Neutron Radiography of Massive Fiberglass Composite Structures - a Feasibility Study,

The feasibility of applying neutron radiography to the inspection of fiberglass composites has been studied. Images were of poor quality, and very long exposure times were required to darken the film. These experimental findings are supported by mathematical calculations for the attenuation of each constituent and for the composite material for four different neutron energies. From considerations of the ratio of scatter to capture for neutrons over the entire range of available energies, it is concluded that neutron radiography is not suited to the inspection of massive fiberglass structures. It has been shown that conventional radiography can be usefully applied. Author, modified-PL