PFI:AIR - TT: Multi-scale and in-situ sensing technology for structural integrity

本次PFI：空气技术翻译项目专注于翻译为一种新颖的多尺度传感技术，以填补在高空间分辨率、非侵入性和非接触式材料应力和损伤测量方面的技术空白。该系统很重要，因为它在关键部件中提供结构完整性评估，适用于从航空航天结构(包括金属和复合材料)到民用结构(如桥梁和建筑中的钢节点板)的各种应用，以提高安全性。该项目将导致多尺度、原位压电谱技术的开发和放大。这使用了一种应力敏感的光致发光材料，可以嵌入到各种结构的涂层中。应力分布是基于光学技术监测的，该技术测量与应力相关的发射光谱中的位移。它具有以下独特功能：能够提供材料应力的内在测量；多尺度空间分辨率；在各种加载条件下的现场测量。这些功能提供了以下优势：在不同的载荷环境下对各种金属和复合材料结构基材进行定量应力测定，并与该市场领域领先的竞争非侵入性技术(如数字图像相关)相比，可以及早检测到损伤。本项目解决了以下技术差距，将其从研究发现转化为商业应用；i)材料技术-需要优化传感材料的部署，以定义确保颗粒良好结合和均匀分散的工艺配置，以实现有效和可靠的传感性能ii)光学技术-必须将颗粒的光致发光发射测量从点检测改进为面检测方法，同时确保保持当前的空间和应力分辨率能力，以实现高效检测技术。此外，参与该项目的人员，包括一名研究生和本科生，将通过行业合作和UCF的创业资源获得技术翻译经验，这为使用Maker空间和参与UCF i-Corps站点的NSF ICorps计划等机会提供了便利。该项目与光学测量公司Lumium和伦敦帝国理工学院合作，以克服区域扫描和有效分散方面的挑战，将这项技术从研究发现转化为商业现实。

This PFI: AIR Technology Translation project focuses on translating a novel multi-scale sensing technology to fill the technology void in high-spatial resolution, non-invasive and non-contact measurement of material stresses and damage.  The system is important because it provides structural integrity assessments in critical components for applications ranging from aerospace structures including metallics and composites to civil structures such as steel gussets in bridges and buildings to enhance safety. The project will result in the development and scale-up of multi-scale, in-situ piezospectroscopic technology. This uses a stress sensitive photo-luminescent material that can be embedded in coatings on various structures. The stress distribution is monitored based on optics technology which measure shifts in the emission spectrum that are related to stress. This has the following unique features: capability to provide intrinsic measurements of material stress; multi-scale spatial resolution; in-situ measurements under various loading conditions. These features provide the following advantages: quantitative stress determination for a variety of structural substrates of metallic and composite origin under various load environments, as well as demonstrated early damage detection when compared to the leading competing non-invasive techniques such as Digital image correlation in this market space.  This project addresses the following technology gaps as it translates from research discovery toward commercial application; i) materials technology - the deployment of sensing material needs to be optimized to define a process configuration that ensures excellent bonding and uniform dispersion of particles for effective and reliable sensing performance ii) optics technology - the measurement of photo-luminescence emission from the particles must be improved from point detection to area detection methods while ensuring current spatial and stress resolution capabilities are maintained for efficient inspection technology. In addition, personnel involved in this project, including a graduate and undergraduate student, will receive technology translation experiences through industry collaboration and UCF's resources for entrepreneurship, which facilitates opportunities such as the use of Maker Spaces and access to participation in the NSF ICorps program at UCF's I-Corps Site. The project engages Lumium, an optical measurements company, and Imperial College in London to overcome challenges in area scanning and effective dispersion in this technology translation effort from research discovery toward commercial reality.