NDT for CFRP aeronautical components a comparative study

Carbon fibre reinforced polymers (CFRP) have become a material of emerging interest for aeronautical structures. This requires this material to be qualified by means of NDT. However this qualification is currently time consuming with NDT techniques being considered state-of-the-art in aeronautics and hence established in industry. In excess damage mechanisms and their progression rate is so far hardly known which would allow damage tolerance criteria to be set for those materials making them possibly even lighter weight. In a comparative assessment different techniques such as X-ray based computed tomography, Sampling Phased Array ultrasonics, eddy current or thermography have been used for monitoring different CFRP components with artificial flaws, having not been known to the inspectors prior to the experiment. The presentation will provide the results of the analysis in terms of resolution, time and effort elapsed and will give some indications with regard to state-of-the-art of the different technologies considered and potentials of those in terms of future developments.