Structural Health Monitoring For Advanced Composite Structures

Book excerpt: Structural health monitoring (SHM) is a relatively new and alternative way of non-destructive inspection (NDI). It is the process of implementing a damage detection and characterization strategy for composite structures. The basis of SHM is the application of permanent fixed sensors on a structure, combined with minimum manual intervention to monitor its structural integrity. These sensors detect changes to the material and/or geometric properties of a structural system, including changes to the boundary conditions and system connectivity, which adversely affect the system's performance.This book's primary focus is on the diagnostics element of SHM, namely damage detection in composite structures. The techniques covered include the use of Piezoelectric transducers for active and passive Ultrasonics guided waves and electromechanical impedance measurements, and fiber optic sensors for strain sensing. It also includes numerical modeling of wave propagation in composite structures. Contributed chapters written by leading researchers in the field describe each of these techniques, making it a key text for researchers and NDI practitioners as well as postgraduate students in a number of specialties including materials, aerospace, mechanical and computational engineering.