Adhesive Joint During Tensile Test
Adhesive Joint Monitoring
The use of adhesive joints is becoming increasingly important in aerospace and other industries where traditional fasteners are discouraged. It is often necessary to assess joint integrity. Current methods using x-ray or ultrasound technology, however, are time-intensive, difficult to interpret, and require bulky equipment. In contrast, fiber optic sensors are much smaller, can provide engineers with accurate multi-dimensional strain measurements, and can be integrated into a new joint or retrofitted adjacent to an existing joint.
In testing, adhesive joints with integrated sensors showed a minimal decrease in joint strength compared to adjacently mounted sensors. Optical sensors are able to measure axial and transverse strain, as well as strain gradients in joints. By altering the orientation, shear strain can also be measured. The durability of the fiber means that data can be taken until joint failure, allowing for prediction or detection of ultimate failure.
The following published papers provide examples of some of our previous work on adhesive joint monitoring, in addition to discussion on the principles behind the sensors.
Monitoring Adhesive Joints
View all published papers
The above papers are in Adobe PDF format.
