Infrared thermography for void mapping of a graphene/epoxy composite and its full‐field thermal simulation

Abstract

Abstract Important challenges are faced during the manufacturing of graphene nanoplatelet (GNP)/polymer composites, associated with material quality and how to eliminate or reduce fabrication‐induced defects in the effort to improve performance. In the present work, infrared thermography (IRT) is used to measure void content and map void distribution, formed during fabrication of GNP/epoxy nanocomposites. Taking into consideration the size of each pixel (~100 μm), this method enables the non‐destructive detection of flaws with a size of approximately 200 μm. Their effect on thermal conductivity of the nanocomposite is studied by a 3D multiscale finite element analysis. Generic and full‐field comparisons demonstrate a good agreement between measurements and numerical predictions, validating assumptions and simplifications made in the proposed model.