Effect of speckle size on surface crack detection via digital image correlation

Digital image correlation (DIC) is an experimental stress analysis technique used in nondestructive tests. The accuracy of DIC in crack detection depends on various factors such as the sizes of speckles and pixels. In the current study, a speckle pattern based on the spreading of nanoparticles with small speckles is compared with a conventional sprayed pattern to understand whether crack detection via DIC is improved by reducing the sizes of speckles and pixels. Owing to the small size of nanoparticles, an optical microscope is used for magnification. The spreading method for crack detection is first investigated experimentally. Results show that cracks can be detected easily when a 250 nm opening appears in the crack edges. Subsequently, the spreading method is compared with the conventional DIC, in which the spraying method is used for patterning, in terms of crack detection. Results show that by reducing the speckle size and closely analyzing the speckle pattern, the DIC technique is considerably better than the conventional technique in detecting small cracks. Moreover, the conventional method is more suitable for detecting large cracks.