Eddy current pulsed phase thermography considering volumetric induction heating for delamination evaluation in carbon fiber reinforced polymers

Anisotropy and inhomogeneity of carbon fiber reinforced polymers (CFRPs) result in that many traditional non-destructive inspection techniques are inapplicable on the delamination evaluation. This letter introduces eddy current pulsed phase thermography (ECPPT) for CFRPs evaluation considering volumetric induction heating due to small electrical conductivity, abnormal thermal wave propagation, and Fourier analysis. The proposed methods were verified through experimental studies under transmission and reflection modes. Using ECPPT, the influence of the non-uniform heating effect and carbon fiber structures can be suppressed, and then delamination detectability can be improved dramatically over eddy current pulsed thermography. (C) 2015 AIP Publishing LLC.