Comparative study on submillimeter flaws in stitched T-joint carbon fiber reinforced polymer by infrared thermography, microcomputed tomography, ultrasonic c-scan and microscopic inspection

Stitching is used to reduce dry-core (incomplete infusion of T-joint core) and reinforce T-joint structure. However, it may cause new types of flaws, especially submillimeter flaws. Microscopic inspection, ultrasonic c-scan, pulsed thermography, vibrothermography, and laser spot thermography are used to investigate the internal flaws in a stitched T-joint carbon fiber-reinforced polymer (CFRP) matrix composites. Then, a new microlaser line thermography is proposed. Microcomputed tomography (microCT) is used to validate the infrared results. A comparison between microlaser line thermography and microCT is performed. It was concluded that microlaser line thermography can detect the internal submillimeter defects. However, the depth and size of the defects can affect the detection results. The microporosities with a diameter of less than 54 μm are not detected in the microlaser line thermography results. Microlaser line thermography can detect the microporosity (a diameter of 0.162 mm) from a depth of 90 μm. However, it cannot detect the internal microporosity (a diameter of 0.216 mm) from a depth of 0.18 mm. The potential causes are given. Finally, a comparative study is conducted.