Sound-tracking of failure events in cross-ply composite laminates under tension

The methodology being presented is an attempt to exemplify how a typical mechanical testing can be accompanied by easy to access, affordable pieces of equipment, but to reach a level of information substantially beyond somewhat standard practices. Fingerprints of discrete crack and damage formations during tensile testing are collected by a general purpose noise-reducing microphone in conjunction with a digital video microscope. Six cross-ply-like, specially orthotropic laminates, (0/90₅)_s, (0₃/90₃)_s, (0₅/90)_s, (0/90)_3s, (90/0)_3s and (90₃/0₃)_s are studied. Mechanical test results suggest that the current methodology is able to identify progressive failure events/regimes characterized by unique audio signal profiles. Access to Supplementary video and audio recordings are also provided to discuss and validate the efficiency and benefits of the proposed approach.