Early detection of damage mechanisms in composites during fatigue tests

Conventional procedures and methods used for evaluating the fatigue performance of materials require time consuming tests with high number of specimens. In the last years different methods have been developed with the aim to reduce the testing time and then the cost of the experimental campaign. In this regard, thermographic methods represent a useful tool for rapid evaluating the fatigue damage and the fatigue limit. This work puts forward a novel procedure for assessing the fatigue limit and monitoring damage in GFRP material by means of thermography. In view of this, the proposed method allows for inferring several information related to the damage phenomena in composite materials, and, moreover, the reported results show a good agreement with those provided by the conventional procedures.