SYMPOSIA PAPER Published: 01 January 1985
STP36321S

Thermographic Inspection of Carbon Epoxy Structures

Source

In-service damage to composite fighter aircraft structures is normally readily observed visually; often very serious damage can be identified as such by the visual observer. However, it is impossible to see whether or not nondestructive inspection (NDI) is warranted at sites consisting solely of surface scratches and dents because of the possibility of impact damage and other damages which appear superficial but may be significant. The tendency, therefore, has been to quantitatively inspect every dent and scratch observed on composite structures during field NDI to avoid overlooking a serious damage site. The purpose of the efforts reported in this paper is to eliminate this practice by providing a fast, inexpensive, large-area NDI tool capable of screening out superficial damage from serious damage.

Author Information

Hillman, DJ
McDonnell Aircraft Company, McDonnell Douglas Corp., St. Louis, MO
Hillman, RL
McDonnell Aircraft Company, McDonnell Douglas Corp., St. Louis, MO
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Details
Developed by Committee: D30
Pages: 481–493
DOI: 10.1520/STP36321S
ISBN-EB: 978-0-8031-4941-0
ISBN-13: 978-0-8031-0414-3