Publications

One of the important microscale properties that determine a composite's performance is the fiber-matrix interface strength. Research has primarily been focused on the interface strength under shear loading, while studies on interface strength under normal loading are limited. Nevertheless, normal loading is very relevant, for example to understand failure mechanisms in 90 degrees plies. Therefore, in this work, we modified a single fiber ...

This paper presents a novel Finite Element (FE) simulation approach to examine the mode I fracture of thick adhesive joints used particularly in the trailing edge of the wind turbine blades. The approach involved FE models of the DCB specimens focusing on aspects overlooked in the existing literature. There has been limited investigation on residual stresses caused by thermal mismatch between composites and adhesives. Similarly, the impact of ...

There is very limited research in the literature investigating the way acoustic emission signals change when polymer materials are undergoing different fracture modes. This study investigates the capability of acoustic emission to recognize the fracture mode through acoustic emission parameter analysis, and can be considered the first-ever study which examines the impact of different loading conditions, i.e., fracture mode I, mode II, and mode ...

Wind turbine blades pose a major recycling challenge due to their complex composition of thermoset polymers embedded in fiber-reinforced composites. This study presents a cost-effective and scalable approach using covalent adaptable networks based on β-aminoester curing agents for epoxy resins, specifically tailored to meet the requirements of the wind turbine blade industry. The formulation offers low mixed viscosity (<100 mPa·s) and ...

The vibrational response of structural components carries valuable information about their underlying mechanical properties, health status and operational conditions. This underscores the need for the development of efficient physics-based inversion algorithms which, given a limited set of sensing data points and in the presence of measurement noise, can reconstruct the response at locations where measurement data is not available and/or ...

During the life of a composite part, the need of repair due to delamination may arise, especially since the reuse of composites is being promoted as a sustainable management solution for composite waste. For thermoset composite parts, which are commonly used for wind-energy blades' manufacturing, the repair process can be costly and long as the damaged area needs to be removed and replaced. In the present work, a siloxane-based-vitrimer ...

The widespread preference for tropical wood species in guitar neck manufacturing is increasingly challenged by the declining availability of these resources, creating an urgent need for sustainable alternatives. This study compared the deflection stability of 17 wood species used for classical guitar necks under long-term string tension and varying humidity conditions, focusing on the performance of tropical woods and potential European ...

Unsupervised learning methods, and in particular clustering algorithms, have found many applications in manufacturing, ranging from customer segmentation to quality monitoring. It has, however, been demonstrated that no clustering algorithm can be suitable for all applications and data structures. Ensembles of clustering algorithms have emerged as a partial answer to this limitation, aiming at increasing the robustness of clustering algorithms ...

In metal additive manufacturing, resonance-based post-process part inspection and build qualification techniques are extremely fast and present an alternative to more time-consuming or expensive techniques like CT scanning or destructive testing of witness coupons. They are often capable of detecting subtle differences between parts, and can even be used to get an indication of the material properties. On the other hand, with the increasing ...