Prediction of Initiation Site of Destruction of Flat Braided Carbon Fiber Composites Using HTS-SQUID Gradiometer

Carbon fiber reinforced polymers (CFRPs) are composite materials with lightweight and high specific strength. As the braided CFRPs have continuous carbon-fiber bundles in their longitudinal direction, they are stronger than conventional CFRPs. In this study, we applied a current-injection-based NDE method using a HTS-SQUID gradiometer to the flat braided CFRPs with and without carbon nanotubes (CNTs), and estimated conditions of the carbon fibers while applying a step-by-step tensile load to the CFRPs. From the results, a possibility to predict an initiation site of the destruction in the braided CFRPs was demonstrated.