Friday, September 26, 2008
2008 R&D 100 Winner
Fiber-reinforced polymer matrix composites (PMCs) are among the most common materials in use in modern aircraft. In fact, the new Boeing 787 is 50% composite by weight compared with just 12% composite by weight in the Boeing 777. However, the resin matrices are susceptible to heat damage, and in particular suffer from loss of inter-laminar shear strength. The Laser-Induced Fluorescence (LIF) Composite Heat Damage Detector was developed by Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Oak Ridge, Tenn., and Galt Technology LLC, Knoxville, Tenn., with rapid and non-destructive heat damage assessment of PMCs in mind. The LIF unit contains an excitation laser, a spectrometer, a linear-array photomultiplier tube detector, and an analog-to-digital converter. The detector collects fluorescence spectral information from suspected damaged areas, which is then correlated with thermal history data from PMC samples. Controlled via laptop, the LIF is marked advantage over previous methods, which were limited to ultrasonic inspection and visual observations.
Technology
Heat damage detector
Developers
Oak Ridge National Laboratory
Galt Technology LLC
