CSIR develops non-destructive technique to detect damage in aircraft

The Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) has developed a non-destructive evaluation (NDE) framework to detect damage in aircraft components by using ultrasonic guided waves, offering a faster and more cost-effective method over conventional techniques. This will improve aircraft safety and maintenance through reliable damage detection and will benefit not only the civil aviation sector but also be useful for the armed forces in their day-to-day functioning as well as assessments for life extension programmes. Researchers at CSIR’s National Aerospace Laboratory (NAL) demonstrated the use of low-frequency guided wave-based damage detection in aircraft structures. They found that significant wavefield interruptions indicated damage presence in a component while pristine structures showed smooth wave patterns. Amplified wave mode responses confirmed damage detection accuracy and effective localisation of multiple affected zones validated the robustness of the detection framework. Guided wave-based detection technology has emerged as a frontrunner among NDE techniques for assessing damage in engineering structures due to its operational simplicity and ability for long-range inspection with minimal energy loss. Their findings have been published in Mechanical Systems and Signal Processing, a peer reviewed interdisciplinary journal on mechanical, aerospace and civil engineering published in the United States. NDE is a non-invasive method of examining aircraft components and structures for flaws or defects without causing any damage to the parts being inspected. It allows engineers to detect cracks, corrosion, weakening or other anomalies that could compromise the structural integrity of aircraft components, thereby preventing catastrophic failures. These are more accurate that traditional physical means of evaluation. According to the researchers, the NDE of aircraft structures is conducted using a variety of techniques, such as ultrasonic testing, X-ray, eddy current testing and active thermography. Each technique possesses its own set of benefits and drawbacks, such as radiation emission concerns, high costs, restricted application for particular detection targets, unclear sensitivity and similar features. Laser shearography and ultrasonic C-scan methods are also extensively used for damage evaluation, but these approaches have shown a tendency to be very time consuming. These observations underscored the need for a NDE technique that is cost-effective, time-efficient, and offers enhanced sensitivity to damage. The researchers at NAL chose to use phased array ultrasonic testing and radiography methods, which showed decreasing sensitivity with increasing distance from the sensor, despite requiring less time.

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