A review of non-destructive techniques used for mechanical damage assessment in polymer composites

Polymer composite materials are being increasingly used in primary load-bearing structures in several advanced industrial fields such as aerospace vessels, railway wagons and mega-scaled wind turbines where detection of subcritical damage initiation can significantly reduce safety issues and maintenance costs. It is therefore crucial to inspect these composite structures in order to assess their structural health and to ensure their integrity. Non-destructive testing techniques (NDT) are used for this purpose, making it possible to monitor mechanical damage of composite materials under in situ or ex situ service conditions. This paper reviews the capabilities of the most common NDT techniques used to inspect the integrity of composite materials. Each technique has a detection potential and cannot allow a full diagnosis of the mechanical damage state of the material. Thus, depending on the occurring damage mechanism and the conditions of use, one technique will be preferred over another, or several techniques should be combined to improve the diagnosis of the damage state of the structures.     

Thermal Decomposition Study on CuInSe$$_{}$$ Single Crystals

The thermal analysis of the chemical vapor transport (CVT)-grown \(\hbox {CuInSe}_{2}\) single crystals was carried out by recording the thermogravimetric, differential thermogravimetric and differential thermal analysis curves. All the three thermo-curves were recorded simultaneously by thermal analyzer in the temperature range of ambient to 1080 K in inert nitrogen atmosphere. The thermo-curves were recorded for four heating rates of 5 K \(\cdot \,\hbox {min}^{-1}\), 10 K \(\cdot \,\hbox {min}^{-1}\), 15 K \(\cdot \,\hbox {min}^{-1}\) and 20 K \(\cdot \,\hbox {min}^{-1}\). The TG curve analysis showed negligible mass loss in the temperature range of ambient to 600 K, stating the sample material to be thermally stable in this temperature range. Above 601 K to the temperature of 1080 K, the sample showed continuous mass loss. The DTG curves showed two peaks in the temperature range of 601 K to 1080 K. The corresponding DTA showed initial minor exothermic nature followed by endothermic nature up to nearly 750 K and above it showed exothermic nature. The initial exothermic nature is due to absorbed water converting to water vapor, whereas the endothermic nature states the absorption of heat by the sample up to nearly 950 K. Above nearly 950 K the exothermic nature is due to the decomposition of sample material. The absorption of heat in the endothermic region is substantiated by corresponding weight loss in TG. The thermal kinetic parameters of the CVT-grown \(\hbox {CuInSe}_{2}\) single crystals were determined employing the non-mechanistic Kissinger relation. The determined kinetic parameters support the observations of the thermo-curves.     

A robust software watermarking framework using shellcode

Multimedia Tools and Applications - Watermarks have long been applied to ensure the authenticity of media contents. Computer software is an intellectual outcome in the digital domain. Therefore, it...     

An efficient method for PET image denoising by combining multi-scale transform and non-local means

Multimedia Tools and Applications - The diagnosis of dementia, particularly in the early stages is very much helpful with Positron emission tomography (PET) image processing. The most important...     

Physicochemical and Adhesion Characteristics of High-Density Polyethylene when Treated in a Low-Pressure Plasma under Different Electrodes

The present investigation studys the effects of different electrodes such as copper, nickel, and stainless steel under low-pressure plasma on physicochemical and adhesion characteristics of high-density polyethylene (HDPE). To estimate the extent of surface modification, the surface energies of the polymer surfaces exposed to low-pressure plasmas have been determined by measuring contact angles using two standard test liquids of known surface energies. It is observed that the surface energy and its polar component increase with increasing exposure time, attain a maximum, and then decrease. The increase in surface energy and its polar component is relatively more important when the polymer is exposed under a stainless-steel electrode followed by a nickel and then a copper electrode. The dispersion component of surface energy remains almost unaffected. The surfaces have also been studied by optical microscopy and electron spectroscopy for chemical analysis (ESCA). It is observed that when the HDPE is exposed under these electrodes, single crystals of shish kebab structure form, and the extent of formation of crystals is higher under a stainless-steel electrode followed by nickel and then copper electrodes. Exposure of the polymer under low-pressure plasma has essentially incorporated oxygen functionalities on the polymer surface as detected by ESCA. Furthermore the ESCA studies strongly emphasize that higher incorporation of oxygen functionalities are obtained when the polymer is exposed to low-pressure plasma under a stainless-steel electrode followed by nickel and then copper electrodes. These oxygen functionalities have been transformed into various polar functional groups, which have been attributed to increases in the polar component of surface energy as well as the total surface energy of the polymer. Therefore, the maximum increase in surface energy results in stronger adhesion of the polymer when the polymer is exposed under a stainless-steel electrode rather than nickel and copper electrodes.     

Effect of electron beam radiation on mechanical and electrical properties of poly(ethylene-co-vinyl acetate)

Ethylene-vinyl acetate (EVA) copolymer (12% vinyl acetate content) is subjected to electron beam irradiation using trimethylolpropane trimethacrylate (TMPTMA) as a radiation sensitizer. Mechanical and electrical studies of these irradiated samples show that the strength properties (tensile strength, elongation at break) are increased with radiation dosage up to an optimum radiation dose and sensitizer level above which the properties begin to deteriorate. Crosslinking of the polymer takes place on irradiation which is attributed to an increased gel content with increasing radiation dose. Compared to the original samples both dielectric constant and dielectric loss factor decrease for samples subjected to irradiation.     

Effect of Aramid Pulp and Lapinas Fiber on the Friction and Wear Behavior of NBR Powder–Modified Phenolic Resin Composite

Short fiber reinforcement plays a definite role in governing the performance of a composite through the improvement of different material properties. The present investigation deals with the effect of aramid pulp and lapinas fiber on the friction and wear characteristics of a composite made from phenolic resin modified by powdered acrylonitrile butadiene rubber (NBR) on a pin-on-disc tribometer. Four composites, containing 10, 20, 30, and 40 wt% of aramid pulp with respect to phenolic resin content, were prepared. Another four composites, containing 50, 100, 200, and 300 wt% of lapinas fiber with respect to phenolic resin content, were also made. It was found that the two different fibers have distinctly different contributions to the friction and wear properties of the composites. It was also found that the incorporation of aramid pulp enhances friction stability of the composites much better than that of lapinas fiber. The change in surface morphology of these composites was studied by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) before and after the friction test. SEM images of friction samples containing aramid pulp corroborated the occurrence of wear through an adhesive wear mechanism, whereas the lapinas fiber–containing composites showed an abrasive wear mechanism.     

Role of polyfunctional organic molecules in the synthesis and assembly of metal nanoparticles

The role of polyfunctional organic molecules in the synthesis of differently shaped metallic nanostructures and their assembly is investigated. These molecules could be used as spacer ligands and also for surface passivation of nanoparticles, especially with the objective of controlling their electronic and optical properties depending on their length scales. We investigate the role of several such molecules, such as 4-aminothiophenol, tridecylamine, Bismarck brown R and Y, mordant brown, fat brown, chrysoidin (basic orange), and 3-aminobenzoic acid in the synthesis and assembly of various nanoparticles of gold and silver. For example, the use of 4-ATP helps in the formation of rod shaped micelles in aqueous acetonitrile as confirmed by transmission electron microscopy (TEM) suggesting their role as soft templates. In addition, 4-ATP has also been used for the formation of heteroassembly of spherical nanoparticles of gold and silver at controlled pH. Significantly, triangular and hexagonal gold nanoplates are formed at room temperature by similar polyfunctional dye molecule, Bismarck brown R (BBR), while other analogous dye molecules give only arbitrary shaped gold nanoparticles. Further confirmation of their role in shape determination comes from linear amine molecules such as tridecylamine, which give only spherical nanoparticles both for silver and gold. In essence, our study confirms the role of various such organic molecules in shape controlled synthesis of nanoparticles. We also report optical and electrochemical properties of few of these nanostructures as a function of their shape.     

Electrical and mechanical properties of conducting carbon black filled composites based on rubber and rubber blends

The electrical and mechanical properties of new conductive rubber composites based on ethylene–propylene–diene rubber, acrylonitrile butadiene rubber (NBR), and their 50/50 (weight ratio) blend filled with conductive black were investigated. The threshold concentrations for achieving high conductivity are explained on the basis of the viscosity of the rubber. The electrical conductivity increases with the increase in temperature whereas the activation energy of conduction decreases with an increase in filler loading and NBR concentration in the composites. The electrical hysteresis and electrical set are observed during the heating–cooling cycle, which is mainly due to some kind of irreversible change occurring in the conductive networks during heating. The mechanisms of conduction in these systems are discussed in the light of different theories. © 1999 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci 71: 887–895, 1999     

Thermal and mechanical properties of polymer‐nanocomposites based on ethylene methyl acrylate and multiwalled carbon nanotube

The ethylene methyl acrylate copolymer (EMA) and multiwalled carbon nanotube (MWNT) based composites were prepared by solution mixing as well as by melt processing of the films obtained after solution mixing. Field emission scanning electron microscopy, transmission electron microscopy, and XRD were used to characterize morphologies of various composites. MWNTs were found to be more dispersed in the composites prepared by melt process after solution process. There was no obvious agglomeration of MWNTs at lower % loading (up to 2.5%) in the polymer matrices especially the composites are prepared solution plus melt mixing and consequently better interaction between MWNTs and EMA matrix was anticipated. XRD and differential scanning calorimetry studied showed that the nanotubes affect the crystallization process and subsequently their role as a nucleating agent was established. These are reflected in the mechanical properties of the composites. Dynamic mechanical analysis showed that the storage modulus of the composites drop very sharply beyond 2.5 wt% of MWNT content with increasing % strain and it reflects the Payne effect (a substantial decrease in the storage modulus of a particle‐reinforced polymer with an increase in the amplitude of dynamic oscillations). The influence of concentration of filler was also realized by frequency sweep experiment. The incorporation of MWNTs in EMA offered a stabilizing effect since onset of degradation occurs at higher temperatures for composites. POLYM. COMPOS., 31:1168–1178, 2010. © 2009 Society of Plastics Engineers