4/4/2014 Hareesha N G, Asst Prof, DSCE, Blore 1

UNIT-6: Photo-elastic (Bire-fringent) Coatings :

Birefringence coating stresses
Effects of coating thickness
Reinforcing effects, Poissons ratio mismatch
Stress separation techniques
Oblique incidence, Strip coatings
08 Hours

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INTRODUCTION
In the application of coating methods, one applies a thin
layer of a reactive material to the surface of the body that
is to be analyzed.
The thin coating is bonded to the surface and
displacements at the coating-specimen interface are
transmitted without amplification or attenuation.
These displacements at the interface produce stresses and
strains in the coating and the coating responds.
The analyst observes the coating response and infers the
stresses on the surface of the specimen based on the
observed behavior of the coating.

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ADVANTAGES OF COATING METHODS
The capability of applying the coating directly to the
prototype:
The "whole"-field response of the coating: Stain gages
respond over small regions of the field and give
approximations to strain at a point. Coatings respond over
the entire surface of the specimen and give field data
rather than point data.
There are two coating methods that are used in stress
analysis.
Bire-fringent coating that produces a photo-elastic fringe
pattern related to the coating stresses.
Brittle coating that fails by cracking when the coating
stresses exceed some threshold value.
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BIREFRINGENT COATINGS
The method of birefringent coatings represents an extension
of the procedures of photoelasticity to the determination of
surface strains in opaque two- and three-dimensional bodies.
The coating is a thin sheet of birefringent material, usually a
polymer, which is bonded to the surface of the prototype
being analyzed.
The coating is mirrored at the interface to provide a reflecting
surface for the light-When the prototype is loaded, the
displacements on its surface are transmitted to the mirrored
side of the coating to produce a strain field through the
thickness of the coating.
The distribution of the strain field over the surface of the
prototype, in terms of principal-strain differences, is
determined by employing a reflected-light polariscope to
record the fringe orders, as illustrated in Fig. (Contd..)
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Reflection polari-scopes commonly used in photoelastic-
coating measurements:
P-polarizer;
A-analyzer;
/4, quarter-wave plate.

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BIREFRINGENT COATINGS (..Contd)
The birefringent-coating method has many
advantages over other methods of experimental
stress analysis.
It provides full-field data that enable the
investigator to visualize the complete distribution of
surface strains.
The method is nondestructive, and since the
coatings can be applied directly to the prototype,
the need for models is eliminated.
Through proper selection of coating materials, the
method can be made applicable over a very wide
range of strain.
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 Photo stress coating being contoured
to the surface of a vehicle water pump
casting

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 Commercial Reflection Polariscope

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 Photo Stress pattern revealed on a
mechanical controlled linkage
system in a passenger Air craft

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 P. S. Testing under progress on a main landing gear of
Airbus A 330/A340 passenger air craft

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Photo stress fringe pattern at a specific
area of an Airbus gear during a static
test sequence

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Final prototyping test on a landing gear from a
military fighter jet aircraft and P. S. fringe
pattern at several sections of the Landing gear

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Photo Stress fringe pattern on a partially
coated prototype of Boeing 767 main
landing gear

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Coated area on Jet engine Frames
Strain pattern at a specific location of fuel
pads and struts

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Properties which an ideal coating should exhibit
1. A high optical strain coefficient K to maximize coating response
2. A low modulus of elasticity Ec to minimize reinforcing effects
3. A high resistance to both optical and mechanical stress relaxation to
ensure stability of the measurement with time
4. A linear strain-optical response to minimize data-reduction
problems
5. A good adhesive bond to ensure perfect strain transmission
between coating and specimen
6. A high proportional limit to increase the range of strain over which
the coating can be utilized
7. Sufficient malleability to permit use on curved surfaces of three-
dimensional components

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COATING STRESSES
Refer class notes

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EFFECTS OF COATING THICKNESS
When a photoelastic coating is bonded to a specimen, only in a few
instances are the strains transmitted to the coating without some
modification or distortion.
More realistically, the coating is considered as a three-dimensional
extension of the specimen which is loaded by means of shear and
normal tractions at the interface.
These tractions vary so that the displacements experienced by the
coating and the specimen at the interface are identical (as dictated by
perfect bonding).
Thus, in the most general case:
The average strain in the coating does not equal the strain at the
interface.
A strain gradient exists through the thickness of the coating.
The coating serves to reinforce the specimen.
It is evident that these effects of thickness tend to vanish as the coating
thickness approaches zero.
However, coatings with finite thickness (usually 0.50 to 3.00 mm, or 0.02
to 0.10 in) are required to obtain a high fringe count for accurate fringe-
order determinations.
Traction refers to the maximum frictional force that can be
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Hareeshabetween
N G, Asst Prof,surfaces
DSCE, Blorewithout slipping 21