Full Field Measurement Techniques for High Strain Rate Testing of Composites

It is important for design of engineering structures to be able to measure deformation of their constituent materials during characterisation tests. Traditionally this has been done using strain gauges glued onto specimens at specific locations. With recent rapid developments in digital imaging techniques and computing power, numerical processing of optically based full field measurement techniques is gaining popularity. This proposal seeks to fund a visiting fellowship for Dr Raphael Moulart from ParisTech Arts et Mtiers (formerly ENSAM) in Chlons en Champagne, France to work at the University of Bristol to investigate the feasibility of apply such full field techniques to high strain testing of composite materials. Novel image processing will be used to identify and track damage as it develops during the material tests and also extract material properties. This is important in the case of composite materials as they can exhibit significant rate dependence.