Quality assurance of composite materials
Testing of composite components is critical to ensure safe use and performance. It serves to ensure safety by identifying potential hazards and structural defects at an early stage. Likewise, it ensures compliance with specified quality standards.
The reliability of composite components is ensured by testing to ensure that they can withstand the stresses to which they will be subjected in their intended application. This is particularly important in safety-critical industries such as aerospace and transportation. Testing also enables optimization of the performance of composite components. Through targeted testing and analysis, engineers can gain insights to make components lighter, stronger and more efficient, resulting in improved products. In summary, composite part testing is an essential step to ensure product safety, quality, reliability, and performance.
Various composite materials and processes
Composite materials are versatile materials consisting of various combinations of reinforcing fibers and matrix materials. Common varieties include glass fiber-reinforced plastics (GFRPs), carbon fiber-reinforced plastics (CFRPs), aramid fiber-reinforced plastics (AFRPs), natural fiber-reinforced plastics (NFRPs), aluminum matrix composites (AMCs), honeycomb structures, metal matrix composites (MMCs), polymer concrete and foam core composites. The selection of the appropriate composite material depends on the specific requirements of the application, such as mechanical properties, weight, and environmental conditions. Accordingly, the requirements for material testing are also very diverse.
Composite inspection - typical defects
Air bubbles or voids can become trapped during resin injection or lamination, resulting in reduced strength and durability of the part.
Delamination refers to the detachment or separation of layers within the composite part. This can be caused by insufficient adhesion between layers of material or by mechanical stresses during manufacture or in service.
Irregular or uneven distribution of reinforcing fibers can lead to weak spots in the component and affect the mechanical properties.
If the reinforcing fibers are not properly aligned, it can lead to a reduction in the strength and stiffness of the component.
Incomplete or uneven impregnation of reinforcing fibers with resin can lead to localized weak spots and reduce strength.
Ingress of foreign bodies or impurities during manufacturing can lead to localized defects and affect the overall quality of the part.
Gas bubbles or voids can form during resin curing and reduce the strength of the part.
X-ray inspection for quality assurance of composite components
X-ray inspection plays an important role in the inspection of composite parts and offers several advantages and opportunities:
Internal defect detection
Quality control
Material characterization
Avoiding misinterpretation
Fast performance
CT scans for 3D analysis
Non-destructive
No water
Choosing the right inspection system for composites
VCxray offers a variety of solutions for composite part inspection.
Testing at the end of the manufacturing process is of particular importance. Here, our customers can choose from an extensive portfolio of manual, semi-automatic, and fully automatic systems. Depending on how demanding the required cycle time is, the system is designed. Since composite parts are often very large, customized X-Line solutions are required in these cases.
Choosing the right system can be complex, and a good decision must weigh many parameters such as size, speed, cost, etc. Contact our product specialists for further advice.
Contact us today
Improve the quality and safety of your components with our state-of-the-art X-ray systems and CT systems. Contact us today to learn more about our material inspection solutions. Our team is always available to answer your questions and develop a customized solution for your needs.
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