Detection of corrosion using piezoelectric impedance-based structural health monitoring

Document Type

Article

Publication Date

11-1-2006

Abstract

The use of piezoelectric impedance-based structural health monitoring (SHM) techniques to detect corrosion in aircraft was investigated. A 6063 T5 aluminum beam with thickness of 0.159 cm was used for corrosion testing using 33 baseline impedance measurement. Environmental chamber and corrosive sprays were used to accelerate corrosion growth. The corrosion index which defines light (25.4 μm or less), light/moderate (25.4 μm-76.2 μm), and moderate/severe (greater than 254μm ) corrosion in terms of the average pit depth, was used to quantify the extent of corrosion. The pit depth was measured before corrosion using a PDI Surfometer Series 400 profilometer. It was observed that impedance curve shifted continuously with addition of location of corrosion. Result shows that piezoelectric impedance-based structural health monitoring (SHM) technique can identify corrosion at distances up to 1.5m and can effectively track the progression of the damage.

Publication Title

AIAA Journal

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