Thermoelastic Stress Analysis (TSA) is an optical, full-field, measurement technique used in experimental solid mechanics and materials testing. TSA provides a high-fidelity visualization of stress, strain, and temperature in objects under cyclic, elastic loading (typically) in a fatigue test.
A TSA system incorporates a thermal imaging sensor, called the ThermoESA, that consists of a Long-Wavelength Infra-Red (LWIR) camera with timing hardware and electronics, together with an advanced SW-package, called the MiTE Suite. The MiTE Suite uses an image processing algorithm that converts thermo-elastically induced temperature changes (as recorded using the ThermoESA) into an image of surface (bulk) stress.
Thermoelastic Stress Analysis (TSA) has four major advantages compared to other Experimental Measurement Techniques, including;
Key Advantages of Thermoelastic Stress Analysis (TSA)
The following are key advantages of TSA compared to other experimental solid mechanic measurement techniques (i.e. strain gauges) used in materials testing:
- Optical, Full-Field Measurement Technique
- High Sensitivity & SNR
- Minor Surface Preparation
- Easy Finite Element Model Validation
