Open crack depth sizing by laser stimulated infrared lock-in thermography

Abstract

Recent advances in infrared imaging have made active thermography an interesting non destructive technique for sub-surface defect detection. Here, we present a method for the estimation of the depth of open surface defects by infrared lock-in thermography, based on the relation between the crack depth and the Laplacian of the surface temperature distribution induced by a local heating using a laser. A comparison to numerical finite element modelling for different depths allows an accurate determination of fatigue crack depth in Inconel alloy test blocks.