Evaluation of thermoplastic composites under bending tests

The attention of this work is driven towards the investigation of thermoplastic composite materials, based on a polypropylene matrix, which may be neat, or modified by addition of a relatively low amount of a specific compatibilizing agent, and reinforced with glass or jute fibres. The investigation is carried out with a joint use of non-destructive and destructive methods. IRT is used with a twofold function:  for non-destructive evaluation of materials;  to monitor thermal effects developing when the material is under load, either impact, or quasi-static bending. In particular, the indications obtained with infrared thermography are discussed jointly with those coming out from destructive tests in view of gaining more information for the materials characterization.