The X-ray tomography means of the Nantes elixir platform of CEA Tech were used to inspect the foils of boats developed by the company SEAir. Objective: to optimize the manufacture of these elements, and evaluate their health after several uses at sea.
Located in Lorient, SEAir develops tailor-made foils to equip boats to "give them wings". These structures, which allow boats to fly over the water, are made of composite materials and must withstand significant mechanical stresses during their use at sea. They consist of two parts composed of carbon fiber sheets molded on a support and impregnated with resin.
In order to allow it to compare the properties of foils from manual manufacturing with those manufactured by a robotic arm, the Elixir platform of CEA Tech Pays de la Loire has proposed to SEAir to use its new means of inspecting large parts by X-ray tomography. The analyses carried out showed that the manually manufactured parts have more porosities, mainly located in the bonding plane of the two parts of the structure.
This collaboration also allowed the Elixir platform to test and validate its imaging facility specially sized to process large parts. Data processing software has also been modified to allow for faster reconstruction and correction of artifacts.
To learn more about Elixir:
https://www.cea-tech.fr/cea-tech/Pages/en-regions/pfa-fiabilite-materiaux.aspx
