Nondestructive Damage Characterization of Alumina Ceramics

Abstract

A qualitative evaluation of surface and bulk damage and a quantitative percent damage assessment were used to compare the integrity of several nondestructive characterization techniques. X-ray digital radiography and ultrasound C-scan imaging were compared for their ability to detect damage in aluminum-backed alumina test samples. Incremental damage was produced by two different methods, including high-mass, low-velocity drop tower testing for large crack and low mass generation, and highvelocity fragment-simulating projectile testing for hairline crack generation. Surface damage was analyzed by visual inspection as a baseline before utilizing digital radiography and C-scan imaging. While both nondestructive techniques were able to detect the full extent of surface damage, C-scan imaging was more effective at detecting internal damage in the alumina samples, finding a significant number of cracks that were not detected through digital radiography. A corresponding assessment of a quantitative damage percent revealed higher and more accurate values from the C-scan images as compared to the digital radiography images due to the increased detection of bulk damage.

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Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
Jul 01, 2009
Accession Number
ADA512542

Entities

People

  • James M. Sands
  • Jian Yu
  • Raymond E. Brennan
  • William H. Green

Organizations

  • United States Army Research Laboratory

Tags

Communities of Interest

  • Energy and Power Technologies

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Acoustic Impedance
  • Acoustic Waves
  • Damage Assessment
  • Detection
  • Detectors
  • Digital Images
  • Inspection
  • Materials
  • Military Research
  • Projectiles
  • Radiography
  • Test And Evaluation
  • Test Methods
  • Two Dimensional
  • Ultrasounds
  • Visual Inspection
  • X Rays

Fields of Study

  • Physics

Readers

  • Facility/Structural Engineering.
  • Materials Science (Mechanical Engineering).
  • Medical Imaging.