Enabling technologies for the health management of composite structures

Tandon G.P., Kang J.H., Kim R.Y., Rice B.P., Gagliardi N.A., Muench D., Liberson A., Walsh B., Roemer M..

Abstract:
In order to achieve more affordable aerospace structure reliability, specifically for advanced composite structures, a comprehensive health management implementation approach that includes some of today's most promising technologies for damage diagnosis and prognosis is required. This paper provides insight into the leading technologies applied to the identification and prediction of damage in an OEM jet engine composite fan case structure, where damage to the structure was imparted via the ballistic impact of a jet engine fan blade with subsequent quasi-static loading and orbit fatigue test. Health monitoring techniques utilizing intrinsic resistance measurements as well as extrinsic resistance using carbon nanofiber ink grids and an accelerometer-based sensor system were implemented to inspect the fan case during whole test processes. The capabilities and implementation approaches for these key methods in the context of a comprehensive structural health management (SHM) system are discussed in detail. The successful implementation of future SHM technologies as applied to aerospace structures will require a combination of both on-board and off-board technologies that can determine the damage state of a composite structure. The presented on-board stress wave measurement techniques provide the ability to continually monitor structural changes due to operational events, while monitoring relative changes for intrinsic conductivity within a structure can be performed in an off-line manner for detecting less time critical hidden damage.

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