Novel Image Analysis for Recycled Fiber Length Distribution

Description

Recycled endless fiber-reinforced composites offer a valuable source of high-quality short fibers for new reinforcing materials. However, the performance of the final product is significantly influenced by the length and distribution of these recycled fibers. Accurate determination of fiber length distribution in images with high fiber density poses a challenge, as state-of-the-art methods often struggle to account for crossed or incomplete fibers. The appearance of fibers in optical measurements is highly variable, influenced by factors like fiber length, concentration, and the diluting medium (typically water). Measurement methods further contribute to this variability. Challenges include cut-off fibers, fiber overlap, and variations in local concentration. Traditional methods, limited to analyzing non-crossed, singular fibers, necessitate numerous measurements with continuous stirring of the fiber-water mixture. This stirring can degrade fibers and requires high dilution rates. The developed image processing algorithm first distinguishes crossed-fiber structures from simple, non-crossed fibers. These crossed-fiber structures are then skeletonized to identify valid junction points. These junction points are subsequently removed, resulting in a set of non-crossed fiber fragments. The algorithm then evaluates the most likely recombination of these fragments, considering factors such as angle, orientation, and gradient, to reconstruct the original, non-crossed fiber. This process is iteratively applied to the entire crossed-fiber structure. Our optimized approach enables reliable, rapid, and highly accurate measurement of prepared fiber solutions, even in the presence of complex fiber crossings and convoluted images. This approach significantly outperforms conventional image processing algorithms in terms of reproducibility and the total number of fibers measured, as validated across diverse fiber measurement systems and image types.

Period	01 Oct 2024
Event title	PPS Regional Europe: Ferrrol
Event type	Conference
Location	SpainShow on map