Mechanical behaviour and identification of damage by acoustic emission of smart composites

Purpose - The smaller sizes of current electronic devices suggest the feasibility of creating a smart composite structure using piezoelectric implant to monitor in-situ and in-service conditions the life of civil and aerospace structures. Piezoelectric (lead zirconate-titanate (PZT)) sensors embedded within laminates composites represent a new branch of engineering with the potential to greatly enhance the confidence and use of these materials. The paper aims to discuss these issues. Design/methodology/approach - This study presents a health monitoring of laminates composites materials incorporating by piezoelectric (PZT) implant using acoustic emission (AE) technique. A series of specimens of laminate composite with and without embedded piezoelectric were tested in three-point bending tests in static and creep loading while continuously monitoring the response by the AE technique. The AE signals were analysed using the classification k-means method in order to identify the different damages and to follow the evolution of these various mechanisms for both types of materials (with and without embedded sensors). Findings - Comparing embedded sensor to sensor mounted on the surface, the embedded sensor showed a much higher sensitivity. It was thus verified that the embedded AE sensor had great potential for AE monitoring in fibre reinforced composites structures. Originality/value - Piezoelectric implant to monitor in-situ and in-service conditions the life of civil and aerospace structures.