Composite Pipe Assembly With Sacrificial Impact Indicator Sleeve
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Existing composite pipes, such as aircraft fuel pipes, face challenges in detecting impact damage, particularly Barely Visible Impact Damage (BVID), which can lead to catastrophic failures, and current solutions like additional composite layers increase size, weight, and cost.
Innovation Solution
A thin, impact-detecting sleeve is mounted around the composite pipe, spaced from the pipe body, which provides a visual indication of impact through cracking, color change, or deformation, allowing for early detection without adding significant weight or cost, and potentially protecting the inner pipe.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If additional layers of composite fibres are provided in the component to detect BVID, then damage detection capability is improved, but size, weight and cost of the component increase considerably
Solution Approach 1:
The damage detection function is segmented from the structural composite layers. Instead of using additional composite fibre layers within the pipe structure, a separate thin indicator sleeve is provided that can be visually inspected. This segmentation allows the detection function to be performed without adding significant weight to the structural layers.
Solution Approach 2:
An intermediary indicator sleeve is introduced between the external environment and the pipe body. This sleeve acts as a mediator that shows evidence of impact (through cracking, deformation, or color change) without requiring the pipe structure itself to be modified or weighed down with additional protective layers.
2Reliability
If additional layers of composite fibres are provided in the component to detect BVID, then damage detection capability is improved, but cost of the component increases considerably
Solution Approach 1:
The indicator sleeve is designed as a thin, relatively inexpensive component that can be easily manufactured and replaced. Rather than incorporating expensive additional composite layers into the pipe structure, a simple thin-walled sleeve is used that provides the detection function at lower cost and can be replaced if damaged.
3Weight of stationary object
If a thin sleeve is mounted around the pipe body spaced from the pipe, then impact detection is enabled without significant weight increase, but the sleeve may crack or deform without protecting the pipe body
Solution Approach 1:
The indicator sleeve provides partial protection by absorbing or deflecting some impact energy, but its primary function is detection rather than full protection. The sleeve is designed to sacrifice itself (crack or deform) to indicate damage, which is sufficient for the application since detection allows for timely replacement or repair of the pipe.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The solution enables quick and reliable detection of impact damage, reducing the risk of undetected failures while maintaining the lightweight and cost-effectiveness of composite pipes, and can be adapted for various composite components.
Implementation Method 1
The sleeve is preferably made of a thin brittle material which cracks on impact to provide a visible indication of the impact
Implementation Method 2
The sleeve may be in the form of a transparent sleeve containing a liquid that changes e.g. colour on impact
Data Source
AI summary
A pipe assembly comprising a composite pipe, and end connector provided at an end of the pipe, and means for providing a visual indication of impact damage to the pipe, the means for providing a visual indication of impact damage to the pipe comprising a thin sleeve mounted around, but spaced from, a pipe body of the composite pipe, whereby at each end of the pipe body, the pipe body, the sleeve and the end connector are preferably sealingly fitted together, and wherein the sleeve is configured to provide a visual indication indicative of an impact acting on the sleeve even if the impact does not reach the pipe body.