Browsing by Author "Barrington, James"
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Item Open Access Application of fibre optic sensing systems to measure rotor blade structural dynamics(Elsevier, 2021-03-09) Weber, Simone; Kissinger, Thomas; Chehura, Edmond; Staines, Stephen; Barrington, James; Mullaney, Kevin; Fragonara, Luca Zanotti; Petrunin, Ivan; James, Stephen; Lone, Mudassir; Tatam, Ralph P.This paper compares two fibre optic sensing techniques for vibration characterisation: (a) optical fibre Bragg grating (FBG) strain gauges and (b) a novel direct fibre optic shape sensing (DFOSS) approach based on differential interferometric strain measurements between multiple fibres within the same fibre arrangement. Operational mode shapes and frequency measurements of an Airbus Helicopters H135 bearingless main rotor blade (5.1 m radius) were acquired during a series of ground vibration tests undertaken in a controlled laboratory environment. Data recorded by the fibre optic instrumentation systems were validated using commercially available accelerometers and compared against a baseline finite element model. Both fibre optic sensing systems proved capable of identifying the natural frequencies of the blade in the frequency range of interest (0–100 Hz). The data from the FBG sensors exhibited a dependency on their position relative to the neutral axes of the blade, which meant that full characterisation of the flapping and lagging modes required careful consideration of sensor location in the chordwise direction. The DFOSS system was able to identify all structural dynamics, despite being located on the neutral axis in the lagging direction, due to its sensitivity to angle changes, rather than strain, and its biaxial measurement capability. The DFOSS system also allowed the operational mode shapes of the blade to be determined directly, without the requirement for strain transfer from the blade to the sensor and without the requirement for a model of the underlying structure. The accuracy of obtained natural frequencies and operational mode shapes is assessed, demonstrating the potential of the use of both fibre optic sensing systems for determining blade structural dynamics.Item Open Access Application of fibre optic sensing systems to measure rotor blade structural dynamics - underlying data(Cranfield University, 2021-03-12 09:17) James, Stephen; Kissinger, Thomas; Tatam, Ralph; Barrington, James; Chehura, Edmon; Weber, Simone; Mullaney, Kevin; Zanotti Fragonara, Luca; Petrunin, Ivan; Staines, StephenRefer to the paper for full details. Fig9a.csv: Comparison of the Power Spectral Density (PSD) of data recorded by the direct optical fibre shape sensing system, an optical fibre Bragg grating strain sensor and a 1D accelerometer with finite element modeling predictions, measured on the top surface of an Airbus Helicopters H135 bearingless main rotor blade on the quarter chord line at approximately 40% rotor radius. Fig9b.csv: Comparison of the Power Spectral Density (PSD) of data recorded by the direct optical fibre shape sensing system, an optical fibre Bragg grating strain sensor and a 1D accelerometer with finite element modeling predictions, measured on the top surface of an Airbus Helicopters H135 bearingless main rotor blade on the quarter chord line at approximately 60% rotor radius. Fig10_FBG_top.csv: Power Spectral Density (PSD) of the 7th fibre Bragg grating strain (FBG) sensor (FBG7) in the three FBG arrays bonded to the top surface of the Airbus Helicopters H135 bearingless main rotor blade, located at approximately 60% rotor radius. Fig10_FBG_bottom.csv: Power Spectral Density (PSD) of the 7th fibre Bragg grating strain sensor (FBG7) in the three FBG arrays bonded to the bottom surface of the Airbus Helicopters H135 bearingless main rotor blade, located at approximately 60% rotor radius. Fig11.csv: Time series of raw data of 3F frequency input collected at approximately 60% rotor radius for the accelerometer, fibre Bragg grating strain sensor and direct optical fibre shape sensor (vertical direction). Fig12.csv: Comparison of Power Spectral Density (PSD) for the 3F mode measured at approximately 60% rotor radius by the accelerometer, fibre Bragg grating strain sensor and direct optical fibre shape sensor (vertical direction). Fig14.csv: Mode shapes measured using the direct optical fibre shape sensor Fig15.cvs: Comparison of normalised displacement mode shapes measured using a 1D accelerometer, the direct optical fibre shape sensor with the finite element model prediction Fig16.csv: Normalised angle measurements performed by the direct optical fibre shape sensor with the ouput from the FE model for Mode 5F Fig17.csv:Comparison of normalised strain mode shapes determined by the FBG strain sensors and the output from the FE model.Item Open Access Data supporting "Optical Fibre Pressure Sensing Using a Frequency Modulated Laser-Based Signal Processing Technique"(Cranfield University, 2023-04-21 12:36) Barrington, James; James, Stephen; Kissinger, Thomas; Staines, Stephen; Prince, Simon; Alcusa Saez, Erica; Lawson, Nicholas; Tatam, RalphEach file contains the relevant data to the figure as stated in its name. Column headers within the file outline the variable and its associated unit. The authors, where possible, have tried to keep the data in its rawest, useable form in order to provide the greatest flexibility for future manipulation. All data files are formatted as csv for accessibility.Item Open Access Data supporting "The use of range-resolved interferometry for multi-parameter sensing in a wind tunnel"(Cranfield University, 2023-12-12 14:59) Barrington, James; James, Stephen; Kissinger, Thomas; Staines, Stephen; Alcusa Saez, Erica; Lawson, Nicholas; Tatam, Ralph; Prince, SimonEach data set relates to the data displayed in Figure 2 of the conference paper. The 1st column in each file outlines the data type and unit.Item Open Access Data supporting: 'Electromagnetic Field Controlled Domain Wall Displacement for Induced Strain Tailoring in BaTiO3-Epoxy Nanocomposite'(Cranfield University, 2022-08-31 13:30) Yazdani Nezhad, Hamed; Li, Danning; Barrington, James; James, Stephen; Ayre, David; Sloma, Marcin; Lin, Meng-FangThis dataset is comprised of 4 files: 100W_strains, 100W_temperature, 440W_strains, and 440W_temperature.Failure in an epoxy polymer composite material is prone to initiate by the coalescence of microcracks in its polymer matrix. As such, matrix toughening via addition of a second phase as rigid or/and rubber nano/micro-particles is one of the most popular approaches to improve the fracture toughness across multiple scales in a polymer composite, which dissipates fracture energy via deformation mechanisms and microcracks arrest. Few studies have focused on tailorable and variable toughening, so-called ‘active toughening’, mainly suggesting thermally induced strains which offer slow and irreversible toughening due to polymer’s poor thermal conductivity. The research presented in the current article has developed an instantaneous, reversible active toughening composite based upon contact-less introduction of a microscopic compressive extrinsic strain field via remote electromagnetic radiation. Quantification of the extrinsic strain evolving in the composite with the microwave energy has been conducted using in-situ realtime fibre optic sensing. A theoretical constitutive equation correlating the exposure energy to micro-strains has been developed, with its solution validating the experimental data and describing their underlying physics. The research has utilised functionalised dielectric ferroelectric nanomaterials, barium titanate (BaTiO3), as a second phase dispersed in an epoxy matrix, able to introduce microscopic electro-strains to their surrounding rigid epoxy subjected to an external electric field (microwaves, herein), as result of their domain walls dipole displacements. Epoxy Araldite LY1564, a diglycidyl ether of bisphenol A (DGEBA) associated with the curing agent Aradur 3487 were embedded with the BaTiO3 nanoparticles. The silane coupling agent for the nanoparticles’ surface functionalisation was 3-glycidoxypropyl trimethoxysilane (3-GPS). Hydrogen peroxide (H2O2, 30%) and acetic acid (C2H4O2, 99.9%) used as functionalisation aids, and the ethanol (C2H6O, 99.9%) used for BaTiO3 dispersion. Firstly, the crystal microstructure of the functionalised nanoparticles and the thermal and dielectric properties of the achieved epoxy composite materials have been characterised. It has been observed that the addition of the dielectric nanoparticles has a slight impact on the curing extent of the epoxy. Secondly, the surface-bonded fibre bragg grating (FBG) sensors have been employed to investigate the real-time variation of strain and temperature in the epoxy composites exposed to microwaves at 2.45 GHz and at different exposure energy. The strains developed due to the in-situ exposure at composite, adhesive and their holding fixture material were evaluated using the FBG. The domain wall induced extrinsic strains were distinguished from the thermally induced strains, and found that the increasing exposure energy has an instantaneously increasing effect on the development of compressive strains. Post-exposure Raman spectra showed no residual field in the composite indicating no remnant strain field examined under microwave powersItem Open Access Data supporting: 'Fibre-optic measurement of strain and shape on a helicopter rotor blade during a ground run: data for the measurement of shape'(Cranfield University, 2022-09-01 15:50) Kissinger, Thomas; James, Stephen; Weber, Simone; Mullaney, Kevin; Chehura, Edmon; Barrington, James; Staines, Stephen; Tatam, RalphFSI_Phase_Data_Shape_CORD.csv contains the raw phase data from the three Fibre Segment interferometry array installed on the Direct Optical Fibre Shape Sensing Rod described in the paper: "Fibre-optic measurement of strain and shape on a helicopter rotor blade during a ground run - part 2: measurement of shape", Smart Materials and Structure, online 25 May 2022. Shape_Data_Vertical_CORD.csv contains the processed shape data in the vertical (flapping) direction, for the T&B2 ground run. Note that the position measurements are relative to the first FSI reflector on the rod, not to the centre of rotation of the blade. Shape_Data_Horizontal_CORD.csv contains the processed shape data n the horizontal (lagging) direction, for the T&B2 ground run. Note that the position measurements are relative to the first FSI reflector on the rod, not to the centre of rotation of the blade.Item Open Access Data supporting: 'Fibre-optic measurement of strain and shape on a helicopter rotor blade during a ground run: data for the measurement of strain'(Cranfield University, 2022-09-01 15:49) James, Stephen; Kissinger, Thomas; Weber, Simone; Mullaney, Kevin; Chehura, Edmon; Barrington, James; Tatam, RalphFBG_Data_CORD.csv contains the raw wavelength data from the 10 FBGs (G1-G10) recorded during the ground run detailed within the paper "Fibre-optic measurement of strain and shape on a helicopter rotor blade during a ground run - part 1: measurement of strain", James et al. Smart Materials and Structures, available online, May 2022. The unit of the "Time" column is seconds, while the units of columns G1-G10 are nanometers. FSI_Data_CORD.csv contains the raw phase data obtained from the interferometers formed between the reflectors (R1-R10,) and the cleaved end of the optical fibre, recorded during the ground run detailed within the paper The unit of the "Time" column is seconds, while the units of columns R1-R10 are radians.Item Open Access Design and fabrication of optical fibre long period gratings for CO₂ sensing(2018-06) Barrington, James; James, Stephen W.; Partridge, Matthew; Tatam, Ralph P.This thesis investigated the repeatability of the overwrite long period grating (LPG) fabrication method and highlighted the advantage it offers in its ability to tune spectral features thus allowing the manufacture of bespoke sensors. Moreover, LPGs with periods ranging from 100 - 200 μm were written and a novel technique for mapping the transmission data was presented. This method gave a unique overview into the period mediated evolution of attenuation features, which, when designing LPGs that operate at the sensitive phase matching turning point, is invaluable. Further exploration into the overwrite method revealed that the UV irradiation duty cycle used in the fabrication of LPGs was found to influence the presence of harmonics, where a duty cycle of 25% maximised coupling to 2nd order transmission features. LPGs which possessed these additional spectral features within a small wavelength range (600 - 1000 nm) were assessed for their suitability in performing multi-parameter sensing. Ionic liquids were explored as an LPG COThis thesis investigated the repeatability of the overwrite long period grating (LPG) fabrication method and highlighted the advantage it offers in its ability to tune spectral features thus allowing the manufacture of bespoke sensors. Moreover, LPGs with periods ranging from 100 - 200 μm were written and a novel technique for mapping the transmission data was presented. This method gave a unique overview into the period mediated evolution of attenuation features, which, when designing LPGs that operate at the sensitive phase matching turning point, is invaluable. Further exploration into the overwrite method revealed that the UV irradiation duty cycle used in the fabrication of LPGs was found to influence the presence of harmonics, where a duty cycle of 25% maximised coupling to 2nd order transmission features. LPGs which possessed these additional spectral features within a small wavelength range (600 - 1000 nm) were assessed for their suitability in performing multi-parameter sensing. Ionic liquids were explored as an LPG COThis thesis investigated the repeatability of the overwrite long period grating (LPG) fabrication method and highlighted the advantage it offers in its ability to tune spectral features thus allowing the manufacture of bespoke sensors. Moreover, LPGs with periods ranging from 100 - 200 μm were written and a novel technique for mapping the transmission data was presented. This method gave a unique overview into the period mediated evolution of attenuation features, which, when designing LPGs that operate at the sensitive phase matching turning point, is invaluable. Further exploration into the overwrite method revealed that the UV irradiation duty cycle used in the fabrication of LPGs was found to influence the presence of harmonics, where a duty cycle of 25% maximised coupling to 2nd order transmission features. LPGs which possessed these additional spectral features within a small wavelength range (600 - 1000 nm) were assessed for their suitability in performing multi-parameter sensing. Ionic liquids were explored as an LPG CO₂ sensitive coating. It was shown that these materials demonstrate a refractive index change upon exposure to CO₂ which was maintained following mechanical stabilisation using a gelling agent. A coating system for applying the gelled ionic liquid to the surface of an optical fibre was developed and techniques to improve the coating deposition were explored. The sensor demonstrated an 8 nm wavelength shift in response to 20% CO₂, which was reversible by reducing the partial pressure of CO₂ for 25 min.sensitive coating. It was shown that these materials demonstrate a refractive index change upon exposure to CO₂ which was maintained following mechanical stabilisation using a gelling agent. A coating system for applying the gelled ionic liquid to the surface of an optical fibre was developed and techniques to improve the coating deposition were explored. The sensor demonstrated an 8 nm wavelength shift in response to 20% CO₂, which was reversible by reducing the partial pressure of CO₂ for 25 min. sensitive coating. It was shown that these materials demonstrate a refractive index change upon exposure to CO₂ which was maintained following mechanical stabilisation using a gelling agent. A coating system for applying the gelled ionic liquid to the surface of an optical fibre was developed and techniques to improve the coating deposition were explored. The sensor demonstrated an 8 nm wavelength shift in response to 20% CO₂, which was reversible by reducing the partial pressure of CO₂ for 25 min.Item Open Access The effect of UV irradiation duty cycle on the 2nd harmonic coupling efficiency in optical fiber long period gratings(Elsevier, 2018-08-10) Barrington, James; Partridge, Matthew; James, Stephen; Tatam, Ralph P.Long period gratings (LPGs) as a sensing platform have the potential for multi-parameter measurement through the utilization of 2nd order coupling resonance bands. Although the current literature has produced LPGs with 2nd order resonance bands, the fabrication parameters required to generate these features have not been elucidated. Here, using UV irradiation via the point-by-point method, it is shown that by varying the duty cycle it is possible to fabricate LPGs that exhibit 2nd, 3rd, and 4th order coupling resonance bands. Fabrication of LPGs with a 25% or 75% duty cycle produces distinct 2nd order resonance bands, which are not observed when a 50% duty cycle is adopted.Item Open Access Electromagnetic field controlled domain wall displacement for induced strain tailoring in BaTiO3-epoxy nanocomposite(Nature, 2022-05-07) Li, Danning; Barrington, James; James, Stephen; Ayre, David; Sloma, Marcin; Lin, Meng-Fang; Yazdani Nezhad, HamedFailure in an epoxy polymer composite material is prone to initiate by the coalescence of microcracks in its polymer matrix. As such, matrix toughening via addition of a second phase as rigid or/and rubber nano/micro-particles is one of the most popular approaches to improve the fracture toughness across multiple scales in a polymer composite, which dissipates fracture energy via deformation mechanisms and microcracks arrest. Few studies have focused on tailorable and variable toughening, so-called ‘active toughening’, mainly suggesting thermally induced strains which offer slow and irreversible toughening due to polymer’s poor thermal conductivity. The research presented in the current article has developed an instantaneous, reversible extrinsic strain field via remote electromagnetic radiation. Quantification of the extrinsic strain evolving in the composite with the microwave energy has been conducted using in-situ real-time fibre optic sensing. A theoretical constitutive equation correlating the exposure energy to micro-strains has been developed, with its solution validating the experimental data and describing their underlying physics. The research has utilised functionalised dielectric ferroelectric nanomaterials, barium titanate (BaTiO3), as a second phase dispersed in an epoxy matrix, able to introduce microscopic electro-strains to their surrounding rigid epoxy subjected to an external electric field (microwaves, herein), as result of their domain walls dipole displacements. Epoxy Araldite LY1564, a diglycidyl ether of bisphenol A associated with the curing agent Aradur 3487 were embedded with the BaTiO3 nanoparticles. The silane coupling agent for the nanoparticles’ surface functionalisation was 3-glycidoxypropyl trimethoxysilane (3-GPS). Hydrogen peroxide (H2O2, 30%) and acetic acid (C2H4O2, 99.9%) used as functionalisation aids, and the ethanol (C2H6O, 99.9%) used for BaTiO3 dispersion. Firstly, the crystal microstructure of the functionalised nanoparticles and the thermal and dielectric properties of the achieved epoxy composite materials have been characterised. It has been observed that the addition of the dielectric nanoparticles has a slight impact on the curing extent of the epoxy. Secondly, the surface-bonded fibre Bragg grating (FBG) sensors have been employed to investigate the real-time variation of strain and temperature in the epoxy composites exposed to microwaves at 2.45 GHz and at different exposure energy. The strains developed due to the in-situ exposure at composite, adhesive and their holding fixture material were evaluated using the FBG. The domain wall induced extrinsic strains were distinguished from the thermally induced strains, and found that the increasing exposure energy has an instantaneously increasing effect on the development of such strains. Post-exposure Raman spectra showed no residual field in the composite indicating no remnant strain field examined under microwave powers < 1000 W, thus suggesting a reversible strain introduction mechanism, i.e. the composite retaining its nominal properties post exposure. The dielectric composite development and quantifications presented in this article proposes a novel active toughening technology for high-performance composite applications in numerous sectors.Item Open Access FFT of square wave generation script(Cranfield University, 2018-01-29 08:55) Barrington, James; James, StephenPython 2.7 script used to create a discrete FFT of a square wave associated with our paper 'The effect of UV irradiation duty cycle on the transmission spectra of optical fiber long period gratings'Item Open Access IEEE sensors 2016 poster(Cranfield University, 2016-10-21 15:18) Barrington, James; James, Stephen; Tatam, Ralph; Partridge, MatthewConference poster for IEEE sensors 2016 conference. Data can be found using the referenced URL.Item Open Access Intensity plot depicting the relationship between transmission and wavelength for duty cycles between 0 - 100%(Cranfield University, 2018-01-29 08:55) Barrington, JamesThe folder contains 200 text files where each 10 files is an increase in 5% UV irradiated duty cycle from 5 - 100%. Each text file is arranged into 2 tab delimited columns of wavelength and intensity. This is the raw data associated with our paper 'The effect of UV irradiation duty cycle on the transmission spectra of optical fiber long period gratings'Item Open Access Interferometric robot joint angle measurement: data(Cranfield University, 2024-01-08 14:55) Naga Narayanan Ayyappan Pillai Rajeshwari, Sivaji; Charrett, Tom; Kissinger, Thomas; Barrington, James; James, Stephen; Tatam, RalphTime series of angle measurement performed on 3 joints of a robotic arm instrumented with an array of optical fibre based angle sensors, exploiting fibre segment interferometry, Data presetned and analysed in: A fibre optic angle sensing tape for applications in robotics and automationItem Open Access Optical fibre pressure sensing using a frequency modulated laser-based signal processing technique(IOP Publishing, 2023-04-21) Barrington, James; James, Stephen; Kissinger, Thomas; Staines, Stephen; Prince, Simon; Alcusa Saez, Erica; Lawson, Nicholas J.; Tatam, Ralph P.Range resolved interferometry (RRI) applied to the interrogation of an extrinsic Fabry–Perot based pressure sensor in laboratory and wind tunnel environments is presented. A simple, compact sensor head design was fabricated and subsequently characterised using RRI, which was shown to have a sensitivity of 1.627x10-3 rad Pa−1 with a noise standard deviation of 9 Pa over a data rate of 1.5 kHz. When installed in a high-lift wing for surface pressure evaluation during wind tunnel testing, the approach outlined here was able to perform as well as a conventionally employed commercial device for relative static pressure measurements.Item Open Access Overwrite fabrication and tuning of long period gratings(Optical Society of America: Open Access Journals / Optical Society of America (OSA), 2016-09-19) Partridge, Matthew; James, Stephen W.; Barrington, James; Tatam, Ralph P.The central wavelengths of the resonance bands are critical aspect of the performance of long period gratings (LPGs) as sensors, particularly for devices designed to operate near the phase matching turning point (PMTP), where the sensitivity to measurements can vary rapidly. Generally, LPGs are characterized by their period, but the amplitude of the amplitude of the index modulation is also an important factor in determining the wavelengths of the resonance bands. Variations in fabrication between LPG sensors can increase or decrease the sensitivity of the LPG to strain, temperature or surrounding refractive index. Here, the technique of overwritten UV laser fabrication is demonstrated. It is shown that, on repeated overwriting, the resonance bands of an LPG exhibit significant wavelength shift, which can be monitored and which can be used to tune the resonance bands to the desired wavelengths. This technique is applied to periods in the range 100 to 200 µm, showing the cycle-to-cycle evolution of the resonance bands near the PMTPs of a number of cladding modes. The use of online monitoring is shown to reduce the resonance band sensor-to-sensor central wavelength variation from 10 nm to 3 nm.Item Open Access Underlying data for article titled 'The effect of UV irradiation duty cycle on the 2nd harmonic coupling efficiency in optical fiber long period gratings'(Cranfield University, 2018-07-19 14:39) Barrington, James; Partridge, Matthew; Tatam, Ralph; James, StephenThis data was used to generate Fig. 3, 4, and 5 presented in 'The effect of UV irradiation duty cycle on the 2nd harmonic coupling efficiency in optical fiber long period gratings'. The data set contains transmission spectra for a 380 um period LPG with duty cycles varying from 0-100% in 5% increments. Each duty cycle contains 10 spectra. File nomenclature is "X%_duty_cycle_Y" where X is percentage of duty cycle and Y is irradiation cycle number.Item Open Access The use of range-resolved interferometry for multi-parameter sensing in a wind tunnel(SPIE, 2023-05-23) Barrington, James; James, Stephen; Kissinger, Thomas; Staines, Stephen; Prince, Simon; Alucsa-Saeza, Erica; Lawson, Nicholas J.; Tatam, Ralph P.The work presented demonstrates that key parameters in aerodynamic structural characterisation of pressure, strain, and structural dynamics, can be all measured via optical fibre sensors interrogated using the principles of range-resolved interferometry (RRI). When used to interrogate sensors simultaneously deployed on a high lift wind in a wind tunnel, the approach yielded resolutions of 31 μPa/ √ Hz and 1 nε/ √ Hz at a bandwidth of 1526 Hz for pressure and strain, respectively, demonstrating the accuracy and versatility of the RRI signal processing technique.