Phased array scanning of artificial and impact damage in carbon fibre reinforced plastic (CFRP)

Abstract

Carbon Fibre Reinforced Plastic (CFRP) materials are increasingly being used in modern civilian aircraft for structural applications. There is an urgent need to detect and classify delamination defects and evaluate the threat to the integrity of the component in-service. This paper presents a study to evaluate the use of ultrasonic phased array (PA) technology for this purpose. Linear array ultrasonic probes are used to scan CFRP panels that contain both Teflon simulated delaminations and Barely Visible Impact Damage (BVID) caused by drop weight impacting. The advantages and disadvantages of using PA technology for thin composite material components are discussed.