Voids in polymer matrix composites are one of the most common manufacturing defects, which may influence the mechanical properties and structural behavior of the final parts made of composites by various manufacturing methods. Therefore, numerous non-destructive testing (NDT) techniques were developed and applied for quality control and in-service testing of such structures. In this paper, the authors analyzed various alternatives to the reference technique, X-ray computed tomography (XCT) NDT, which is used for industrial testing of composite disks having defects in the form of the lower density areas. Different candidates, namely: vibration-based testing, infrared thermography, vibro-thermography, as well as ultrasonic testing were analyzed in terms of their sensitivity and technical feasibility. The quality of the results, the complexity of the testing procedure, time and labor consumption, and the cost of the equipment were analyzed and compared with the reference technique. Based on the conducted research the authors finally proposed a hybrid approach to quality control, using a combination of two NDT techniques–infrared thermography (for initial scanning and detection of near-surface defects) and ultrasonic testing (for a more detailed analysis of products that pass the first testing procedure). It allowed for replacing the costly XCT diagnostics with a much cheaper, but almost equally effective, alternative.
X-ray computed tomography is more often applied in non-destructive testing the quality of construction elements significantly crucial for reliability and safety of device elements, machines and complex industrial systems. This article describes the computed tomography (CT) system used to inspect the technical condition of turbine blades of the aircraft engine. The impact of the experimental conditions on the correctness of the obtained results was determined. The appropriate selection of parameters for the experiment was given, and the correct test results of gas turbine blades were presented. Failures, manufacturing defects, material deviations of nickel-cobalt alloyed blades were identified. The thickness of walls was measured in the selected cross-sections with the accuracy of 0.01 mm, and selected manufacturing defects of cooling passages were diagnosed. It was demonstrated that the application of the CT system allows for detailed non-destructive inspection of the technical condition of machine parts. The test results proved that the X-ray computed tomography could be applied in the production and repairs of machines.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.