Composite Test Blade Fabrication for Tomography Calibration
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing non-destructive tomography methods for inspecting turbomachine blades made of three-dimensionally woven composite materials face challenges in detecting defects like resin clumps, requiring a calibrated test blade with known resin clumps for accurate inspection.
Innovation Solution
A method to fabricate a test blade by weaving a three-dimensional blank with synthetic fibers, inserting solid-state resin elements at predetermined locations, and injecting resin under pressure into a mold to simulate resin clumps, ensuring the test blade accurately represents the defects for calibration.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If solid-state resin elements are inserted into the woven blank before resin injection, then the test blade can be calibrated with known resin clump positions and dimensions, but the high injection pressure and temperature may alter the positions or integrity of these preinserted elements
Solution Approach 1:
The resin elements are inserted into the woven blank in advance, before the resin injection process. This preliminary action allows the test blade to be pre-calibrated with known reference objects at specific positions and dimensions, enabling accurate calibration of the tomography system while protecting the elements from the harsh injection conditions through proper positioning and securing within the blank structure
2Adaptability or versatility
If resin elements of different dimensions are used to simulate resin clumps, then the tomography system can be calibrated to detect various sizes of defects, but the complexity of selecting and positioning multiple sized elements increases
Solution Approach 1:
The calibration process is segmented into discrete resin elements of different standardized dimensions (e.g., 2mm to 10mm diameters). Each element represents a specific defect size category, allowing the tomography system to be calibrated for multiple defect scales through a systematic, modular approach rather than requiring continuous variation of element sizes
Solution Approach 2:
Different regions of the test blade contain resin elements with locally optimized dimensions appropriate for detecting defects at those specific locations. The element sizes are tailored to match the expected defect size distribution in different blade zones, enhancing detection sensitivity where needed while maintaining manageable overall complexity
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 method allows for effective calibration of tomography systems to detect and evaluate resin clumps and other defects in turbomachine blades, enhancing the accuracy of non-destructive inspections without altering the preinserted resin elements' positions or integrity.
Implementation Method 1
injecting resin under pressure into said mold to obtain said test blade
Implementation Method 2
the injection of liquid resin under pressure and the subsequent treatment at high temperature did not significantly modify the positions and the integrity of the solid resin elements
Implementation Method 3
the injection of liquid resin under pressure and the subsequent treatment at high temperature did not significantly modify the positions and the integrity of the solid resin elements
Data Source
AI summary
Fabricating a test blade including defects for calibrating a tomography installation for verifying similar blades. A three-dimensional blank is made by weaving fibers of synthetic material and elements of resin in the solid state are inserted into predetermined locations in said blank prior to coating it in resin.