Structural health monitoring of an adhesively bonded CFRP aircraft fuselage by ultrasonic Lamb Waves. (October 2020)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Weiland, J; Hesser, DF; Xiong, W; Schiebahn, A; Markert, B; Reisgen, U
• Other Names: da Silva Lucas FM guest-editor.; Adams Robert D guest-editor.; Sato Chiaki guest-editor.; Dilger Klaus guest-editor.
• Is Part Of: Proceedings of the Institution of Mechanical Engineers. Volume 234:Number 13(2020)
• Page Start: 2000
• Page End: 2010
• Publication Date: 2020-10
• Subjects: Structural health monitoring -- damage detection -- ultrasonic Lamb Waves -- RAPID (reconstruction algorithm for the probabilistic inspection of damage) -- adhesive bonding -- structural integrity -- aviation -- aircraft structure; Aeronautics -- Periodicals; Astronautics -- Periodicals; Airplanes -- Design and construction -- Periodicals; Aerospace industries -- Periodicals; 629.1
• DOI: 10.1177/0954410020950511
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 0954-4100

Abstract

The aviation industry faces the challenge of offering aircraft that are lighter, more economical, and safer. One of the solutions is to increase the use of composites. For these materials, adhesive bonding has proven to be the appropriate joining technology. To check these adhesive joints, costly and time-consuming maintenance measures are carried out. An intelligent Structural Health Monitoring (SHM) system can extend these intervals and allow the use of a predictive maintenance system. This paper describes the method of Ultrasonic Lamb Waves for monitoring a adhesively bonded Carbon Fiber Reinforced Polymer (CFRP) aircraft fuselage. Prior to this, the production of a segment of a fuselage and the characterization of the materials (CFRP and adhesive) is shown. Afterwards the method of Ultrasonic Lamb Waves with the use of piezoelectric transducers and signal processing based on the Reconstruction Algorithm for Probabilistic Inspection of Damage (RAPID) algorithm are explained. At the end, the experimental evaluation of an undamaged and a damaged fuselage structure is done. The results have shown the possibility of RAPID algorithm for damage detection on adhesive. An outlook on future work is given.