result, the

© Science Press 2022 273

S. Zhong and W. Nsengiyumva, Nondestructive Testing and Evaluation
of Fiber-Reinforced Composite Structures,
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-19-0848-4_6
274 6 Terahertz Testing Technique for Fiber-Reinforced Composite …

identification and characterization of these types of materials are possible because

many of their molecules have specific spectral patterns in this frequency band that
can easily be visualized as the THz wave passes through. In essence, several different
technologies are available for use in today’s industrial environments viz. THz time-
domain spectroscopy (THz-TDS), THz imaging, and high-power THz generation
by means of nonlinear effects. This clearly indicates that there have been numerous
breakthroughs in recent years in the field of THz technology and all these advances
have pushed THz system-related research into the center stage with more discoveries
having been made in the past 10 years. All these techniques are often far superior to
conventional tools for analyzing a wide range of materials in material science and
structural engineering. Particularly, photonics has led the way to the realization of
many important THz devices such as the development of the quantum cascade laser
(QCL) which provides a good continuous-wave (CW) of the THz source. Additional
THz devices include the CW sources like gas lasers [4, 5], quantum cascade lasers
[6] or parametric sources [7], and many others. Indeed, one of the most fascinating
achievements relates to the development of the THz pulsed imaging systems also
referred to as time-domain spectroscopy. The system uses ultrashort-pulse lasers
which generate very short THz pulses that are measured sensitively [8, 9]. In this
sense, very accurate time-of-flight analyses can be performed to measure features
such as the thickness of the composite samples or any other internal features (e.g.,
flaws, inclusions, etc.) or for material identification through spectroscopic studies
[10, 11]. Additional THz technologies use the frequency-modulated continuous-wave
THz (THz CW) systems that rely either on waveguides [12] or on integrated circuits
(ICs) [13, 14] for their operation. It is noted that these latter systems do generally
use some microwave oscillators whose emission frequencies are increased into the
THz range by means of external frequency multipliers [15]. Although the THz CW
systems produce better quality images than their TDS counterparts, their bandwidths
still remain low, hence less capable for depth resolution than the TDS systems. In
fact, all these THz systems variants are at different stages of development and each
has its predestined fields of application and their costs are virtually different with the
TDS being generally more expensive than the THz CW systems. THz systems can
also be used in transmission, reflection, or scatter patterns depending on the system
design and application (e.g., material characterization, imaging, and tomographic)
thereof.
THz technology presents several advantages over other competing NDT tech-
niques that rely on the microwave, IR, X-ray, or ultrasound waves for the inspec-
tion of structural systems. A comparison between the THz system and microwave
NDT indicates that the THz system can achieve ominously better spatial resolutions
because of the shorter wavelengths of their radiation. Also, in the THz frequency
range, spectroscopic fingerprints are available for the identification of some chemical
compounds. A comparison with IR reveals that THz radiation can easily penetrate
all the dielectric materials and has a comparatively lower Mie and Rayleigh scat-
tering effect than IR radiation. As opposed to X-ray radiation which presents several
health issues, THz radiation does not present any health-related hazards because of
the low photon energy enabling the system to be used even for the screening and
diagnosis in biological tissues. Compared to UT systems, THz systems enable the
6.1 Introduction and Background Information 275

noncontact inspection of composite materials, hence a faster data acquisition speed.

While there have been so many advantages identified of the THz radiation vis-à-vis
other techniques, the technique also does involve a number of disadvantages, some
of which have been underestimated. Perhaps the most prevalent ones include the fact
that the absorption of THz waves by water molecules also indicates that inspectors
must be cautious because the measured results can be highly affected by the mois-
ture in the air (i.e., usually liquid nitrogen is used to remove humid gases from the
measuring chamber of THz-TDS system). Similarly, most of the metal and other
electrically conductive materials (e.g., iron, aluminum, carbon fibers, etc.) reflect the
complete THz electromagnetic wave and so are not transparent to the millimeter and
any other electromagnetic waves. Information provided above constitutes the basics
detailing the historic development of the THz technology and interested readers are
directed to these specific studies for more details about the historic achievements and
fundamental principles of THz technology [2].

6.2 Terahertz Devices and Systems

As indicated earlier, the THz systems have been revolutionized over the past two
decades and they are currently being applied in the NDT of fibrous composite struc-
tures. Although most of the applications are still limited to the laboratory scale,
the success/effectiveness of the THz system in the NDT of fibrous composites
largely relies on the experimental setup. Indeed this has been corroborated by many
researchers [16, 17] who further reiterated that the THz experimental setup remains
the core of the overall THz inspection system. This is particularly because the system
performance does mainly determine the feasibility of subsequent data processing
methods and the final defect detection capability of the system. To this end, the
literature indicates that currently available THz setups are classified into broadband
pulsed THz systems, also known as THz-TDS and THz CW systems [3, 16]. Inter-
estingly, the application of both of these two system setups has been thoroughly used
the NDT of composite structures [18, 19] and play a significant role in the composite
inspection field. The following sections provide important updates pertaining to the
application of these two systems in the NDT of composite structures.

6.2.1 Terahertz Pulsed Systems—THz-TDS

−
→
The THz pulsed systems measure the evolution of the THz electric field E of a single
pulse along time. This allows users to extract a very large amount of information
including but not limited to the intensity of the THz wave and phase information.
Using certain transformations such as FFT both the frequency-dependent amplitude
and the phase information can be obtained. The frequency-dependent amplitude
276 6 Terahertz Testing Technique for Fiber-Reinforced Composite …

and the phase information can then be related to several physical properties of the
composite structure through which the THz wave has traveled [20]. Apart from the
extraction of the material physical properties, this information has also driven the
development and implementation of setups for THz-TDS. The latter is the variant of
the THz pulsed system and is indeed the most well-established THz system config-
uration in the entire THz imaging technology [21]. In its operation, the THz-TDS
system generates the THz wave by optical excitation of a photo-conductive antenna
(PCA) using a laser light-emitting in the femtosecond region [22]. THz pulses can
also be obtained from an optical rectification antenna (ORA) [21, 22]. Although the
radiation bandwidth of an ORA is generally larger than that of a PCA, typical PCA
and ORA provide average powers in the range of a few µW. This is particularly
important not to inflict additional thermal strain onto the sample, hence, its harmless
effect. In the current THz-TDS systems, the detection is performed using coherent
techniques by either using biased PCA at the receiving end that is similar to the
emitter [23, 24] or some electro-optical conversion devices where the information
contained in the THz beam is transferred to an optical probe beam with a wavelength
that is suitable for the detection of near IR or visible light. In particular, this can
be done by means of the birefringence generated by the THz beam in a nonlinear
material at which the new probe beam propagates [3, 17]. Using this approach, it is
possible to achieve higher bandwidths than using the biased PCA. Although tremen-
dous progress has been made in the THz technology in recent years, typically the
signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) is somewhat smaller except when using some of the
most advanced THz systems such as Teraview (TeraView TPS 4000) whose SNR is
generally considered to be more than 90 dB at the peak [1]. Figure 6.1 depicts the

Fig. 6.1 General representation of THz time-domain spectroscopy (THz-TDS) system and its
different components in reflection and transmission modes [19]
6.2 Terahertz Devices and Systems 277

example of the architecture of a THz-TDS system using PCA for the generation and
detection of THz waves.
In general, the principle of THz-TDS is based on the generation and detection
of pulsed THz waves using components that are gated by femtosecond laser pulses.
A frequency of 1 THz corresponds to a cycle duration of 1 ps, which means that
the THz frequencies are located at the very limits of the frequency response of
electronic devices. Given the fact that most of the typical commercial fiber lasers
present about 100 fs pulse duration or less, it is clear that most of the frequencies
between 100 GHz and 5 THz can easily be detected. However, it is important to
indicate that since there is currently no electronic device or amplifier that can directly
respond to the high-frequency oscillations of the THz electric field, there is a need to
reduce the required high-frequency response of the detection structure illustrated in
Fig. 6.1. In case the frequency response cannot be reduced, additional variations to
this detection arrangement are also available in the literature to handle the detection
where fast oscillations of the THz wave are involved [10]. All these arrangements use
a beam splitter to separate the laser beam into two fractions, one for the transmitter
(i.e., emitter) and one for the receiver arms also referred to as the probe and pump
beams, respectively. Compared to the pump-probe beam, only the relative delay
between generation and detection laser pulses is considered. This relative delay can
be achieved by using some mechanical or electrical and/or optical means [25–27].
In contrast to intensity measurements, THz-TDS allows the measurement of and
−
→
not just the intensity of the electric field E as it is the case for other power meters
or FTIR (Fourier Transform Infrared) but also its direct measurement as a function
of the delay [28]. As such, THz-TDS is more efficient than any of these devices
particularly because an intensity measurement I ∞E 2 would lose the entire phase
information.
Applying THz-TDS, the signed digitized electric field E(t) is sampled in the
time-domain as a function of the time delay t. Applying the FFT to this time-domain
signal E(t) will connect the latter to its equivalent complex quantity Ẽ(ω) in the
frequency domain. For example, considering a broadband THz pulse Ẽ(ω)in moving
through a propagation medium of length l, the amplitude and the phase of the pulse
will be calculated as follows:
 
Ẽ(ω)out = Ẽ(ω)in exp − j k̃(ω) × l (6.1)

where k̃(ω) denotes the complex wave vector consisting of a real part (i.e., describing
the propagation in space), and an imaginary part (i.e., corresponding to the mate-
rial absorption also known as the extinction coefficient). The decomposition of this
parameter into its constituents gives the following mathematical expression:
  
k̃(ω) = k0 + k(ω) + j α(ω) 2 (6.2)
278 6 Terahertz Testing Technique for Fiber-Reinforced Composite …

where k0 denotes the constant wave vector is given by the classic refractive index,
k(ω) phase-dependent effects such as dispersion, and α(ω) the material’s absorp-
tion coefficient. If the spectral amplitude of measurement is divided by that of a refer-
ence, the amplitude transmission that contains the amplitude and phase information
can be derived as follows:

Ẽ(ω)sam
t= = exp[−0.5 × l × α(ω)] × exp{ j[k0 + k(ω)] × l} (6.3)
Ẽ(ω)ref

In an intensity transmission measurement, the magnitude of this variable can be

calculated as follows:
I (ω)sam
T = |t|2 = = exp{−l × α(ω)} (6.4)
I (ω)ref

As can be seen from this mathematical expression, the phase information is lost.
This procedure is particularly useful when users want to collect spectroscopic infor-
mation on the test − composite.
 In addition, the measurements of the magnitude of
→ 
the electric field  E (t) in the time domain do equally aid in the determination of
the time-of-flight which is particularly important when the THz-TDS system is used
for certain applications such as thickness measurements or the determination of the
defects/flaws location within the composite materials. In all these applications, the
measurements are always done either in reflection or transmission mode, whereby
the time delay can be easily deduced by adding a sample into the THz path [29].
For example, let tsam and tref the time delay of the sample and reference pulse (i.e.,
the temporal position of the peak maximum). Then the time delay between these
two pulses in transmission mode t is proportional to the sample thickness d and is
calculated as follows:

n−1
t = tsam − tref = d × (6.5)
c

 
where c denotes the in-vacuo speed of light  2.998 × 108 m/s and n the refractive
index of the composite material in the THz range. In general, the refractive indices for
most of the fibrous composite materials range between 1.5 and 2.2, though some of
them may even present a much higher refractive index depending on the composition
of the matrix [19, 30]. There are currently many methods used to determine the
refractive indices of the composite materials, some of which use empirical models
[29] and others using completely experimental techniques [30, 31]. In all these cases,
however, the value of the refractive index is always determined either through the
measuring of the composite of known thickness and using experimental methods to
determine the value or by checking literature values as this value does not generally
change much if the composition of the material is considered virtually the same. In
this case, the thickness d of the sample can equally be determined after the evaluation
6.2 Terahertz Devices and Systems 279

of the pulse’s delay t in a material with a known refractive index. Also, depending
on the parameters such as the absorption coefficient of the sample and the spatial
resolution of the system, different layers of the composite can be resolved down to a
thickness of a few micrometers. Teraview (TPS 4000) is one of the systems that can
reach a spatial resolution of up to 0.1 µm both in transmission and reflection modes.
A geometry measurement operating in reflection mode is also possible and at each
interface between two consecutive media having two different refractive indices,n 1
and n 2 for medium 1 and medium 2, respectively [10, 20]. To this end, a fraction of
the THz amplitude is reflected  while another fraction is transmitted T at normal
incidence, respectively according to Fresnel’s law as follows [20]:

 = (n 1 − n 2 ) (n 1 + n 2 ) (6.6)


T = (2n 1 ) (n 1 + n 2 ) (6.7)

In view of these two mathematical expressions, it is observed that a reflection

occurs at each interface with a different refractive index. To this end, a depth profile of
the sample can be easily recorded by simply evaluating time-of-flight (back and forth)
to extract the measurements of the multiple layers of the composites, information
that can hardly be obtained in transmission mode. In this case, the modified version
of Eq. (6.5) can be derived to accommodate the back and forth movement of the THz
wave.

d = (ct) (2n) (6.8)

where d denotes the thickness of the layer/sample of interest, c the in-vacuo speed
of light, and n the refractive index. Here t denotes the time-of-flight between two
consecutive peaks at the different interfaces. Although the THz-TDS can effectively
retrieve all the aforementioned information from the test composites (e.g., time-of-
flight, refractive index, thickness, etc.), one of the major challenges related to its high
signal acquisition time. This complication does mainly originates from the low levels
of the THz wave generated during the measurements (i.e., few µW) and hence the
need for an additional signal modulation or lock-in based coherent detection schemes
with high time constants and some of the currently available lock-in amplifiers can
handle up to hundreds of milliseconds, signaling a significant development toward
the development of enhanced THz-TDS systems. Also, several samples of the THz
waveform need to be recorded for each single point measurement and considering the
fact that a 2D image is generally considered the best type of inspection measurement
in composite testing practices [19, 32], the time-scale for basic THz-TDS setups
becomes sometimes difficult to handle. Interestingly, it is possible to reduce the
acquisition time by using a shaker that introduces an oscillation in the delay line and
reduce the readout time by a factor of 20 by using an asynchronous optical sampling
technique [16, 33]. The latter uses two lasers with slightly different repetition rates
to perform a high-speed sampling of the THz waveform and in this case, both the
280 6 Terahertz Testing Technique for Fiber-Reinforced Composite …

lock-in amplifier and the beam modulation are no longer necessary. Although the
technique has barely been used in real-time inspections of composite materials, it is
likely to be one of the most feasible solutions towards a “speedy-acceptability” and
“standardization” of THz-TDS analysis of composite materials by the major players
[34].
Additional techniques such as optical sampling by cavity tuning [35]and electron-
ically controlled optical sampling [25], which are related techniques, have been intro-
duced. In recent years, technological advancements have also led to additional solu-
tions including the use of the chirped probe pulse and an electro-optical conversion to
obtain the information of a THz pulse in a single sampling whereby an improvement
by a factor of 2 orders of magnitude in the acquisition time has been achieved [36].
Although significant developments have been achieved towards the reduction of the
measurements acquisition time using the aforementioned techniques (i.e., temporal
resolution), one of the things they all have in common is the inherent reduction of
their spectral bandwidth. This is probably because most of the composite inspection
THz systems are generally not based on the spectroscopic analysis, suggesting that
their spectral bandwidth is generally not critical. In addition to the aforementioned
advancements and systems development, chirped probe pulse strategies would likely
be an interesting development for the evaluation of composite structures in particular,
though their technical implementation still needs to be refined. In conclusion, our
literature survey indicates that THz-TDS setups are generally not the best option for
the inspection of composite structures in terms of speed, but they do provide users
with high-quality information enabling the full characterization of the test compos-
ites, thanks to distinctly clear interaction between the composite structures and the
THz waves. To this end, these systems are an essential tool within the THz-based
composite inspection field, suggesting that new development in terms of speedy
measurement acquisition time is highly warranted.

6.2.2 Terahertz Continuous Wave Systems

Also known as a frequency-modulated continuous-wave system, a THz contin-

uous wave (TH CW) system is generally a type of radar system where a known
stable frequency continuous wave radio energy is transmitted and received from any
reflecting test objects. In this system, a frequency sweep is realized by the combina-
tion of the function generator (i.e., supplying the input signal in a form of a sawtooth
ramp), a voltage-controlled oscillator (i.e., supplying the voltage Vco that drives a
microelectronic multiplier chain for THz generation), as well as a single-diode-
based harmonic mixing module. A typical example setup and operation of a THz
CW system is illustrated in Fig. 6.2. In the mixer, the Vco signal is generally multi-
plied and superimposed with the received THz signal for heterodyne detection. As
indicated in Fig. 6.2, the THz radiation is sent and received through a single horn
antenna by using a directional coupler, which is connected to both the source and the
detector units. The measurements are generally performed in transmission mode.
6.2 Terahertz Devices and Systems 281

Fig. 6.2 Illustration of the THz CW setup in focused configuration. The system involves a function
generator that produces an oscillatory linear ramp signal that drives both the source and detectors
units

Regarding its operation, the frequency of the input signal Vco is modulated in a
frequency range between 13–18 GHz by the function generator before it gets up-
converted by a frequency multiplier chain to the operating frequency range. To illus-
trate the operation of this system, we consider a sawtooth-like frequency modulation
signal represented in Fig. 6.3. A linear frequency sweep of the THz wave generated
by the emitter enables the acquisition of the time delay τ R between the transmitted
and received signals by means of superposition. A beat signal with a frequency f b
(i.e., the difference of the superimposed signals) is proportional to the difference of
the optical path in a medium with a refractive index n. Considering the period T p and
the bandwidth  f of the frequency modulation, the thickness d of the test composite
can be calculated.
cτ R c fb
d= = (6.9)
2n 2n f

Fig. 6.3 Illustration of the evolution of the frequency for both the transmitted (blue) and received
signal (red) from one scatterer after a time delay τ R
282 6 Terahertz Testing Technique for Fiber-Reinforced Composite …

The operation details and typical specifications of a THz CW system are provided
in ref. [32]. The spatial resolution of the THz CW does generally depend on its oper-
ating conditions. The achievable depth resolution is given by the bandwidth of the
frequency modulation. The use of the THz CW technique on THz transparent mate-
rials, therefore, allows the reconstruction of tomographic THz images. In general,
beat signals with constant frequencies are generated at the receiver output. These beat
signals arise from the path differences between the sample signal and the reference
signal. The mixed beat kind of signals depicting the different structural depths can be
separated by applying the FFT and the resulting spectrum reveals the amplitude of
signals retrieved from different depths. In particular, users of conventional focused
THz CW systems should always know that the achievable image resolution varies
with the inspected depth as the beam radius increases with the distance to the beam
waist. This is particularly important because the stronger optical signal and better
lateral resolution are preserved with a tighter focus, though with a smaller depth of
focus.
In the THz CW system, high-power THz waves are produced through gas lasers,
quantum cascade lasers, or parametric sources, and the phase information is measured
using a relatively simple setup by recording the average intensity (i.e., the amplitude
−
→
of the wave) of the electromagnetic field E [37]. Just like the THz TDS, the intensity
−
→
information of the electric field E does relate to indicate the amplitude of the wave
and is a function of the attenuation that undergoes the THz wave when traveling
through the composite material. As a result, this information can indeed be used to
extract the parameters to characterize the composite material, including its thick-
ness and the description of internal features. Apart from obtaining the information
related to the amplitude of the THz wave that passes through the composite mate-
rial (i.e., which is often sufficient for several applications involving the evaluation
of the composite materials), the phase information can also be obtained with CW
radiation through the process is rather complicated and time-consuming [38], but it
is complex and time-consuming [39]. To this end, it is recommended to use THz CW
setups when measuring the intensity of the THz wave and THz-TDS setups when
measuring the phase [16]. Compared to THz antennas used to generate the THz waves
in THz-TDS systems, CW sources like gas lasers [4, 5], quantum cascade lasers [6],
or parametric sources [7] can generate greater power in the range of mW. Therefore,
taking advantage of the higher SNR, lower lock-in time constants can be used (i.e.,
very few milliseconds). In particular, THz CW systems do perform single measure-
ments for each pixel, suggesting that the testing speed of the composite is generally
higher than that observed in THz-TDS systems. As an example, the authors in ref.
[40] were able to scan 100 × 100 pixel images in a little more than 5 min using a THz
CW setup, which is indeed one of the fastest speeds for composite inspection appli-
cations. It is noted that in the past years’ approaches based on different technologies
(i.e., photomixing, quantum cascade laser, semiconductor lasers, backward-wave
oscillator, etc.) have been proposed and significant milestones for generation and
detection THz CW and more are still coming. However, these advancements are out
of the scope of this book and will not be discussed in this chapter. In general, it is fair
6.2 Terahertz Devices and Systems 283

to indicate that THz CW setups do facilitate the full characterization of composite

structures at relatively low acquisition times, and are considered by many researchers
as a key development in the evaluation and characterization of composite structures
based on THz systems.

6.3 Imaging Theory and Procedures

In many applications involving the NDT of composite structures, it is required for

the NDT engineers/PR actioners to generate an image of the test composite. The
advantage of using THz waves to obtain such an image is that many electrically
nonconductive materials such as glass fibers and many types of polymer matrixes
are transparent in the THz spectral region (0.1–10THz). To this end, not just an
image of the surface of the test composite is generated using THz waves, but also
a view of its internal structure can be achieved. An additional advantage of this
technology is that phase-sensitive detection is used in most of the THz techniques
(THz-TDS or CW), suggesting that 3D information of the test structure can also
be obtained. As opposed to UT systems, there is no coupling media required nor is
there any health risk associated with THz waves it is the case for X-ray systems (i.e.,
uses ionizing radiation). In their operation, the THz system can be either passive or
active. In passive THz systems, the THz waves emitted naturally by the test objects
can be easily detected based on their temperature and chemical composition [32, 41].
Importantly, the detectors in these kinds of setups are very sensitive because the power
of the natural radiation is extremely low, and mostly cooled down to 4 ◦ K or less.
Another important factor is that in these detectors only the intensity of the absorbed
radiation is measured and not the phase. Given that their operation conditions are
generally difficult to achieve, they are predominantly used in astronomy and security
systems, and rarely in general NDT applications. As a result, these detectors are not
considered in this study. In contrast to passive THz systems, active THz systems have
an artificial source of THz waves that are used to illuminate the test object. In the
active THz systems, the detection scheme can be either phase- or power-sensitive. In
the latter case, the approach is only used in transmission mode and no information
regarding the time-of-flight is available. In the former, the time-of-flight information
is used to obtain the spatial structure of the test object and can be used in both the
reflection and transmission modes [12].
In general, THz detectors are single-element sensors, suggesting that either the
combination of the detector and source has to move with respect to the test structure
or vice versa obtain an image using such a sensor has to be moved with respect to the
other. Although these systems are very precise, they are equally time-consuming and
the speed of moving either the detector or the samples remains the limiting factor
for use in some applications [32]. To date, a few multi-pixel cameras are available,
but they still have a very limited field of view with variable sensitivity and can only
detect power (i.e., no reflection measurements are possible in this case). A raster
scanning is also recommended in this case, for users to have a complete image of the
284 6 Terahertz Testing Technique for Fiber-Reinforced Composite …

test structure. One of the major drawbacks of using such systems is that they cannot
detect any structural information such as depth or thickness. In fact, the depth and
thickness information is only obtained when the THz system is used reflection mode
which also requires the use of phase-sensitive detectors. Obtaining a camera with a
sufficiently large view requires a large number of pixels, which is rather expensive.
An alternative to this is the recently developed imaging systems involving a linear
camera and conveyor belt to move the sample(s) along the imaging arm and obtain
a full image of the test object (e.g., multiple-input multiple-output) [28, 32, 42].
Although this system requires a large number of sensors, it nonetheless provides
images that are automatically sharp as those in the photography industry.
Additional configurations of THz imaging systems use the broadband feature
of the TDS to obtain hyperspectral imaging (i.e., every pixel encompasses the full
spectral information of the test composite) [28]. As indicated earlier, systems using
this feature are operated in transmission mode and the total integrated power or the
maximum amplitude of the measured signal is often indicated in the transmission
image. Although the spatial resolution is generally high at high frequencies, the
general transmission of the THz wave through the composite materials is generally
low at these same frequencies. However, the features in the THz images are the
result of scattering, fraction, absorption, and reflection, suggesting that all the afore-
mentioned effects should be taken into consideration when using the THz system to
obtain a high-quality image. In particular, some applications may require the use of
the transmission mode while others require the use of reflection mode. The choice
of the type of configuration is generally dependent on the features of interest. For
example, detection of electrically conductive inclusions (e.g., metals, polar liquids,
etc.) and structural shapes of the test composites are generally performed in trans-
mission than in reflection measurement due to the total blocking of the transmitting
wave and/or the ability to collect the entire distribution of the THz power across
the entire test composite [28]. Another reason for this is that the reflected signal is
mostly not reflected directly into the detector but in arbitrary directions, while in
transmission mode, the scattering effect at the edges of structures gives sufficient
contrast to reveal the structure’s shape than in reflection mode.

6.4 Applications of THz Systems to the Inspection

of Fibrous Composites

Applications of THz waves to the NDT of materials enable inspection of multilay-

ered composite structures and easily identify embedded abnormalities in a form of
foreign material inclusions, disbond, and delamination, as well as mechanical impact
damage, heat damage, and water or moisture ingress among others [16, 43–45]. THz
technology can play a crucial role in a number of industries for the evaluation and
characterization of materials where precision thickness and density mapping are
required. Although the THz spectroscopy and imaging have been utilized for the
6.4 Applications of THz Systems to the Inspection … 285

inspection of composite structures since 2006 [46], the literature indicates that the
has been extensively explored in recent years though improvement in the imaging
of electrically conductive composites is still warranted [16]. Extensive research has
been conducted for the imaging of glass fiber-reinforced composites, THz waves can
be utilized to detect both surface and underlying defects, including mechanical/heat
damage and voids [45, 47], delamination [10], intrusions, and moisture contamina-
tion [19], as well as fiber orientation [48]. In comparison with the UT C-scans, THz
spectroscopy and imaging can provide higher spatial resolution when used for the
characterization of characterizing glass fiber-reinforced composites in three dimen-
sions [20, 49]. Although most of the studies in the imaging and characterization of
fibrous composites appear to have focused on GFRPs due to their non-conductive
nature, other non-conductive fibers such as ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene
(UHMWPE) composites, have also been explored with THz imaging for character-
ization of delaminations [50]. Studies on the application of the THz spectroscopy
and imaging to the inspection of CFRP have not largely been conducted due to
the conductivity of carbon fibers, except those focusing on the detection of surface
or near-surface features, such as impact-induced matrix cracking [51]. Although
the conductivity of carbon fibers does generally hinder THz applications at depth,
the anisotropic conductivity of unidirectional carbon fibers can also in some cases
enable the extraction of important information that would help users to evaluate their
health conditions [52]. A typical example of such an application is presented in ref.
[12], whereby the polarization-resolved THz imaging system was used to evaluate a
hybrid fiber-reinforced composite plate (i.e., made of glass-fibers/epoxy and carbon-
fibers/epoxy plies with a cross-ply stack pattern) to visualize some impact-induced
intra- and inter-laminar damage at the same interface between the different plies.
Additional application of THz spectroscopy and imaging to the characterization of
fibrous composite structures the detection and characterization of simple mechanical
damage and fatigue produced by repeated bending cycles [11, 53, 54]. In particular,
burn damage generated by heating GFRP composites for several minutes can be
detected using the THz system [3]. Also, since burn damage distorts the composite’s
grid structure and fiber orientation, THz can then be used to detect and characterize
burn damage in CFRP using an adequate polarization and configuration [55]. Redo-
Sanchez and co-authors [56] were the first to report a successful characterization
of relatively large-sized burn damage in CFRP using THz systems. In their study,
they indicated that the information describing the surface of the composite could be
obtained from the data collected using the electric field parallel to the composite grid
structure while the perpendicular field data provides information of the inner layers
of the composite as it penetrated deeper into the sample. Recently published studies
[57–59] accurately corroborated these findings while monitoring the health status of
the aircraft composites for service-related damage and material degradation. Addi-
tional reports focusing on the capabilities of the THz systems for the detection and
characterization of the different types of damage (e.g., fissures, fiber layers breaking,
and matrix cracking) in the aftermath of different types of collisions have been
reported in the literature though most of which appear to have limited their inspec-
tion capabilities within the sub-millimeter range consistent with the systems spatial
286 6 Terahertz Testing Technique for Fiber-Reinforced Composite …

resolution [10, 60–63]. Applications of THz spectrometry and imaging systems to

the inspection of fibrous composites have been performed either through imaging or
spectroscopic analysis of the test measurements and the following sections provide
the details.

6.4.1 THz Imaging

As indicated earlier, THz or T-Ray imaging is being widely adopted for the NDE of
composite structures in aerospace and other government and industrial settings [19].
In many cases, a single-point measurement is not sufficient for the application, and
the so-called 2- or 3-D imaging is required to achieve a full characterization of the test
sample. Imaging can be performed in transmission, reflection, or scatter configuration
depending on the system design [19, 64–66]. To this end, several approaches for
THz imaging have been developed and the most promising ones are discussed in
this section of the chapter on “THz testing technique for fiber-reinforced composite
materials”.

6.4.1.1 THz 2D Imaging

In many cases, a single-point measurement is not sufficient for the application, and
the so-called one- or two-dimensional (i.e., 1D and 2D, respectively) imaging is
required to have a full characterization of the test composite. To this end, several
approaches for 2D THz imaging have been proposed in the literature, and depending
on the application and the system design, composite imaging can be performed in
transmission, reflection, or scatter configuration. In particular, 2D THz images are
generally indispensable to obtain a reliable inspection and show the inspection results
using images that can easily be understood and interpreted for a quick diagnosis.
However, the complexity of THz systems has only enabled the implementation of
raster scanning techniques. Although these techniques are very time-consuming, it
nonetheless appears to be relatively easier and simpler to integrate motorized mirrors
and telecentric optics in the THz system than to use other configurations encountered
in the photography industry [10, 21]. In this type of configuration, the most important
aspect remains the spatial resolution of the recorded images, which involves the
lateral and depth resolutions [28].
In this section, the procedure will not be repeated as it has already been presented
in the previous section on both the pulsed [67, 68] and CW [69, 70] configurations.
Additional applications of this technique in NDT of composite materials can be
found in the literature [71, 72] and interested readers are directed to these specific
studies for more details. While it was initially believed that the coherent detection
of THz wave was not possible [73], recent developments in lock-in amplifiers have
now enabled this possibility as they can be connected to each detector to enable such
a coherent detection of the THz waves. Similarly, relatively new sensor arrays such
6.4 Applications of THz Systems to the Inspection … 287

as the time-of-flight chips [74] have revolutionized the way we think of the THz
system in the NDT community and new implementations are now being developed.
Several other developments have now been implemented and reliable detector arrays
integrating complex electronics for the individual pixel are now being developed [75,
76]. The development of such devices has been the key milestone for the general use
of THz technology, and in particular, for the imaging of composite structures as it
enabled coherent 2D THz imaging [22]. Similarly, coherent detection and related
improvements of the systems SNR (i.e., generally more than 70 dB at low THz
frequencies) have compensated for the increase in the 2D focal plane imaging area
and related decrease in the energy density. Although the scanning time of the THz
system remains a limiting factor for the widespread implementation of THz systems,
these systems are currently used in applications where relatively long measurement
time is acceptable (e.g., radome inspection or safety and security control applications)
and the development of larger THz cameras to overcome the limitation of long
imaging times remains one of the dominant research topics in today’s THz imaging
technology.

6.4.1.2 THz 3D Imaging

Also referred to as the THz tomography technique, THz 3D imaging is an NDT

technique that can use THz pulsed beam to locate objects in 3D. These techniques
include THz tomography and time of flight. Such techniques can resolve details on
scales up to less than one millimeter in objects that are several tens of centimeters
in size. In this sense, the 3D information of the composite structures, as well as
the 3D positioning of both surface and inner defects, are generally the features of
interest when it comes to the inspection of composite materials. In fact, THz systems
do generally provide high 3D characterization capability in almost all composite
materials due to transmission phenomena. Interestingly, recent developments have
been shifting towards the implementation of 3D reconstruction techniques suitable
for THz radiation owing to the intrinsic characteristics of THz radiation. These
techniques are generally referred to as “tomographic techniques” and are similar to
those performed for X-ray or neutron imaging [16, 19], with the latter being the first
system where the original Computed Tomography (CT) strategy was first applied
[77]. Ideally, the core of CT systems is the reconstruction algorithms and most
of them assume the THz electromagnetic field propagates in straight trajectories.
However, this kind of assumption is generally difficult to enforce when using the
THz waves because of the scattering and diffraction effects observed with these
types of waves [78]. Numerous attempts have been made to overcome this difficulty
by using advanced modeling techniques such as the multi-peak averaging [57] or T-
ray tracing analysis procedure [79] to compensate for possible beam bending errors
[80–83]. Although these algorithms provide a feasible solution to the aforementioned
challenge, they are generally iterative and consequently very time-consuming. An
additional and yet novel experimental design of THz beam straightening has been
proposed which assumes the existence of a straight-line propagation focusing the
288 6 Terahertz Testing Technique for Fiber-Reinforced Composite …

THz beam on the target through the method requires that the thickness of the test
composite be relatively small (i.e., it cannot be applied to thick composite samples)
[84, 85].
Additional challenges that have also been dealt with include the scattering of
the THz wave both in the inspection of composite materials [57, 86–88] and other
applications such as the implementation of telecommunication systems [89] and the
imaging of dielectric materials [90]. Apart from the scattering, additional studies
have also investigated diffraction tomography as a possible technique for THz 3D
reconstruction where the diffraction phenomena are taken into account and significant
progress has been recorded [91]. In this regard, Heltmholtz’s scalar equation is used
to establish the relationship between the spatial structure of the test composite and
the pattern of the diffracted THz electric field. After that, either Born or Rytov
approximations are used to derive the linear reconstruction algorithms. In most cases,
however, the diffraction tomography technique seems to be straightforward, but its
efficiency is still limited to laboratory experiments (i.e., very small structures) due to
its low power and acquisition speed. Another technique used to obtain 3D information
in composite materials with THz waves is reflection tomography. This technique does
not use any tomographic reconstruction algorithm of the image, but it uses a layered
time resolved reconstruction which is similar to that used in the reconstruction of
UT images [92]. There is tomosynthesis which has originally been developed for
X-ray CT except that the number of projections is much smaller than in X-ray CT
[93, 94]. Although the literature reports several applications of 3D reconstructions
of the THz images [95] though the reliable 3D detection and characterization of real
flaws in fibrous composite structures has not been achieved yet and is still in a very
immature state. Progress has been made in terms of research and development, but
all the developed algorithms still need to be implemented in real-time applications.

6.4.2 THz Spectroscopy

In terms of material characterization, THz-TDS enables the users to measure and

determine the amplitude and the phase of a THz pulse that is transmitted through or
reflected from the test sample (Fig. 6.4) [96]. THz pulsed waveforms are measured
through TPI, as shown in Fig. 5.4a [3]. Fast Fourier transform can be used to obtain
the time-domain THz wave, frequency amplitude (Fig. 6.4b), and the corresponding
phase information, from which the internal information of the composite material
can be retrieved. In particular, changes in the amplitude and the phase of the THz
field are related to the absorption coefficient and the refractive index of the test
material, respectively. In general, the amplitude is reduced by reflection, absorption,
and scattering, and the pulse is delayed due to the index of refraction. Additional
temporal structures are generated by echoes of multiple reflections inside the sample
or due to the spectral information of the sample material. The spectral information is
retrieved from the measured THztime trace by Fourier transformation [9]. Further-
more, based on THz-TDS systems, a spectroscopic approach can be implemented
6.4 Applications of THz Systems to the Inspection … 289

Fig. 6.4 Comparison of the reference pulse and the measured pulse after transmission through a
PTFE sample. The comparison of the waveforms allows statements to be made regarding sample
properties such as thickness, porosity, absorption, moisture, etc. A Fourier transformation is used
to calculate the spectrum. The absorption lines of water vapor cause oscillations in the measured
pulse and are clearly visible in the corresponding spectrum

as the THz spectrum can be obtained based on a Fourier analysis [60, 97]. Hence,
both parts of the frequency-dependent complex refractive index can be obtained. In
formation detailing the determination of the material complex refractive index has
been presented in the earlier sections of this chapter and additional information can
be found in the literature [97, 98]. As the THz waves get transmitted through the test
sample, they normally interact with the collective motions of its large molecules and
spectroscopic information detailing this interaction can be measured [99]. Indeed,
such spectroscopic information does generally provide an accurate material char-
acterization [100]. To date, advanced material identification algorithms based on
statistical pattern recognition principles as well as advanced signal processing tech-
niques have been devised by researchers in the NDT community to increase the
material evaluation capabilities of the THz systems [47, 101]. Perhaps the most
fascinating of all these signal processing techniques is the integration of different
THz measurements for full characterization of material that is commonly referred to
as “data fusion” [19].
Although the majority of the THz spectroscopic analysis and composite mate-
rial evaluation or characterization related studies have been focusing on single-point
measurements, both the 2D and 3-D THz imaging and/or spectroscopic analysis of the
test samples are also performed, though to a limited extent [10, 20, 60, 102, 103]. In
particular, the 3D image reconstruction is generally implemented for each frequency
range, suggesting that a frequency-dependent phase and amplitude 3D information
of test structure can be obtained [104]. Although the closed of the so-called “THz
gap” has encouraged significant development in THz spectroscopy and imaging, it
is important to indicate that obtaining the material-related information using THz
spectroscopy and imaging systems has not yet proven to be as sensitive and powerful
as other information obtained in more established frequency bands (e.g., the IR,
ultrasound, etc.) [3, 16]. As such, the investigation of the full potential of such spec-
troscopic information for defect detection, evaluation, and characterization in fibrous
290 6 Terahertz Testing Technique for Fiber-Reinforced Composite …

composite structures is still ongoing and more studies are still warranted to establish
a clear evaluation strategy for such structures. In particular, the actual potential of
the THz spectroscopic approach in the evaluation of the composite inspection field
remains to be proven especially the characterization of the carbon-fiber-reinforced
composites or any other electrically conductive composite materials.

6.5 Specific Application of THz Systems for the Evaluation

of Composite Structures

The current era of technological advancement has steadily increased the applica-
tion of advanced composite materials systems, making them vulnerable to impact
strikes and distinct material degradations. In fact, defects and damage in composite
structures are common occurrences and they can arise during material processing,
component fabrication, or in-service [19, 105]. As a result, these structures should be
rigorously examined to detect and evaluate the defect or the damage or continuously
monitor the damage mechanisms during their service life to ensure their structural
integrity is maintained and avoid unexpected failures. Evaluation can be achieved
by using SHM or NDT systems. In general, these two systems work together to
collect the information pertinent to the health status of the test structure, predicting
its remaining lifetime or performing the defect assessment [106]. In particular, SHM
enables the structure loading and damage-provoking conditions to be recorded and
analyzed in real-time or on-demand using some advanced sensing technologies with
intelligent algorithms while NDT methods are used for damage detection, localiza-
tion, and evaluation in a schedule-based manner [19, 107]. As opposed to NDT, SHM
is uniquely concerned with online global damage identification in a structure, which
means that prior knowledge of damage location is not needed. Although the discus-
sion about the advances and trends in SHM of composite structures is beyond the
scope of the current book, the topic has been extensively documented in the literature
[108–111] and interested readers are directed to these specific documents for more
details. Recent years have been marked by remarkable advances in THz imaging
technology, and the technique has proven to be capable of detecting and charac-
terizing many types of defects and damage in composite structures at the different
stages of their lifecycles [112, 113]. The following sections present typical examples
of such applications.

6.5.1 Online Process Monitoring

In general, the trend toward the implementation and utilization of online process
monitoring facilities based on THz systems is primarily driven by the mixture of
regulations, safety issues, process integration, economics-related issues, and the
6.5 Specific Application of THz Systems for the Evaluation … 291

influx of a younger generation of operators and engineers that is more open to newer
technology and automation of the processes. As such, online process monitoring
based on THz systems is being considered the next paradigm in the manufacturing
of composite structures for quality assurance purposes. To this end, online THz
systems provide a new level of detail and accuracy in the entire composite manu-
facturing process, which allows users to make an informed decision regarding the
rejection or acceptance of the composite parts consistent with the design specifica-
tions. Similarly, THz online monitoring systems also help to reduce waste through
their ability to detect defects fast and early by continuously monitoring each level of
the manufacturing process [16, 31, 95]. To date, several solutions have been devel-
oped towards online THz NDT process monitoring of fibrous composite materials
and the most observed applications are the monitoring of additive content and the
degree of conversion monitoring.

6.5.1.1 Additive Content Monitoring

Additive manufacturing (AM) technology is not only used to make 3D objects but
also for rapid prototyping. In industry and laboratories, however, quality control for
these objects is necessary during the manufacturing process through very difficult
to implement when compared to classical methods of fabrication. This is particu-
larly because not only does the layer-by-layer printing allow for very complex object
manufacturing that is unachievable with standard tools, the process does also induces
unknown or unexpected defects. As such, online THz imaging systems provide an
excellent, and yet innovative solution for 2D inspection of polymeric material systems
[114–116]. In fact, THz tomography may be used as an alternative to X-ray tomog-
raphy and cheaper 3D imaging for routine control [60]. Implementing this kind of
inspection, authors in ref. [114] developed a fiber-coupled THz-TDS system and used
it for the online monitoring of compounding processes by taking advantage of the
fact that the additives commonly used in the polymer industry exhibit a significantly
higher permittivity than the polymer matrixes themselves. As part of their conclu-
sions, the authors indicated that their system provided reliable online information
detailing the concentration of the additive materials in a polymeric compounding
process. Using the same concept of permittivity difference, several other studies
[117–119] have been conducted to investigate the content of carbon-based fillers in
composites and rubber compounds by means of THz-TDS systems, and encouraging
results were reported.

6.5.1.2 Degree of Conversion Monitoring

In the manufacturing industry, the characterization of the degree of conversion (DOC)

during the curing process of composite structures is highly desired. In fact, the
determination of the DOC allows the manufacturers to control the properties of
the final product/composite part, and furthermore, it would avoid typically used
292 6 Terahertz Testing Technique for Fiber-Reinforced Composite …

unnecessarily extended curing cycle times. Online THz NDT systems are able to
monitor the valuable information pertinent to the degree of conversion based on the
premise that the fillers in composites materials (e.g., fiber, particles, etc.) do generally
exhibit a significantly higher permittivity than the polymer matrixes themselves.
Although a dedicated THz NDT system for online monitoring of the curing process
of composite materials still needs to be developed, available systems can still provide
adequate monitoring results, and THz technology is foreseen to be a promising
tool for such an approach [120]. To this end, a number of studies have already
experimented with the feasibility of this application and their results have been
documented in the literature [96, 120]. In ref. [96], the authors demonstrated that
using the THz system to extract the optical parameters of the material, both its
absorption coefficient and the refractive index varied by varying the DOC of the
SU-8 polymer through the variation of UV exposure times. In the same study, the
authors also demonstrated the feasibility of improved THz sensitivity for monitoring
different material phase changes [96] as well as density [121] and viscosity [122]
changes. A particular application of the THz NDT has been demonstrated in ref. [123]
where the authors applied this system to monitor the curing process of three different
light-curing composite parts. Although the initial exact thickness of the sample was
required for their investigation, the authors were able to precisely determine the
changes of the THz refractive index and absorption coefficient during stepwise light
exposure as well the THz dielectric parameters as the material shrunk during the
curing process. They noted that changes in the refractive index were correlated with
changes in the density of the materials and that both the refractive index and the
sample thickness could reliably give the most reliable information to monitor the
curing process of the composite parts.

6.5.2 Off-Line NDT Inspection

In general, the use of THz spectroscopy and imaging systems in offline NDT appli-
cations is by far the most commonly used form of THz NDT for composite struc-
tures. The technique was first used as an NDT for composite structures in 2006 [46]
and is already become a new promising tool to date [10, 60]. Interestingly, THz
waves can penetrate further to detect buried and underlying defects, including voids,
delamination, and intrusions [20, 60]. In particular, THz waves can also be used to
detect the fiber content and orientation inside glass fiber-reinforced composites [46].
The following sections provide important information pertinent to the utilization of
THz NDT for the evaluation and characterization of composite structures in offline
configurations.
6.5 Specific Application of THz Systems for the Evaluation … 293

6.5.2.1 The Determination of Fiber Content and Orientation

In the manufacturing of fibrous composites, the determination of the fiber orientation

and content are key parameters affecting the overall performance of the resulting
structures. In fact, these two parameters can easily and considerably compromise
the mechanical performance of the structure and jeopardize its design specifications.
Typically, the formation of dry fibers (i.e., resin-starved) and resin-rich areas arise
during the fiber impregnation process (i.e., the manufacturing stage) due to defective
resin propagation through the fibers. These two types of defects lead to variations
in the fiber-to-matrix ratio or fiber-volume ratio (i.e., caused by changes in resin
content through improper resin bleed-out during the cure cycle), which subsequently
affect the strength and stiffness of the composite. Similarly, fiber waviness (i.e.,
frequently observed in complex shape parts) is also a result of the predominance
of resin shrinkage (i.e., dry fiber) or ply buckling during the fiber impregnation or
ply layup stages. As indicated earlier, fillers in the composites exhibit significantly
higher permittivity than the polymeric matrix material (i.e., note that both fibers
and matrix are mixed). As a result, THz has proven to be a promising technology
for the detection and characterization of fiber concentration and orientation [124].
In 2008, the preferential fiber orientation has been qualitatively studied with THz
TDS, but no quantitative orientation analysis has been performed so far [46, 125].
Researchers have demonstrated that the material’s refractive index allows THz users
to directly determine the fiber content, orientation, and waviness by simply analyzing
the intensity and the absorption of the THz wave at different polarization angles [46]
and the THz birefringent properties of the test materials [124]. In a recent study, the
authors in ref. [126] used the THz system to predict the stacking sequence of glass
fiber and determine the fiber mass content of glass fiber sheet molding compound in
GFRP composites using THz radiation.

6.5.2.2 The Voids Characterization and Evaluation

In general, voids or air bubbles are usual defects that arise during the manufac-
turing process and need to be detected. As opposed to porosity which is a cluster of
several microscopic voids, voids are single and they are both generated during the
impregnation and/or curing steps due to defective resin propagation and inappropriate
pressure or temperature cycles, respectively. They are also generated from dissolved
air within the resin, the air stirred into the resin, trapped air in a filament bundle,
residual solvent carrier, reaction products from the curing process, volatilization of
low-molecular-weight components of the resin, or of organic inclusions, at high cure
temperatures. Although these defects are caused by many different factors during the
manufacturing process, the extent to which they produce the deterioration in mechan-
ical and other properties of the composite structure is a function of their content,
distribution, and shapes. In general, they reduce the magnitude of the composite’s
mechanical properties such as the interlaminar (short beam) shear strength, longitu-
dinal and transverse flexural and tensile strength and modulus, compressive strength
294 6 Terahertz Testing Technique for Fiber-Reinforced Composite …

and modulus, and fatigue resistance. It is important to indicate that voids actually
have a detrimental effect on the mechanical properties of the composite parts and
may alter significantly their thermal behavior. In particular, high void content in the
composite materials may lead to several types of critical defects during the lifecycle
of the resulting composite parts, suggesting that the evaluation and characteriza-
tion of voids/porosity in composite materials during the manufacturing process is an
important step to guarantee the accuracy of the composite’s functional design and
the safety of users. Also, the applicability of this technology to the inspection of
high-porosity thick GFRP-based sandwich composites has been studied [56, 127],
albeit the limitation of the THz technology due to limited penetration capabilities of
the THz waves.
Indeed, the lower THz absorption of air makes the THz radiation the most suitable
tool for void detection in the surface and inner regions of composite materials for as
long as the THz waves can penetrate the test composites. As opposed to carbon fiber-
based composites, THz waves can penetrate further to detect buried and underlying
defects [49, 128, 129]. In carbon fiber-based composite, the conductivity of carbon
fiber [130] hinders the THz waves have to penetrate deeper into the thickness of
the composite and the technique has only been demonstrated to detect the defects
near the surface of the CFRP or in the coating material of these very composites.
That withstanding, several studies have been conducted focusing on the detection,
localization, and characterization of voids and results have been documented in the
literature. In ref. [125], for example, the authors demonstrated the detection of hidden
circular voids of 3 mm diameter using a THz-TDS configured in transmission mode.
Although the frequency-dependent information was obtained in their test, single
frequency phase or amplitude data were found to be enough for the detection of voids
with a sub-millimeter resolution. Considering the sensitivity of the THz radiation to
changes of picosecond dynamics in media, the authors in ref. [131] demonstrated
experimentally demonstrate the efficiency of THz-TDS for nondestructive control of
the polymerization of binder in PCM. In the same study, the authors also demonstrated
the ability of the THz time-of-flight tomography to detect non-impregnated voids
inside the PCM structure. It is worth noting that void detection has also been achieved
by using a THz-TDS system configured in reflection mode whereby encouraging
results were reported [47].

6.5.2.3 The Delamination Characterization and Evaluation

Also termed interlaminar cracking, delamination remains the most frequently

encountered type of damage in advanced composite structures. In general, delam-
ination is considered a polymer matrix-related flaw, where in-plane matrix cracks
propagate between the plies of the laminate or within the laminate itself (regions in the
composite where the matrix does not provide cohesion between the different layers
of fiber due to, among other things, the presence of an air layer), where the cracks
run parallel to the direction of the fibers. This type of damage is mainly caused by
impact from foreign objects or defective impregnation of the fibers and is one of the
6.5 Specific Application of THz Systems for the Evaluation … 295

most vital failure modes of composite structures as it significantly affects the strength
of the composite laminates (i.e., inversely proportional) [132]. In fact, studies [19,
105] indicate that the cohesion between the plies of the composite reduces as the
rate of delamination increases. As cohesion of different layers of fibers is essential in
composite materials, delamination generally leads to several undesired detrimental
consequences and users should at all costs know if and when the delamination has
initiated in the composite to avoid potential catastrophic failure [19]. To this end,
several studies [10, 133] have demonstrated the feasibility of THz-TDS NDT tech-
nology for the detection and characterization of delamination in composite materials
based on transmission attenuation analysis similar to that used for void detection
[125, 133]. In fact, both the operation and performance of the THz-TDS in voids
and delamination detection and characterization are virtually the same [16]. Apart
from typical attenuation analysis, several authors [134] have also demonstrated the
high sensitivity of the THz system with respect to the THz polarization orientation
by detecting delamination in a Kevlar sample. Importantly, delamination was found
to be more visible when the polarization of the electric field of the THz waves was
perpendicular to the direction of the delamination within the composite (i.e., parallel
to the fiber orientation). However, their data analysis only relied on the THz intensity
because the measurements were conducted using a THz CW system.
In recent years, advanced studies have been published outlining the effectiveness
of the THz-TDS in the detection and characterization of delamination. In ref. [10], for
example, the authors considered the imaging and characterization of forced delami-
nation using a reflective THS TDS imaging system. They found that the THz system
was able to locate and evaluate the delamination in three dimensions. They were also
able to determine the thicknesses of the delamination and of the layers constituting
the laminate. A comparative analysis between the results obtained from the THz-TDS
and UT systems revealed that THz-TDS has a higher spatial resolution for imaging
of the composite materials, and can be regarded as an alternative or complementary
modality to UT C-scans for this particular class of GFRP composites. In a similar
study [135], the authors performed an evaluation of hidden multi-delamination in a
GFRP composite using THz-TDS. As part of their conclusions indicated that they
were able to determine the shapes, thickness, and locations in the z-direction of each
delamination among the overlapped multi-delamination considering the interaction
between the pulsed THz wave and the composite itself. The suitability of THz waves
for the identification of delamination in composite and foam ground-based radome
panels has also been demonstrated [136]. An investigation of the capabilities of THz
waves for the imaging of GFRP composites and structures in the wind turbine was
also conducted in ref. [59]. The structures used in this study included both solid
laminates and the parts in the wind turbine (i.e., including hybrid composites based
on carbon and glass fibers blended within the polymeric matrix). The defects and
anomalies investigated by the THz-TDS CW system were foreign material inclu-
sions, simulated disband, delamination, and mechanical impact damage. Unlike the
UT system, the THz CW system was able to detect even smaller cracks hidden behind
a larger ones in thick GFRP laminates of the wind turbine sections. The imaging of
296 6 Terahertz Testing Technique for Fiber-Reinforced Composite …

CFRP composite was limited due to the conductivity of the carbon fibers and there
and the angle between the direction of the fibers and that of the THz electric field.

6.5.3 Characterization of In-Service Damage and Material

Degradation

As indicated earlier, fibrous composite components are being widely used in primary
and secondary load-bearing structures in aircraft, marine, and civil engineering,
where specific strengths and specific modulus are of great importance. In order
to ensure their integrity is maintained throughout their service life, these structures
are regularly tested for any possible damage and/or material degradation [19]. THz
spectroscopy and imaging with high resolution and good penetration capabilities
have been proven capable of inspecting composite structures for mechanical damage
and/or structural disintegration based on the similarities in the absorption coefficient
and/or refraction index of the healthy the damaged areas of the test structure. The
technique is mainly used for the detection of service-related damage such as impact
damage, burning areas, defects in thin paint layers, etc. and important details are
provided in the following sections.

6.5.3.1 Evaluation of Mechanical Damage

In general, when composite material components are damaged due to mechanical

loading or defective in some way, the engineer or technician needs to use appropriate
NDT techniques to determine the size, shape, depth, type, orientation, and extent of
the anomaly and restitution approach. This is particularly important because the effect
of mechanical stress (e.g., extended mechanical bending cycles) is quite problematic
as they produce a continuous wearing out of the composite part while in-service.
In particular, excessive mechanical stress on multilayered composites causes irre-
versible damage to the adhesive layers and the polymer matrix itself. To this end, the
anticipated compactness of the composite material system is greatly affected and the
interaction between the fiber and the polymer matrix of the composite gets distorted,
leading to detrimental effects on its performance. Indeed, all these types of damage
and transformation cause significant changes in the material’s original attributes
and/or composition, and these changes can easily be detected by THz radiation. In
particular, THz spectroscopy and imaging have successfully been proven capable
of inspecting fibrous composite structures for mechanical damage (e.g., mechanical
fatigue caused by repeated bending cycles) [53, 125, 137, 138]. A recent study [139]
demonstrated the feasibility of the polarization-sensitive THz imaging when they
used a THz subsurface spectral imaging based on THz deconvolution to detect and
characterize the subsurface damage (i.e., damage within the first ply of the composite
laminate caused by a four-point bending test) in woven CFRP composite laminates.
6.5 Specific Application of THz Systems for the Evaluation … 297

Although CFRP composites are conductive, the authors indicated that they were able
to successfully detect and characterize all the subsurface damage including matrix
cracking, fiber distortion/fracture, as well as intra-ply delamination, thanks to the
utilization of polarization and THz deconvolution. Figure 6.5 represents their results
in the frequency-domain.
In ref. [138], for example, the authors successfully demonstrated the capabilities
of the THz-TDS by showing the damage due to mechanical fatigue in the composite
structure as a result of 6240 bending cycles. The authors indicated that after applying
the repeated bending cycles that resulted in mechanical fatigue, a thin area of discol-
oration on one side of the glass fiber strip as well as a small amount of cracking
and buckling on the backside could be visually observed. In the THz image, an
area of reduced amplitude corresponding roughly to the axis of bending is observed.
Although the majority of the studies on this topic focus on the use of THz-TDS,
some other studies have also demonstrated that even simple amplitude information
that may be obtained by using the CW setups can also be used for mechanical damage
detection in terms of THz absorption images [59]. Recent studies [140, 141] have
equally reported encouraging results relating to the capability of THz technology for
the characterization of changes in the structural and optical properties of composite
materials caused by excessive mechanical stresses.

Fig. 6.5 THz C-scan images of a woven CFRP sample in the frequency-domain based on the a
THz polarization parallel to the warp direction, b THz polarization parallel to the weft direction,
and c THz subsurface signals with THz polarization parallel to the weft direction [139]
298 6 Terahertz Testing Technique for Fiber-Reinforced Composite …

6.5.3.2 Evaluation of Burn Damage

In general, composite structures suffer from burn damage due to high and periodic
thermal stresses. This type of damage usually arises on the surface of the composite
structure where thermal gradients are highest. They are generally caused by lightning
strikes, high-temperature working conditions, battle damage, etc. Although they are
similar to other surface damage, burns will generally lead to the degradation of the
matrix properties of the composite. As a result, THz-TDS configured in reflection
mode has been proven to be a possible NDT method of burn damage in composites. In
ref. [47], the authors showed that THz-TDS configured in reflection mode can easily
detect localized burn damage in aircrafts GFRP composites. Figure 6.6 shows the
damage created by heat (i.e., burn damage) in the composite and the obtained results
from the inspection by the THz system as reported by the authors in ref. [47]. The burn
damage was generated by heating the composite part to a temperature between 425–
440 °C for several minutes. As indicated in Fig. 6.6, the heating generated relatively
big blisters of a few cm sizes in the sample and these were easily detected because
they were within the resolution range of THz systems. Similarly, the air gap below
the blister of about 480 µm (i.e., also generated during the heating process), was
equally detected by simply analyzing the time delay between two reflected peaks.
That is, the degree of the damage can be determined by measuring the amplitude and
position of the pulse of the waveform (i.e., the distortion of fibers and resin and surface
roughness will change the amplitude and position of the pulses). Although the authors
were able to demonstrate that THz CW does present a sufficient in-depth resolution
(i.e., submillimeter resolution) the authors concluded that additional information
about material deformations such as delamination, generated during the burning
process requires time-resolved THz data, suggesting that it can only be detected by
using THz-TDS system. The combination of amplitude and position information can
provide robust data analysis for damage evaluation.
Given the fact that THz waves cannot penetrate CFRP composites (i.e., they
largely reflect THz radiation due to the conductivity of carbon fibers and only surface
damage can be evaluated), it is always possible to take advantage of the reflection
configuration of the THz system to examine burn damage. In fact, burn damage
has been extensively studied in CFRP using the THz-TDS system and results have
been documented in the literature [142]. However, it is important to note that CFRP
composites do have a polarization-dependent reflectivity in the THz frequency range
which varies depending on the grid structure of carbon fibers [26, 60, 139]. In partic-
ular, the reflectivity is higher when the radiation’s electric field is parallel to the grid
and lower when it is perpendicular. Since burn damage causes distortion or damage
to this grid structure, THz detection of burn damage using an adequate polarization
configuration has been proved [55, 143]. To this end, the authors in ref. [56] investi-
gated the feasibility of the THz imaging and sensing techniques for the assessment of
the defects and damage in insulating foam and CFRP composites. In this study, the
degree of heat damage for the carbon fiber-based samples was evaluated by both THz
CW and THz-TDS systems, and Fig. 6.7 reports their results. As indicated on top of
each image reported, the authors were able to prove that that data obtained with the
6.5 Specific Application of THz Systems for the Evaluation … 299

Fig. 6.6 THz-TDS images and photos for three burn areas on composite samples: a, b 440 °C for
4 min; b, e 430 °C for 6 min; and c, f 425 °C for 20 min [47]

electric field parallel to the grid mainly indicates the information about the surface,
while the perpendicular field data penetrates deeper into the sample and provides
information of the inner layers of the test composite.
In ref. [55], both the THz CW and THz-TDS systems were also used in reflection
mode to detect and characterize burn damage in a variety of CFRP composite mate-
rials and results were encouraging. The authors were able to demonstrate how the
polarization dependence changes with respect to the level of burn damage. In addition,
the time domain information acquired through a THz-TDS system provided further
300 6 Terahertz Testing Technique for Fiber-Reinforced Composite …

Fig. 6.7 Illustration of the burn damage imaging in CFRP composites with different polarization:
a superficial burn damage confined to a small spot, b severe burn damage across the surface, and c
severe damage confined to a small spot [56]

information that was used to characterize the damage. The technology is discussed in
terms of non-destructive testing applications to the defense and aerospace industries.

6.5.3.3 Evaluation of Impact Damage

Impact damage is one of the most devastating types of damage for composite struc-
tures that occurs during their survival lives. In general, this type of damage can
cause fiber layer breakages and create several fissures and cracks in the polymeric
matrix of the composite that suddenly compromises the overall properties of the
part (i.e., a significant reduction in the performance of the composite structure). The
principal cause of penetration and the amount of damage depends on the energy
level of the projectile colliding with the composite. That is, the amount of damage
is generally dependent on several factors such as the material properties, geometry,
and the velocity of imparter and superimposed static loads. Similarly, the propaga-
tion of the damage caused by impact loads does generally depend on loading type
and strain levels, where the resulting strength losses can be conservatively approx-
imated on the basis of an “equivalent” round hole [105]. Composite structures will
significantly reduce the structural integrity, stiffness, and toughness of the mate-
rial, resulting in catastrophic failure of the structure in extreme scenarios. Several
studies have been documented in the literature focusing on the utilization of the THz
spectroscopy and imaging system [60–62]. In ref. [60], for example, THz-TDS and
imaging system were used to characterize a hybrid fiber-reinforced composite lami-
nate (i.e., made of unidirectional glass/epoxy and carbon/epoxy plies with a cross-ply
6.5 Specific Application of THz Systems for the Evaluation … 301

stack pattern) subject to low-velocity impact. Interesting, the THz-TDS system was
able to characterize both the impact-induced intra- and interlaminar damages as well
as the damage evolution throughout the thickness of the composite. The interaction
between the THz polarization and carbon-fiber orientation was investigated in detail
and the authors found that the inter-laminar damage at the interface and the intra-
laminar damage close to the same interface can be differentiated via polarization-
resolved imaging. After using a parameter fitting method based on multiple regression
analysis, interply delamination was characterized quantitatively. THz C-scan and B-
scan images clearly exhibit the propagation of the impact damage from the top to
the bottom surface of the test composite in a three-dimensional fashion. Figure 6.8
represents their results.
Additional applications involving the use of the THz technology for the imaging
and characterization of composite structures include the study [144], whereby the
authors demonstrated that it is possible to detect damage in CFRP composites using
the THz-TDS system, though their study was equally limited to the detection and
characterization of both the surface and shallow defects caused by impact loads.
Also, the authors in ref. [145] demonstrated the capabilities of the THz technology
for the characterization of impact damage in Kevlar bulletproof composites. Apart
from clearly detecting impact damage with the sub-millimeter resolution, the authors
were also able to observe radial cracks and concentric stress lines. In a similar study
[61], the authors proved that the use of the THz-TDS system based on harmonic anal-
ysis is suitable for the evaluation and characterization of impact damage in composite
materials compared to other techniques like active thermography. In a similar study
[62], the authors investigated the penetration properties of the THz waves. In their
study, they used a CW raster-scanning THz imaging setup (i.e., featuring a 3.8 THz

Fig. 6.8 The top images indicate the C-scans THz images of the bottom surface with polarization
a perpendicular and b parallel to the carbon fiber orientation. The bottom images denote B-scans
THz images incident on the top surface (i.e., along the section y = 0) and with polarization c
perpendicular and d parallel to the carbon-fiber orientation [60]
302 6 Terahertz Testing Technique for Fiber-Reinforced Composite …

Quantum Cascade Laser source) to evaluate polypropylene/polypropylene composite

samples. A comparison between the results from the transmission and reflection THz
imaging systems and UT C-scan images revealed that these two systems provide
similar results. However, the authors further noted that the THz images in reflec-
tion give similar results to C-scan whereas THz transmission images provide more
information about the delaminations and cracks in the fiber fabrics.

6.5.3.4 Characterization of Water Intrusion and Moisture Ingress

In general, the first impression pertinent to THz technology is that the propaga-
tion of THz waves into conductive materials and/or polar liquids such as water and
ammonia is readily not possible. Indeed, these two facts do generally pose some
limitations for THz technology when used to evaluate such materials and/or detect
their presence in composite materials [146]. However, this limitation may at a time be
considered beneficial, especially when considering the detection of moisture ingress,
water intrusion, or simply the attack from the humidity in fibrous composite mate-
rials. In fact, this is particularly important because composite structures are used
usually in adverse environmental conditions (e.g., pipeline systems, offshore wind
turbine blades, marine composites, etc.). In such service conditions, moisture, water,
or excessive humidity will gradually diffuse into the composite structure and will
eventually compromise its overall performance. THz radiation is highly absorbed
by some polar liquids such as ethanol, water, ammonia, and others which compro-
mises the reliability of the inspection results provided by the THz system when
inspecting structures enclosing these types of liquids. However, this property does
enable reliable detection of the water content and relatively straightforward analysis
of THz absorption. THz-based water content characterization on composite mate-
rials has been extensively demonstrated [136, 146, 147]. In a recent study [148],
the authors used the THz-TDS system to investigate the capabilities of the system
for the detection of damage and water ingress in thick woven glass-fiber composites
used in the marine environment. Air-filled damage within the fiberglass volume is
also clearly identified. Additional applications involving the use of the THz system
for the detection and characterization of water intrusions in composite structures
include the study in ref. [149] whereby the authors developed a method that was
used to localize and determine the size and shape of the water drops embedded in
GFRP plates. The water drops were introduced into the composite during its manu-
facturing process. The differences between the parameters of both the GFRP material
and water vis-à-vis the transmission of the electromagnetic waves (e.g., absorption
coefficient, refractive index, etc.) in THz range enabled the development that fast
indicates the water drop occurrence, location and roughly estimated its shape.
In summary, THz systems constitute an effective tool for the NDT of composite
materials. However, their systems are still very complicated and expensive to
commercialize, which limits their applications to the evaluation of composite struc-
tures. The technology can see “through” the defects in thin composites and examine
the underlying fabric of the material, overcoming the shadowing effect observed
6.5 Specific Application of THz Systems for the Evaluation … 303

in UT systems. Although the advancement of this technology has suffered signifi-

cant delays for many years because of the inadequacy of its emission and detection
devices [19], the recent development of some high performing semiconductors and
ultrafast electronics has helped engineers in the field of composite materials develop-
ment and optimization as well as the NDT practitioners to address this problem. To
date, extremely short pulses required for the energy frequency of THz waves can be
achieved, suggesting that higher resolution can be easily achieved than when using
the normal microwave systems. A lot has been done but much still needs to be done.
The above applications highlight some of the most dominant applications of the THz
systems for the inspection of composite materials, and to our best knowledge, there
are currently no published studies focusing on the evaluation of moisture uptake in
thick composites (thickness great than 15 mm) nor are there any studies outlining the
testing and evaluation procedure for conductive materials using THz waves except
some limited applications with limited explanations on how the results are achieved.
Achieving this kind of inspection using THz wave with a very clear explanation,
would indeed be a valuable milestone to the NDT community. In thick composites
and sandwich structures, THz systems do not provide reliable results owing to the
attenuation and scattering effects of the THz waves.

6.6 Outlook on Possible Future Applications of the THz

Systems

In general, all of the THz applications mentioned in this chapter on the application
of THz systems for the inspection of composite structures focus on the measuring
systems and the main reason is twofold. In primis, the development elaborated in this
chapter corresponds to the thematic topic of the book and is also the area where the
THz technology first came into use and achieved its industrial market maturity. As
such, there are certainly other research areas where the THz technology is applied and
many other areas are expected soon follow (e.g., the information and communication
sectors) [150]. In the area of instrumentation and measuring systems, the trend is
clear and uninterrupted: THz systems are becoming increasingly capable and more
efficient. In particular, THz waves at low frequencies between 0.1–0.5 THz appear
to be promising for the inspection of GFRP structures [19, 151]. In addition, the
capabilities of the THz systems to see through the different layers of flaws and still
be able to detect the underlying features of the test composites is another added
advantage allowing users to overcome the shadowing effect usually that is observed
when using UT systems. However, significantly thick composites (i.e., more than
50 mm thick) are not expected to be easily inspectable using THz systems, owing to
the in-thickness weakening and scattering of the THz radiation [152]. Although THz
waves are generally not capable of inspecting electrically conductive materials (i.e.,
CFRP, inaccessible side of aluminum honeycombs, metal matrix composites, etc.)
irrespective of their thicknesses. The THz technology is gaining further momentum in
304 6 Terahertz Testing Technique for Fiber-Reinforced Composite …

connection with improved algorithms for data evaluation [20, 60, 139], combining
different THz techniques [56] or fusing data from different THz systems and or
NDE methods (i.e., data fusion) [19] to obtain reliable and yet accurate results. To
this end, the possibility of the THz inspection technology expanding into additional
application sectors is enormous and is getting even more and more ensured by the
current development of application-oriented systems to handle specific inspection
tasks in the NDT community [3, 146]. In summary, THz technology is clearly entering
a period of very promising activity for the future, particularly in its application to
the inspection of composite structural systems.

6.7 Conclusions

THz imaging is a new technology that is used to detect and characterize material
properties by using THz waves. Although the technology is generally effective in
the detection and characterization of damage and flaws in composite structures, the
literature indicates that it has not been extensively applied in the industry as it is
the case for other well-established NDT techniques (e.g., UT, infrared thermography
(IRT), and eddy current testing (ECT) techniques), several studies have been reported
in the literature most of which have been performed at a laboratory scale. A glance
at the current state of the THz technology reveals that the knowledge accumulated in
the area is already beyond the point of proof of concept. In fact, the extensive research
conducted in the area of NDT for composite structures using THz imaging systems
has already led to very significant results and provided proof of the feasibility of
many important concepts, such as the understanding of basic interactions between the
THz waves and fibrous composite materials, robust and reliable THz-TDS and THz
CW setups (i.e., transmission and reflection configurations), 2D and 3D imaging,
THz spectroscopy and more recently THz tomography [19, 95]. In addition, the
suitability and potential of THz technology for the inspection and characterization
of composite structures has been extensively proven to a satisfactory level now. In
particular, the THz technology presents several beneficial features that are of great
importance to the inspection and characterization of composite structures. In primis,
the technology enables non-contact and non-invasive evaluation capabilities while
equally facilitating other features such as the production of fully automated systems
and process integration capabilities among others.
In fact, several applications have been developed taking advantage of the afore-
mentioned features including online monitoring of additive content and degree of
conversion, highlighting the capability of the THz solutions for integration into the
composite manufacturing processes. In quality control, for example, the number of
additives in fibrous composites can be successfully monitored using a fully automated
online THz-TDS [119]. Optical fiber-coupled THz-TDS systems are able to monitor
the polymeric compounding processes by providing reliable real-time information
about the concentration of the additives [114]. THz-TDS systems are equally used
to measure the content of carbon-based fillers in composites and rubber compounds
6.7 Conclusions 305

[118]. Although custom-made THz systems for online monitoring systems to eval-
uate the composites during the curing processes are yet to be developed, THz tech-
nology has been found to be promising for such an examination [153]. Similarly, the
characterization of the degree of conversion is vital because it allows the composite
designers to control the final properties of the materials and eliminate unnecessarily
extended curing cycle times [16, 154]. THz absorption and refractive index vary when
varying the degree of conversion of different polymers under variable UV exposure
times [96]. THz systems are often used to monitor the materials’ phase changes such
as dispersion [155], the composition of the different constituents or the fillers of the
polymer matrixes [96], and the overall density of the composite because of their high
sensitivity to these features [16].
In addition to the aforementioned applications, THz transmission images of GFRP
composite parts with sub-millimeter resolution can be obtained thanks to the capa-
bilities of the THz waves to penetrate deeper into such composites due to their
non-electrically conductive nature [19]. In fact, a large number of defects gener-
ated during the manufacturing process (e.g., cracks, fiber content, fiber orientation,
voids and porosity, delamination) or in-service (impact damage, burn damage) can be
detected by simply analyzing the transmission images, which provide THz absorption
information. Indeed this does apply only for non-electrically conductive composites
such as GFRP because their electrically conductive counterparts such as CFRP are
very reflective while polar liquids such as water exhibit a significantly high absorp-
tion of the THz waves. Interestingly, some applications do take advantage of these
properties to examine certain features of composite structures including burn damage
in CFRP and water intrusions in GFRP [16]. Indeed, a lot has been done in terms
of requirements for the THz system’s experimental setup, and the potential of the
THz technology for composite inspection has been equally demonstrated, but a lot of
work remains to be done towards the final industrial implementation and affordability
of the THz NDT. In fact, the transition towards practical/industrial implementation
of the THz technology will largely depend on a careful analysis of the applica-
bility of different techniques. Interesting, having reached this stage in the design
and implementation of the THz technology for the evaluation and characterization
of composite structures and consistent with the available literature on this topic, it
appears that additional advances in the THz technology are generally being driven by
the applications themselves as the technology continues to advance. This is partic-
ularly because only a precise definition of the requirements and constraints to each
inspection/application do generally determine the type of the THz approach that can
be used to obtain an effective inspection and subsequently accurate and/or reliable
results.
In summary, the present chapter does mainly focus on the technology itself as well
as the resulting possibilities and exemplary applications to the evaluation and char-
acterization of composites structures consistent with the information that has been
reported in the literature. That is a brief introduction describing the basic properties
of THz systems and the advantages of THz technology in the testing and character-
ization of fibrous composite structures in comparison to other already established
techniques such as UT, IRT, acoustic emission, strain monitoring, and X-rays testing
306 6 Terahertz Testing Technique for Fiber-Reinforced Composite …

are presented. In addition, the two industrially relevant THz techniques (i.e., THz-
TDS and THz CW systems, are described in detail and the metrological basics for
their main applications are presented. Since imaging is required in many applica-
tions, special attention was devoted to the understanding of the imaging technique of
the system and the different approaches that are currently being used. Its applications
are also presented focusing on fiber-reinforced composites and the chapter concludes
with an outlook on possible future applications of this system. Also, an extensive
list of references is provided at the end of the chapter where readers can still obtain
deeper insights into the topics addressed herein.

Important Disclosure In this chapter, some figures referring to well-known facts and popular THz
systems were arranged traying inspiration from NDT websites and sources were also referenced
when appropriately.

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Chapter 7
Application of Acoustic Emission
for the Inspection of Fiber-Reinforced
Composite Materials

7.1 Generalities

AE was originally developed as an NDT technique to monitor and sense the initiation
and development of cracks in structures and materials and characterize their failure
mechanisms in real-time [1, 2]. The technique measures the elastic energy released
in the form of acoustic waves in the materials undergoing some levels of structural
changes (e.g., plastic deformation, matrix cracking, structural rupture, etc.). Emitted
acoustic waves are captured by the sensors mounted on the surface of the test material
or structure. In terms of its operation, AE considers the wave arrival time and the wave
propagation speed (see later discussions) to accurately locate the source of the wave
and the shape of its waveform (i.e., in space and in time) to characterize the origin and
the nature of the damage (i.e., the damage mode, cracks initiation, cracks progression,
crack orientation, etc.) [2, 3]. AE monitoring systems are capable of evaluating large
and complex structures effectively, and the fact that they are cost-effective and can
reliably perform the inspection tasks in the long term is another added advantage.
For all the aforementioned reasons, AE systems are the most commonly used NDT
techniques to inspect large infrastructure systems such as civil engineering structures
(e.g., concrete structures, bridge decks, etc.) [4], and wind turbine blades (WTBs) [5,
6]. Indeed AE has been utilized in numerous studies to fully assess and characterize
cracks initiation and propagation as well as the mode and source of the damage in
concrete structures and glass fiber reinforced composites (i.e., a common material in
WTBs).
Although AE is highly sensitive to the development and propagation of the damage
in fiber-reinforced polymer-matrix composite structures, its full potential for damage
detection and localization can only be achieved if the velocity and attenuation asso-
ciated with the propagation of the sound wave in the test material are known a priori
[7]. In addition, the amount of AE energy released and the amplitude of the resulting
wave depends on the size and the speed of the source event. That is, a strong event
generates a greater signal than a weak event does. Generally, the amount of emission

© Science Press 2022 315

S. Zhong and W. Nsengiyumva, Nondestructive Testing and Evaluation
of Fiber-Reinforced Composite Structures,
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-19-0848-4_7
316 7 Application of Acoustic Emission for the Inspection of Fiber-Reinforced …

energy is proportional to the area of the new surface that is created while the emission
amplitude is proportional to the crack velocity. As a result, a sudden, discrete, crack
event produces a greater signal than a slow, creeping advance of the crack tip over
the same distance. Also, an increment of fatigue crack growth produces a greater AE
signal than an increment of ductile tear. Since there are often many acoustic sources
other than the damage of interest that can constitute random and coherent noise (i.e.,
this noise may often exceed the damage signals), this technique usually requires
the use of advanced signal processing techniques such as the wavelet transform and
the amplitude correction techniques to enhance the accuracy of the location and the
characterization of the damage [8]. That is, a simple analysis of changes in the prop-
agation and evolution of the velocity of the acoustic waves in a composite specimen
subsequent to a bending test is not enough to identify and locate the different types
of damage occurring the specimen (e.g., delamination, matrix cracking, and the fiber
breaking); additional signal processing techniques are often required to be able to
discern between the different types of damage [2]. It is noted that AE can only locate
the position of the damage in the composite if 3 or more sensors are used simulta-
neously [9–11]. In this case, the real velocity is obtained by taking the difference
between the arrival times of each signal and the location of the sensors in the test
specimen to determine the actual location of the damage.
AE has now become a recognized or established NDT technique, commonly
used to detect and locate faults/flaws in mechanically loaded components and mate-
rial systems. AE provides comprehensive information pertinent to the origin of the
discontinuity (i.e., defects or flaws) in a stressed component. The technique also
provides information pertaining to the development/extension of this discontinuity
when the component is subjected to continuous/repetitive stress. However, as the
material design and technology continues to evolve, AE application is also becoming
more challenged and some of the challenges require immediate solution through
research and development by improving not only AE but also all the NDT tech-
niques in order to adapt to the testing requirements of these new materials. As a
result, recent advancements in AE focus on the development of smart and reliable
sensing tools whereby sensor arrays are used to detect, locate and quantify damage,
and if necessary, trigger the repair activation processes and be able to quantify the
residual damage as it gets repaired. AE is more like an SHM method than it is an
NDT technique.

7.2 Usage and History of AE

Although AE is considered the oldest NDT technique and has started since the
earliest history of humans (i.e., in its simple form of listening to audible sounds
emitted by the fractures of materials and structures), it was only between the 1930s –
1950s that electronic transducers started being used to study AE. The majority of
the early studies focused on AE signals produced by the deforming metals [12]. The
first scientific research into the detection of sound from materials under stress was
7.2 Usage and History of AE 317

published by Joseph Kaiser who, as a graduate student in the 1950s, discovered the
irreversibility of the sound and its strain rate dependence. Kaiser [13] performed
one of the most famous early studies on AE where he demonstrated that AE is
an irreversible phenomenon. Kaiser went on and indicated that damage mechanisms
such as cracks release acoustic waves which propagate from the source to the surface
as the load or stress increases. If the load is released, and then gradually reapplied, no
additional AE will be generated until the load exceeds its previous maximum value.
Above the previous maximum value, existing damage may propagate or new damage
may initiate, both of which may produce AE. This irreversible phenomenon of AE
has been designated the Kaiser effect. The Kaiser effect has been widely used in
AE testing to determine information about previous maximum stress on a structure.
All these early AE studies were followed by considerable research during the late
1950s through the 1970s. A published bibliography [14] of AE studies provides
numerous references. Tatro and his students studied the basic physical process of
the generation of acoustic emissions. They also evaluated AE as a tool for studying
deformation processes in materials. Their work is reviewed by the authors in ref.
[15] and the references therein. At the same time, numerous attempts to use AE to
monitor the integrity of aerospace and nuclear structures have been undertaken and
satisfactory results have been reported [16]. In general, both the progress made in
understanding AE phenomena and the practical applications developed during this
time are amazing given the limited capabilities of instrumentation. Modern, high-
speed, signal digitizers were not available to record high-frequency transient AE
waveforms. Most measurements were made with RMS voltmeters or simple event
counters.
Constant with the aforementioned, significant advances have been reported since
the late 1970s focusing on the development of AE instruments that are capable of
recording the AE waveform accurately. For example, transient recorders with multi-
MHz digitization sampling frequencies necessary for high-frequency AE signals
were developed. However, most of the earliest of these high-speed digitizers suffered
from slow data transfer and storage rates allowing the acquisition of only a single or
few events per second. In addition, the limited storage memory of computers at that
time prevented the potential acquisition of large numbers of events from happening.
Thus, these early transient recorders were impractical for real-time AE applications
but they found applications in laboratory setups involving a single AE event. Addi-
tional studies were conducted by several researchers to address this shortcoming [17]
and develop an AE instrument with advanced waveform recording capabilities. The
aforementioned researchers were primarily focusing on devising methods for AE
sensor calibration, source inversion process, and theoretical modeling. Although the
earlier models were adapted from seismology for the prediction and inversion of bulk
mode AE signals, these earlier studies provided significant insights into the impor-
tance of studying acoustic waves in thin-walled structures whereby AE signals prop-
agate as guided modes rather than bulk modes. To this end, test structures included
structural elements such as rods and thin-walled plates, shells, and pipes and the
effects of the source orientation to the generation of different guided modes in thin
plates were demonstrated [18]. Analysis of AE signal modal content thus provides
318 7 Application of Acoustic Emission for the Inspection of Fiber-Reinforced …

a potential method for the improvement of noise discrimination and source identifi-
cation. In ref. [19] the source identification errors stemming from highly dispersive
guided wave propagation were illustrated and the identification of the location of the
AE source was improved using a dedicated algorithm. Additional improvements in
the AE capturing and storage rate of the AE digitizers have also been made allowing
the possibility to capture and analyze the full AE waveform for practical AE testing.
These technological advances have also improved analysis capabilities, thanks to the
increases in speed and available memory of modern computers.
Particularly in fiber-reinforced plastic composites, the application of AE as NDT
started in the early 1960s when were these types of materials started being used as
the base materials for numerous structural systems. Earlier reports [20–22] indicate
that AE was applied to accurately monitor concrete performance and provide accu-
rate and integrated insight into the material [23]. In the beginning, the AE testing
technique appeared to be the method of choice for material testing and evaluation
because it fully characterizes composite materials’ response at different stages of the
manufacturing process. As such, AE has been used to evaluate the curing processes
of reinforced composite materials and concrete structures from their manucaturing
to their service life stages by detecting the moment that damage emerges and moni-
toring its progression [24]. The first instrumentation introduced by Pollock in the
late 1960s was designed to handle stress waves emitted by the materials undergoing
certain levels of deformation [25]. As such, this method was initially referred to
as “stress wave emission” and it was used to analyze the waveform and frequency
spectrum to assess the presence, nature, and orientation of defects and/or damage
mostly in reinforced concrete materials. In the 1970s, the use of stress wave emis-
sion started dropping while simultaneously AE started attracting interest from users
around the world in the concrete manufacturing industry. In fact, the ASTM standard
referred to the first concrete structures that emitted stress waves when subjected to
external loads as plain Portland cement concrete [26]. The development of advanced
analog-to-digital (A/D) signal converters capable of operating at high sampling rates
and storing large number of signals gave additional momentum to AE in the early
1980s [27]. It is observed that some of the earlier studies involving the use of A/D
converters with AE focused on the detection of microcracks in the brittle cement
matrix [28]. It appears that the analysis of AE signals was combined with fracture
mechanics in order to identify the heterogeneous nature of concrete and its complex
failure [29–31]. Several researchers used the AE location analyses to identify the
microcracks (e.g., aggregate-matrix detachment) [32] and progressive damage in
different material phases (aggregate-matrix interphase, matrix phase) [33].
In summary, the research on AE systems started flourishing in the 1960s and was
greatly improved by the establishment of the AE working group. Toward the end of
the 1960s, several companies were already manufacturing the first generation of AE
sensors and instrumentation. In the 1970s, the technology accelerated, AE instrumen-
tation was improved, useful applications of AE were developed, and training courses
for AE-certified engineers became available. It was also during this period of time
where industries started to write important standards and codes that aimed at the
standardization of AE terms/terminology formalizing definitions and producing test
7.2 Usage and History of AE 319

procedures. In fact, the name “Acoustic Emission” was officially chosen from a list
of other potential candidates which included “Microseismic Emission” and “Stress
Wave Emission”. In the 1980s, AE matured into a valuable NDT tool to the point
where it became one of the most recognized NDT techniques that are commonly used
to detect and locate faults and damage initiating in mechanically loaded composite
structures and components. To date, AE is capable of providing comprehensive infor-
mation on the origination of a discontinuity (flaw) in a stressed component and also
provides information pertaining to the development of this flaw as the component is
subjected to continuous or repetitive stress. This brief retrospection on AE history
leads to the end of the twentieth century when breakthroughs in AE instrumentation
and applications took place [34, 35]. The beginning of the twenty-first century was
marked by the development of more sophisticated AE equipment and analysis tools
which enabled effective monitoring of damage even in complex composite structures
or elaborate external loadings. The main analysis tools and applications of AE are
analytically discussed in the following sections of this chapter.

7.3 Principle of Operation of an AE System

Generally, discontinuities in the composites release various forms of energy when the
material gets subjected to mechanical loading or stress. One of these types of energy
is acoustic energy which travels away from the discontinuity in the form of stress
waves or simply mechanical oscillations. These waves/mechanical oscillations can
be detected with the use of sensors (transducers) that convert the received acoustic
energy into a voltage. The latter is electronically amplified and with the use of
timing circuits is further processed to become acoustic emission (AE) signal data.
Analysis of the collected data comprises the characterization of the received voltage
(signals) consistent with their inherent parameters such as the source location, voltage
intensity, frequency content, etc. In particular, the AE source is often a short impulse
and produces a wave carrying the energy of all frequencies from very low to some very
high, on the order of 1,000 kHz and higher. Studies have shown that high sensitivity
to these emissions is most useful when captured using contact sensors between 100
and 500 kHz. Interestingly, some of the lower-frequency emissions of approximately
50 to 15 kHz can be heard with the unaided ear, if they are loud enough. Indeed this
confirms the idea that the energy of emissions is spread over a very wide frequency
range, and the theory that AE encompasses frequencies all the way down to zero is
proven by the signals coming from the largest AEs of all (i.e., earthquakes), which
shake buildings a hundred miles away, at frequencies of a few hertz and less.
Consistent with the aforementioned, composite materials will generally deform
or flow when subjected to an external force and the extent of the deformation largely
depends on the composition of the material and the intensity of the force applied as
illustrated in Fig. 7.1. The deformation occurring in the composite as a result of an
externally applied force is known as “strain” (i.e., which can be shear or elongation),
the speed at which such deformation occurs is known as “the rate of strain”, and
320 7 Application of Acoustic Emission for the Inspection of Fiber-Reinforced …

Fig. 7.1 Illustration of the generation of AE due to the release of accumulated strain energy in the
composite material

the applied force per unit area is referred to as “stress”. In the case of low stress
caused by a small external force/loading, the deformed material elastically recovers
by regaining its original shape after it is unloaded, a phenomenon that is referred to as
“elastic deformation” (Fig. 7.1a). In the elastic range, the external force leads to the
accumulation of energy inside the composite as strain energy until it reaches its limit.
In the latter case (i.e., the strain energy stored in the composite due to an external
force reaches its limit), this energy is released and results in plastic deformation
(i.e., the composite cannot recover its original shape even when the external force is
unloaded) (Fig. 7.1b). Applying an even larger external force will result in matrix
cracking (i.e., the strain energy accumulated inside the material is consumed by the
generation and growth of cracks) (Fig. 7.1c). Consistent with the aforementioned,
when the composite is deformed or its matrix is cracked, it consumes strain energy
most of which is subsequently released back without any effect and a smaller portion
by generating sound and heat within the material. A phenomenon in which sound is
generated by the energy released in the air is referred to as AE, and it is sometimes
described as the “scream” of the material under stress. In summary, AE denotes a
phenomenon in which strain energy accumulated in the composite is released in the
air because of the deformation or cracking, and thus generates elastic waves.
Although the matrix cracking is often inside the material, generated elastic waves
propagate from the source under stress and spread in all directions, and get detected by
7.3 Principle of Operation of an AE System 321

AE sensors (i.e., vibration-to-electrical signal conversion devices) that are mounted

at the surface of the composite (Fig. 7.2). In this case, some portions of surface
vibrations are released to the air as sonic waves (i.e., in a form of breaking sound).
Generally speaking, AE was used to assess the structural integrity method materials
since antiquity. As early as 6500 BC, potters always listened to audible sounds emitted
during earthenware casting at the end of the cooling process [36]. In modern days,
AE was introduced as an emerging NDT technique in 1953 when the phenomenon
of AE irreversibility in materials under stress was determined (i.e., formerly stress
wave emission) [12] but officially recognized as AE in the 1970s when this technique
started attracting interest from users around the world in the concrete manufacturing
industry. Synchronous AE software consists of an array of sensors, signal pream-
plifiers, noise filters, data acquisition, display, and storage equipment. AE sensors
are made of piezoelectric elements (Fig. 7.2a) which are highly sensitive and are
mounted on the surface of the composite through a coupling agent. The aforemen-
tioned AE sensors capture the transmitted elastic waves and convert them into electric
voltage signals. AE sensors are grouped into resonant sensors (i.e., which are highly
sensitive to narrow frequency bands) and broad or wideband sensors (i.e., perform
equally well in a wide range of frequencies with lower peak sensitivity compared to
their resonant counterparts). The sensor is connected to a preamplifier that boosts the
signal voltage. The Hsu-Nielsen source calibration method [37–39] is used to ensure
that the sensors are in good acoustic contact with the surface of the test material
structure.
This is considered to be the standard method, and it consists of pencil-lead break-
ages that produce a burst that is fast in its rising time, intense, and remarkably repro-
ducible similar to natural AE sources. Currently, the most popular AE monitoring
software systems use the hit-driven architecture whereby a “hit” is used to describe
the signal captured by a sensor. It is noted that “a hit” denotes an acoustic signal
with an amplitude that is greater than the preset voltage threshold that is set by the
user to eliminate noise effects for more details). In case an elastic wave (AE event)
is emitted and received by a number of sensors, the AE acquisition system should

Fig. 7.2 Illustration of the typical example of an AE system setup

322 7 Application of Acoustic Emission for the Inspection of Fiber-Reinforced …

detect the respective number of hits, one from each sensor. To this end, both the
shape of the signal and the statistical information of the hit are collected and stored,
and then a series of AE signal features are extracted. Additional details regarding the
definitions of the terms and parameters of AE signals are provided in refs. [40–42]
and interested readers are directed to these specific studies for more information.
The described mechanism represents the principle of operation of an AE inspection
system and the subsequent analysis of its inspection signals.

7.4 AE Sensors Calibration and Coupling with Test

Structure

The level of the recorded AE signal depends on the source mechanism features but the
stress waves resulting from the microstructural changes depend on the propagation
and acquisition mechanism where the attenuation, damping, surface interactions,
sensor characteristics, and coupling are involved. Generally speaking, the type of
sensors used in AE inspection systems are almost entirely sensors that do exploit
the piezoelectric (PZT) effect of lead zirconate titanate [41, 43]. Although most of
the information pertaining to PZT sensors and their design is extensively described
in the literature [41, 44], some characteristics need to be highlighted because they
play an influential role in the accuracy and reliability of AE measurements. These
features are essential for the sensitive recording of acoustic emissions (sensitivity)
and the broadband analysis of the AE signals regarding the fracture mechanics (i.e.,
frequency). In order to improve their detection range (i.e., volumetric extension of
the AE signals in the composite), PZT sensors are generally operated in resonance
mode (i.e., the signals are recorded within a small frequency range consistent with
the frequency characteristics of the transducer). However, the main disadvantage is
that the analysis of the frequencies present in the signal is of no value, because these
frequencies are always the same. Also, some of the very well damped sensors, such
as those used for vibration analysis, are operated outside of their resonant frequency
making it easier for broadband analyses to be used, but are usually less sensitive to
AE signals, and thus, they produce inaccurate inspection results when they are used
in AE inspections setups.
Progress in the development and in-depth understanding of the advanced AE
theory by most of the NDT engineers has also led to the need for the development of
adequate AE sensors featuring high sensitivity and a wideband displacement with a
flat frequency response (i.e., sensors providing the same response over a wide range
of frequencies), which has greatly enhanced the accuracy of AE inspection results.
Particularly, the development of conical transducers [45, 46] is one of the viable mile-
stones achieved in this area, and these types of sensors remain the most preferred
types and are generally used as the reference for most AE inspection measurements.
In terms of the material composition of the sensors/transducers, several approaches
7.4 AE Sensors Calibration and Coupling with Test Structure 323

have been explored and new transducers are currently made of polyvinylidene fluo-
ride (PVDF) or copolymers [47–49]. AE sensors may be mounted on the surface of the
composite or used as embedded sensors in the test composite [43, 50]. However, most
of the sensors that are currently used in AE applications for testing fiber-reinforced
composite materials are manufactured more traditionally (i.e., showing either a reso-
nant behavior or several particular resonances). The main advantage of these types of
sensors (i.e., multi-resonance transducers) is that they have a higher sensitivity than
sensors with a backward mass used outside of their resonance frequency. However,
such AE sensors should not be viewed as true broadband sensors and users should
know their frequency response function to ensure their optimum usage. Incorrect
knowledge of their exact frequency response will prevent the users from being able
to distinguish the source signal characteristics from inherent structural artifacts. To
this end, a calibration of the sensors’ frequency response, as well as the understanding
of the direction sensitivity are crucial for accurate and reliable applications of the
AE testing systems.
The literature [41, 51] provides different methods of calibrating sensors and deter-
mining their transfer functions. In particular, all measurements used in sensor cali-
bration should include the frequency and the phase response function. In most of
the applications, however, calibration methods for AE sensors are generally based
on the “face-to-face” method whereby two sensors of the same kind are coupled
with one being used as a transmitter and the other as a receiver. Another method of
calibration is to use a defined sharp pulse (e.g., by breaking a glass capillary rod)
whereby the AE sensor is coupled to a large block made of a homogeneous material
(e.g., steel or aluminum) or to a steel rod. In ref. [52], the authors proposed the use of
a reciprocity method that uses Rayleigh waves, where AE sensors are coupled onto a
steel plate. Other methods described in the literature suggest using a laser-vibrometer
to measure the displacement of the free surface of the sensor, or a network analyzer
[41]. Although there are many methods used for the calibration of AE sensors, accu-
rate sensor calibration process often comes with a lot of difficulties due to aperture
effects (i.e., the sensor’s diameter is of the order of the wavelength), the sensor’s total
mass (i.e., which affects the measurement of the displacement) or the measurement
technique itself (i.e., the recording only captures vertical motions instead of a three-
dimensional vector) or a combination of the above. All these problems/factors make
the calibration process a challenging task to perform and are often subjected to a lot
of simplifications and compromises (i.e., a non-absolute process).
In terms of coupling, most AE inspection practices do require physical contact
between the measuring sensor and the test structure, suggesting that contactless
inspection measurements are largely an exception in the field of AE testing prac-
tices. Consistent with the aforementioned, coupling between sensors and a specimen
is very important because the amplitudes of AE signals are generally very small, and
poor coupling between the sensor and test component often results in signal loss,
and hence, inaccurate inspection measurements [53, 54]. In addition to the different
ways of coupling, various methods exist for fixing AE sensors onto the test structure
for accurate transmission of the signal. In particular, low impedance materials are
generally used for fixing the sensors to the test structure including gluey coupling
324 7 Application of Acoustic Emission for the Inspection of Fiber-Reinforced …

materials, different types of adhesives as well as some sticky substances such as

wax or grease. Indeed the material impedance, which is herein defined as the loss
of signal energy as the waves travel from the surface of the structure to the sensor,
is the most important factor in the selection of a coupling technique [54]. If the test
component has a metallic surface (e.g., fiber-metal laminates), immersion or magnetic
techniques are widely used. In passing, we mention that additional methods using a
spring mechanism or rapid cement can be used for other kinds of surfaces such as
those involving reinforced concrete structures. In general, the coupling between the
sensors and the test structure should reduce the loss of signal energy and have low
acoustic impedance compared to the material being tested. Each of the aforemen-
tioned methods has its specific advantages and disadvantages and the user should
decide from case to case which approaches to be used to obtain optimum results. In
all cases, however, users should equally ensure that the total volume of air bubbles
between the AE sensors and the test structure is eliminated or minimized during the
coupling process.

7.5 Sources of AE in Composite Materials

Just like many other non-metal materials, fiber-reinforced polymer-matrix compos-

ites (FRPCs) have been extensively studied and evaluated using NDT techniques and
they have been found to be extremely copious emitters of the AE signals and they
represent by far one of the largest practical applications of AE testing technique. As
indicated in the first chapter of this book, fiber-reinforced polymer-matrix compos-
ites are made of two or more distinct materials with one component being the fibers
(i.e., fiber tow) that provide the bulk of the strength while the other is a matrix such
as epoxy or any other kind of resin (i.e., the polymeric matrix) holding the fibers
together. Although some polymers are very ductile and soft, most of the polymers
are brittle in nature and deform by crazing (i.e., progressive brittle fracture) which
produces ample amounts of AE. Given the fact that all of the constituents of composite
materials are often brittle and the fracture of each of the constituents constitutes a
good source of AE under mechanical loading (i.e., under an external stimulus/force a
crack in the matrix material will only stop propagating when it encounters a fiber and
is arrested), a cracked fiber will result in a redistribution of the stress to other fibers.
There are normally several types of failure mechanisms observed in FRPC including
matrix debonding, delamination, and fracture of the fiber to list but few (see chapter
one for more details on the types of failure mechanisms observed in FRPCs).
Consistent with the aforementioned, matrix cracking often occurs because of
the different strength and elastic constants of the materials. This type of failure
mechanism often results in an emission of an AE signal that is relatively low in
amplitude and can occur even at a relatively low load and does not produce load
hold emission unless it is followed by time-dependent fiber elongation near failure.
On the other hand, delamination between the different layers of the composite layup
is often the result of impact damage or weakness due to fabrication flaws. In the
7.5 Sources of AE in Composite Materials 325

latter case, however, delamination is often a severe matrix failure and it does often
occur over a wide area, suggesting that the amplitude of an AE signal produced
in this case is significant. Similarly, fiber fracture is particularly of major concern
because it significantly reduces the load-carrying capacity of the composite and it is
among the highest amplitude sources of AE signals found in FRPC material. Since
the emission sources tend to produce the stress waves of different AE amplitudes,
it is important to indicate that an early presentation of this data was in the form of
a “tri-modal” amplitude distribution. As noted in Fig. 7.3a, the damage progression
in the composite sample starts with matrix crazing (i.e., characterized by the signal
with the lowest amplitude), followed by the delamination (i.e., characterized by the
signal with a higher amplitude) and finally the fiber fracture (i.e., characterized by
the signal with the highest amplitude). Consistent with the aforementioned, one
can indeed determine the type of failure mechanism taking place at a particular load
based on the amplitude of the signals, and the ability to uncover such information has
always been of great use to those designing structural components from composite
materials.
Another very illuminating presentation of AE data from FRPC structures is known
as the “knee in the curve” (i.e., a very little emission of stress waves at low load up
to the appearance of the knee-like curvature) which is illustrated in Fig. 7.3b. In this
case, the amount of AE is significantly greater when the intensity of the load is above
the level of the knee. Importantly, the knee in the AE versus load curve is often used
as a material parameter to characterize a particular layup of the different layers in
composite in the same way the yield stress is used to characterize a particular alloy of

Fig. 7.3 Illustration of the presentation of AE signals from a fiber-reinforced composite specimen:
a tri-modal amplitude distribution from FRP, b emission on hold from a fiber-reinforced composite
specimen, and c AE activity versus load illustrating Kaiser and Felicity effects
326 7 Application of Acoustic Emission for the Inspection of Fiber-Reinforced …

metal. To this end, any service load that exceeds the knee value will ultimately damage
the structure and shorten its service life. A further useful observation is the presence
of AE data during load hold. As illustrated in Fig. 7.3b, when an active load is applied
to the composite material, an AE signal is generally produced but the emission often
continues at constant load under certain circumstances, with some of the deformation
being instantaneous and some other deformation being delayed depending on the
visco-elastic nature of the fiber component (e.g., glass, carbon, aramid, natural fiber,
etc.) whereby the redistribution of stress takes place over a period of time as the
material comes to equilibrium. Indeed delayed deformation of nonmetallic materials
(e.g., fiber-reinforced plastic composites) is fairly familiar and AE is a very sensitive
indicator that would ultimately reveal composites’ time-dependent behavior that
would otherwise go undetected.
Also, most of the structurally significant flaws in composites tend to emit on an
additional loading to the same level and if this additional loading is carefully exam-
ined, it is possible to see a small amount of emission before the previous maximum
load; not nearly as significant as the first time, but not zero either. This type of
emission is a very important indicator of the structural instability of the composite
material under consideration. This is illustrated in Fig. 7.3c whereby the load is
raised, lowered, raised again to a higher level, lowered, and finally raised to a higher
level still. An AE signal is generated during the first load rise (i.e., section AB of the
curve), but as the load gets lowered (i.e., section BC of the curve) and raised again
(i.e., section CB of the curve) there is clearly no more emission until the previous
load maximum is exceeded. The emission continues as the load is raised further
(i.e., section BD of the curve), and stops as the load is lowered for the second time
(i.e., section DE of the curve). On raising the load for the last time, a different emis-
sion pattern is observed: the emission starts up before the previous maximum load
is attained at point F of the curve. Emission continues as the load is increased (i.e.,
section FG of the curve). The behavior observed at point B of the curve (i.e., no emis-
sion until the previous maximum load is exceeded) is known as the Kaiser effect. The
behavior observed at point F of the curve (i.e., the AE at a load below the previous
maximum) is known as the Felicity effect. In general, small defects tend to exhibit
the Kaiser effect while structurally big defects tend to exhibit the Felicity effect.
In summary, fiber-reinforced plastic composites are very good candidates for
AE testing because of the procedure and the mechanisms by which they produce
AE signals. Indeed the above is completely different from the damage initiation
and development patterns observed in ceramic matrix composites as they are more
brittle in nature and do not possess the plasticity and deformation characteristics
of glass or carbon fiber-reinforced composites. Under loads, ceramic composites
tend to produce micro-cracks and when the applied stress exceeds the strength of the
interatomic forces, the result is large-scale crack initiation/propagation in the process
of brittle fracture. Indeed this kind of fracture mechanism does produce AE signals
with significantly high amplitude though it provides very little warning of impending
failure. In fibrous composites, however, mechanical characteristics generally depend
on the properties of the fiber and the degree to which the applied load is transmitted
to the fibers by the polymer matrix. Important to the extent of this load transmittance
7.5 Sources of AE in Composite Materials 327

is the extent of the interfacial bonding between the fiber and the polymer matrix.
Under applied stress, the bonding between the fiber-matrix ceases to exist where the
fiber ends (i.e., there is no load transmittance from the matrix at each fiber extremity),
prompting the beginning of a completely different deformation pattern. Hence the
source of the acoustic waves in fiber-reinforced composites is solely local and its
amplitude is not necessarily the same even for the same even when the applied force
remains constant.

7.6 Analysis Tools for AE Measurement Signals

The cracking location does generally not need to be precisely known for successful
AE inspection applications because AE sensors together with appropriate algorithms
are capable of locating and quantifying active cracks in the composite. To this end,
an accurate correlation between the measured AE signal and the corresponding crack
growth behavior during the data analysis process is the basis for an accurate eval-
uation of the health status of the composite. Although there are currently many
approaches used to analyze AE measurement data, the most preferred approaches
include those based on the hits distribution, the source localization, and the wave
features. The majority of AE studies consider one or a combination of these tools to
assess material/structural integrity and the information describing the tools used for
AE analysis is presented in the following paragraphs.

7.6.1 Distribution of Signal Hits in the Composite

In all AE testing practices, hit (i.e., an AE data record that is produced after the signal
has crossed the predefined threshold) the most basic and yet the most successful
kind of indication used to describe emission quantity in a single number. Generally,
the accumulation of AE hits does occur as a result of material internal irreversible
changes including the formation or propagation of the micro/macro-crack, particles
friction, local or global failure of components, interface debonding and detachment,
and many others. Some of the hits may be relevant (i.e., hits produced by the crack
forming in the composite under loading condition) or false (i.e., hits produced by
sources outside the inspection area or echoes produced by the measuring instrument
due to incorrect setup) indications, suggesting that an adequate signal process is
required to distinguish between the relevant and false indication hits [2]. Importantly,
the cumulative hits distribution and the hits rate measurement can be indicative of
an imminent fracture. However, this requires an advanced analytical investigation
knowing that the slope of the cumulative hits curve will always increase as the damage
transits from the micro level to the macro level. And as indicated in the previous
section of the present chapter, the transition point is referred to as the “curve knee”
328 7 Application of Acoustic Emission for the Inspection of Fiber-Reinforced …

Fig. 7.4 Illustration of the cumulative hits distribution formation on a composite beam under the
bending condition

(Fig. 7.3b) and defines the onset of numerous simultaneous damage phenomena that
lead to unstable fracture propagation and final failure of the composite structure.
In fibrous composite under stress, change in hits evolution can be instant (i.e.,
jump in value, especially in cases where the interphase debonding or matrix cracking
are involved) or progressive (i.e., the hits release rate ranges in time particularly in
cases where crack propagation or fiber breakage is involved). A typical example of
cumulative hits distribution is illustrated in Fig. 7.4 presenting a case where a plain
composite material progressively cracks under bending. It is shown that hits evolve in
three stages viz. (a) as the composite linearly deforms, negligible AE hits are released;
(b) as the micro-cracking initiates and fracture zone gets formed, hits accumulate
and their number increases significantly; and finally (c) as the crack is formed and
propagates alongside the entire composite, hits are continuously released and the hits
rate may be lower or greater depending on the pending force that is applied and the
ultimate failure stage of the composite.
Generally speaking, hits distribution is particular in composite under incremental
load. In a healthy state or stable crack propagation mode, for example, composite
materials release no hits when subjected to a loading force whose intensity level
is lower than the final load of the previous test cycle [55]. Kaiser effect demon-
strates the irreversible nature of the damage and acoustic emission in composite
materials (Fig. 7.3c). Usually, plain polymers exhibit a Kaiser effect since they
remain relatively undamaged until their final strength gets exhausted (i.e., a stage
where the macro-damage occurs). Conversely, fibrous composites present a time-
dependent mechanical behavior and are susceptible to developing AE activity earlier
than the previously exceeded stress levels [56]. This reverse Kaiser phenomenon is
called the Felicity effect and both the Kaiser and the Felicity effects are indicative
of structural integrity [57]. The recommendation of acoustic emission and related
NDE techniques for crack detection and damage evaluation in concrete (RILEM
TC-212 ACD) provides detailed information about the Felicity ratio that quantifies
7.6 Analysis Tools for AE Measurement Signals 329

the damage intensity at each load cycle (i) and interested readers are directed to ref.
[57] for more information. This Felicity ratio is expressed as follows:

Load at hits onset[C ycle(i+1)]

Felicit y ratio = =
Ultimate load[C ycle(i)]

≈ 1, K aiser e f f ect( pristineandundamaged)
< 1, Felicit ye f f ect(unstabledamageevolution)

7.6.2 Source Localization of AE Signals in the Composite

Accurate determination of the location of AE sources is an important step toward

the identification of the damage evaluation in the composite. The source localiza-
tion is an inverse problem that concerns the material wave propagation velocity and
the position of the sensors’ network and is processed by triangulation methods [54,
58]. Stress waves excited from an AE source (i.e., AE event) travel through the
composite material and hit multiple sensors or transducers mounted on its surface.
The time delays between arrival times of the stress waves to the different sensors are
measured and used to determine the source position of the AE signal. Given the fact
that unknown variables are normally the emission time and the source coordinates, a
recent study [42] suggests that at least one or a combination of sensors must be used to
determine the different events associated with the AE signal. More precisely, at least
one, two, three, and four AE sensors should be applied to the composite structure
to perform adequate regional (i.e., events originated from a region surrounding the
sensor), linear (events located along the one-dimensional sensor array), planar, and
three-dimensional source localization, respectively. In cases where the AE signal is
captured by more than the minimum sensors required for a specific AE event, opti-
mization methods are generally required to improve the source localization accuracy
of the event under consideration. Figure 7.5 represents the signal hits captured by an
array of four AE sensors mounted on the surface of a composite structure (i.e., the
arrival times and the amplitude of each signal is different).
Just like in any other structural system, AE sensors are often mounted surrounding
the region prone to developing damage to ensure all potential damage is detected
at its incipient initiation. In general, AE can accurately locate crack nucleation and
propagation in a broad range of applications spanning from the long bridge deck-
based composites to short and small lab-scale beam bending tests. However, the
determination of the exact location of the source triggering the emission of the stress
waves is only possible when three or more sensors are used [2], and typical exam-
ples of Fig. 7.6, the AE events identified and localized using a 3D localization algo-
rithm with hits from 8 AE sensors are projected in a plane view. In agreement with
concrete fracture mechanics models, a wide fracture process zone of microcracks is
330 7 Application of Acoustic Emission for the Inspection of Fiber-Reinforced …

Fig. 7.5 Illustration of the AE waveforms captured by an array of four AE sensors mounted on the
surface of the composite and sorted by their arrival times

Fig. 7.6 AE events are projected on the Cartesian coordinate system for the case where a composite
beam is subjected to a bending force

built up surrounding the macro-crack. The magnitude of the loading increases from
Fig. 7.6a–c. At the early loading stage, only a few events can be localized, correlated
to micro-cracking that builds the fracture process zone illustrated in Fig. 7.6a. The
density of the AE events increases significantly as the unique crack in the middle
section (at 400 mm along the beam’s length) forms and propagates in the through-
the-thickness direction as indicated in Fig. 7.6b, c. However, accurate damage local-
ization remains a challenging task since the commonly applied triangulation methods
7.6 Analysis Tools for AE Measurement Signals 331

consider constant wave propagation velocity [2, 11], suggesting that only the damage
can be detected but hardly located. In this case, the real velocity is obtained by taking
the difference between the arrival times of each signal and the location of the sensors
in the test specimens to determine the actual location of the damage. However, the
damage localization using AE systems is usually performed using 3 or more sensors
simultaneously [9–11, 59], though the process may still be difficult because the
propagation path of AE signals generally becomes complex and the wave velocity
degrades due progressively developed damage (i.e., mostly during the service and
under stress conditions). AE is more like an SHM method than it is an NDT technique.

7.6.3 Identification of Wave Features

Usually, the analysis of relevant features of an AE signal/hits (i.e., counts, energy,

rise time, frequencies, amplitude, duration, etc.) provides NDT inspectors with vital
information for damage evaluation and characterization. The fracture energy released
when cracks form in a composite structure is representatively quantified by AE
energy [60]. The amplitude, counts, and duration of the signal help to characterize
the signal shape and magnitude. In any AE testing practice, the amplitude of the
signal denotes the signal height and is considered to be the largest voltage present in
the signal waveform. The amplitude of the AE signal is indeed fundamental to the
AE measurement systems because for an AE signal to be detected, its amplitude must
exceed a predefined threshold. AE signal amplitude is generally measured in decibel
(dB) and a scale of 0–100 dB is defined as an amplitude of 1 µV at the preamplifier
input. The duration of the signal (i.e., measured in µs) is also another important
feature of the AE signal and it denotes the length of the time taken from the first
threshold crossing to the last. The determination of the relationship between duration
and amplitude of the signal provides information about the shape of the signal (i.e.,
which may be a short sharp “click” signal or a long-drawn-out “scrape” signal). The
signal energy denotes the area under the voltage–time envelope and measures the
AE signal size and the AE activity. Interestingly, when a structure produces several
emissions in response to a continuous loading, the energies of the individual signals
are added to obtain the total amplitude of the signal.
Counts are also important AE signal features and they denote the comparator
output pulses corresponding to the threshold crossings. In a typical AE signal, the
number counts in a single hit vary from 1 to several hundreds of counts depending on
the shape and the size of the signal. In particular, systems using counts as a measure
of an AE signal are the easiest types of measurement systems to make by electronics
designers. To this end, the literature reports that counts were indeed the common
way of describing and reporting AE signals in the early years of AE. It was only in
the 1980s when the signal energy replaced counts as the preferred measure of the AE
activity. However, counts are still useful for data interpretation to this day and they
are often used in conjunction with either the amplitude or the duration of the signal
to obtain information about the shape of the signal. In fact, the above procedure is
332 7 Application of Acoustic Emission for the Inspection of Fiber-Reinforced …

one of the main recommendations provided by RILEM TC 212-ACD establishing

the test method based on AE features analysis for the classification of active cracks
in reinforced concrete structures into tensile and other types of cracks including
shear cracks [57]. In their recommendation, they use the RA value (i.e., the rise time
divide by the amplitude expressed in µs/V) and the average frequency (i.e., the counts
divided by the duration of the signal expressed in kHz) distribution to characterize
damage source in the test structure. Although the above signal features are considered
the most important and by far the most commonly used features to describe and report
AE signals, several other signal features may be measured and used to perform the
very same tasks, depending on the application and the available AE equipment. A list
of all the measured features of any AE signal and their relationship with the detection
threshold (i.e., a voltage–time curve) are represented in Fig. 7.7a and a block diagram

Fig. 7.7 Illustration of the a AE signal hit features, and b AE signal measurement block diagram
7.6 Analysis Tools for AE Measurement Signals 333

depicting the typical instrumentation used to obtain these measurements is shown in

Fig. 7.7b.
In summary, monitoring the AE features evolution can point out the dominant
damage phenomena (e.g., energy rise defines the transition from micro to macro
level damage) or the damage mode (e.g., the rise time of signals emitted under
shear damage mode is greater than the rise time of signals emitted under tensile
damage mode) [55]. Apart from measuring the features of the individual signals,
the AE system also measures the different times at which AE signals are detected
and the environmental variables that may be causing the activity. Although the most
important features in AE signals are the distinct frequency spectral and amplitude
distribution, it is also important to consider the shapes of the amplitude distribution
at the high amplitude and their sporadicity as they reflect the statistical variability in
the fracture process.

7.6.4 Interpretation and Evaluation of AE Signals

Generally speaking, both the evaluation and interpretation of NDT data follow the
schematic representation illustrated in Chap. 2 (Fig. 2.3) and ASTM E1316-17A
provides important definitions to each of the tasks at the different steps of the prac-
tice [61]. In AE testing, the most basic kind of indication is simply a hit (i.e., the
data record produced after the AE signal has crossed the value of the threshold). This
brings us back to the aforementioned steps of NDT tasks. In the context of AE testing,
relevant indications denote the hits that are produced by the crack while non-relevant
indications include hits produced by sources other than the cracks themselves or
simply the sources outside the inspection area of the sample. Similarly, false indica-
tions include hits that are produced from echoes or hits that are produced due to the
erroneous setup of the measuring instruments. In AE as in all other NDT methods, the
interpretation precedes the evaluation of the test results. Although the interpretation
of the test results is sometimes performed explicitly and deliberately, it generally
follows a well-defined step in a documented data analysis process. However, some
of the NDT practitioners even tend to perform a more implicit interpretation and
such a procedure seems to be a little more than just a common-sense effort to extract
the most features/characteristics out of the available NDT data.
In case the interpretation of the AE data is conducted explicitly, it is important
for NDT practitioners to first isolate any non-relevant and false indications in the
data file, and then filter them out before any further step is undertaken in the whole
data analysis practice. To this end, NDT practitioners will have to write a new data
file that contains the relevant data alone. After that, the filtered file is run through
an evaluation program and that marks the beginning of the data evaluation process.
Although the above process may sound familiar for nearly all NDT techniques, it
is indeed used in several AE applications, particularly where the techniques have
already been standardized and a clear-cut procedure has already been written [62,
63]. A good example providing the interpretation process of the AE testing results
334 7 Application of Acoustic Emission for the Inspection of Fiber-Reinforced …

uses the duration-amplitude cross-plot illustrated in Fig. 7.6a. Indeed the use of such
a plot can be included as part of a well-defined procedure for the interpretation and
evaluation of AE signals, and NDT technicians using it have a common understanding
and prerequisite knowledge to be able to discuss and refine the test results of an AE
system and also participate in active development of even better AE instrumentation
systems.
One of the common observations in major applications involving AE testing prac-
tices is that the evaluation procedures for the test results are usually codified and
well-defined. To this end, it is often not a problem for the NDT technicians working
in these applications to evaluate the results of the tests as they usually have everything
set up and ready to go. In fact, the literature suggests that the best way to arrive at
standard and ultimately documentable evaluation procedures are to obtain a broad
and representative range of field experience, following up the AE tests with other
NDT inspections to identify and characterize the damage conditions as systemati-
cally as possible [35]. Experience shows that by documenting conditions and results
with the use of a reliable database, data can be accumulated for use in future anal-
yses. Indeed this has been done for several leading AE applications, such as pressure
vessels, petrochemical pipes and tanks, railroad tank cars, jumbo tube trailers, and
aircraft fuselages. Sometimes, the evaluation of AE signals hinges on located clus-
ters of events, total emission quantities or the emission in specific parts of the test
such as high-stress load holds. Importantly, AE data is often evaluated consistent
with a number of specific applicable acceptance criteria and the comparison of the
test results with these specific criteria is used to perform the screening process [2,
64]. The structure is deemed acceptable if it meets the aforementioned acceptance
criteria, else the procedure does equally specify additional steps to be undertaken
including the use of another stage in the AE data analysis protocol or performing the
verification of the accuracy of the AE test result by using other NDT techniques.
Although significant studies outline the interpretation and evaluation of more
standardized applications using AE inspection systems, the interpretation and eval-
uation are often conducted more implicitly in less standardized applications. In their
interpretation of AE signals, NDT practitioners use common sense observations to
remove false indications (noise) or to focus on the parts of the test that are deter-
mined to contain the most meaningful information (i.e., relevant information). In
general, however, the literature [34, 35] indicates that the final evaluation of AE test
data tends to include a mixture of many factors including the advanced data analysis
tools, personal experience, common sense observation, and technical intuition to list
but a few. Indeed all these factors can be very subjective processes and their degree
of success depends very much on the skills and the experience of the individual NDT
practitioner performing the evaluation. As for any experience related skills, all these
skills are extremely difficult to teach and communicate between the different NDT
practitioners, and the processes used by the different NDT practitioners will change
over the years as interests and preferences shift and as new ideas (i.e., both for the
composite material development and technological advancements in the implemen-
tation of AE systems) are considered. This procedure of operation is best seen as
7.6 Analysis Tools for AE Measurement Signals 335

an indispensable prelude to the development of standardized procedures that can

be used reliably and widely in NDT practices. In most cases, however, evaluation
criteria are not meaningful if they are not related to a specific load stimulus and a
specific instrumentation setup. In testing certain structures such as pressure vessels,
tanks, and most primary or secondary load-bearing structures, the loading stimulus
can be numerically specified, controlled, and measured by the NDT practitioners.

7.7 Applications in the Testing of Composite Structures

A lot of studies have already been published focusing on the application of AE

in the inspection of fibrous composite materials both for the localization and the
discrimination of the AE sources of the AE signals [2, 65]. In some specific appli-
cations, AE testing practices may also be used to discriminate between the different
types of active flaws including fiber fracture, delamination, matrix cracking, and
debonding [66, 67]. Although most of the studies involving the application of AE
to the inspection of composite structures focus on detection and localization of the
flaws, the literature indicates that AE is only capable of determining when some-
thing is happening (i.e., the detection), where it is happening (i.e., the localization),
and what is happening (i.e., the discrimination) [2, 65]. To this end, several studies
do classify AE not as a general type of NDT but rather as a general type of SHM
tool [2]. In terms of its performance, AE energy has shown a good correlation with
parameters derived from stress–strain curves, damage identified using ultrasonic C-
scanning, and microscopic analysis of composite specimens subjected to static and
fatigue loading [68]. The applications of AE to the inspection of composite mate-
rials are dominantly found in the aviation industry whereby NDT engineers use AE
techniques to monitor the condition and predict the structural health of the main
structures of aircraft systems. The main reason for this dominance is linked to the
technique’s close relationship with flight safety and the fact that it can easily detect
some early phenomena related to the initiation and growth of fatigue cracks (i.e., an
application that is generally beyond the capability of various other NDT techniques
but easy to perform with AE). Although the AE technique is a generally accepted
method for testing composite structures, the real-time localization of AE signals
in large composite complex-shaped structures is generally difficult (in some cases
impossible) and when it is feasible, several sensors are required making the inspec-
tion tedious and in some cases very complicated to perform. To this end, a real-time
AE instrument for health monitoring of aircraft structures is difficult in fact difficult
if not impossible to develop to a great extent [2].
In wind turbine blades, AE is generally used to monitor damage initiation and
progression in GFRP, which is a common material in WTB. Although AE sensors
have certain limitations for these materials due to the low acoustic impedances [69–
71], the technique has nonetheless proven to be a highly effective method in detecting
and identifying damage, and numerous laboratory and full-scale blade tests have
proven its validity [72, 73]. In a recent study [69], the authors successfully compared
336 7 Application of Acoustic Emission for the Inspection of Fiber-Reinforced …

various high-sensitivity AE sensors for GFRP to achieve a broadband frequency spec-

trum and reported encouraging results. In a similar study [70], the authors used the
AE technique to investigate the possibility of monitoring the working state of wind
turbine blades. In their study, they used an advanced signal processing algorithm to
eliminate high noise levels during the fatigue test to easily locate the source of AE
signals and the results showed that both the cracks early warnings were success-
fully detected. In a later study [71], the authors combined the AE technique and the
dispersion reduction method to determine the position of the delamination in wind
turbine blades and reported encouraging results. In ref. [74], the authors used AE
to investigate faults in real-time wind turbine blades using electromagnetic acoustic
transducers. In order to locate and visualize the faults, they used the wavelet trans-
form followed by multi-parametric analysis for fault classification and the AE curves
attenuation analysis for fault localization. Several piezoelectric AE sensors can also
be used to monitor the composite components that support the load of the structure.
These sensors are used to generate a large amount of data that are automatically
processed for fault detection in wind turbine blades [75, 76]. Although AE testing
does provide good SHM results for wind turbine blades, AE sensing systems require
the use of complex sensor networks and various electronics in the blade which are
prone to lightning strikes, making the technology more vulnerable when used in
operational structures. In ref. [77], for example, experimental applications of AE
in the online monitoring of wind turbine blades have shown high AE emissions in
healthy blades, though the authors did not provide a clear explanation. In a similar
study [78], the authors were able to inspect operational wind turbine blades using a
multichannel AE system for more than 6 months. Figure 7.8 illustrates the typical
AE inspection system when evaluating the static and fatigue damage of wind turbine
blades during a laboratory test (Fig. 7.8a) and in-service monitoring (i.e., on stationary
wind turbine blades) (Fig. 7.8b–d) configurations. Although AE systems do generally
produce good inspection/monitoring results in the laboratory tests, recent studies [78,
79] indicate that their implementation in in-service monitoring of the wind turbine

Fig. 7.8 Illustration of an AE monitoring system of a a wind turbine blade during the static testing
in the laboratory [80], b, c in-service testing of a stationary wind turbine blade with the load cell
and loading gear, and d the operating tests with root mounted on the radio transmitters [77]
7.7 Applications in the Testing of Composite Structures 337

blades remains actual and challenging due to factors such as accessibility restrictions,
the size, geometry of the blades, background noise (which makes it difficult for the
inspector to extract a useful signal) as well as power requirements.
An additional application of AE to monitor the damage evolution in a wind turbine
blade was reported by Han et al. in 2014 [81]. In this study, the authors used an AE
system to monitor and evaluate the level of damage of a full-scale wind turbine
blade having a capacity of 100 kW during a step-by-step static load test. The authors
devised a new algorithm based on the energy contour mapping concept and a new
source location method to obtain accurate inspection results. Interestingly, these
authors also used a linear variable differential transformer (LVDT) to measure the
deflection of the blade tip and used the strain of the inner shear web to examine
the correlation between damage identification and stress condition of the blade and
validate the accuracy of their method. Results indicated that the AE activities were
highly correlated with the stress distribution and damage location in the wind turbine
blade, especially at the bonding edges at about 1000–1500 mm away from the root.
Among the novelties of this study included the applicability of the new source location
method and its accuracy was confirmed after comparing the results obtained using
the source location with those obtained using the experimental damage location. In
a study conducted by Zarouchas and van Hemelrijck [82], the AE technique was
used to monitor the damage progression in single-lap bonded joints and different
dog-bone materials subjected to a series of compression and tensile tests. To avoid
small amplitude signals being undetected, Zarouchas and D. van Hemelrijck used
a frequency-based technique to examine the AE data for the identification of the
different damage mechanisms into the material during the loading. In the case of
single-lap bonded joints, both the interfacial and mixed failure modes were observed.
Several other techniques were reported in the literature including the quantitative
damage assessment of hybrid composite wind turbine blades by energy-based AE
source location [83] and the structural health monitoring methodology for wind
turbine blades using acoustic emission [84]. In the former, a new method to enhance
a source location with an energy contour map and a new damage indexing method
for more clear damage identification was proposed, and in the latter, the feasibility
of in-service SHM of the wind turbine blades by AE was investigated.
In natural fiber-reinforced polymer-matrix composites, Bravo and co-authors [85]
presented the application of a multivariable AE system to characterize and evaluate
the process of damage evolution in bio and green polyethylene–birch composites
under creep and cyclic load testing. In a similar study, Akil and co-authors [86] moni-
tored the flexural and indentation loading behavior of pultruded (a technique used for
the fabrication of composite materials with a better reinforcement, tensile strength,
and consistent quality [87]) jute/glass and kenaf/glass hybrid polyester compos-
ites by focusing on the AE activities resuming during the reloading process (i.e.,
Felicity ratio) and at low loads during the unloading process (crack closure effect).
Results indicate that the introduction of large quantities of reinforcement appears to
be quite effective on jute fiber-reinforced laminates, although with a significant effect
on fiber architecture, while it did not yield comparable results in kenaf fiber lami-
nates. This was attributed to the insufficient fiber impregnation and to the need for
338 7 Application of Acoustic Emission for the Inspection of Fiber-Reinforced …

improving the control of fiber orientation in the laminate, and this further highlights
the importance of selecting the right NDT techniques for the right material systems.
An earlier study [88] established the use of a nonlinear AE system for the detec-
tion and monitoring of low-velocity impact damage in composite laminates. The
composite laminate was instrumented with bonded low-profile piezoceramic trans-
ducers and a high-frequency acoustic wave was introduced to one transducer and
picked up by a different transducer located at different positions on the composite
laminate. Also, they introduced a low-frequency flexural modal excitation to the
composite laminate and at the same time, they used an electromagnetic shaker. The
damage induced by impact is exhibited in a power spectrum of the acoustic response
by a pattern of sidebands around the main acoustic harmonic and the amplitude
of sidebands was related to the severity of damage in the composite (i.e., a linear
relationship between the magnitude of the sidebands and the severity of damage
in the specimen). After several tests with different samples, they observed that the
responses to different boundary conditions for the healthy and damaged specimens
were not uniform. Part of their recommendations, they authors indicated that addi-
tional studies were required to identify and characterize the non-damage-related
nonlinearities. Additional details about the application of AE to the inspection of
composites and sandwich structures can be found in ref. [89].
In ref. [73], the authors developed a robust fault identification system based on
AE and machine learning and used it to detect and characterize defects in adhesive
composite joints for wind turbine blades. The clustering method was based on a
fast search process that could easily find density peaks and was applied as pattern
recognition of AE signals. In a similar study [90], the authors investigated the capa-
bilities of the AE system to identify and characterize defects in wind turbine blades
under accelerated fatigue loads. In ref. [91], both the AE technique and radial basis
function neural networks were used to detect a series of impact damage in wind
turbine blades after collision with a foreign object and reported encouraging results.
In ref. [92], the authors applied signal processing techniques in time and frequency
domain analysis, whereby the statistical parameters such as the root mean square and
experimental modal parameters, were employed for fault detection in wind turbine
blades. In order to obtain accurate results, the rotor displacements of wind turbine
blades rotors perpendicular to the rotor plane were studied by the ten first mode
shapes of bending vibrations. In Liu et al. [93], the authors used AE analysis to study
the behavior of the wind turbine blade bearing at low speed. In an earlier study [94],
the authors proposed a method using AE and probabilistic modeling for the detec-
tion of subsurface damage in wind turbine blades bearings. In ref. [95], the authors
conducted an experimental study to investigate the use of Lamb waves in SHM to
monitor the health status of wind turbine blades. They used a laser vibrometer of 3D
scanning to study the behavior of Lamb waves and further applied different signal
processing methods to accurately locate the fault. It was concluded that both AE and
ultrasonic testing techniques are robust, effective, and reliable SHM tools for wind
turbine blades. In a similar study [96], the authors applied a low-frequency AE and
ultrasonic wave technique for the SHM of aerial and aquatic environments. Results
showed that the AE system needs approximately 90–100 dB, however, the ultrasound
7.7 Applications in the Testing of Composite Structures 339

system only requires about 40 dB to obtain accurate results. In a recent study [97],
the authors indicated that cracks are currently being detected and characterized using
a single microphone, or a set of microphones in GFRP. The above authors went on
and used an audio microphone implanted inside the wind turbine blade specimen
and monitored the sound to detect cracks initiating into the test sample and reported
accurate results.
Although several studies have been published outlining the application of the AE
to the inspection of fiber-reinforced polymer-matrix composite structures, there are
currently no published studies detailing the quantitative limitations of this technique
in terms of damage identification at any specific depth in composites that could guide
users on selecting their samples. In fact, most of the inspections reported in the liter-
ature have been devoted to the standard tensile test configurations focusing on tests
performed in lateral (in-plane) directions on loaded pressure vessels [98]. As opposed
to conventional ultrasound-based techniques, the sourcing of elastic disturbance from
within the test structures is one of the key features that have been proposed to improve
the AE capabilities to detect the damage forming deep into thick composite struc-
tures. However, for the disturbances to be detected by the receiving transducers,
they must move along the surface of the test composite structure suggesting that
good results are dependent on the adequate propagation of these disturbances. The
acousto-ultrasonic technique, also known as the acoustic-emission-simulation tech-
nique or the stress-wave factor method, is an advanced complementary form of AE
signal processing that was developed in 1979 by the authors in ref. [99]. This tech-
nique uses active, offset pitch-catch transducers, as opposed to a reliance on the
energy released from within the test structure [99, 100]. In fact, both the aforemen-
tioned improved control over the transmitted energy as well as the modes of obtaining
the excitation waves allow for greater in-depth diffusion, and hence, the technique
becomes more suitable for the examination of thick timber sections [101]. However,
when it comes to complex composites such as woven fiber-based composites, the
aforementioned modifications have not always provided any noticeable benefits over
the conventional AE technique [102, 103]. To this end, most of the published studies
have been restricted to the examination of thin-skinned composites, among which
detection limitations of a 4 mm-diameter hole in a 20-ply laminate [104] and quite
recently a 5 mm-in-depth crack [105] have been reported.
In summary, AE has been proven to be an effective method that does easily detect
and localize (i.e., using adequate setup) cracks initiating in composite structures.
However, the process is not always easy and several conclusions can be made as
related to the application of AE to the inspection. In primis, the literature indicates
that there are at least four fundamental errors that appear to be repeated by most of
the NDT engineers using AE for the inspection of composite materials viz. (a) a lack
of understanding of how wave propagation influences the AE signals, (b) insufficient
attention paid to extraneous AE-noise sources, (c) very questionable guessing about
what the actual AE sources are, and (d) a lack of appreciation of how much effort
is required to develop an application of AE to composites. Specifically, the wave
propagation does generally inflict significant changes in the amplitude of the AE
signals even over a relatively short distance. As such, the extent of these effects must
340 7 Application of Acoustic Emission for the Inspection of Fiber-Reinforced …

be documented and accounted for prior to the interpretation of AE data. Some of

the effects related to wave propagation in composites also cause significant inaccu-
racies in the source-location data generated by current commercial AE equipment.
To this end, extraneous AE-noise sources are of a particular problem to AE when
applied to the inspection of composite structures. In case relevant modifications are
not undertaken to ensure the system is properly configured for a specific application,
most of the fibrous composite structures will undoubtedly generate significant extra-
neous AE. This is in direct contrast to most of the studies analyzed in this chapter
because many NDT engineers do generally not take any specific steps to charac-
terize and eliminate the effects of spurious/extraneous AE. In the area of AE-source
identification, completely unfounded statements are often made by researchers in
this field without independent verification of the sources which are causing the AE
users not to trust the systems or make even more wrong statements on this type of
NDT. In fact, AE-source identification seems to be one of the most important areas
where researchers should concentrate much of their efforts using new approaches
beyond frequency spectra to provide accurate research update that would help build
confidence among the AE users. Although it is very easy to obtain AE data (i.e.,
large amounts of AE data can be obtained with very little effort and little or no
training), most of the data does generally represent no tangible meaning nor are they
easily interpretable. To this end, the potential for successful application of the AE
system to the evaluation and characterization of fiber-reinforced composite structures
requires trained, knowledgeable, and skillful NDT engineers/practitioners personnel
with many years of experience. However, all these accomplishments are not always
easy to achieve partly because the management does often not recognize that AE is a
relatively young technology and adequate stills and highly performing AE systems
require many training hours as well as extensive research and development to obtain
state-of-the-art AE equipment, respectively. In situations where the true status of AE
technology has been fully recognized and the necessary front-end development has
been carried out, the routine use of AE has been established for the inspection and
characterization of composite structures.

7.8 Combination with Other NDE Techniques

and Prospects

Although the use of AE as the monitoring method does provide a full-field view of the
damage in fiber-reinforced composite structures, the combination of AE with other
NDE systems is often recommended in order to obtain reliable inspection results
and achieve an in-depth assessment of the severity of the damage. In most cases,
the use of AE and other NDT methods (e.g., optical microscopy, ultrasound pulse
velocity, computed tomography, digital image correlation, shearography, and all other
optical interferometric techniques, etc.) is often viewed as the preferred option as it
helps to achieve an accurate inspection of composite structures. In this case, the AE
7.8 Combination with Other NDE Techniques and Prospects 341

technique detects and localizes the critical defects, following which other techniques
are used to characterize them. In [106, 107], for example, the authors discussed the
potential crack closure after healing is detected by AE cumulative hits distribution
and visualized by digital image correlation crack opening fields. Also, ultrasound
pulse velocity measurements were performed by applying sensors on the surface
of a reinforced concrete structure [108] and embedded into the concrete [55, 109]
to obtain accurate damage qualification. AE technique is somewhat different from
other NDT methods and some of the most important differences and some are worth
mentioning. AE technique is mostly a passive method and it does only detects defects
when they are activated by applying stress that is adequately large (i.e., structures
require the application of external energy to activate the defects as the defects that
are not activated by the applied stress will not be detected). It is important to indicate
that the AE technique does not give direct information on the severity of the defects.
Also, while it is not necessary to place the sensor close to the defect (i.e., detection up
to tens of meters is possible depending on the application and the type of materials),
only the most critical defects for the applied loading condition will be activated. This
makes AE an excellent tool for SHM applications.
Unlike most of the other NDT techniques, AE simply listens for the energy
released by the test structure from its interior, instead of supplying energy to the
object under examination. One of the main advantages of using AE for testing struc-
tures is that AE tests are often performed on structures while in operation, as this
provides adequate loading for propagating defects and triggering acoustic emissions
without tampering with the operation of the system where the test structure is used.
In addition, AE can only handle dynamic changes or processes taking place in a
material system, suggesting that only active features (e.g., crack growth, ongoing
delamination, and corner splitting) are highlighted. Although the ability of an AE
system to discern between developing and stagnant defects is highly significant, it is
also possible for some flaws to go undetected altogether particularly when the loading
is not high enough to generate a tangible acoustic event or if the generated acoustic
event does not reach the AE sensors for detection. It is also noted that AE testing
usually provides an immediate indication relating to the strength or risk of failure
of a component making it a great candidate for in-situ composites testing practices.
Additional advantages of the AE testing technique include but are not limited to
fast and complete volumetric inspection using multiple sensors, permanent sensor
mounting for process control, and no need to disassemble and clean a specimen.
Table 7.1 provides a summary of the main advantages and disadvantages of using
AE testing vis-à-vis other NDT techniques for the inspection of fiber-reinforced
composite materials.
In summary, the major difference between the AE testing technique and other
NDT methods is that AE is mostly passive while others are generally active. The
principle of operation of most NDT techniques such as ultrasonic, radiographic,
infrared thermography, or any other NDT methods relies on the creation of some
physical effect in or on the material system by externally applying some form of
energy to obtain the information relating to its health status. However, the operation of
an AE system relies on the initiation and generation of energy from the interior of the
342 7 Application of Acoustic Emission for the Inspection of Fiber-Reinforced …

Table 7.1 Summary of the main advantages and disadvantages of AE testing vis-à-vis other NDT
techniques
Acoustic emission (AE) Other NDT techniques
The technique does detect the discontinuity Most of the other NDT techniques detect the
or defect growth/movement presence of discontinuities in the test structure
The defect detectability is highly dependent The detectability of the damage depends on its
on the stress level and the size of the size, orientation, and shape
damage
The material anisotropy is good The material anisotropy is bad
The technique is generally not sensitive to Most of the other NDT techniques are generally
the geometry of the test structure more sensitive to the geometry of the test structure
Each loading is mostly unique and not Inspections are readily repeated
repeatable
The inspections are generally less intrusive The inspections are generally more intrusive
Generally global monitoring Generally local scanning
Principal limitations based on the signal Principal limitations are based on access to the test
attenuation, history dependence, and structure, its geometry, and the dependence on the
environmental noise orientation of the discontinuity and its proximity
to the surface of the test structure

test component or material structure. In composite materials, detectable flaws include

but are not limited to crack growth due to composite fatigue, stress corrosion, fiber
fracture, matrix cracking, delamination, and creep (i.e., see a full list of the possible
flaws occurring in the composites at the different stages of their life cycle in the first
chapter of this present book). Additional sources of acoustic waves include but are
not limited to high-pressure leaks, partial discharge, etc. can also be detected and
isolated. The principle of operation of an AE configuration is illustrated in Fig. 7.2.
The process starts with external forces acting on a structural system and inflicting
some level of stress. The resulting stress is the stimulus that causes the deformation
of the test structure followed by the breakdown of the material at specific places.
This material breakdown produces a series of acoustic/elastic waves (i.e., acoustic
emission), which travel outward from the source to the AE sensor passing through the
material. In response to mechanical displacement, the sensor produces an electrical
signal, which is passed to electronic equipment for further processing.

7.9 Advantages and Limitations of AE Technique

As opposed to most of the other NDT techniques, discontinuities in the test structure
are the releasers of energy in AE testing practices (i.e., signals are generated not arti-
ficially but the test component makes its own signal in response to the applied stress).
Another distinctive characteristic of the AE testing method is that the technique does
detect movement while other NDT techniques detect geometric discontinuities in
7.9 Advantages and Limitations of AE Technique 343

the composites. AE testing technique has been demonstratively an effective NDT

method for the early detection of flaws in composite structures as well as the real-
time monitoring of their health status. AE is a high-sensitivity test method and the
fact that it provides the users with firsthand information pertaining to early damage
detection capability is another added advantage. AE is capable of detecting the initi-
ation and growth of micro and macro-cracks and flaws in the composite in a highly
sensitive fashion, which enables users to schedule timely repair-maintenance activ-
ities to prevent potential safety issues. AE can also provide a global, simultaneous
inspection capability, which enables users to inspect an entire unit or system simulta-
neously, including pressure vessels, reactors, piping, and other components. Indeed
this results in a more efficient, cost-effective, and relatively faster testing process for
even large structures or systems.
Interesting, AE testing practices can be performed without shutting down the
entire process (i.e., performed while the unit under test is in operation), hence,
enabling the in-service monitoring of over-pressurization or scheduled cool-down.
Indeed avoiding a shutdown can reduce costs, save resources significantly and help
keep productivity levels consistent. The fact that AE can only detect active defects
(i.e., defects that are initiating and growing), suggesting that only flaws that could
lead to significant issues in the future are identified (i.e., both stable flaws and old
fabrications defects are not identified). This enables the users of AE testing systems
to solely focus on the most significant issues of the test structure which saves money
and time. AE also provides an immediate indication of the material or structure’s
strength and the risk of failure, enabling NDT engineers to respond quickly if needed.
Perhaps one of the most important advantages is its minimal disruption to the fabric
of the test material because only small holes are needed to mount sensors. It is also
possible to place permanent sensors in the material system while equally complying
with regional, nationally, and internationally recognized AE standards. Finally, the
use of the AE system can reduce costs significantly by avoiding downtime, reducing
test time, requiring minimal disruption to insulation, and identifying only the flaws
that may cause significant issues in the future if not corrected.
AE testing also presents a number of limitations some of which may be severe
than others. Just like any other NDT technique, AE may not be the right choice for
every application and in some cases, the technique may be supplemented with other
NDT techniques to obtain accurate results. AE is mostly an SHM method than it is
an NDT technique, and hence, it can only provide qualitative results. That is, the
technique can only detect if a flaw exists, but the determination of its size and depth
does require the use of other NDT methods such as ultrasonic testing or terahertz
spectroscopy and imaging. Another limitation is that the AE testing can only find
active flaws. Although this can be considered an advantage, the fact that AE only
identifies active flaws may be a disadvantage particular when inspectors want to
identify stagnant defects or if the relatively minor active flaws (e.g., subjected to
significant small loading) do not produce a detectable acoustic event. Since AE uses
the acoustic event to detect the presence of an active flaw, loud environments often
present challenges for AE systems particularly when inspectors want to get accurate
AE testing results. While the effect of the environmental noise may be reduced by the
344 7 Application of Acoustic Emission for the Inspection of Fiber-Reinforced …

Table 7.2 Advantages and limitations of using AE technique for the inspection of composite
structures
Advantages Limitations
It can be used at different stages of the life of Its measurements often come with extraneous
the composite (i.e., from proof of testing at the noise: preset threshold and signal filter required
design stage to structural health assessment
during service life)
It is a global structural monitoring technique It is important that the test structure presents a
and only uses a sensor array free surface to attach the AE sensor array
It is an excellent tool for real-time damage It requires a good surface coupling between the
detection and evaluation in structural systems. AE sensors and the material structure under
It is also highly sensitive to phenomena leading test
to material degradation
It presents high sensitivity and provides an Particular results are not reproducible due to
accurate source localization without signal source nature and the AE signal shape is
performing point-to-point scanning often affected by material and geometry
attenuation

application of signal discrimination and noise reduction techniques and technologies

are required to filter out excess noise, specific skills and knowledge are also required
to ensure these techniques and procedures are performed accurately and reliably.
AE systems also feature the use of relatively complex and expensive hardware and
software, suggesting that only big companies with sufficient funds can have access
to the equipment which limits its access by regular NDT practitioners. Table 7.2
provides the main advantages and limitations of the AE NDT technique.
In summary, the main advantage of the AE technique (i.e., AE signals are not
generated artificially but from within the material structure undergoing structural
changes), can be challenging when it comes to the interpretation of the test results.
Considering that the AE sensor is usually attached to the surface of the material
structure under test, an acoustic wave generated from the interior of the test structure
must travel through the same material structure in order to reach the AE sensors
mounted on its surface. However, as the wave travels through the composite material,
it distorts, attenuates, and scatters along the way. As a result, the AE waveform
received by the AE sensors will unavoidably carry the useful signal along with
reflections. Similarly, the AE waves traveling through the composite suffer from
significant attenuation levels, suggesting that the amplitude of the AE wave weakens
as the propagation distance increases. All these factors highly influence the quality
of the received signal (i.e., the received signal is generally a continuous signal with
features that significantly differ from the burst signal generated by the AE source).
Additional factors affecting the quality of the AE signals and provided in the literature
[2, 34, 35], and readers are directed to these specific studies for more details. Based
on all the aforementioned reasons, AE users should be cautious and identify the
numerous wave propagation phenomena and any other possible source of errors that
make the practical implementation of AE difficult.
7.10 Current Trends and AE Standards 345

7.10 Current Trends and AE Standards

In recent years, the manufacturing of fiber-reinforced composite materials has gone

through revolutionary technological changes that lead to new, strong, sustainable, and
sturdy fiber-reinforced composite materials [110]. Although robust fiber-reinforced
composites are currently designed both with thinner and lighter sections as well as
thicker and lighter sections [2, 111], a successful evaluation of the structural integrity
of these innovative materials requires a continuous update of the old and the devel-
opment of the new AE instrumentation to meet the current challenges. It is predicted
that the AE hardware transferring signals from AE sensors to the recording device
will be soon replaced by a network of wireless sensors and contactless recording
devices which will provide robust mobile long-term monitoring of structures [112–
114]. In particular, when it comes to highly attenuating materials of the AE signals,
there is a significant need for the embedment of AE sensors into the material during
the manufacturing process. Incorporating the AE into the composite can easily limit
the damage propagation path while equally eliminating the diffusion effects due to
surface reflections. The feasibility of the embedment of AE sensors into the compos-
ites have been be demonstrated in the literature and we proved to be highly effec-
tive [113, 114], though additional research is still required to further investigate the
possibility of using embedded sensor networks that monitor the structural health of
large-scale composite parts.
Similarly, some of the computational studies are currently using AE measurements
as input to accurately assess the damage zones in composite structures. A typical
example of such an application is where the AE events detected during inspection
are used for wave velocity mapping based on travel time tomography [115]. In this
case, the computational tomographic reconstruction accurately identifies the progres-
sive damage accumulation in the composite even in the case of large-scale, thick,
and complex structures [116, 117]. Considering the recent advancements in AE, it is
believed that monitoring the evolution of simple AE features (energy, RA, frequen-
cies, etc.) can indicate damage onset and propagation, even for small damage in the
orders of micros. In fact, the RILEM Technical Committees are active in this direc-
tion though they mostly focus on establishing important recommendations outlining
possible combinations of AE with other NDE techniques for accurate detection and
evaluation of damage in concrete structures. In parallel, the effect of propagation
distance on waveform analysis should be adequately clarified and the performance
of the different AE systems should be adequately documented to serve as the refer-
ence for different types of tests. In this context, previous studies indicate that more
accurate AE analyses can be obtained only if the emissions are classified according
to the AE sensor-source distance (i.e., AE signals traveling greater distances are
subjected to several reflections and their wave components are more attenuated or
distorted than those of the signals traveling shorter distances) [109]. As such, accu-
rate documentation detailing the performance of the different AE systems and scope
of application (e.g., type of materials, wave propagation, the strength of the signal,
346 7 Application of Acoustic Emission for the Inspection of Fiber-Reinforced …

etc.) would greatly help the improvement of the inspection practices and inspection
results altogether.
In all NDT practices, several organizations (i.e., standards, industry, and govern-
ment agencies) publish relevant standards and in some cases oversee the regulations
related to AE testing. The primary purpose of these documents is to offer important
guidelines and procedures for conducting AE testing assignments. Performing the
testing following the protocol and requirements provided by these documents helps
organizations to adhere to and maintain compliance with the relevant standards and
regulations. There are currently several institutions/agencies that publish standards
and other documents related to AE testing and some of them are worth mentioning.
The International Organization for Standardization (ISO) has published various stan-
dards related to AE testing (e.g., standards for calibrating AE sensors, classifying
active cracks, and using AET for leak detection, etc.). The American Society of
Mechanical Engineers (ASME) has released numerous publications outlining the
requirements for AE testing [118]. The American Society for Testing and Materials
(ASTM) has also published various standards related to AE testing (e.g., standards for
AE monitoring of structures during controlled stimulation, continuous monitoring
of AE from fiber-reinforced composite materials, testing aerial personnel devices,
and more. There is also the European Committee for Standardization (CEN) which
has published a number of AE-related standards (e.g., standards for testing liquefied
petroleum gas equipment, calibrating AE transducers, and testing industrial piping
systems. The Japanese Standards Association (JSA): JIS Z 2342:2003 from JAS
describes methods for acoustic emission testing of pressure vessels.
The American Society for Nondestructive Testing (ASNT) also provides a
number of standards describing the requirements for qualification and certification
of the personnel involved in nondestructive testing of the structures including AE
testing. The Committee on Acoustic Emission from Reinforced Plastics (CARP)
has published several documents outlining the use of AE systems for the testing of
piping, storage tanks, pressure vessels, and other objects made of fiber-reinforced
plastic composites. Also, the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE)
[119] has published an important guide outlining the detection and localization of AE
signals due to partial discharges in oil-immersed power reactors and transformers.
One can also mention the guidelines (e.g., guidelines for evaluating seam-welded
high-energy piping), research papers, and other technical documents related to AE
published by the Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI). Finally, a number of docu-
ments published by the American Petroleum Institute (API) also discuss the applica-
bility of the AE testing technique to the inspection of pressure vessels (e.g., ANSI/API
510). Additional institutions/agencies providing AE-related standards include but are
not limited to the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), the U.S.
Department of Transportation (DOT), the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), and
the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) and many others.
7.11 Conclusions 347

7.11 Conclusions

This chapter discussed the application of AE to monitor and evaluate the damage
initiation and progression as well as structural failure mechanisms in fiber-reinforced
composite plastics. The discussion starts with the generalities of AE outlining the
definition of terms and the overview of the application of AE for the monitoring
and evaluation of composite materials. After that, a description of the principle of
operation and the mathematics involved are established. The chapter also lays out AE
operation modes and provides examples of applications and the advantages and disad-
vantages of AE systems. AE is, in many ways, a unique NDT technique compare to all
other more conventional NDT techniques. In techniques such as ultrasonic testing
and radiography, a low level of some form of energy is input into the test mate-
rial/structure and the output is measured and analyzed to evaluate and characterize
its interior. That is, an evaluation of the test material’s properties of the identifica-
tion of flaws within the test material is made based on how that energy propagates
through and interacts with the material’s constituents. However, AE is only based on
the passive monitoring of acoustic energy released by the test material/structure itself
when subjected to a certain type of loading. Both the initiation and the propagation
of the damage mechanisms produce acoustic waves (i.e., AE signals), which are then
detected but relevant sensors and analyzed by the NDT inspector to detect, locate,
and assess these damage mechanisms. AE does generally involve several types of
measurement approaches ranging from simple AE activity monitoring (i.e., acoustic
signal counting) to full waveform digitization and recording. The technique also does
involve a number of signal analysis techniques ranging from simple curve analysis
and empirical correlations to artificial intelligence and machine learning methods.
The most suitable measurement system and analysis approach for a given application
largely depend on a number of factors including the test/application requirements,
applicable standards and codes, methods available for loading the structure, and
available instrumentation and sensors to list but a few.
AE NDT provides several advantages over other NDT techniques (i.e., see the
section on advantages and disadvantages) and the fact that a simple array of acoustic
sensors can provide global monitoring of a large region on the test structure and that
point-by-point scanning is not required is another added advantage. Also, it may be
possible to monitor a structure in situ rather than having to remove it from service for
inspections. Although AE is sensitive to the initiation and propagation of the damage
in fiber-reinforced plastic composites, several factors must be considered in terms
of system setup and configuration to guarantee a successful application of the AE
technique [120]. Additional factors affecting the feasibility and the accuracy of the
AE system for the inspection of the material system include but are not limited to
the material and geometry, the sensing technology, and experimental configuration
to list but a few [120] and readers are directed to these studies for more informa-
tion. Perhaps the most important factor among all these is the recognition that the
acoustic signals may also be produced by sources other than the damage mechanisms
of interest. As a result, inspectors must always ensure that such sources are either
348 7 Application of Acoustic Emission for the Inspection of Fiber-Reinforced …

eliminated during testing or discriminated against and eliminated during data anal-
ysis processes. Advanced signal processing such as wavelet transform and amplitude
correction techniques can also be used to enhance the accuracy of the location and
the characterization of the damage. Also, another important step for the data analysis
process is the understanding that the measured acoustic waveforms are a result of
the convolution of source, propagation, and measurement effects. To this end, it is
obvious that both the propagation and measurement effects can significantly affect
the signal quality by masking some of the most important damage-related mecha-
nisms. The most important propagation effects may include the attenuation of the
signal, velocity dispersion, and multiple modes of propagation, reflections, and mode
conversions. Similarly, some of the measurement effects include the sensor response
as well as the acquisition filtering and electronics.

Important Disclosure In this chapter, some figures referring to well-known facts and popular THz
systems were arranged traying inspiration from NDT websites and sources were also referenced
when appropriately.

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https://doi.org/10.1520/STP35383S
Chapter 8
Other NDT Methods
for Fiber-Reinforced Composite
Structures

8.1 Introduction

As the utilization of composite structures such as glass fiber reinforced polymer-

matrix composites (GFRP) and carbon-fiber-reinforced polymer-matrix composites
(CFRPs) continues to increase in almost all engineering and structural applications
(e.g., aerospace, renewable energy, civil and architecture, etc.), their quality and
performance control requirements are becoming continuously demanding. To date,
long, thick and more complex fibrous composite components are constantly being
manufactured (e.g., wind turbine blades, bridge decks, construction pillars, etc.),
which increases manufacturing and maintenance difficulty. This increased level of
complexity also increases the defects ratio per volume unit and the likelihood of
developing flaws during their service life altogether [1, 2]. In this context, robust and
reliable NDT techniques are being developed. However, there have been no clear
inspection guidelines set by NDT practitioners to facilitate the choice of appropriate
techniques to be used especially when considering some special features such as the
thickness of the structures and the size of the defect among others. To this end, the
detection targets are always set based on the effects of defects on the composite struc-
tures [2–5], partly because setting robust and quantitative NDT inspection require-
ments necessitates comprehensive reliability studies to generate probability-of-defect
curves and establish the minimum unfailingly detectable defects sizes thereof [6, 7].
In this chapter, NDT methods different from those presented in the previous chap-
ters are discussed, hoping that they will be equally of interest to NDT practitioners
especially when dealing with the inspection of composite structures. It is noted that
some of these methods may or may not find their direct applications in the inspection
of composite materials. For simplicity and convenience, methods have been grouped
in approximate order of increasing rate of application in the detection, localization,
and characterization of defects in composite structures.

© Science Press 2022 355

S. Zhong and W. Nsengiyumva, Nondestructive Testing and Evaluation
of Fiber-Reinforced Composite Structures,
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-19-0848-4_8
356 8 Other NDT Methods for Fiber-Reinforced Composite Structures

8.2 Vibration Testing

Although its main applications remain in the inspection of reinforced concrete, vibra-
tion testing is also used as an NDT technique for composite structures. In its operation,
this technique uses the relationship between the change in the state of the structure and
the change in its vibration response due to the presence of the defects and/damage
(i.e., structural damage induce observable changes in the test structure’s dynamic
properties). In its implementation, the dynamic model of the test fibrous composite
is first established by using its structural properties such as mass, stiffness, damping,
strength, etc. and the vibration response/data of the test structure is recorded/acquired
by the sensors positioned over the test structure as the starting point [8, 9]. Indeed,
this initial measurement for the healthy structure will then be used as the reference for
any other future measurements to estimate the gravity of the damage during the struc-
ture’s service life. That is, the vibration responses of the test structure are collected
and carefully examined over time using that initial measurement as the reference on
the basis that changes in the above-mentioned properties indicate a subsequent shift
from the structure’s original attributes (undamaged state), and hence, the presence of
the damage (damaged state) [10]. In large and complex structural systems, vibration
testing is considered to be a useful tool, where the natural resonance frequencies of
the entire fibrous composite structures are continuously monitored over a long time.
As indicated earlier, vibration testing becomes generally easier to perform when the
inspector knows the vibration responses of the undamaged structure a priori to use as a
standard or reference for future measurements [11]. Typically, any changes occurring
in the fibrous composite’s structural stiffness vibrations (i.e., due to modifications
in the connections between the different structural elements, or changes in their
geometrical and material properties) will subsequently cause noticeable changes in
its resonance characteristics, which are then used to identify the presence and/or the
severity of the damage vis-à-vis the already known state [12]. In this context, vibra-
tion testing is generally a time-saving process and a relatively cost-effective NDT
technique and the fact that it can also be used for real-time monitoring of structural
composites is another added advantage. Figure 8.1 depicts the flowchart describing
the general framework of vibration-based techniques.
The literature reports several vibration-based testing methods for defects and
structural damage identification. Although there are several factors used to classify
vibration-based testing methods, a traditional classification only makes the distinc-
tion between model-based and response-based methods. The former makes use of
a numerical (e.g., finite element) model of the test structure for damage identifica-
tion, while the latter uses the experimentally measured response to forced or ambient
vibrations. In particular, all the model-based techniques use the model updating
technique (e.g., optimal matrix update as well as sensitivity-based and eigenstruc-
ture assignment methods) to identify the damage by modifying the parameter of the
model to achieve a better agreement with the experimental response [13]. The quality
and efficiency of the model updating scheme are solely determined the uncertainty
in the model parameters and depend on the class of mathematical model chosen, on
8.2 Vibration Testing 357

Fig. 8.1 Illustration of the general framework of the vibration-based testing methods

the measurement errors, excitation bandwidth, and on the number and location of
the sensors being used in the test [14, 15]. In this study, the response-based methods
(i.e., output-only because measuring the input excitation in aerospace applications
may be challenging making them less suitable for real-time applications) are consid-
ered since they are the most commonly used for damage identification in fibrous
composite materials. This is probably because model-based methods are generally
implemented with greater computational cost. After all, parameters update may often
involve iterative optimization procedures. Conversely, response-based methods are
not suitable to provide both the type and the severity of the damage, whereby model-
based methods become a useful option. Several vibration-based methods that rely
only on recorded responses have been proposed in the literature. These methods
can be classified in several ways, concerning the definition of the damage sensi-
tive features (i.e., frequency, time, and time–frequency domain). One of the most
common classifications concerns the domain where damage sensitive features are
retrieved.
The oldest and most popular methods operate in the frequency domain including
the frequency response functions and modal parameters. Although the natural
frequencies have also been extensively used for damage detection in fibrous
composite materials [16–18], these are generally not suitable for the detection of
small damage/defects nor are they capable of locating the damage and/or defects
due to their amplified sensitivity to the environmental factors. Several frequency-
domain methods are based on the use of modal or operational parameters [19],
mainly combinations of frequencies, modal shapes, and their derivatives or in terms
of operational shapes retrieved from frequency response functions [13]. However,
all the time-domain methods operate directly on time series data collected using
some techniques such as separation, filtering, and training time series models. In
turn, these methods may be divided into parametric and non-parametric approaches,
358 8 Other NDT Methods for Fiber-Reinforced Composite Structures

whereby the former describes the underlying stochastic process using autoregres-
sive (AR) and/or moving average (ARMA) parameters and the latter involves direct
estimation of the damage sensitive features (e.g., time spectra and covariance) of the
collected time series data. Recent studies are also using the time–frequency methods
to identify defects and structural damage in composite structures, relying on two-
dimensional distributions of the time–frequency or timescale data which highlight
the presence of features in the collected signal. Another common classification is
based on the applicability of the methods to either time-invariant or variant scenarios
with the former dealing with vibration signals where both the structural dynamic
features and the external conditions (i.e., loads and environment) do not vary over
time, while the latter enables accurate damage identification during the occurrence
of structural modifications, such as change of the environmental variations and/or
boundary conditions. Figure 8.2 depicts a general classification of the most common
classes of response-based vibration testing methods for damage identification in
fiber-reinforced composite materials.
Although all these vibration-based testing methods provide the users with the
ability to detect and localize damage in composite structures using global parame-
ters of the structure and without requiring any prior knowledge about its location, they
are also confronted with several limitations that descend from the global nature of the
damage features including lower sensitivity to small damage when compared with
local NDT techniques. Nearly all the response-based methods are more feasible for
applications involving online real-time damage identification schemes with respect

Fig. 8.2 Representation of the different classes of vibration-based NDT methods for fiber-
reinforced composite materials
8.2 Vibration Testing 359

to model-based approaches, owing to their lower computational efforts. This with-

standing, the results provided by all the response-based vibration testing methods
appear to be hugely affected by environmental and operational factors. To obtain
accurate vibration measurements, all the external factors must be carefully accounted
for in the analysis of the damage features. The use of vibration testing methods for the
determination of the type and severity of the damage in fiber-reinforced composite
materials usually requires the development of a well-calibrated numerical model.
As indicated earlier, vibration-based methods for damage identification are based
on the premise that a change of stiffness induces changes in a modal (i.e., natural
frequencies, damping modal factors, and mode shapes) and operational parameters
that can be thereby used as damage identification features. In the NDT of composite
materials, however, damping appears to be a suitable candidate to be used as a
damage-sensitive feature. This is because there is a correlation between damping and
the energy dissipated on the composite material during vibration. It is noteworthy to
mention that the natural frequencies can also provide information about the presence
of damage, as this is usually related to a reduction in stiffness, but it is the combina-
tion of different parameters that usually makes a more robust method. Environmental
and operational effects as well may produce variations of these features and must be
carefully considered. A detailed description of all the environmental and operational
influences on the quality and accuracy of vibration testing data is provided in ref.
[13] and readers are directed to this study for more details. In general, the dynamic
characteristics/properties of a system (i.e., in this case, the fibrous composite struc-
ture) with an N-degree of freedom can be described with either the spatial, modal,
or frequency–response model [20]. It is important to note that all these models can
be linked to each other by using either inverse or forward paths [20, 21]. For a
viscously damped model, the dynamic properties of the test system are contained in
the spatial distribution of its mass, stiffness, and damping characteristics represented
by the (N × N ) matrixes of mass [M], stiffness [K ], and damping [C] or [D] for an
hysterically damped model [21, 22]. Let each degree of freedom be expressed by a
coordinate xi (t) with an applied force f i (t) where i = 1,2,…,N degree of freedoms,
then the model can be illustrated using Newton’s second law of motion (i.e., for both
hysterically damped model and viscously damped model, respectively).

[M]ẍ(t) + [K ]x(t) + i[D]x(t) = f (t) (8.1)

[M]ẍ(t) + [C]ẋ(t) + [K ]x(t) = f (t) (8.2)

where x(t) denotes the (N × 1) vector of displacement coordinates, and f (t) the
(N × 1) excitation vector or force. In general, however, it is quite difficult to test
viscously damped models involving non-proportional damping [20], and this is tech-
nically the case for all viscous or hysteretic damping models (i.e., real-time models
generally involve non-proportional damping). As such, it is generally advisable to
consider proportional approximations to solve the equation for the viscously damped
models (Eq. (8.2)), as these approximations help to obtain the diagonal matrices by
360 8 Other NDT Methods for Fiber-Reinforced Composite Structures

eliminating the couplings. In this context, proportional damping is considered a

special case of damping and it suggests that the damping matrices are linear combi-
nations of the mass and stiffness matrices. In the case of hysteretic damping, the
damping matrix [D] is expressed as follows:

[D] = a[M] + b[K ] (8.3)

where the parameters a and b denote the real scalars. This kind of damping model is
also known as Rayleigh or classical damping. Usually, constant hysterical damping
models are used to illustrate the dynamic behavior of structures that are subjected
to varying loading, suggesting that the equation of their motion will be based on the
hysteretic damping. In case there is a general solution of the form:
 
x(t) = X eiλt (8.4)

where X denotes an N × 1 vector of time-dependent response amplitudes. By

substituting this vector into Eq. (8.1), the following expression is obtained:
  
[K ] − λ2 [M] + i[D] X̄ = {0} (8.5)

This expression represents a complex eigenvalue problem, and when solved, the
results in the solution are described by N complex eigenvalues with λr2 and N real
eigenvectors . The parameters λr2 and  present the information on the natural
frequencies the mode shapes of the system, respectively. The complex eigenvalue λr2
can be defined as follows:

λr2 = ωr2 (1 + iηr ) (8.6)

where ηr and ωr denote the damping loss factor and natural frequency, respec-
tively, for mode r . The spatial model can then be linked with the modal model
by orthogonality conditions of the modal matrix and expressed as follows:

[]T [M][] = [I ] (8.7)

[φ]T [K ] + i[D][φ] = [λr2 ] (8.8)

where [I ] and [] denote the identity matrix and the mass-normalized mode shape
matrix, respectively. This also means that the mode shape matrix is a non-singular
invertible matrix [21]. In this context, the spatial description of the model can be
obtained from the modal model and contrariwise. In most cases, however, a response
model described by frequency response functions (FRFs) of the model is obtained
8.2 Vibration Testing 361

instead of a pure spatial description. Considering the frequency domain in a steady-

state, the FRF H (ω) can be determined for each frequency ω and is expressed as
follows:
X (ω)
H (ω) = (8.9)
F(ω)

where the parameter X (ω) denotes the complex response and F(ω) the complex
force applied to the system. In particular, the FRF is often referred to as recep-
tance, mobility, or accelerance, depending on the complex response being defined
as displacement, velocity, or acceleration, respectively. These quantities can also be
related to each other by differentiation and integration. In the case of a receptance
type of FRF, for example, the relationship between the response model and the modal
model is presented as [20]:
 −1
[α(ω)] = [φ] λr2 − ω2 [φ]T (8.10)

where [α(ω)] denotes the receptance matrix. In general, each term of the receptance
matrix [α(ω)] is of the form:

Xj  N
r A jk
α jk (ω) = =   (8.11)
Fk r =1
ωr − ω2 + iηr ωr2
2

where X j denotes the amplitude of the complex response in the j-coordinate and Fk
is the amplitude of the applied force in the k-coordinate. In practice, the response
models are generally obtained after going through a series of intermediate modal
models starting from spatial models when the starting point is a theoretical analysis.
Also, it is advised to follow the inverse method where the starting point is the response
model with the experimental measurement of the system FRFs particularly when the
complexity of systems is such that it is difficult to model it analytically. Several
methods can be used to derive the experimentally obtained response model of the
modal characteristics of a given system [20], and this procedure is referred to as the
modal identification process. Figure 8.3 depicts the relationship between the spatial,
modal, and response models of a given system.
Although the accurate mathematical description of the parameters involved in
vibration measurements is important, users should also carefully consider the type of
sensors being used depending on their frequency range being considered. In principle,
vibration measurements are directly used or integrated to extract damage features
to obtain velocities and displacements. In the latter case, a proper pre-processing
method is required before performing the integration as some information about the
residual displacements may be lost during the integration process. It might be wise to
use strain measurements to overcome some of the measurement integration-related
problems but strain measurements provide local rather than global information and
362 8 Other NDT Methods for Fiber-Reinforced Composite Structures

Fig. 8.3 Illustration of the interrelations between the different dynamic models of a system based
on a hysterical damping case [21]

require the deployment of a greater number of sensors to achieve the same amount
of information. In the previous paragraphs, it is indicated that defects or structural
damage hugely affect their stiffness and vibration properties [23], which are func-
tions of their inherent physical properties (e.g., mass, damping, stiffness, etc.) the
core characteristic of composite laminates determining the underlying operating prin-
ciple of vibration-based testing techniques [24, 25]. Importantly, all these properties
can susceptibly be measured at a single point of the structure, suggesting that the
technique can still be applied to detect defects in the structure even if access to
the entire area/structure is bluntly limited. Several experimental dynamic tests on
damaged structural composites have recently been conducted and results have been
documented in the literature [26, 27]. In most of the recent studies, the dynamic
characteristics of damaged composites are correlated with the location and size of
damage in the structure [28, 29], while the reductions of the section with diffused
fiber-reinforced composite matrix cracking are correlated with the values of the
frequency [30–32]. These findings are equally reiterated by several other researchers
[32] who were able to experimentally and theoretically examine the dynamic behavior
of CFRCs composite laminates with embedded rectangular notches.
In the NDT of fiber-reinforced composite structures, most of the vibration-based
methods used to investigate the integrity of composite structures have been devel-
oped using response-based techniques also referred to as the baseline reference
approach [8]. As indicated earlier, this approach includes all the vibration-based
methods featuring time domain, frequency domain, and modal domain techniques
[33–35] with the modal parameter-based damage identification methods being the
8.2 Vibration Testing 363

most documented in the literature [11]. The modal parameter-based damage identi-
fication methods use modal parameters such as natural frequencies, modal damping,
mode shapes to detect damages in composite structures [8, 36]. They also include
quantities derived from the aforementioned parameters such as strain energy, struc-
tural curvatures, spatial model domain (based on the mass, stiffness/flexibility, and
damping matrices). Other modal parameter-based damage identification methods
also include the use of a response domain that features the spatiotemporal domain
and the spatiospectral domain which makes use of the frequency response functions,
the operational deflection shapes, as well as the derived transmissibility, etc. Detailed
reviews on vibration-based NDT&E methods for structural damage identification are
available in the literature [37, 38] and readers are directed to these studies for more
information.
As indicated earlier, several scientific materials have recently reported advanced
algorithms and methods which use the vibration information for locating damages in
structural composites in controlled conditions both experimentally and theoretically
(using numerical simulations) [32, 39]. Under controlled conditions, the vibration
method has enabled the identification of many in-service defects including delamina-
tions [40], matrix cracks and notches [25, 32] as well as manufacturing defects such
as incorrect winding angle [41, 42], and wrong ply orientation [41, 43]. To this end,
the literature details four important levels of damage-identification in composite parts
proving that substantial progress has been made in this area. These levels include
the determination of both the presence (Level 1) and the geometric location of the
defects (Level 2), the quantification of the severity of the defect (Level 3), and
the estimation of the remaining service life of the part (Level 4) [1, 11]. Although
vibration-based techniques can offer ample information about the detection, the loca-
tion, and seemingly a rough quantification of the damages as well as the prediction of
the remaining service life of the composites structures by simply measuring changes
in natural frequencies or any other modal parameter of the structure, the severity and
the true quantification of the damage can only be assessed by additional analysis
[44].
Consistent with the aforementioned, the presence of delamination in a struc-
tural composite changes its strength and the vibration response [45, 46]. Several
researchers have presented their analytical, mathematical, and experimental find-
ings focusing on the influence of delamination on the vibration response in FRC
laminates, and comprehensive reviews are documented in the literature [37, 44, 47].
However, the complexity of the physical phenomena involved has restricted most of
the analytical formulations to particular cases [28, 44, 46]. The literature suggests
that one of the biggest issues of model-based vibration methods is the accuracy of
the numerical model [48, 49]. This issue is particularly important when using the
vibration method for impact damage detection in laminated composites since most
of the induced damages often involve complex mixtures of multiple failure modes
interacting with one another [38, 48]. As an alternative to model-based vibration
methods, response-based techniques have been proposed [50–52]. Recent studies on
vibration analysis focus on the measurement of vibration signals before and after
the damage are developed in the fiber-reinforced composite, then analyze the data
364 8 Other NDT Methods for Fiber-Reinforced Composite Structures

in either the frequency or modal domain to obtain the information about the defect
[38, 53]. Other studies have provided a thorough understanding of the influence of
defects, especially delaminations, notches, and cracks, on the vibration response and
seek to demonstrate the feasibility of using quantifiable changes in vibrational char-
acteristics to identify damage in composite laminates [24, 38, 54]. Nevertheless, both
the measurability and sensitivity of shifts occurring in vibration response signals as
a result of damages is still a point of controversy among the many researchers and
engineers [30, 55] and many algorithms are being developed to optimize this point of
contact [55, 56]. It is also worth noting that the majority of the experimental studies
are usually based on the analysis of the effect of isolated and artificially induced
defects vis-à-vis the service life of the composite structure [38, 52]. It is a common
practice to produce delamination by inserting a Teflon film before consolidating the
composite sample in the autoclave [57]. This eliminates the influence of other failure
modes that might be induced during the impact event, such as an intentional fiber
breakage and matrix cracks while creating defects in the specimens.
Even though the literature reports several accounts of studies featuring the anal-
ysis of vibration signals to identify damages in structural composites, most of these
studies have primarily focused on Levels 1 and 2 of damage identification (i.e., detec-
tion and localization, respectively) [50, 52, 58]. As such, both the quantification of
defects and evaluation of the residual bearing capacity are fairly in their immature
stages and more studies are still warranted [38]. Although the literature indicates
that there are several vibration-based approaches, methods, and schemes used to
identify defects in composite laminates, it does not outline any widespread agree-
ment as to the optimal method for using measured vibration data for damage iden-
tification. This withstanding, the recent study [59] highlighted five challenges that
should be emphatically investigated and which will undoubtedly define the future of
the vibration-based method in the identification of defects in composites structures.
These challenges include (1) The construction and identification of feature indices
from structural vibration responses focusing on the identification of micro-sized
structural damage; (2) The optimization of the location and number of measurement
sensors; (3) The establishment of the identification mechanism of structural damage
as well as the dynamic modeling of a damaged structure; (4) The inclusion of non-
linear features in structural damage detection and (5) The development of structural
damage detection technology based on multidisciplinary inter-crossing. It is believed
that spectral-domain damage indicators usually present some advantages over modal
[60]. This is easily explained by the fact that both spatial and temporal domain-based
indicators are conveniently condensing procedures without loss of useful information
through the Fourier transform, added post-process simplicity, or enhanced sensitivity
to degradation [61, 62]. All these indicators are believed to be derived from the assur-
ance criterion of the complex frequency domain, corresponding to the altered and
pristine states of the monitored structure. Also, other indicators referred to as spectral
correlation indices help to convert the spectral correlation between two states into a
scalar value that can easily quantify the strength of correlation and identify damage
or reinforcement patterns [38, 48, 59].
8.2 Vibration Testing 365

Although vibration testing techniques have had quite a success in testing and
characterizing composite structures, these techniques also present many limitations.
In primis, the vibration testing techniques are sensitive to environmental factors, and
changes in natural frequencies to determine the instants of damage are generally
masked by the varying operational and environmental conditions. In this context,
successful damage detection facilities are carried out in a controlled environment
and not implemented as field problems. The use of statistical damage detection
models based on pattern recognition and/or any other high-performing artificial
intelligence (AI) technique could help to distinguish instantaneous damage-induced
from environment-induced changes. In particular, damage markers should correctly
describe the embedding of the environmental variables into the algorithm, which
remains a field of development of response-based methods. Secondly, most of the
vibration-based methods are currently offline in nature (i.e., they require a significant
amount of data to compare against a recorded dataset from the pristine state of the
test structure). To track the changes in the structure as and when the vibration data
streams in real-time, the aforementioned methods need to be implemented in an adap-
tive fashion that could identify damage at a particular instant of time, without using
pre-recorded data. Thirdly, a limitation in response-based methods is the identifica-
tion of damage for cases with progressive damage because of the time-varying nature
of the vibrating system. In this case, damage involving changes of stiffness over some
time, progressively, is captured only through a recursive implementation since the
data from a particular instant is taken into consideration and compared against the
data obtained from the previous timestamp. Finally, almost all the methods discussed
in the previous section utilize the data gathered from a large number of sensors. In
practical scenarios, the number of sensors instrumented is mostly less than the total
number of active degrees of freedom due to cost considerations and accessibility
issues. This requires an immediate development of algorithms that detect the exact
instant of damage for underdetermined cases (where the number of sensors is less than
the number of degrees of freedom) as well, in a single framework, utilizing the prin-
ciples of recursion in a perturbation approach. Among the many opportunities being
listed include response-based methods that can be improved by benefiting from the
more recent development of signal processing techniques, for example, Complete
Ensemble Empirical Mode Decomposition (CEEMD) and its improvements [63],
empirical wavelet transform [64], and variational mode decomposition [65]. Instead
of extracting features using specific signal processing techniques, an alternative that
is receiving more attention recently is through machine learning, in particular deep
learning. Deep learning, e.g., using Deep Convolutional Neural Networks, provides
a powerful tool to extract features in a data-driven manner, which often outperforms
hand-crafted features [66]. There are however still many open problems, including
effective network architectures and interpretability of the results.
In summary, all vibration-based testing methods consider observable changes in
the vibration responses of the test structure to estimate its health status continuously
(i.e., vibration-based testing techniques provide continuous information on the health
state of the test structure at a global level without the need to access the damaged
elements and to know their location). In principle, these changes denote the changes
366 8 Other NDT Methods for Fiber-Reinforced Composite Structures

in the structure’s dynamic properties and they are related to the presence of damage.
Although several studies indicated that accurate test results are obtained when then
vibration data of the undamaged structure is first recorded and used a the reference for
future test [8], this technique is highly used because damage in composite structures
are generally identified from the dynamic response of the test structure using sensors
that non-necessarily located in the proximity of the damage even when inspectors do
not have any prior knowledge about the damage location [13, 67]. In principle, this
technique can rapidly inspect wide areas of lighter composites, it also faces consider-
able limitations with the increasing depth, and hence cannot provide reliable inspec-
tion results for deeply buried flaws. Its operation is such that flaws in a composite
will alter its dynamic properties (viz. stiffness, damping, natural frequency, strength),
suggesting that the vibration response of the composite’s undamaged state will differ
from that of its damaged state. These differences are then picked up to determine
whether there is damage in the structure or not. This technique is rather a qualitative
process, though quantitative examination can be performed if the inspector possesses
a prior knowledge of the vibration response of the structure’s undamaged state to
use it as a standard for future inspections. Typically, damping is often seen as the
best sensing feature for PMCs, because it is easily and practically correlated with the
energy dissipated in the composite during the vibration process. Similarly, the natural
frequency is related to the stiffness of the composite. In conclusion, this technique is
time-saving and relatively cost-effective. It can be applied in real-time monitoring of
structures, though it is usually unable to resolve or distinguish between sizes and the
different types of defects. Therefore, new and state-of-the-art vibration-based tech-
niques to quantitatively detect damages, as well as new experimental data acquisition
systems and algorithms, are readily warranted.

8.3 Strain Monitoring

In strain monitoring, strain sensors are always fixed onto or embedded within the
material structure under test to continuously provide a monitoring platform that
can be routinely interrogated and give relevant information about the health of the
structure as well as the damage evolution [68, 69]. These sensors do not automatically
detect local damage but give a probable location of the damage via strain mapping
across the surface or within the structure. In this kind of inspection, the damage
is identified from the strain concentration since the latter is particularly induced in
the region surrounding the damage. Although the strain monitoring via embedded
sensors is relatively cost-effective and provides good inspection results [69–71], their
integration is performed during the manufacturing of the composite which may add
weight to the composite [72] while equally compromising its stiffness and strength
[8, 71]. In addition, a recent study revealed that not only the integrity and mechanical
proprieties of the host structure are affected, designers must also consider the type of
sensors, available data collection facilities, as well as the signal processing technique
involved vis-à-vis the type of composite under test [71]. The above authors further
8.3 Strain Monitoring 367

added that the initiation of debonding is always likely to start at the bondline between
the implanted sensor and the composite resin.
This technique uses several types of strain sensors including traditional strain
gauges and optical fiber sensors. A strain gauge (or gage in general) is a sensing
device used to determine the directions and magnitudes of principal surface strains
according to ASTM E1561-93 [73] and residual stresses according to ASTM E837-
13a [74] in conjunction with established algorithms. After the deformation of the
surface where the strain gauge is mounted, the strain gauge causes a change in its
length leading to a change in its electrical resistance. The change in the electrical
resistance is measured using an electrical circuit (i.e., Wheatstone bridge), which is
then related to strain by the quantity known as the gauge factor. The stress is the
force per unit of surface (i.e., pressure) that is acting on an infinitesimal area. The
stress is a derived quantity that under some assumptions (e.g., single-axis stress state
and strain measured in the transverse direction) can be calculated from the strain
(i.e., for the known Young’s modulus). In general, the measured strain depends on
the mechanical load as well as the thermal loading. When establishing the stress–
strain relationship both contributions should be balanced. In addition, in the case of
permanent or plastic deformation of a material setting up the relation between the
measured strain and the stresses (including residual stress) is much more difficult
[75]. To prepare any surface or structure of interest to assemble the strain gauge, grit-
based sandpaper is typically used to largely remove any debris or rust to increase
the contact surface area of the surface face with the bonding agent sandwiched with
the strain gauge. As such, alcohol-based solutions are used to decontaminate the
material surface. The adhesive glue for the strain gauge assembly is applied and left
to cure in ambient conditions for high bond strength. The adhesive type may affect
the bonding quality with the test surface, and control measures may be necessary for
verifying the installation features.
Even in the case of uniaxial loading, bi-directional strains often need to be
measured to ensure the composite is adequately responding to the applied load. In
the case of a purely compressive load of a beam, for instance, the tensile strain would
be induced at 90 to the compressional strain direction. This is of interest in several
aircraft structures; suggesting that bi-element strain gauges are typically used during
testing. Strain relief must be considered during testing. Typically, a thin plastic layer
is glued on top of the components to relieve some of the stress exerted. The excess
plastic is then removed after the glue sets. A commercially available programmable
automation controller (e.g., National Instruments, Vishay Precision Group) can be
used to receive the signals created by strain gauges. The instrumentation includes
strain indicators, signal conditioning amplifiers, and software for data recording.
The strain gauge would normally come with a shorter lead cable length (e.g., recom-
mended length of 1.5–2.5 m, (IPC/JEDEC 2005). Quarterbridge strain gauges in a
‘three-wire connection’ are preferred over those in a “two-wire connection”. The
increase in the lead wire length increases the possibility of errors due to temperature
variations, lead desensitization, and lead-wire resistance changes according to ASTM
E1561-20 [73]. A slight change in the temperature can generate a measurement error
368 8 Other NDT Methods for Fiber-Reinforced Composite Structures

of several microstrains. For the extension of strain gauge cables, careful considera-
tion is needed when extending to long lengths because the overall resistance of the
strain gauge assembly will change [76]. For aircraft SHM, the complex geometry of
the structures (specimen) leads to a complex strain analysis. Usually, assumptions of
a much simpler strain distribution are made in practice (e.g., by ignoring the strain in
the thickness direction of a thin beam). Due to a combination of the high sensitivity
of the strain gauge measurement equipment, outdoor environment, and necessity for
extremely long data cables, the raw data could feature a high noise level. To minimize
the effects of such noise and allow trends to be more clearly identified, the signals
(for each strain gauge) can be smoothed by averaging over a window of data points
using a computational code, thereby removing localized spikes that could potentially
be seen in the raw data. Despite data smoothing, there can still be a fluctuation due
to the low signal-to-noise ratio, which makes it difficult to identify significant events
within the test from the strain gauge data alone.
Apart from the common strain gauges, optical fiber sensors are also used in strain
monitoring of composite structures. In a fiber optic sensor, light guided through the
fiber core is affected by the measurand. Optical fiber sensors are most frequently used
to measure strain, temperature, or pressure, but they can also be used as chemical
sensors, vibroacoustic detectors, and refractometers for cure monitoring [77]. One
of the main advantages of the optical fiber sensor is its thinness. It usually has a
diameter of 125 μm, but fiber optic sensors with a diameter of up to 12 μm have also
been reported [78]. This makes it easy to integrate them into materials like composite
materials. In the last few decades, fiber optic sensors have been successfully used
for damage detection in composite materials [79]. In composite materials, fiber optic
sensors are sandwiched between two composite layers [80]. This process has been
successfully applied to aircraft components at Airbus [81]. In other applications, the
fiber optic sensor is not integrated into the material under test, but the sensors are
applied at the surface of the part. This can be done by using a prepreg sample with an
integrated optical fiber, of which the so-called fiber optic ribbon tape (FORT) is an
example [1, 82]. For aerospace applications, a specialty aerospace-grade coated fiber
Bragg gratings (FBG) sensor with an adapted bonding procedure was developed [83].
The authors in this study also tested their sensor in in-flight conditions with realistic
humidity, temperature, and pressure cycles, as well as hydraulic fluid and fatigue
loading. Optical fiber sensors can be used in harsh environments [1, 2]. They are
generally resistant to the influence of electromagnetic interference and can be used
at very high temperatures. Silica glass allows the detection of strains in environments
up to 1000°C [84] and radiation-hardened sensors have been developed for space
applications [85].
Another important advantage of optical fiber sensors is the fact that they can be
multiplexed. Several sensors can be inscribed in one optical fiber, and these sensors
can be read out using one single interrogator. The interrogator is the hardware needed
to acquire the measurand from the reflected or transmitted light that goes through
the fiber. Time-domain multiplexing has been used to realize up to 1000 ultra-weak
FBG for distributed temperature sensing [86] and 100 s of strain sensors [87]. In
addition to the point sensors, also distributed fiber optics sensors based on different
8.3 Strain Monitoring 369

principles are available: Rayleigh and Brillouin scattering. Sensors vitally affect our
life in multiple fields, such as IoT, structural health monitoring, smart structures,
and digital twins. The necessity of tracking the material behavior has assumed great
and not trivial importance in reducing maintenance costs and promoting prevention
over replacement. In addition, the harsher the environment, the more challenging
the measurement. The advantages of optical sensors come into play because they are
completely passive, lightweight, survive at regions of critical temperatures, dust, and
ATEX (ATmosphere EXplosible) environment, immune to electromagnetic interfer-
ence, not required to have pre-amplification, and capable of being interrogated from
hundreds of meters of distance. These features open up scenarios for more accurate,
precise, and repeatable measurements [88]. This study discusses some of the most
common optical sensing techniques based on the interferometry principle.
Fiber Bragg Grating Sensors are the most common type of optical fiber sensors
used in point strain or temperature measurement applications. FBG sensors are
created by exposing the core of an optical fiber to a spatially modulated ultraviolet
light pattern [89]. This exposed fiber length creates a refractive index modulation in
the optical fiber core that partially reflects certain wavelengths of the input light to
the fiber [79]. Different kinds of FBG sensors exhibit different behaviors based on
how the refractive index modulation is realized. A few of the most common FBG
types will be discussed in the next sections of this article, but in its most basic form,
the grating period and the amplitude of the refractive index modulation are constant
along the entire length of the FBG sensor. This is called a uniform FBG sensor,
in which the peak wavelength of the reflected spectrum that is also called Bragg
wavelength or λ B linearly depends on the constant period () of the refractive index
modulation and the effective refractive index of the fiber (ηe f f ) or:

λ B = 2πηe f f ∧ (8.12)

From the above equation, the Bragg wavelength will shift toward higher wave-
lengths under tension and lower wavelengths under compression. The amount of
strain or temperature change applied over the sensor length can be determined by
tracking the shift of this peak wavelength of the reflection spectrum. In its simplified
form, the relationship between the shift of the Bragg wavelength and the amount of
strain or temperature change over the sensor length is presented as follows:

λ B = ks and λ BT = k T T (8.13)

where s is the amount of strain change, ks and k T are constants determined by the
optical fiber composition. As an example, silica-based optical fibers operate at λ B ≈
1550 nm, ks ≈ 1.209×10−3 nm/μE, and k T ≈ 10.075×10−3 nm/°C. The simplicity
of the strain (or temperature) measurement algorithm, along with all the advantages
of fiber optic sensing, has made FBG sensors an attractive alternative to electrical
strain gauges and thermocouples.
370 8 Other NDT Methods for Fiber-Reinforced Composite Structures

In terms of evaluation and characterization of composite structures, several

researchers have been focusing on the area of strain monitoring in fibrous composites
for many years now. In a recent study [68], researchers investigated the effects of
embedded piezoelectric (PZT) sensors on the bending fatigue strength of composite
plates using acoustic emission (AE) whereby generated transient elastic waves were
monitored and captured. A classification based on the k-means approach was used
to calculate the acoustic signature and determine the progression of different failure
modes in the above-mentioned composite plates. The comparison between the results
obtained from both types of plates indicated similar mechanical behavior of both
types of composites, but composites with embedded PZT sensors were more sensi-
tive to damage than those with PZT sensors mounted on their surfaces. Therefore,
the integration sensors into composites must be carefully considered not to disrupt
the mechanical properties of the composite since the network of PZT sensors will
be part of the structural component and might well inflict additional weight onto the
composite. This was corroborated by the findings in a similar study [71], whereby
the authors investigated the effect of embedded sensors on the integrity and mechan-
ical response of composite laminates. They indicated that care must always be taken
from different design levels including the sensor design and their methods of inte-
gration, data collection facilities, signal processing technique, and analysis, as well
as the estimation of the changes in the mechanical performance due to the pres-
ence of the sensors among others. The above conclusions were made after they
conducted monotonic tensile tests to monitor the initiation and detection of defects
in on GFRP specimens and realized that the initiation of debonding often starts at the
bond between the implanted sensor and the resin matrix. Although their research was
conducted in a controlled laboratory environment, they indicated that their results
should first be validated by in-situ tests before drawing any tangible conclusions.
Similarly, the integration of CNTs into GFRP has been proven quite effective
to determine the behavior of the material under different loading conditions simply
by measuring variations in the electrical resistance of the test specimens [69]. In
such a configuration, the measured electrical resistance is correlated to the mechan-
ical loading of the sample to monitor and detect flaws in the composite. The above
authors inferred that although the correlation between the above-mentioned param-
eters depends primarily on the loading history of the specimen, CNTs are easy to
insert into the composite and when incorporated in reasonable proportions, they do
not alter or have very little impact on the mechanical properties of the composite.
Hence, the integration of CNTs into GFRP would be a great coupon to consider
given the materials insulating properties. It is important to indicate that CFRPs do
not need this kind of integration as their conductivity alone suffices. This was echoed
by several authors who used this unique feature of CFRP to test and evaluate defects
in these kinds of materials using the electrical testing methods [90–92]. In 2011,
the authors in ref. [93] managed to install a network of accelerometer sensors on a
composite plate to examine its response to impact loading. The authors introduced
shock propagation waves through the accelerometer sensors network and compared
the responses received from the accelerometers before and after the initiation of
defects. Although their method was found to be suitable for the detection of defects
8.3 Strain Monitoring 371

in the composite, they failed to localize the exact position of the defect. In the same
year, a group of researchers from the University of South Carolina [94] analyzed the
advantages of using embedded PZT wafer active sensors to impart and receive elastic
waves to detect and localize defects in unidirectional and quasi-isotropic composite
laminates. Interestingly, PZT wafer active sensors operate through surface pinching
and are strain coupled with the surface of the structure [94], as opposed to some
conventional ultrasonic transducers which operate through the application of vibra-
tion signal or pressure on the test surface. They claim having improved the perfor-
mance of ultrasonic transducers in the transmission and reception of elastic stress
waves. They further added that not only PZT wafer active sensors are they effec-
tive in monitoring and examining large composite structures they are also cheap and
lightweight making them attractive for future applications in NDT&E of composite
structures both in the online and offline modes.
Towards the end of 2011, the authors in ref. [95] published the results of a three-
point bending test performed on multilayered composite plates with two embedded
sensors at different positions. Their main objective was to investigate the behavior
of the material during the bending process. The sensors were placed in such a way
that they could monitor compression and traction deformations in the composite and
detect the matrix fracture initiation and propagation. The two sensors were able to
generate the stress–strain history from the three-point bending test, and obtained
results provide details on the health of the composite plate as well as the data related
to the propagation of the crack, delamination, and fracture inside the material under
quasi-static loading. The authors’ conclusions corroborated those reported by the
authors in ref. [71], and further hinted that the improvement into the sensor’s sensi-
tivity and bandwidth, as well as the compatibility between sensors and carbon or
other multifilament tows that are used as fiber reinforcements, must be carefully
examined [95]. A later study [96] performed an impact test on a CFRC specimen
with an embedded network of PZT sensors. The authors’ aim was to investigate the
efficacy of the embedded network of sensors in detecting and characterizing BVIDs.
A total of three different impacts shots were applied to the sample and the emitted
elastic stress waves were received by the PZT network for analysis. The level of
damage of the composite was evaluated using selected signal characteristics known
as damage indices. Interestingly, the authors were able to prove that additional envi-
ronmental factors such as weather, humidity affect the signal acquired, which may
result in false positive or false negative indications. The above influence of the envi-
ronmental factors could be minimized by establishing a balance between the level of
sensitivity of the damage indices to damages and the stability of the damage indices
under different working conditions of the PZTs.
Indeed, one of the most prevalent limitations of embedding sensors in fiber-
reinforced composites is that they often have a significant impact on their host’s
mechanical properties such as the addition of weight as well as the reduction of
the stiffness and strain [72]. The literature suggests that several researchers have
been working to devise means that could minimize the weight contribution from the
sensors without compromising their reliability and durability [8]. It is believed that
the miniaturization of the aforementioned embedded sensors would significantly
372 8 Other NDT Methods for Fiber-Reinforced Composite Structures

reduce their impact on the host’s mechanical properties, thereby maintaining the
original mechanical properties of the host component virtually unchanged. In a later
study, Luo et al. [97] integrated graphite nanoplatelets (GNPs) into GFRP plates.
The earlier made the composite smart to the extent that it allowed the structure to act
as a sensor capable of self-monitoring its health status. The GNP thin fiber sensor
enabled the evaluation of the state of the local resin curing level in the material
during the manufacturing process. The above-mentioned sensors were also to map
out the state of stress and strain in the same material when under loading conditions.
Among the many conclusions that were drawn, the authors indicated that the GNP
fiber sensor was only suitable for glass fiber-based composites (non-conducting)
suggesting that its applications on carbon fiber-based materials (conducting) are yet
to be investigated. In the same year, the authors in ref. [98], the authors conducted
a series of experiments where they aimed at detecting and localizing low energy
impact damages in CFRPs. They used embedding PZTs in three different locations
at different depths into the composite. Sensors were installed on a lean and flexible
printed circuit before integrating them into the laminates. Experimental results indi-
cated that all the layouts were able to detect the impact energies applied to the test
sample but further indicated that the sensitivity was higher among the sensors that
were close to the surface of the composite. Although they were able to detect and
locate the damage, they also raised concern about their method not being able to
determine the type and severity of the damage.
In summary, the use of strain sensors to inspect composite and sandwich structures
inflicts some level of stress on the host composite itself, and in some cases, it does
alter its mechanical properties. It is, therefore, advised that these sensors should be
miniaturized to reduce their impact on the host structure’s mechanical properties
[99] and if necessary, use the wireless sensors to reduce the number of running
wires and connectors. All the hardware, software, and materials involved should be
carefully investigated for compatibility and efficacy. The sensitivity of the damage
index depends on the distance between the damage and the measuring points. In
addition, a significant reduction in the number of measurement points does affect the
sensitivity of the damage index which helps to detect damage at some distance from
the measurement points. Although the frequency response measurement method can
be employed to detect relatively small damage in the composite, it cannot be generally
used on its own to provide information about the type, size, location, and orientation
of damage for both simple and the structures.

8.4 Electrical Testing

Electrical testing involves all testing methods that take advantage of the material’s
electrical conductivity to investigate the presence of defects/damages using a wide
range of frequencies [3]. This technique does involve the electrical eddy current
testing also known as electromagnetic testing [100, 101] as well as the electrical
8.4 Electrical Testing 373

resistance measuring technique [102, 103]. In the former case, eddy current is gener-
ated through electromagnetic induction. To this end, when an alternating current (AC)
−
→
is applied to a conducting composite, a magnetic field ( B ) proportional to the amount
of AC develops. If another electrical conductor (i.e., secondary) is taken close to this
changing magnetic field, a current will be induced in the abovementioned conductor
and generate a measurable impedance on the second coil (acting as a sensor). The
amount of the current will be influenced by the material’s compositions (including
damages) as well as the physical distance between the coil and material. In practice,
however, the inspection of the surface of the part is performed by placing a probe
above the surface which sends the signal to electronic equipment that monitors the
eddy current in the workpiece through the same probe. Eddy current testing is often
used to detect crack, delamination, coating/material thickness, heat damage, material
identification, as well as heat treatment monitoring in composite materials among
others.
Research indicates that eddy current testing has been largely limited to the inspec-
tion of metal surfaces, suggesting that that most of the polymer-matrix composites
(PMCs) have not been inspectable by electrical techniques. There has been a limited
application to CFRP having a high fiber volume-fraction and to a much-limited
extent, in GFRP whose matrix has been made conductive by adding some conduc-
tive matters (typically CNTs) [104, 105]. Particularly in CFRP, the electrical eddy
current is usually induced within the conductive carbon fibers to study both the fiber
volume fraction and the ply layup close to the surface [106]. To this end, eddy current
testing has been successful in detecting defects such the in-plane fiber waviness, fiber
volume fraction, and layup arrangements of plies close to the surface among others
[107, 108]. In some cases, eddy current excitation is used in conjunction with the
IRT to inspect CFRP structures for surface and near-surface flaws [42] by corre-
lating the measured impedance with pre-calibrated damage sizes [101]. Typically,
the induction heating assisted eddy current testing (IHAET) method was used to
detect delamination (caused by the expansion of entrapped air, a squeeze of air in the
bond line due to insufficient pressure as well as thermal stresses) in welded seams
of CFRP [109].
Perhaps one of the recent groundbreaking studies pertaining to the electrical
testing techniques involves the recent development of multi-frequency eddy current
sensors that are able to measure the bulk conductivity, determine the directionality,
detect the faults and identify the unidirectional, cross-ply, and impact damages in
CFRP plates [110]. Although eddy current does provide good results in character-
izing surface and near-the-surface damages, the sensitivity of this technique still
needs to be improved in unidirectional CFRP laminates. This is explained by the fact
that the conductivity of these kinds of materials is described by the conductivity in
the direction of the fiber, in the transverse, and the through-the-thickness direction
[90]. Even though some may argue that the scattering of conductivity in all these
directions is relatively small, the variation of the material’s conductivity levels in
both the transverse and thickness directions is significantly high because these two
components depend on whether there is any distance between the individual carbon
374 8 Other NDT Methods for Fiber-Reinforced Composite Structures

fibers or not, hence this must always be accounted for [91, 92] and in some cases
be improved by the addition of other conductive particles during the manufacturing
stages to improve the conductivity of the material under test.
Electrical resistance measurement is equally an electrical testing approach that
measures the electrical resistance to detect flaws in thick composites with high elec-
trical conductivity [111, 112]. The technique is particularly attractive for damage
detection, damage prediction, and strain changes [113–115]. Its underlying theory
is based on Kirchhoff’s law [116] and is widely used with conductive (i.e., CFRPs,
MMCs & FMLs) composites whereby the presence of damage alters the conduc-
tivity of the sample which is subsequently picked up the measuring equipment for
characterization [117, 118]. Similar to the eddy current testing (ECT) technique, insu-
lating fibers composites (typically GFRP) can be rendered conductive by a certain
amount of conducting particles (nanomodification) before using electrical resistance
measurement to inspect them for any abnormalities [119]. In this process, GFRPs
are conferred with conductivity properties by loading the polymer matrix or the fiber
surface with conductive nanoparticles, which is indeed an innovative technique to
obtain multifunctional composite materials with increased conductivity and remark-
able self-sensing properties [120]. CFRPs’ matrix can equally be infused with addi-
tional CNTs to significantly increase the materials’ transversal and the out-of-plane
conductivities [121], thus improving their overall sensing capabilities [112, 122].
Generally speaking, the most successful inspections in thick composites using
electrical testing have always been of those examinations based on surface-plane
measurements of MMCs, although they have also been performed in CFRPs to inves-
tigate changes in electrical resistivity during fatigue testing [123, 124]. A materials
characterization of the percentage content of fiber-reinforcement in aluminum-based
MMC billet was performed by Huang et al. [124]. Similarly, the authors in ref. [125]
used eddy current testing to determine variations in the levels of conductivity in
a three-phase MMC. Although they used a surface-based eddy current test, their
results corroborated other previously reported results with a fractographic analysis
within 4%. The authors in ref. [126] also identified changes in near-surface resistivity
using eddy-current NDT&E. The authors later compared the obtained measurements
with those of UT and reported a good agreement between the two technologies for
high-energy impacts in thin CFRP panels. Measurements of electrical resistivity and
potential have also been employed in a study conducted by McCann and Forde in
2001 [127]. Their study focused on the assessment of corrosion in the embedded steel
reinforcement in concrete structures. The authors reported having obtained internal
conductivity data up to 1.5 m-deep.
In summary, accurate measurement results of the electrical technique largely
depend on good adhesion between the probe and the material structure under test
otherwise small changes would not be picked up especially since changes in the
measurement signal are partly influenced by the contact between the fibers and the
rearrangements of these fibers in the composite. Although electrical testing does
give good indications of the presence of defects in all kinds of shapes of conduc-
tive composites, flexural and compression loading often produce noticeable shape
changes and potentially unstable electrical signals, making this technique unable
8.4 Electrical Testing 375

to detect damages where compressive or flexural loadings are involved. Similarly,

the change ratio of the electrical signal is directly proportional to the change in
tensile loading of composites involving unidirectional fibers. However, this is not
always the case especially for CFRP/polypropylene because the signal here does
follow a much complex pattern, owing to the random dispersion conditions of fibers
susceptible to induce additional rearrangements under tensile loading. The interfa-
cial adhesion between the matrix and the carbon fiber was also reported to be influ-
encing the relationship between the stress level and the electrical signal. In embedded
steel-reinforced concrete structures significant electrical conductivity data has been
recorded, suggesting that the ability of this technique to detect flaws in these kinds
of structures is exceptionally high.

8.5 Ground-Penetrating Radar, Microwave, and Millimeter

Waves

In general, ground-penetrating radar (GPR), microwave, and millimeter waves are

part of the NDT techniques used to inspect fiber-reinforced composites based on
the propagation of electromagnetic waves (i.e., waves consisting of both electric and
magnetic vector fields) penetrating into the test structure from and to the probes (typi-
cally antennas) at frequencies ranging from 300 MHz–300 GHz. These techniques
are particularly effective when inspecting dielectric materials such as glass fiber-
reinforced polymer-matrix composites (GFRPs). In their operation, these techniques
use electromagnetic radiation within the board of microwave bands of the electromag-
netic spectrum taking advantage of the different and complex electric permittivities
at the different levels of the structure under test to detect the internal flaws. Since
electromagnetic waves are highly reflected by the materials with sufficiently good
electrical conductivity, these techniques are usually restricted to the examination
of either low-conductivity or insulating fiber-reinforced polymer-matrix composite
materials (e.g., glass-fiber-reinforced composites, basalt fiber reinforced composites,
etc.). The fibrous composite material under test is hit by electromagnetic pulses sent
by the emitter (i.e., also referred to as the emitting antennae), which are reflected
and collected by the receiver (receiving antennae) with different discontinuities and
times of flight [128]. Owing to these discontinuities and time of flights in the reflected
wavefronts, an imaging system is subsequently used to extract the different features
of the material including the size, shape, and orientation of the flaws. All changes
related to the speed of travel, the attenuation, and the polarization of the electromag-
netic beam passing through the test sample as well as the redirection of the signals
are defined by variations in the electric and magnetic properties of the test material.
376 8 Other NDT Methods for Fiber-Reinforced Composite Structures

8.5.1 Ground-Penetrating Radar Inspection Technique

GPR is a well-known technique to NDT practitioners, academics, and researchers in

geosciences who use this technique to perform soil surveys, or for the detection of
large rocks and buried infrastructure such as pipes. That is, the technique is largely
a geophysical method that uses radar pulses to image the subsurface of the earth,
providing the NDT engineers with the capabilities of investigation of the different
features in the Earth up to several tens of meters. GPR has been used in the NDT
industry for a little over 30 years now and throughout these years, researchers and
practitioners witnessed the analog paper printout to the digital era that enables the
very efficient collection, processing, and 3D imaging of a large amount of data
required in GPR based testing and imaging of fiber-reinforced composite structures.
In general, GPR has systematically evolved from testing structures and locating
internal and sub-surface/surface features to the imaging and diagnosis of these same
structures with the Holy Grail of seeing the unseen becoming a reality. In terms of
operation, GPR systems generally operate in the 10–10,000 MHz frequency range
and the antennas that are used to emit and detect GPR signals should always have
the dimensions that are comparable to the wavelengths of the signals being used,
which also defines the size of the GPR instrument itself [129, 130]. In particular,
GPRs systems operating at lower frequencies (10–100 MHz) are generally used for
imaging of deeply buried defects up to tens of meters below the surface. Systems that
operate in the 100–1000 MHz frequency range are used for investigating composite
structures on the meter scale, while those operating in the 1000–5000 MHz frequency
range are used to test building structures on the centimeter scale (e.g., bridge decks,
pillars, etc.).
As indicated earlier, GPR is generally used to test dielectric materials such as
glass fiber-reinforced polymer-matrix composites (i.e., electrical charge mobility in
the material components is variable but is limited, giving rise to polarization behavior
which defines the effective dielectric and conductivity of the bulk medium). The elec-
trical properties are generally dominated by the presence of the polymer-matrix in
these materials and the electrical charge mobility depends on the distance that charge
moves (since there will be path obstructions that block or impede the movement of
the electrical charges). The distance traveled in turns depends on the time duration of
the electrical forces applied. Accordingly, the rapid changes in the applied field will
give less impediment to the movement of the electrical charge and the material will
appear to have a higher electrical conductivity and lower dielectric permittivity as the
oscillation frequency of the field increases [130, 131]. In many instances, the change
with frequency can be characterized as dipolar polarization mechanisms which have a
range of relaxation frequencies or response times [131]. A simple polarization mech-
anism with a single frequency or response time has been described by Debye [131,
132]. In reality, however, composite materials tend to have a distribution of response
times or relaxation frequencies, and distributed models (e.g., Ulaby, Cole and Cole,
and von Hippel, etc.) tend to provide a better interpretation of the polarization and
dipole relaxation effects taking place in these types of materials [133–135]. There
8.5 Ground-Penetrating Radar, Microwave, and Millimeter Waves 377

are few polarization relaxations in the 100–2000 MHz frequency range where the
use of GPR systems is generally predominant and in this frequency range, both the
velocity and attenuation dispersion of the signals are comparatively small resulting
in the GPR plateau. Indeed, this observation explains the effectiveness of GPR and
the efficacy of time-domain reflectometry in determining the dielectric properties
of materials. In addition, all this basic understanding of the different polarization
mechanisms taking place in composite materials underpins the usefulness of GPR
and allows commonality of communication amongst the NDT practitioners in many
application areas irrespective of their test material target.
GPR uses both the transmitting and receiving antennas. The former radiates short
pulses of the high-frequency radio waves (usually polarized waves) which pene-
trate the material structure under investigation and when these waves collide with an
object or a boundary with different dielectric constants variations are recorded in the
reflected signal upon arrival to the receiving antennae. In other words, the transmitted
electromagnetic pulses are reflected as they encounter the different discontinuities
in the transmission media, which could be a boundary or interface between mate-
rials with different dielectric constants or it could be the damage such as debonds,
inclusions, or delamination. The received electromagnetic pulses are feature varying
amplitudes and arrival times and the amplitudes of received echoes and the corre-
sponding arrival times can then be used to determine the nature, size, and location of
the discontinuities or boundaries detected within the inner sides of the test structure,
hence the detection and localization of the damage [136]. The speed of travel and
the attenuation as well as the changes in polarization and the redirection of the GPR
signals are defined by variations in the electric and magnetic properties of the test
material. For many years, GPR was always used without regulatory limits, and to
some degree, it was viewed as a kind of illegal radio transmission since the system
emits radio waves. As such, most GPR devices were of very low power and did not
consider any significant source of interference and this probably explains why the
technology did not grow so fast except when it was first discovered in the 1960s.
However, and as with all devices that generate electromagnetic signals, regulatory
bodies foresaw this growing field of use of GPR and initiated oversight rulemaking.
GPR is now regulated in most of the countries around the world as an ultrawide-band
(UWB) device with specific power, frequency, and usage limitations [130]. Hence,
it is only more recently that GPR has come to light as a potential means for the
inspection of composite structures hundreds of millimeters thick [10, 137].
Consistent with the aforementioned, GPR systems have been largely applied to
the examination of construction composites viz. bridge decks and pylons, which
mostly consist of concrete structures reinforced with thin GFRP wraps [10]. To this
end, Maierhofer et al. [138] presented the results of their previous study on the
inspection of the concrete structures using a GPR system. Using the GPR waves at
high frequency (2.5 GHz), the authors achieved a maximum penetration of up to
500 mm and an examination resolution of approximately 20 mm [139]. A similar
study was conducted by Hugenschmidt and Mastrangelo [137] for quality control
purposes. The authors successfully detected errors in the thickness of the concrete
with a resolution of about 10 mm in thickness when determining the thickness of the
378 8 Other NDT Methods for Fiber-Reinforced Composite Structures

concrete that covered an embedded steel reinforcement bar at 1.2 GHz. A later study
by Hing and Halabe [140] also used both a GPR and an infrared thermography system
to inspect multilayered GFRP composite bridge decks. The GPR system successfully
detected delaminations at 50–100 mm below the upper surface of the composites but
failed to record any results using the thermography system. An earlier book by
Clemeña [141] outlined the details pertaining to the detection of delaminations at
different levels of a 355 mm thick concrete deck at 900 MHz where successful results
were reported. Under the umbrella of GPR, several other studies have been conducted
outlining the application of this technique to the examination of composites structures
and the updated details were recently captured by a group of researchers from the
Hong Kong Polytechnic University [130]. In the construction industry, GPR presents
few advantages over its millimeter and microwave counterparts, especially when
inspecting composite structures. GPR systems can efficiently discern the internal
variability of the material structure with quick data acquisition and immediate on-
site feedback. Also, its image resolution can be on the scale of centimeters depending
on the GPR system bandwidth used. Indeed, this resolution scale is a good match for
the required scale for the mapping of most of the infrastructure assessment.
In summary, both the GPR’s ability to detect the features of the materials with
different dielectric constants as well as its penetrating power are potentially attractive
features to the NDT&E community especially in the assessment and characteriza-
tion of the construction materials [130, 142]. GPR is currently drawing considerable
attention in the inspection of thick composites and sandwich structures, owing to
the developments in simulation software and advanced signal processing techniques
which allow practitioners to obtain speedy and reliable results. Apart from its large-
scale and rapid defects detection capabilities, the popularity of GPR is best justified
by the fact that the internal variability of a structure can be accurately and efficiently
determined with quick data acquisition systems that provide immediate on-site feed-
back and a great image resolution. However, GPR also features several limitations
most because radar waves are easily interfered with by metal parts in the test setup
and its output data is complex to interpret [143]. In addition, GPR this technique is
generally feasible at the expense of lateral resolution in comparison with its standard
microwave counterpart, which uses frequencies of an order of magnitude higher.
Our observation of the current status quo vis-à-vis GPR is that the technology is still
evolving with much future potential and much still needs to be done. The procure-
ment of services must first be rationalized to avoid inappropriate use and should
be used as one of many parts of the NDT toolbox for many people to get familiar
with the technology and draw the engagement of skilled, trained, and experienced
professionals.
8.5 Ground-Penetrating Radar, Microwave, and Millimeter Waves 379

8.5.2 Microwave Testing Technique (MW)

As hinted earlier, the literature defines the microwave NDE technique as the inspec-
tion and characterization of material structures using high-frequency electromag-
netic waves. Indeed, their frequencies range from a few 100 s of MHz to a few 100 s
of GHz (from ≈100 cm to 1 mm). The inspection is performed by measuring the
various properties of the electromagnetic waves scattered by or transmitted through
the material structure under test. The microwave inspection system consists of
several components and devices including oscillators, network analyzers, antennas,
and directional couplers among others. Custom-designed pieces of equipment can
be small, modular frequency-specific, and relatively cost-effective. Several types
of microwave sensors are used depending on the type of fibrous composite and
the different materials involved. However, most of them are either transmission,
resonating, or image types. Since its inception, the application of microwave inspec-
tion NDT&E in thick composites has focused on the determination of the material
density, moisture content, and grain angle in automated lumber grading systems
[144–146]. In the early 1960s, Fower and Hatch presented groundbreaking research
that used microwave radiation to detect voids in the GFRP. They managed to detect
a 3.2 mm diameter hole in a 6.4 mm-thick panel but further added that the homo-
geneity of the composite was crucial for better results [3]. Significant progress was
achieved nearly three decades later, when Genchev et al. [147] were able to investi-
gate polyester matrix GFRP composite laminates up to 38 mm thick, and still able
to detect an 0.8 mm thick embedded aluminum squares plate located at 12.7 mm
underneath the out surface of the laminate, at 10.5 GHz and 24 GHz.
In a recent study [148], the authors provided an updated synopsis on the state-of-
the-art applications of microwave NDT. In their study, they provided information on
both the fundamental science and general applications of microwave nondestructive
evaluation and further used a microwave system to detect a flat-bottomed hole up to
25.5 mm from the surface. In a later study [149], a group of researchers from the
department of electrical engineering at Colorado State University was able to locate
some aluminum inclusions down to a depth of 19 mm in GFRP. The authors further
indicated that their system’s accurate detection limit was between 6.35 to 12.7 mm
in edge length, at 10.5 GHz. In addition, Greenwald et al. [150] inspected 42.5 mm-
thick marine GFRP sandwich composite structures of thickness for flat-bottomed
holes up to 25 mm from the inspection surface and reported successful results.
In a later study [151], the authors equally used the microwave system to investi-
gate cracks in foams underneath the GFRP outer skins, as well as crushed cores in
honeycomb composite structures. The above authors successfully examined through
25 mm of glass-fiber insulation and were able to detect a notch in a metallic structure
by identifying a faint signal from the notched edge through 50 mm. Several other
studies also used this technique to inspect a number of composite structures [128,
152]. In a recent study [153], the authors used the microwave imaging technique with
a circular aperture probe to inspect through a 21.5 mm-thick multilayer composite
structure based on sandwiched dielectric honeycomb and foam cores. The authors
380 8 Other NDT Methods for Fiber-Reinforced Composite Structures

demonstrated that this technique provides images of higher quality (with a lower
noise floor) and with a clear depiction of defects in the 26 mm-thick samples when
compared with the phased array ultrasonic testing technique. In an earlier study [154],
the authors used the inverse synthetic-aperture radar measurement at 8–18 GHz and
applied it to the inspection of defects at the mid-point of 150 mm-diameter concrete
columns overwrapped with GFRP, with most success. In a recent study, Mukherjee
et al. [155] used the same technique in conjunction with the time-reversal mirror to
inspect through different kinds of thick composite materials of different thicknesses
and reported successful results. A recent review article by Li et al. [128] has further
documented all the details pertaining to the application of microwave imaging for
the inspection of composite structures and can, therefore, be consulted for additional
information.
In a recent study [156], the authors successfully determined the thickness of a
structural wall made of GFRP in the range of 6.35–31.75 mm using a microwave
multilayer characterization NDT system. Similar studies have also been reported
focusing on thickness detection and through-the-thickness inspections in dielectric
materials [157]. Other applications of microwave in thick composites include but
are not limited to wall thickness measurements, paint thickness on CFRP, condition
monitoring (viz. presence of gaskets in assembled valves, rubber-based piping in
heat exchangers), materials parameter measurements (viz. permittivity and residual
stress), and disbonds detection in strengthened concrete bridges among others.
Finally, since electromagnetic waves are sensitive to the presence of moisture in
structural composites, microwave techniques have significant potential for detecting
decay and moisture ingress in aging timber-based composites. Indeed, the detec-
tion of voids, the determination at the interface between timber bridge decks and
asphalt wearing surfaces appears to be a natural extension of current commercial
microwave-based inspection techniques for concrete bridge decks.

8.5.3 Millimeter Waves (MmW) Testing Technique

The last one of this group is the mmW-based inspection method. Consistent with
the aforementioned, mmW occupies the upper energy end of the microwave band
(approximately 30 –300 GHz). The literature reveals that little application of the
mmW frequency band to NDT vis-à-vis thick composites has been reported for this
frequency band. There are a few cases that are worth mentioning. In ref. [158], the
authors presented the test results of a 25.4 mm-thick honeycomb structure, whereby
they performed a lateral slice with higher resolution at about 14 mm depth. To date,
only a brief attempt to examine a very thick GFRP structure with microwave frequen-
cies was reported by the Royal Australian Navy Minehunter Coastal, though they
were not successful at fully penetrating the structure [159]. In a recent study [160],
the authors demonstrated the application of microwave NDT&E in the detection
and characterization of impact damage in thick CFRP. Since CFRP are conductive,
the authors indicated that the inspection was only successful when using an E-field
8.5 Ground-Penetrating Radar, Microwave, and Millimeter Waves 381

that is parallel to the direction of the carbon fibers in the composite. Although the
sensitivity of GHz-frequency radiation to water and subsequently moisture has been
well documented in the literature [130, 161], it should be noted that this sensitivity
differs by a few orders of magnitude over the microwave spectrum. Hence, a judi-
cious selection of inspection frequency should be envisioned if the detection of both
water and moisture in PMCs is sought.
In summary, applications of GPR, microwave, and millimeter-wave inspection
techniques to real-life applications have been discussed in the literature. Although
there has been considerable progress in simulation, full-waveform inversion, and
signal processing methods as pertains to these inspection methods [130, 162], the
paucity of the material focus on their application to the inspection of thick compos-
ites and sandwich structures indicates that they are still in their infancy at least
in the area considered in the title of the current review article. Indeed there have
been some published materials reporting on the application of these techniques in
the construction industries [128, 130]. However, these techniques are all considered
ad-hoc technologies in the NDT community, rather than well-established and recog-
nized technologies to be used in the detection and characterization of damages much
less in the repair-maintenance decision-making process. To date, the NDT commu-
nity tends to focus on other inspection techniques to reveal the truth or doubt and
answer questions like “What is inside?” and “Is there any damage in the material
structure under test?” Indeed, this is largely not because of the unavailability nor the
unpopularity of these techniques, but rather the lack of a well-established or simply
standardized approach in terms of both the technologies themselves and the subse-
quent procurement of the services. Nevertheless, the literature indicates that these
technologies are currently registering is a constantly growing audience especially
the construction industry, thanks to their flexibility and reliability of results, and we
do expect a much wider development and a subsequent use of these technologies in
the next few decades.

8.6 Optical Interferometric Techniques

The application of laser light to the examination of the structures’ surfaces has led to
the development of a wide range of NDT techniques under the broader umbrella of
“optical interferometry” which are generally referred to as “optical interferometric
techniques”. Optical interferometry is a technique based on the wave interference
phenomenon. In classic physics, this comes into play when two waves superimpose
to generate a resultant wave of a greater (i.e., constructive interference) or lower
amplitude (i.e., destructive interference). The former occurs when the phase differ-
ence of the two waves is an even multiple of π , whereas the latter happens when
the difference is an odd multiple of π . The phase differences with values between
these two extremes will result in displacement magnitudes that range between the
minimum and maximum values. In general, two conditions must be met to set up
a stable interference pattern and clear viz. the coherent light sources must be used
382 8 Other NDT Methods for Fiber-Reinforced Composite Structures

(i.e., light sources emitting waves with a constant phase difference) and the waves
should be of a single wavelength (i.e., monochromatic) [163]. Several types of inter-
ferometers are available and have widespread use in optical sensing applications.
Interferometry-based optical sensors can be easily scaled up to long ranges, used in
satellite imaging of surface deformation, and scaled down to cell stiffness measure-
ment in biological matters. Furthermore, the sensitivity of these sensors can be tuned
by adjusting the interferometry arm lengths of the sensor. For these reasons, the
interferometry principle has become a basis for numerous sensor designs in both
academia and the industry.
In general, optical interferometric techniques include moiré interferometry, holo-
graphic interferometry, speckle interferometry, electronic speckle pattern interferom-
etry (ESPI), digital speckle correlation, and shearography and their subsequent vari-
ations [10, 164]. Optical interferometric techniques have been successively applied
in the analysis and testing of composites materials under certain circumstances by a
number of authors in the literature [165, 166] and they do provide a rapid wide-area
inspection capability, reducing the inspection times by more than an order of magni-
tude compared with its conventional production-line ultrasonics counterpart. Indeed,
this is hugely beneficial to the NDT practitioners because it produces significantly
higher cost savings, especially where the replacement of the other techniques by
these methods is feasible [167, 168]. Although these techniques offer a wide area
of qualitative imagery outlining variations in the in-plane and out-of-plane displace-
ments that take place at the surface of the composite, their effectiveness in detecting
and analyzing buried defects remains vastly reduced. This is particularly impor-
tant for composite structures having a considerable thickness, otherwise known as
“thick composites” [3]. Indeed some studies have argued that some of these methods
including shearography and holography can still be used to detect defects in thick
and stiff composite structures [3], they did not specify what thick actually means
[169]. An attempt has been made to clarify the size of the thickness referred to
herein and it was estimated to be ~15 mm [3]. optical interferometric techniques
involve different working principles and a number of them have been described in
the literature [166, 170, 171]. A brief description of the main optical interferometric
techniques will be outlined in the following paragraphs providing tangible insights
for a better understanding of these techniques.
As indicated earlier, all of the optical interferometric techniques use imaging
sensors, laser light, as well as some computer-related technologies to provide a full-
field non-contact inspection and/or evaluation detailing the profile of the surface
of the composite structure [164]. Typically, the holographic interferometric testing
measures the reflection of coherent light on the surface of the composite to produce
a series of holograms detailing the different features of damage. In this context,
measured reflections are compared with the original reflections, knowing that defor-
mation in the surface (big or small) will produce interference fringes, and small
irregularities in the surface displacement (corresponding to light-wavelength dimen-
sions) may be detected [172–174]. In ESPI, the laser light is also used and both
the reference and measurement beams are directed to the surface of the fibrous
composite being inspected. A charge-coupled device (CCD) camera is then used
8.6 Optical Interferometric Techniques 383

to store and process the measured signals in a form of digital images. The ability
to store and retrieve the inspection images provides the inspectors with the capa-
bilities of using some signal processing and post-processing techniques to extract
all the features of the inspected surface from the stored images [164]. It is noted
that the ESPI is a particularly interesting variation of optical interferometric tech-
niques in the sense that low-resolution digital cameras and straightforward image
processing techniques/algorithms for modal parameter measurement [175]. Since its
inception in the 1970s, SSI has offered tremendous advantages compared to other
optical interferometric techniques [176, 177] including its ability to operate in the
field as well as its optical configuration that is more resistant to environmental disrup-
tions and unexpected vibrations [178]. In particular, the use of SSI with significantly
enhanced lateral sensitivity to investigate internal surfaces of composite materials
is of particular relevance to the inspection of composite materials [179]. Typical
examples outlining the use of SSI in NDT practices include but are not limited to
the internal inspection of retreated tires whereby the system is positioned inside
the tire then rotates continuously acquiring a sequence of laterally displaced images
which are then combined to form a panoramic view of the inner surface of the tire
under inspection [179, 180]. Interestingly, not only does this configuration come
with a high cost, but it is also not applicable to objects having small diameters
such as flanged joints. Other studies have recently reiterated that the shearography
configuration featuring the borescope algorithm is usually preferred when inspecting
internal surfaces of composites in pressure vessels and pressure pipes. Although the
approach requires relatively simple installations, studies have indicated that it is,
however, prone to instability due to the rotational movement that is necessary to
complete the inspection of the inner surface [179, 180].
Also known as speckle shearing interferometry (SSI), shearography has also
been an important inspection technique for composite structures in the last three
decades [181, 182]. The technique uses speckle-shearing interferometry to measure
the displacement gradients observable at the surface of a loaded structure [183].
It provides full-field and quasi-real-time quantitative images and has been particu-
larly effective in detecting delaminations, impact damage, and debonds in composite
laminates as well as the adhesion quality in pipelines [11]. Shearography uses a
point source of coherent light to illuminate the test sample and an image-shearing
camera is used to obtain the test images or speckle patterns. Images obtained stressed
and unstressed states of the test structure are subtracted and the difference indi-
cates changes in the structure’s strains. As such, flaws are easily identified from
the strain concentration which is particularly induced in the region surrounding the
defect. In delamination and debond defects, changes observed in the derivative of
the displacement pattern decrease as the depth/diameter of the defect increases [42].
It is noted that the most common loading setup used while inspecting composite
materials is vacuum stressing. Although shearography has been quite an interesting
subject to many researchers and scientists around the world, shearography with
radial sensitivity has not been fully exploited despite its huge potentials in inspecting
internal surfaces of pipes and cylindrical composites [179]. It also uses a very inter-
esting configuration featuring a couple of right-angled prisms which allow the radial
384 8 Other NDT Methods for Fiber-Reinforced Composite Structures

displacement between the images making it simple and user-friendly. However, this
alternative generates a variable radial sensitivity which starts with zero shears at the
image center and increases until a maximum at the image periphery. Other authors
do not mention the radial shear for shearography applications but they present alter-
natives where combinations of the plane and curved mirrors are used to generate
the radial shear which is then used to identify adhesion flaws on internal surfaces
of flanged joints of composite material pipes [179]. Similarly, laser shearography is
also not widely used in NDT. However, the approach provides many advantages in
terms of speed and full-field detection. A detailed description of the shearography
principle and its interpretation can be found in references [169]. The stressing tech-
niques needed for interferometric measurements of the loaded state are still being
developed which is a classic method that uses thermal heating. Some of the most
recently researched techniques include impulsive thermal stressing by Xenon flash
lamps [184] and vibration shearography [185].
Holography is also an optical inspection technique that originated from the study
by Powell and Stetson in the 1960s [175]. It was later established and used as a
highly sensitive tool for both vibration measurement and vibration analysis through
modal shape mapping and resonant frequency measurement [186]. This technique
has enjoyed tremendous success at least for the first few years of its inception and
was later elevated to a tool for NDT detection of defects in bonded structures, turbine
blades, thanks to its sensitivity of vibration amplitude in the order of 0.1 μm [187].
However, the method was taken over by other electronic speckle-based techniques
such as Shearography and Electronic ESPI which use low-resolution digital cameras
and straightforward image processing techniques/algorithms for modal parameter
measurement [6, 171, 186]. This remained so until very recently when both the
digital recording and numerical reconstruction of holograms became a reality with
the development of high-resolution imagery sensors viz. Charge-Coupled Devices
(CCDs) and Complementary Metal Oxide Semiconductors (CMOS). The above was
complemented by the development of fast computing devices and software tools
involving optimized image processing algorithms [187, 188]. All these features
combined made holography unprecedentedly attractive especially as the method did
not require a dark room with wet photosensitive film processing and optical hologram
reconstruction anymore [174]. In addition, the environment stability requirement was
equally minimized to a level near that of commercial Shearography systems which
prompted the industries to start using it as an in-situ NDT technique [186, 187]. To
date, holographic tests are performed through a number of configurations viz. Fresnel
Holography, Fourier Holography, Lens-Less Fourier Holography, and Image-Plane
Holography among others [174]. All these configurations are equally successful and
give a fruitful contribution to the analysis of numerous composite structures, espe-
cially by providing whole field information on displacement. Among the many devel-
opments registered in this area, a three-color holographic interferometer was recently
developed to evaluate interlaminar shear and detect premature cracks in composite
laminates based on 3D displacement [174]. In a similar study, digital Fresnel holog-
raphy based on the time averaging technique was used to investigate the effects of
embedded sensor size and discuss the vibration analysis of laminated composite
8.6 Optical Interferometric Techniques 385

glass–epoxy [189]. Although this technique does essentially measure deformations

on the surface of the object, the authors indicated that there was sufficient sensitivity
to detect subsurface and internal defects in and composite specimens which opened
up further investigations pertaining to the application of this method in detecting
defects in composite materials [189, 190].
In terms of their applications to the inspection of composite structures, optical
interferometric techniques have been applied to thin-skinned CFRP structures for
material characterization, defects detection, strain measurement, design verifica-
tion, and optimization, as well as the determination of the residual stress, vibration
analysis, and 3D shape measurement [11]. Although these techniques can easily
provide important qualitative images of variable in- and out-of-plane displacement
at wide surface areas on composite structures, their effectiveness at inspecting thick
composite structures for buried defects structural damage is still limited. Although
several authors have pointed out all these discouraging limitations associated with
optical interferometric techniques, they did not provide any quantitative evaluation
describing all these limitations that would help the inspector determine the best
techniques for fibrous composite materials. In a recent study [191], for example,
the author argued that it is possible to examine thick/stiff composite materials with
shearography, but he did not clearly explain what he meant by the term “thick”, nor
did he provide any experimental results of his study. Looking at one of his previous
studies, however, it appears that the author might have been referring to a foam
composite with a thickness of about 15 mm [192]. In a similar study [193], the
authors conducted a series of tests to examine several composite samples and their
reports indicate that they were able to detect very large disbonds at the interface of a
38 mm-thick filament-wound composite ( which was adhesively bonded to a 32 mm-
thick rubber composite). The same authors went on to examine the same composites
using IRT but failed to record any results. In ref. [194], the authors equally investi-
gated the use of time-domain moiré interferometry to examine 100–200 mm-thick
composites, but they were not able to report any results from these samples as their
experimental measurements were only limited to samples with a thickness of 15 mm.
Interestingly, these authors reported that subsequent to a lateral impact loading of
CFRP plate measuring 50 mm × 152 mm, it is possible to obtain good quality inter-
ferograms of the in-plane displacement of the test surfaces. In subsequent studies,
several other researchers [195] used this technique with the phase-shifting moiré
interferometry to map up the surface-strain of several ceramic matrix SiC composite
blocks during tensile loading.
Additional applications of the optical interferometric techniques to the inspec-
tion of composite structures include the study in ref. [196], whereby the authors
introduced a novel digital shearography where the authors investigated the surface
of a GFRP rotor vane and reported good results. Although some studies argued that
optical coherence tomography (OCT) has primarily been a medical imaging facility
that has recently been introduced into the industrial NDT arena, it has been nonethe-
less successful in the characterization and identification of damages in composite
structures [3]. The method is particularly effective in determining variations in fiber
volume fractions especially for unidirectional GFRP [197]. Albeit its huge potential
386 8 Other NDT Methods for Fiber-Reinforced Composite Structures

and capabilities in the NDT community, OCT struggles to detect and differentiate
buried defects such as voids and porosity (i.e., as it is the case for most of the optical
interferometric techniques) and has so far been used only in unidirectional GRFP
composite to a depth of 3.7 mm [198]. In theory, both the shearography and ESPI
operate surprisingly on a similar concept [10]. The only difference between these two
is that the reference beam is removed for the former, and the image is sheared using
a lens to allow the comparison between the reference and live laser speckle patterns
[164]. In so doing, shearography encompasses the gradient of the displacement field,
thus reporting variations in the strain field, rather than directly measuring surface
displacement [172]. In our previous study [11], all the aforementioned facts have been
demonstrated and illustrated key distinct features in the laser measurement systems
for both the ESPI and shearography, respectively. The schematic representation was
obtained and adapted from [196], combined with a hologram and shearogram of
three disbonds of varying geometry in a laminate plate of an unspecified layup form.
The dual intensity field becomes clear when viewing the shearogram as a positive-
and negative-going peak, compared to the intensity function in the image produced
by holography/ESPI. Additional details explaining the operation, configuration, and
different algorithms of each of these techniques were reported in ref. [164] and an
updated version of these considerations was recently presented in ref. [172].
In summary, optical interferometric techniques suffer from a similar loss in capa-
bilities to those observed with electrical testing. They require that the internal struc-
tural abnormalities be visible to the examiner through the changes in the displacement
or strain at the visible surface of the composite. Recent studies indicated that a signif-
icant reduction in the inspection resolution does occur with the increased stiffness,
suggesting that they are normally not able to detect damages in thick composites.
They cannot differentiate all variations occurring in very stiff and thick composites
laminates, suggesting that buried defects would be very difficult or almost impossible
to detect. Identification of disbonding and significant core damage at the near side of
thin-skinned sandwich structures are the likely targeted applications for this group
of wide-area techniques. Holography is the most sensitive to physical movements
(i.e., it cannot be used in an industrial environment due to intense vibrations) as it
requires that the surface remains steady during the entire time of the measurements.
Shearography is by far the most field-portable of these techniques and is less sensi-
tive to small movements during the inspection. It does not require any additional
reference beam, and bulk transport of the object does not create additional strains.
Other optical interferometric techniques include but are not limited to moiré interfer-
ometry and digital image correlation. The former is a strain-related technique that is
typically confined to the laboratory or small-scale inspections, in which a fine grating
on the component surface is monitored as a load is applied and compared with the
unloaded reference image. The latter is more broadly applicable to the measurement
of geometry changes. It involves the digital imaging of a surface usually illuminated
with visible light, and a post-processing algorithm tracks the movement of a random
speckle-type pattern applied to or naturally occurring on, the surface of the object.
8.7 Radiography and Tomography 387

8.7 Radiography and Tomography

Also referred to as radiographic testing (RT) or radiographic imaging (RI), radiog-

raphy is a family of nondestructive imaging techniques that use different types of
radiation including X-ray, γ-ray, and neutron radiation to inspect/visualize the inte-
rior of fibrous composite materials/structures and detect/evaluate internal flaws such
as delamination, disbonds, thickness variations, foreign inserts, cracks, and corro-
sion. As such, RI techniques are generally of growing interest to the NDT engineers
seeking to determine the nature, size, and orientation of structural flaws within fiber-
reinforced composite materials/structures [199]. To date, X-ray imaging remains one
of the longest established radiographic imaging NDT techniques, having benefited
for over a century of development since the initial production of X-radiation in the
1890s, and its early application to medical imaging in 1896 by John Hall-Edwards in
Birmingham, England [10]. Its basic principle relies on the transmission of ionizing
radiation through the test structure and measuring its scattering, absorption, or atten-
uation levels to determine the structural features of the structure under test. The
level of attenuation or scattering of the radiation used is a function of the density
and thickness of the material under test [200]. Therefore, the pixel readout (grey
level) corresponds to the total level attenuation or scattering along the radiation path,
hence, very small density changes, especially volumetric flaws parallel to the ray
beam, can be detected [200, 201]. Industrial application of the radiographic tech-
niques has grown significantly over the last decade [3, 202], driven primarily by the
improvements in their systems’ spatial resolution, the reduction in their measure-
ments acquisition time, the removal of the need for chemical emulsion processing,
the increasing availability of the measuring systems as well as the development of
far greater flexibility in image post-processing.
As opposed to simple radiographic imaging techniques, tomography imaging
makes use of computer-processed combinations of a series of X-rays measurements
that are taken from different angles to produce cross-sectional images of the target
area of a composite structure, allowing the user to the interior of the structure without
cutting it into pieces. In particular, advancements in digital technology have has
inspired great progress in the area of RI including the removal of the need for chem-
ical emulsion processing, and the development of far greater flexibility in image
post-processing. These advancements prompted the use of RI techniques in the
detection and characterization of flaws in composite structures to a much greater
extent [3]. An attempt was made to detect defects and damage in composite struc-
tures, albeit the limited studies reported on this subject. In a recent study [203], the
authors used synchrotron radiation to enhance the resolution of an industrial X-ray
system but limited their study to the damage morphology of composites having a
thickness of less than 5 mm. In the early 1980s, several researchers [10, 204] posited
in their early review articles on the NDT of composite structures that radiographic
techniques would undoubtedly have limited ability to inspect porosity or variations
in fiber volume fraction and their estimation appears to have been correct given the
paucity of published material of this topic. It is important to indicate that tomography
388 8 Other NDT Methods for Fiber-Reinforced Composite Structures

is an advanced radiographic technique whose intended purpose was to be used in the

medical field, but this technique surprisingly presents tremendous research opportu-
nities for high-resolution materials characterization in the NDT industry. In general,
the area of radiography and tomography involves several techniques, but only the
backscattered X-ray imaging, neutron imaging, as well as nuclear magnetic resonance
imaging and their tomographic techniques will be discussed in this Chapter.

8.7.1 Backscattered X-ray Imaging

The X-ray imaging systems have been used to produce a high-resolution single-
sided image for a range of distinct materials. The technique is generally applied to
the investigations of materials and/or products in the transportation industry, as both
the human body and shipping containers scanners [205, 206]. A good review detailing
all the X-ray imaging applications for the NDT of structural systems was presented
by the authors in ref. [207]. In general, this technique does utilize scattered radiation
arising from the Compton scattering effect, via which it is possible to effectively
perform a send-receive single-sided X-ray measurement. To this end, its efficiency
largely depends on how accurate and fast the scattered radiation beam from the
object is realized on the detector side using only single-sided access. The ComScan
(Compton Backscatter Scanner) is the commercially available X-ray backscatter
imaging system for NDT of composite components [206]. The literature suggests
that the X-ray imaging technique is normally a highly advantageous technique when it
comes to detecting low-atomic number (Z) materials such as water, moisture in CFRP
plates compared to other conventional through-transmission techniques, thanks to its
usage of the unilateral access to the object. However, the effect of this low atomic
weight of the molecules on which polymer composite materials are based signif-
icantly reduces the contrast, compared to inspections of metallic alloys. Also, the
efficacy of the Compton scattering effect for the imaging of low-Z materials has been
readily verified by the authors in ref. [206] who were able to inspect a 2 mm-thick
CFRP-based structure (honeycomb) using backscattered X-ray system. In an earlier
study [208], the authors also reported the use of a refined backscatter technique to
selectively detect the scatter-field velocity components while examining the struc-
tural integrity of a thin-skinned foam-core sandwich structure in an insulation foam
of tens of millimeter thick that was used in the construction of NASA space shuttles.
In this study, the authors were able to detect a number of voids of different diameters
ranging from 20 to 50 mm, albeit the relatively poor repeatability of the inspection.
The backscattered X-ray technique has been proven effective in the detection of thin
delamination defects, which is normally not reliably performed by standard X-ray
systems [10]. Also, thin laminates have been inspected for larger air voids [209],
though delamination defects in the lateral plane are still not as easily detectable, as
well as the inspection of porosity and determination of fiber volume fraction which
are also considered a difficult proposition [10]. Although the backscattered X-ray
technology is frequently used for large structures such as the truck inspections in the
8.7 Radiography and Tomography 389

transport industry, the same limitations of penetration in laminate composites apply

as for through-transmission techniques, and when possible, inspections are usually
limited to thinner composite structures.
In summary, X-ray imaging is a powerful NDT offering significantly high-
resolution capabilities. However, this technique uses some of the most ionizing radi-
ation (i.e., test structures are analyzed using ionizing radiation facilities), which are
inconvenient compared to other NDT techniques. The utilization of this technique
places a significant cost impost on inspection through the many safety precautions
required. Also, the location and availability of synchrotron facilities are very limited
worldwide, which further constrain their accessibility by the general NDT practi-
tioners and costs thereof. In terms of its application to the inspection of composite
structures, the literature survey indicates that the use of X-ray imaging has been
primarily focused on the inspection of thin composite materials [210], with only
a few studies where the technique has been used for inspection of thick-skinned
composite structures [11]. Some studies suggest that all the limitations relating to
the application of this technology as an NDT tool might probably be due to the fact
that this technology has been primarily devised for the medical field [3]. Also, unlike
most of the NDT techniques, the test structure must always be taken to the measure-
ment site, which also limits the size and the types of materials that can be inspected
using the X-ray imaging technique [3]. Indeed portable X-ray generators have been
devised to address some of the aforementioned challenges and provide easier access
by the general NDT practitioners but the high-level skills required for the inspectors
to operate the system and the level of safety precautions that needs to be undertaken
still do not allow its easy installation in any testing workshop. Finally, while X-ray
imaging has found plenty of applications in the aerospace, marine, construction, and
pipeline industries, its capabilities for the inspection of composite structures are still
not well established, and this explains the paucity of published materials in this area.

8.7.2 X-ray Computed Tomography Imaging

In the NDT of composite structures, X-ray computed tomography (CT) has been
successfully, and thus extensively used to detect defects/flaws in the interior of
composite and sandwich structures [211–213]. In terms of operation, CT imaging
systems operate in the same way the medical computed tomography scanner works
[3]. A recent study assessed the level of porosity and the microstructure of the pores
in CFRPs by using CT [214]. Experimental results obtained by the above authors
closely corroborate with those obtained using the UT method in terms of the sizes and
shapes of the pores. In particular, micro-computed tomography (μCT) is described
as the most successful type of X-ray NDT imaging system for the analysis of post-
failure mechanisms in composite structures [10]. The success of this technique has
also been extended in recent years, thanks to the enhanced penetrating and high-
resolution imaging capabilities obtained via the use of synchrotron radiation at X-ray
wavelengths [203], although even in these cases inspection thicknesses are limited
390 8 Other NDT Methods for Fiber-Reinforced Composite Structures

to approximately 5 mm [10]. Additional application of X-ray CT In ref. [215], the

authors reported observable changes in the attenuation coefficient of the X-radiation
when examining and characterizing defects in both pristine and ballistically impacted
GFRP panels of approximately 43 mm thick. Interestingly, researchers have also
confirmed the consistency between industrial and medical CT scanners, and the
latter has also proven effective in the confirmation of bondline regularity for thick
marine composites. To this end, a recent study [216] reported a successful utilization
of an in-service medical CT scanner that was able to penetrate a GFRP skin/foam
sandwich composite material having a total thickness of 78 mm. The above GFRP
skin was 8 to 9 mm thick, and the foam core was made of two 30 mm-thick sections
which were adhesively bonded at the midline of the panel (i.e., a 5 mm thick slice of
the bondline). However, this again requires the removal of a suitably sized compo-
nent to fit within the CT machine’s physical parameters which further highlights the
limitations of these types of machines/systems in terms of the components size they
can handle. Additional details on the applications of CT scanner to the examination
of natural composites are also available in the literature [11, 217], and interested
readers are directed to these specific studies more information. Although the CT
scan thoroughly overcomes most of the problems related to the detection and char-
acterization of the through-thickness flaws, its limitation is that it can only inspect an
extremely small volume of material and that jeopardizes its relevance to the indus-
trial application. This is indeed with an exception to the linear CT scanners which
are also expensive and difficult to operate. Just like the X-ray systems, CT scanners
suffer from an increased overhead due to health threats associated with its ionizing
radiation, and this makes their implementation into field-portable kits more difficult,
or in the case of some specific applications, currently impossible. In cases where the
equipment can be still transported to the inspection site, it is important for users to
clear the entire workshops or hangars to ensure no unintended harm may occur to
other personnel working in the vicinity, which is also not so easy to monitor at all
times.

8.7.3 Neutron Imaging Technique

Neutron imaging technique (NIT) is also a radiographic imaging technique that uses
a wide wavelength spectrum for best flux conditions [11]. This technique was first
discovered by Sir J. Chadwick of the Cambridge University in the 1930s after exam-
ining the collision of beryllium atoms by α-particles emitted from polonium [218]. In
their characteristics, neutrons present a distinctive wave character with a wavelength
that is almost equal to the interatomic distance (~0.1 nm) and kinetic energy that is
close to the atomic vibration energy (i.e., which generally ranges from 2 to 10 eV).
All these features make it possible for the application of NIT to the diffraction and
inelastic scattering studies. In the 1960s and 70 s, important advancements have
been made in neutron strain scanning techniques whereby additional developments
in small-angle neutron scattering, neutron time-of-flight scattering, backscattering or
8.7 Radiography and Tomography 391

spin-echo techniques, as well as the neutron reflectivity, broadened the applications

of neutron strain scanning to larger scientific domains including the solid-state chem-
istry, liquids, soft matter, materials science, geosciences and biology [219, 220]. In
their operation, the pulsed neutron beam with a wide range of energy travels to the
sample and gets scattered. The latter is picked up by the neutrons detectors, which
collects the diffracted neutrons at a fixed angle. As the neutrons penetrate deeply
into the composite sample, the neutron instrument measures the strain/stress in a
nondestructive fashion to generate the test results. In general, neutrons are difficult
and expensive to produce. In most of the applications, neutrons are usually generated
through either nuclear fission reactors (i.e., continuous neutron sources) or neutron
spallation (i.e., pulsed neutron sources) [221]. After many years of research and
development, NIT has progressed as reliable NDT techniques in the forms of neutron
tomography and radiography; and specialized instrumentation at pulsed neutron
sources has been extensively developed [11, 222]. In particular, neutron tomog-
raphy allows 2D or 3D imaging of the attenuation coefficient distribution within
a material system; thus, internal structures and material composition can be visu-
alized [223]. In contrast, neutron radiography is a transmission imaging technique
for heterogeneous materials, taking advantage of the scattering and/or absorption
contrast between different elements [222, 224].
In terms of their performances, NIT does generally offer a typical spatial resolu-
tion of a few hundred microns and below 10 μm in the best case [11]. Although X-ray
imaging is capable of providing sub-micron resolution, NIT does offer better sensi-
tivity to light elements, especially hydrogen. In terms of efficiency, NIT generally
takes longer time delays to produce tests images as compared to X-ray imaging tech-
niques that take from a few minutes or a few seconds to generate images. Studies
indicate that these lengthy time delays taken by NIT to generate the test images
are generally due to several factors including the low neutron flux, the dependency
of the testing speed on the number of slices/rotation steps, the types of test mate-
rials, and the neutron sources among others. Among the recent advances include the
development of some powerful neutron sources, thanks to the currently available
neutron wavelength resolved measurements [225]. In recent years, neutrons based
inspection techniques have been utilized in a number of applications aiming at the
characterization of materials [225]. Their penetrating power of many structural mate-
rials provides the opportunity of characterizing and detecting flaws in thick and thin
composite laminates than any other form of radiation [3, 10]. Furthermore, their
especially strong absorption by hydrogen atoms makes them the ideal candidate to
examine/inspect composite structures for moisture content [226, 227]. The technique
has been used in industrial applications since adequate neutron sources were avail-
able in the mid-fifties of the last century [3], and it has been successfully applied
to detect defects such as moisture content in composite laminates [10]. While the
identification of voids has been reported in constant-thickness adhesive bondlines
[3], the closely identical absorption of γ -ray by carbon, oxygen, and nitrogen atoms
makes it more difficult for its application to solid laminates.
In recent years, NIT has been extensively used in the transportation industry for the
inspection of shipping containers and large boxes. To this end, the Commonwealth
392 8 Other NDT Methods for Fiber-Reinforced Composite Structures

Science and Industrial Research Organization (CSIRO) recently developed a scanner

featuring both neutron imaging and γ -ray radiography. This scanner is capable of
directly scanning airfreight containers in 1–2 min without unpacking them [228].
Additional studies focusing on the use of NIT for the evaluation of composite struc-
tures have so far consisted of the diffraction measurements for the determination
of residual stresses in metal- and ceramic-matrix composites [229, 230]. To this
end, the authors in ref. [231] reported a successful inspection of armor plating up
to 50 mm thick and demonstrated the trade-off between the use of thermal neutron
and fast neutron radiography. In addition, several approaches have been presented
in the literature with regard to this method, and the trade-off between a few of them
has been thoroughly established and validated [226]. Although the accuracy and
spatial resolution of neutrons based inspection are particularly high, the scattering
of neutron radiation anticipated from hydrogen atoms within the polymer matrix
is expected to limit its penetration especially in thick composite structures, hence,
the thickness should carefully be chosen to increase the accuracy of the test results.
In addition, the required facilities to carry out relevant experiments are limited and
the evaluation of the test data obtained is quite sophisticated. In practice, the NIT
holds great potentials for applications in the detection and characterization of foreign
inserts in composite materials, owing to the different absorption capabilities of the
different discontinuities in the composite under test. However, the major challenge is
usually the lack of the ability to discern the defects/damage in the through-thickness
direction. Finally, the use of NIT for the inspection of composite materials is likely to
be improved as advances in neutron production systems and imaging instrumentation
continue to grow rapidly.

8.7.4 Nuclear Magnetic Resonance Imaging Technique

Although nuclear magnetic resonance imaging (NMRI) is generally a medical radio-

graphic imaging device, NMRI is also used as an NDT in structural engineering
to assess and characterize composite materials and structures [232]. However, this
technique does not have many applications in structural engineering as it was initially
designed to be used in medical imaging applications, which justifies the paucity of
material outlining its application in the inspection and characterization of composite
structures. In fact, some studies [3] suggest that this technique does not have any
viable nor practical applications in industrial NDT. In ref. [232], the authors used
the NMRI to evaluate the extent of moisture absorption in GFRP used in marine
and offshore applications which are highly subjected to accelerated aging by immer-
sion in seawater at elevated temperatures. In this study, the authors sought to find
conclusive evidence to confirm whether diffused water in fiber-reinforced compos-
ites does not advance with a uniform profile, rather accumulates in preferential sites
or simply propagates alongside the reinforcement network. These authors success-
fully imaged the diffused water and determined its position within the composite.
In their concluding remarks, the authors indicated that the water concentrates on
8.7 Radiography and Tomography 393

the fiber/matrix interface and the concentration there is twice that of the bulk of
the matrix. The diffusion process appears to be aided by ‘wicking’ along with the
fiber/matrix interface. Similar studies [3, 233] used NMRI to identify water-filled
honeycomb cells (aramid honeycomb panels) using a 0.36 T (equivalent to 1.5 MHz)
portable resonance system. A modified version of their equipment was later used to
investigate single-sided composite laminates placed between its two magnets. After
these modifications, the technique was able to characterize the CFRP sample on the
far side of the instrument and results were encouraging [234]. In an earlier study
[235], NMRI was used to characterize CFRP composite skins situated on the far
side of a 12 mm-thick panel, albeit its high sensitivity to water. In a similar study
[236], a failed attempt to inspect solid CFRP laminates of an unspecified layup
was reported. However, a successful inspection of GFRP composite samples was
recorded though the authors did not specify the construction nor the composition of
the sample. Although NMRI has been rarely used for the inspection of composite
structures, this technique would generally be a great NDT tool to inspect these types
of structures for water ingress defects.

8.8 Conclusions

The application of NDT techniques to evaluate and characterize defects in composite

structures continues to receive considerable attention worldwide and many countries
and manufacturing companies are currently committed to promoting NDT-related
technologies in nearly all structural engineering applications. Practically, NDT tech-
niques present several advantages and some of their distinctive features include
their potential of saving resources, eliminating unplanned breakdown/downtime
by providing a window for maintenance activities, or replacement of equipment.
However, individual NDT techniques also present their peculiar limitations and
scope of application depending on their spatial resolution, penetration depth, and
reaction/interaction with the test structures. A proper inspection is generally difficult
to achieve unless certain minimum dimensions are attained (i.e., and this strikes the
core of the operation and applicability of the different NDT techniques). To this end,
both the defects sizing and prediction of the structure’s remaining service life (i.e.,
a process that is also known as prognosis) remain the most complex areas in the
NDT entire field of composite structures. Typically, some NDT techniques rely on
a comparison between the healthy and damaged states of the composite to establish
the level of the damage by determining the level of deviation between the test results
of the structure’s health status and the current state. However, one of the problems
with this methodology is that it does not necessarily guarantee accurate determina-
tion of the structure’s level of damage because any mistake in the termination of
the health status of the test structure in its healthy structure (i.e., which must first
be established and used as a reference in future tests) will result in erroneous inter-
pretation of the future test results and hence, accurate determination of the exact
size of the defects will wrongly be decided. To this end, accurate diagnostic results
394 8 Other NDT Methods for Fiber-Reinforced Composite Structures

are obtained only if the initial measurements are correctly and accurately collected.
Additionally, parameters such as environmental effects, on-site construction errors,
erroneous calibration of the test instrument, and wrong data collection techniques
significantly affect the quality of the measurement data. In our previous work [11],
for example, we discovered that the inspection of thick-section composite materials is
relatively a new area compared to the inspection of thin-skinned composite structures.
As such, there are currently no references establishing the inspection reliability or
acceptance criteria for thick fiber-reinforced composites nor are there any references
on numerical measurement of the reliable detection limitations for different NDT
techniques. Also, the literature indicates that there is no single NDT technique that
can reliably inspect and characterize all types of defects in fiber-reinforced composite
materials and this is evidenced by the continued development of novel NDT tech-
niques [3, 237]. To this end, continuous development of novel NDT techniques and
the establishment of defects quantification criteria for the existing NDT techniques
are highly warranted. Also, NDT users should continue to develop methods and
strategies to enhance the already existing methods through novel techniques such as
signal processing methods and the improvement of the existing NDT equipment.

Important Disclosure In this chapter, some figures referring to well-known facts and popular THz
systems were arranged traying inspiration from NDT websites and sources were also referenced
when appropriately.

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Chapter 9
Conclusions, Current Developments,
and Prospects in the NDT
of Fiber-Reinforced Composites

9.1 Conclusions

In conclusion, all fiber-reinforced composite structures are manufactured for specific

purposes (e.g., carry loads, operate over a long time, etc.), and depending on their
usage, manufacturers must always ensure that the manufactured structures are respec-
tively in compliance with the required load-bearing capacity or can operate over a
long time without losing their structural integrity. However, fiber-reinforced compos-
ites are manufactured through a multivariable process and can develop defects or
deform at any stages during their lifecycle requiring the use of advanced nonde-
structive testing (NDT) techniques (i.e., also referred to as nondestructive testing
and evaluation (NDT&E) techniques) to locate, characterize and evaluate damage
at their incipient initiation. As the name indicates, NDT involves a variety of non-
invasive inspection techniques used to evaluate the material properties, components,
or entire process units. In fibrous composite structures, NDT techniques are used to
detect, characterize, or measure the presence of damage mechanisms (e.g., delamina-
tion, corrosion, cracks, etc.) and determine its orientation in the composite vis-à-vis
the direction of the loading. NDT is also commonly referred to as nondestructive
examination (NDE), nondestructive evaluation (NDE), and nondestructive inspec-
tion (NDI). In many instances, the majority of NDT techniques are capable of locating
defects and determining their features (e.g., size, shape, orientation, etc.). In contrast
to destructive testing techniques where the test structure is damaged or destroyed
during the inspection process, the main purpose of using NDT is to inspect a compo-
nent in a safe, reliable, and cost-effective manner without causing damage to the
equipment or shutting down plant operations. NDT can be conducted at all stages of
the lifecycle of the composite from the material processing through to the manufac-
turing process and in-service stages. In the manufacturing stage, NDT inspections
determine if parts are fit for the desired function, and during operation, they assess the
health status of the equipment and the damage state and monitor damage mechanisms
to determine whether it needs replacement, repair, or removal from the process.

© Science Press 2022 407

S. Zhong and W. Nsengiyumva, Nondestructive Testing and Evaluation
of Fiber-Reinforced Composite Structures,
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-19-0848-4_9
408 9 Conclusions, Current Developments, and Prospects …

In general, NDT techniques can be grouped into conventional and advanced tech-
niques with each of these groups having its characteristic advantages and limitations.
Conventional NDT techniques (e.g., acoustic emission testing, visual inspection,
infrared testing, etc.) are the techniques that have matured over decades and in this
time, have become well-documented in codes, standards, and best practices. The
setups and operating procedures of conventional NDT techniques are relatively easy
and do not require highly skilled personnel to operate them. In contrast, advanced
methods (e.g., electromagnetic-based testing techniques, laser testing methods, ultra-
sonic testing methods, etc.).tend to be less understood by the general NDT practi-
tioners as they progress as emerging technologies come about (i.e., lack of skilled
personnel and technician qualification criteria, or little to no industry codification).
Generally, the setup, procedure, and data interpretation of advanced methods are more
complicated and can require specialized understanding and expertise from a properly
trained technician. As advanced techniques mature, new and more advanced versions
of each emerge to start a new cycle of technical understanding and technician training.
Although the results of NDT tests are generally qualitative and may be repeated
and interpreted differently by various inspectors, these techniques present many
advantages over destructive testing techniques including the availability of portable
instrumentation and the ability to perform repeated tests on a single component to
evaluate external and internal for harmful features. To optimize facility production
and increase personnel and environmental safety, NDT inspectors should consider
(1) the type of damage mechanism of interest, (2) the system resolution as well as the
shape, and orientation of the discontinuity, (3) the location of the discontinuity (i.e.,
surface or internal), as well as (4) the sensitivities and limitations of the different
NDT techniques available to them.
Consistent with the aforementioned, the assessment of the damage and/or discon-
tinuities in fibrous composite structures is initially achieved by visual inspection
technique which is the first method used by any NDT inspector to locate the damaged
area before the use of a more sensitive NDT technique is envisioned to identify and
quantify/characterize the extent of the damage. To this end, the use of advanced NDT
is very crucial for adequate damage characterization, especially when dealing with
safety–critical fiber-reinforced composite structures to prevent catastrophic failures.
The use of advanced NDT techniques is particularly important because the damage is
often hidden within the structure, with little to no surface indication that it happened.
In this book, readers are provided with information regarding the usefulness of NDT
techniques for testing and characterizing composite materials from their prototype
designs through to the manufacturing and in-service stages. Importantly, significant
efforts have been made to make the contents easier to read and understand for our
experts and students readers. The theoretical part of the different NDT techniques
was minimized trying to be essential by proving the readers with only the necessary
information pertinent to the current state-of-the-art NDT techniques and the prospect
of NDT for fiber-reinforced composite structures. Also, some information regarding
the defects and material degradations, as well as the general description of compos-
ites, was added not to bring anything new to the readers’ attention but to facilitate their
understanding of the operation and highlight the need for advanced NDT techniques
9.1 Conclusions 409

for the inspection and characterization of fiber-reinforced composite structures. In

this context, a general description of the commonly used NDT techniques has been
made and in-depth information regarding their principles of operation and theoretical
analysis has been provided.
Information presented in this book covers several NDT techniques used to iden-
tify, evaluate defects and structural damage in fibrous composite structures some
of which are well-established techniques while others are still developing. However,
individual NDT techniques have their specific advantages, disadvantages, and scopes
of application. In this context, it is of utmost importance to indicate that there is
currently no single NDT technique that has proven to be entirely false-negative
or false-positive free. This is particularly because even when some of the material
properties (e.g., mass, stiffness, etc.) or operating conditions (e.g., high tempera-
ture, high pressure, vibration levels, etc.) change due to factors such as the operating
conditions, installation requirements, etc. [1], they still introduce additional compli-
cations in the measuring system or instrument setup than the damage itself which
further exacerbates the levels of measurement errors in the test data. As such, several
factors including hostile environment excessive corroding chemicals, and well as the
mishandling and/or inappropriate usage of the sensors, system’s spatial resolution,
on-site installation mistakes, and inadequate data collection techniques significantly
influence the quality of the measured data, the minimum size of the detectable flaws,
as well as the performance of the NDT technique being used. All these factors
contribute to the fact that the measurement of the exact dimensions and orientation
of the defects and/or mechanical damage in fiber-reinforced composite structures is
still a complex practice in the entire NDT community. In terms of their operation
and performance, for example, some NDT techniques use the data obtained from
the healthy and damaged states of the test structure to estimate the severity of the
damage. In this context, the data of the health state of the test component should
first be collected before its usage in a structural system and used as a reference for
future tests. Indeed, this approach is technically not practical because the damage
progression is never linear and composite materials behave differently depending on
the applications and working conditions. As such, any attempt to predict the future
behavior of the composite while in-service requires additional information that may
not be available to the NDT engineers at the moment of the test. Attempting to
provide an immediate response to all these challenges, researchers and engineers
have been constantly working to bring enhanced features to all these NDT tech-
niques to obtain accurate test results, particularly for safety–critical structures (i.e.,
primary and secondary load-bearing structures) such as in the aerospace, renewable
energy, and automotive industries.
In general, challenges associated with the inspection of fiber-reinforced composite
structures are not the same and they become particularly exacerbated as the
complexity and/or the thickness of the composite increases. Although several studies
have presented some highly commendable cross-reference insights into the already
established and currently developing NDT techniques [2], the application of the
individual NDT techniques to the detection, localization, and evaluation of different
410 9 Conclusions, Current Developments, and Prospects …

flaws is relatively a new area of research, particularly in thick composite materials.

There are presently no published studies that clearly outline the quantitative limita-
tions and inspections standards for the different NDT techniques when it comes to
the inspection of fiber-reinforced composite structures. To this end, a lot of work is
yet to be done before any reliable documentation outlining all the quantitative limi-
tations, the scope of applications, and the inspections standards for fiber-reinforced
composite structures is unveiled. In addition, there are currently rare studies on the
inspection reliability and the acceptance criteria of the different NDT techniques
vis-à-vis their applicability to fiber-reinforced composite structures. In particular,
our literature survey also uncovered no references/publications providing numerical
measurement frameworks for the different NDT techniques covered in this work
nor did we find any studies providing detailed information on the reliable detection
limitations of these NDT techniques. Instead, some studies have mentioned that as
being a problem during their measurements but did not do any work to address it
[3, 4]. Also, even though the literature presents several studies detailing the defects
detection limitations based on simulation works with different NDT techniques,
there are currently no available data pertinent to the real-time flaw size measure-
ment limitations for the aforementioned inspection circumstances. In this context,
additional research is highly warranted to address each of these limitations and they
should also be used as the starting point towards the implementation of real-time
defects/damage detection and characterization limitations for the individual NDT
techniques, particularly during the modeling phase of the investigation.
Consistent with the aforementioned, In the current era of technological advance-
ments, new NDT techniques are being developed some of which use individual sensor
technologies while others use combined sensors (i.e., sensors from different manu-
facturers). The role of the NDT systems developer is to obtain a measuring instrument
that is capable of exposing deeply buried defects/discontinuities in the test sample and
make it visible to NDT inspectors so that they can visualize, characterize and evaluate
their sizes and orientations. In particular cases, new NDT techniques or methods are
generally developed to meet industrial needs and demands for controlling the reli-
ability of new materials and investigating the health status of in-service structural
systems (i.e., product evaluation, process monitoring, structural health monitoring,
and prognostics, etc.). In this context, NDT developers should always ensure that the
setup, operation procedure, and data interpretation of their methods/techniques are
not complicated and do not require specialized understanding and experience from
trained technicians. Simplifying the instrument and making it user-friendly with an
easy-to-operate system will be beneficial to both the design and users, particularly
because some industries often refrain from purchasing advanced equipment when
they think about the cost and the level of expertise required to operate them. As
such, it is suggested that since new NDT techniques are constantly being devel-
oped, designers should present detailed information describing their suitability and
performance in different industries as well as the flaw types and material properties
that are best suited for their applications. In fact, such information has already been
provided for infrared thermography (IRT) in a form of an expert system [5] and the
same type of studies could significantly improve the quality and outcome of NDT
9.1 Conclusions 411

services. NDT developers should also indicate whether any combination of sensors
is required or might be used to obtain more reliable test data and provide adequate
user platforms to handle the data fusion.
Analyzing the capabilities of the different NDT techniques, it is observed that
global NDT techniques such as strain monitoring (SM), acoustic emission (AC), and
vibration measurement (VM) are generally limited in their capacity to determine the
size of the defects and/or distinguish the different types of defects from one another.
However, these techniques often provide reliable measurements, particularly when
inspecting composite materials for significant through-thickness damage. These
types of techniques are always seen by the NDT&E engineers and/or -practitioners
as being wide-area inspection techniques, owing to their distinct features of being
capable of rapidly examining relatively large areas in a short time. This withstanding,
it is worth noting that these techniques may become unable to inspect structures as
the defects or damage-related features often get quickly lost with the growing thick-
ness of the composite and depth location thereof. Optical interferometric techniques
are infringed by quick reductions in capability as the thickness of the test composite
increases, making flaws at significantly higher depths almost uninspectable or diffi-
cult to analyze by these methods. The literature suggests that several other techniques
(e.g., low-frequency resonance, mechanical impedance, holography, shearography,
etc.) do generally endure almost similar losses in capability because they all wrangle
to discern small variations in very stiff structures. Typically, thick composites lami-
nates with voids at significant depth in the composites are very difficult or impossible
to detect. The difficulty of obtaining a uniform heat distribution and accelerated heat
dissipation in test structures remain the primary causes of precincts for successful
examination using IRT. This withstanding, the inspection limit for IRT systems in
fiber-reinforced composite laminates appears to be less than 5 mm depth. It is also
apparent that certain frequency ranges under the broader umbrella of microwave radi-
ation appear to be promising frequencies for the examination of thick composites
and sandwich structures. Typically, ground penetration radar (GPR) at frequencies
ranging from 1 to 3 GHz has been examined for its clear potential ability to detect
echoes through thick GFRP laminates, though there is no clear progress detailing
the capability of this technology to resolve defects in thick composites in general.
Nevertheless, the technology has frequently been applied to composites structures
in the construction industry and results have been overwhelmingly encouraging.
In addition to GPR, terahertz (THz) waves at relatively low frequencies (i.e.,
between 0.1–0.5 THz) are highly promising for the inspection of thin-skinned GFRP
structures, and the technique’s ability to see “through” the defects/damage and
visualize the underlying features is another added advantage that allows users to
overcome the shadowing effect usually observed with ultrasonic testing systems. In
contrast, fibrous composite structures with a thickness of more than 50 mm are not
expected to be easily examined by THz systems, due to their in-thickness weakening
and scattering of the THz waves. Additionally, THz waves are largely incapable of
inspecting electrically conductive materials of any thickness, suggesting that either
thick CFRP laminates or the inaccessible side of aluminum honeycombs are largely
412 9 Conclusions, Current Developments, and Prospects …

uninspectable using this technology. In radiography and tomography, both X-ray and
neutron imaging techniques are generally able to detect and distinguish the elements
or features with different absorption coefficients when compared with the host fibrous
composite. However, they cannot characterize through-the-thickness damage, except
for the CT systems which can also handle extremely small volumes of the test struc-
tures. In addition, X-ray and neutron imaging techniques always have to endure the
increased overheads as a result of the health hazards associated with their ionizing
radiation, making their implementation into field-portable equipment utterly difficult,
or in the case of neutron imaging technique, currently impossible. The capabilities of
ultrasonic testing systems have been exceptionally demonstrated at certain frequen-
cies, though additional studies utilizing appropriately-sized deeply-buried defects are
still lacking to help inspectors to determine its reliability levels in the inspection of
thick composites structures. In addition, advanced ultrasonic systems featuring state-
of-the-art technologies are constantly being developed focusing on lower ultrasonic
frequencies and higher power, due to the gradual cost reduction of the phased-array
ultrasonic probes.
It is understood that the aforementioned progress will undoubtedly improve the
features of the available acoustic wave-field software models that are used in the
modeling of elastic waves when evaluating fiber-reinforced composite structures at
ultrasonic frequencies. Although this technique does provide accurate test results,
challenges related to its capabilities of examining examine through the honeycomb-
based materials are likely to pose major limitations and the shadowing effect observed
in thick composites with overlapping flaws is still difficult to overcome. As indicated
earlier, there are relatively fewer works on more complex structural geometries,
thick reinforced composites, and hybrid reinforced composites, though this obser-
vation seems to be common to nearly all NDT techniques. Therefore, it would be
interesting to assess how the available techniques would perform with more complex
structural designs where little is known about the initial (i.e., the as-designed) health
status of fiber-reinforced composite parts/components. In addition, studies focusing
on the resolution of the different NDT techniques, thick and hybrid composites, as
well as the classification of the aforementioned NDT techniques based on their cost,
easy applicability, human reliability, and single-sided access restrictions should be
intensified. Our literature survey revealed that additional research is still warranted to
address all these challenges so that composites users and designers can have enough
tools available to them when making decisions about the specific design, mainte-
nance, repair, modeling, and repair of composite components, which are particularly
important steps towards saving resources, eliminating unplanned breakdown, and
providing a time window to conduct the maintenance and repair of the equipment.
9.2 Current Developments in the NDT of Fiber-Reinforced Composites 413

9.2 Current Developments in the NDT of Fiber-Reinforced

Composites

In fiber-reinforced composites, NDT&E processes aim at detecting and localizing

structural flaws in test structures, classifying their types, and determining their
severity (e.g., size, shape, distribution, etc.). However, different NDT techniques
perform differently and none of them does provide a full-scale description of defects
and/or damage in fiber-reinforced composite structures (i.e., a single NDT&E tech-
nique might not provide all these four functionalities) due to many issues from the
physical properties of the test structures to the detection capabilities or resolution of
the NDT technique. As an example, AE does provide a highly accurate damage detec-
tion, localization, and classification performance, but struggles to provide detailed
information about the damage orientation and severity in the test composite. More-
over, each AE event is a unique stress wave and cannot be stopped nor reproduced
due to the nature of the signal source. Perhaps the most challenging situation relates
to the inspection of slowly growing cracks using the AE testing technique. In this
case, the AE signal is generally weak making it difficult for AE sensors to detect
weak AE signals, and advanced signal processing techniques are generally required
to extract useful information from weak AE signals. Imaging NDT techniques such as
IRT and shearography do generally provide accurate damage detection, localization,
and severity quantification, but they fail to classify the different types of damage
modes, and their effectiveness decrease with increased defect depth [6]. Electro-
magnetic based testing techniques such as Eddy current testing (ECT) and electrical
testing (ET) are generally similar to IRT and shearography testing regarding the non-
contact and fast inspection, but this technique also presents many issues including its
unsuitability to inspect large-sized structures and complex geometries as well as its
inability to detect deeply buried defects/damage. To solve some of these issues, the
integration of several NDT techniques is often required as it provides many benefits
enabling the comprehensive damage/defect assessment, including damage detection,
localization, classification, and severity estimations, etc. Typically, the combinations
of IRT and shearography can provide 3 out of 4 functions that have been listed above,
as these two techniques cannot determine the different damage modes (i.e., matrix
crack, delamination). It is also worth noting that other factors may affect the deci-
sion to combine NDT techniques, including the inspection cost and complexity of
inspection setup. The adequate decision should consider all the influencing factors
to make a viable decision on which NDT methods to combine for accurate NDT
results.
In addition, the hybrid NDT techniques involving the use of artificial intelligence
(AI) tools provide even better results, thanks to the development of “Big Data” and
sensors technologies enabling these types of configurations. However, this type of
sensors and technological integration is generally costly as it contributes to prolonged
inspection and increased inspection capabilities. To date, the main challenge seems
to be the fact that most of the studies featuring a combination of NDT techniques do
generally not consider the cost factor nor do they establish a reasonable synergistic
414 9 Conclusions, Current Developments, and Prospects …

combination of NDT techniques based on the effectiveness and affordability but

rather on their availability alone [2]. To address this issue of random combinations
of NDT techniques, a recent study indicated that the selection of the most suitable
NDT technique for standalone or combined inspection systems based on specific
criteria requires the application of the analytical hierarchy process should be applied
which involves the decision-making tools enabling users to evaluate and rank the
different NDT techniques based on types of damages, accuracy, the test’s effective-
ness, the complexity of the application, equipment setup, and inspection costs [7–9].
Although these criteria are generally defined based on the available resources, sample
quality, and systems, the size of the composite samples is considered the most impor-
tant criterion that significantly affects the selection of the adequate NDT technique.
According to the authors’ experience, imaging techniques such as shearography, and
IRT, are the most favorable NDT techniques having the structure size and test time
as the dominant criteria, while THz imaging is the least performing technique for
the same case. Additional ongoing research also focuses on improving the hardware
systems on top of the software to reduce power consumption. It is noted that effi-
cient power consumption reduction through hardware development is achieved by
building small and low-power NDT devices.
In general, many NDT tests are periodically conducted but still fail to provide
adequate information about the real-time health status of composite structures such
as the damage initiation or damage progression in-between consecutive tests. As
such, the current shift is constantly directed toward the implementation of structural
health monitoring (SHM) to overcome the aforementioned problems related to the
use of NDT techniques and the periodic conduction issue directed research studies to
develop more efficient monitoring methods. A typical SHM system normally includes
diagnostic features such as damage detection (Level 1), damage localization (Level
2), as well as damage classification and severity estimation (Level 3), and prognostic
feature which generally involves the determination of the remaining useful life of
the damaged structures (Level 4). The drive to have an autonomous in-situ SHM
system is mainly due to the current technological development enabling the real-time
sensing capabilities and highly performing communication links between the testing
NDT kits and the analysis stations run by the NDT operators. Indeed, this feature
allows users to easily detect anomalies in the composite as early as possible, and
make decisions regarding the replacement of maintenance of the damaged structure
at reduced costs. In the case of fighter aircraft systems, for example, recent studies
suggest that in-situ inspection systems could save more than 40% of the inspection
time [10] and more than 20% of the inspection costs [10, 11]. Such systems are also
estimated to significantly cut down the maintenance costs by up to $5 million over
the structures’ lifetime [12]. It is clear that these savings are significantly high and the
current trends are focusing on reducing the size of the used sensors while improving
their long-range detection capabilities especially by developing and enhancing the
capabilities of using optical fiber, guided waves, self-sensing, and other flexible
sensors-based methods for in-situ SHM systems for the inspection of fiber-reinforced
composites.
9.2 Current Developments in the NDT of Fiber-Reinforced Composites 415

In recent years, the development of artificial intelligence (AI) based NDT tech-
niques has emerged as one of the most powerful methods for clustering and classi-
fying features that discriminate the different damage modes [13]. To date, NDT tech-
niques featuring machine learning and deep learning-based algorithms have trans-
formed the way we administer NDT services for the inspection of composite struc-
tures by providing users with the capabilities to perform automatic defects detection
and characterization and by minimizing the effects of noises and the varying opera-
tional conditions on the features of the composite sample being tested. However, in
light of the preceding discussion, it is not possible to define a superset of discrimi-
native features that could be used to distinguish between all kinds of damage modes
(e.g., delamination, matrix crack, fiber fracture, voids, etc.) in fibrous composite
structures, and simultaneously identify, quantify, and localize the particular types of
damage with the same set of discriminative features. In addition, there is no one-
size-fits-all when it comes to the application of AI algorithms for features detection
and characterization in fibrous composite materials. That is, one machine learning
strategy may successfully characterize one particular kind of damage, but fail to
detect and characterize others. As such, NDT engineers seeking to apply AI into their
testing design are required to select the most appropriate combination of discrim-
inative features and machine learning tools for their testing problems of interest.
Indeed, this seems to be an ongoing development, and several authors [13] have
already discussed the feasibility of such implementations. It is believed that conven-
tional machine learning algorithms (e.g., support vector machine, decision trees,
etc.) are computationally cost-effective, depends on low-end machines (normally
general-purpose CPUs), performs well even with a small amount of learning datasets,
and require handcrafted features from the source datasets, whereas, deep learning
algorithms (e.g., convolutional neural networks, deep auto-encoder, etc.) are compu-
tationally more expensive, depend on high-end computer systems (GPUs), require
large amount of learning datasets, and automatically extract discriminative features
from the raw input data (e.g., time/frequency domain signals and images).
In summary, the damage development and consequently their adverse effects on
the life of fiber-reinforced composite structures can be eliminated using effective
inspection and monitoring techniques with adequate testing procedures and signal
processing techniques based on NDT&E and/or SHM techniques (both in-situ and
ex-situ). In general, NDT&E allows for the detection, identification, and localization
of flaws and it is generally performed during the scheduled intervals of time. To this
end, NDT&E may at times fail to provide information detailing the damage initi-
ation and/or growth between the inspection intervals. To address this problem, the
current trend is moving toward the use of SHM. In addition to providing information
about damage detection and evaluation, SHM also provides additional information
regarding damage initiation and progression, and more importantly, SHM provides
relevant information about the remaining lifetime of the composite structure enabling
users to make an informed decision regarding the replacements and maintenance
schedules. SHM systems integrate advanced sensing technologies with adequate
data/image processing and post-processing algorithms which help to continuously
diagnose and monitor the health status of the structural systems under test [1, 2,
416 9 Conclusions, Current Developments, and Prospects …

5–7, 14]. However, one of the most drawbacks of the SHM systems restricting their
widespread adoption is that they impose additional weight and costs on the test
structures. Typically, the research suggests that the inclusion of an SHM system into
an aircraft system will contribute to the extra landing weight that could undoubt-
edly affect its operational payload by limiting subsequently limiting the maximum
number of passengers while equally affecting the revenue of the aircraft compa-
nies [12]. In ensuring the practical application of SHM techniques, light-weight
sensors or sensors with large detection range attributes are highly warranted and this
topic is already drawing considerable attention [15, 16]. Although some studies may
argue that NDT&E and SHM are fundamental types of different testing methods,
advancements in sensing technologies, big data communications systems, as well as
data processing and post-processing techniques used to handle and transfer testing
data from one system to another have made the distinctions between these tech-
niques less apparent [7]. In this context, inspectors should clearly understand the
current developments in NDT&E and in-situ SHM methods for damage character-
ization, to perform a seamless integration of SHM and NDT for the inspection of
fiber-reinforced composites.

9.3 Prospects in the NDT of Fiber-Reinforced Composites

In this book, the authors outlined the capabilities and limitations of the NDT tech-
niques used to identify/detect, locate and characterize defects, mechanical damage,
and their progression in composite structures. An overview of the principle of opera-
tion of each NDT technique was provided, though the theoretical part was minimized
because the authors wanted the content of the book to be more of an objective and
essential outline without boring their readers with unnecessary digressions. Although
some notions pertaining to composite materials and types of flaws were inserted in
the first chapter of this book, the main purpose was not to teach anything new on
this front but rather to facilitate the understanding of the importance of the NDT
techniques presented herein. In general, the literature survey demonstrates that the
development of the different NDT techniques largely depends on several factors
including the development of computer technology (hardware and software), data
acquisition and storage systems as well as data processing techniques. In their usage,
these technologies confer greater flexibility and an intuitive design approach to the
NDT engineers and technicians allowing them to achieve accurate inspection results
and be able to process and assess them to the best possible level [2, 17]. In fact, these
technological advancements are expected to continue to harness the convenience and
the cost-effectiveness of the NDT technologies, and it is believed that the introduc-
tion of more powerful, portable, and custom-design technology such as smartphones
and tablets will enable engineers to remotely control the NDT systems and to acquire
and analyze data from a distance. In addition, the ongoing hardware miniaturization
will eventually close up the gap between the inspection reliability of field-portable
equipment and robotics or laboratory systems.
9.3 Prospects in the NDT of Fiber-Reinforced Composites 417

In general human senses (i.e., most notably the eye and ear) constitute the first
step of NDT and they remain the most capable natural instruments, though most
people use them without even realizing it. They present several advantages over other
sophisticated NDT techniques viz. simplicity, rapidity, cost-effectiveness, minimal
equipment requirements, and can be performed while the test structure remains in
operation [18]. In addition, nearly all the data acquisition and processing techniques
are designed in a way that permits the human eye/brain processing system to best
acquire the data and determine both timely and appropriate course of action. Hence,
NDT engineers and technicians should use their senses correctly to perform prelimi-
nary inspections before using any much sophisticated NDT&E technique. Although
considerable advances have been achieved in the inspection of thin-skinned compos-
ites, limitations in thick composites such as aerospace composites (e.g., helicopter
rotor systems) and marine vessels (e.g., propulsion components and propeller blades)
are still prevalent and still not quantified [3]. An introduction of modern designs
that allow the integration of sensors and the possibility of performing data fusion
in high-strain sections as a standard part of the manufacturing process, rather than
add-on demonstrators for expensive or security-sensitive assets should be consid-
ered. The area NDT of composites is expected to be transformative for the entire
composite manufacturing industry. The use of robotics and other flexible automa-
tion, for example, is expected to replace the currently expensive and large footprint
stationary scanning NDT systems. Similarly, waterless stand-off NDT sensors (e.g.,
IRT, THz, laser ultrasonic sensors, etc.) are currently being developed to enable the
inspection of complex shapes/geometry composites, thinner laminates, and sharp
structures with sharp edges in a noncontact fashion and without any coupling media.
NDT techniques are expected to move into the earlier stages of the the life of the
composite (e.g., process of raw materials, manufacturing processes, etc.) and be
better integrated so that feedback will reduce costly flaws and repairs and improve
designs. The use of NDT techniques/sensors is also gaining considerable interest in
the control and monitoring of processes. Also, the development of automated defect
analysis and artificial intelligence (AI) systems are currently being developed and
used to increase the manufacturing throughput by reducing time-consuming manual
interactions and taking better advantage of the data collected.
In the manufacturing and in-service stages of fibrous composite structures, the
application of NDT data collection and analysis schemes will be better integrated
in the future as adequate synergistic combinations of different NDT techniques gets
developed [2] and both the 2D and 3D NDT data mapping on the test structures will
be used to increase the lifecycle and the effective utilization of composite structures,
including adequate maintenance/replacement related decision-making and prognos-
tics capabilities of the NDT engineers with update health status information. Among
the many NDT capabilities being developed to reduce composite structures’ in-
service exorbitant costs include the SHM systems using new on-board NDT sensors,
new NDT methods and tools to inspect confined/inaccessible spaces, and web-based
“remote expert” NDT system (i.e., NDT systems in which the evaluation of compos-
ites is performed by an off-site expert with limited or no on-site NDT support).
The application of UAV-based visual inspection is expected to provide pre-NDT
418 9 Conclusions, Current Developments, and Prospects …

assessments of where and when a full NDT must be performed. Interest develop-
ments are also concerned with the establishment of rapid methods for converting
NDT results into finite element models (FEM) for enhanced performance prediction
[19]. Automated or robotized systems with various NDT sensors or sensor arrays
are also expected to be developed soon to reduce manual inspections particularly
for commercial and military aircraft composite structures [20–22]. As one would
expect, some of the NDT techniques perform better than others while some others
have completely limited applications altogether. To this end, a more reliable and
more accurate diagnosis of the structural health of the composite would require a
concurrent combination of two or more NDT techniques. A multi-techniques tech-
nique would help inspectors to validate the adequacy of the diagnosis by confirming
the redundancy or complementarity of the measured data [23]. This is only feasible
if reliability tests are conducted on all the NDT to establish inspection limitations of
each technique vis-à-vis the application, the size of the damage, and the subsequent
material involved. Also, improved linkages between NDT and structural integrity
management will mean that the structural engineer can use NDT to a more quantita-
tive degree. However, the status quo is that either the entire part would be condemned,
or the defective region would be considered to have been removed and replaced
by empty space. To this end, quantitative 3D NDT data will allow a finite-element
structural model to take into account a percentage reduction in strength in a damaged
component, as determined by the nondestructive inspection, and then calculate the
residual strength of the structure.
In terms of their applications, NDT techniques are predominantly used for the
inspection of thin-skinned composite plates, leaving thick-section composite struc-
tures with complex structural geometries largely uninspected [3, 24]. It would be
interesting to assess how these NDT techniques would perform with complex and
thick hybrid structural designs. The resolution of different NDT techniques when it
comes to the inspection of composite structures should be studied extensively and
NDT practitioners/researchers should establish a clear classification of the different
NDT techniques outlining their cost, easy application, human reliability, single-
sided access restrictions, as well as the quantitative limitations for the inspection
of mission- and fatigue-critical structures. Advanced research would also allow
composite designers to have enough tools available to them while performing the
structural integrity modeling and making the maintenance-repair decision, which
would ultimately help in saving resources, eliminating unplanned breakdowns,
reducing downtime, and providing a timely window for maintenance-replacement
activities. It could also provide adequate information for quick reference to ensure
that the NDT engineers and practitioners have enough tools available to them while
selecting the most appropriate type of NDT to use while examining composite struc-
tures. Although the recent technological advancements have enabled the development
of smart NDT devices with enhanced sensing capabilities at micro or nano scales,
it is believed that additional research is still warranted to address some of the most
prevalent challenges limiting the implementation and cost-effectiveness of in-situ
NDT systems in the industry. Researchers should also focus on improving the sensor
technology by reducing the weight and improving the detection capabilities of NDT
9.3 Prospects in the NDT of Fiber-Reinforced Composites 419

sensors. It is also important to focus on research developments aiming at reducing

the overall power consumption of the available NDT systems or rendering them
self-powered to ensure adequate diagnostics and damage prognostics are performed
effectively with the least amount of power.

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