Terahertz imaging: a new non-destructive technique for the quality control of plastic weld joints

We present the first investigation of plastic weld joints using terahertz waves. Terahertz time-domain spectroscopy clearly reveals contaminations like metal or sand within the weld joint of two high-density polyethylene sheets. Furthermore, areas can be identified where the welding process has fail...

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Veröffentlicht in:Journal of the European Optical Society. Rapid publications 2007-01, Vol.2, p.7013
Hauptverfasser: Wietzke, S., Jördens, C., Krumbholz, N., Baudrit, B., Bastian, M., Koch, M.
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Sprache:eng
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Zusammenfassung:We present the first investigation of plastic weld joints using terahertz waves. Terahertz time-domain spectroscopy clearly reveals contaminations like metal or sand within the weld joint of two high-density polyethylene sheets. Furthermore, areas can be identified where the welding process has failed and the parts to be joined are separated by a small air gap. We show that a three layer structure of polyethylene-air-polyethylene has a characteristic, frequency-dependent transmission behaviour. This allows for a distinction between welded and non-welded material as well as for the calculation of the air layer thickness from the relative transmission spectrum. Consequently, terahertz time-domain spectroscopy provides a promising new non-destructive and even contactless technique, which is desired by the plastics industry for detecting a variety of deviations from the ideal welding process.
ISSN:1990-2573
1990-2573
DOI:10.2971/jeos.2007.07013