Nondestructive wire fault diagnosis using resistance spectroscopy analysis

Abstract

Wires in field applications, such as aircraft, are often exposed to stress conditions, including overheating, moisture ingress, or inherent defects, which may result in electrical discontinuity, wire insulation breakdown, and system failure. This study proposed a nondestructive and real-time wire fault diagnosis method through resistance spectroscopy to diagnose the health of wires under stress conditions. Wire abrasion tests were conducted by applying cyclic mechanical stress to produce gradual damage to a wire under test. During abrasion testing, a lock-in amplifier generated high-frequency signals and monitored the signals transmitted through the wire to diagnose the wire failure under test. Differences in signal amplitude, and phase shift spectra during wire degradation exhibited specific and distinguishable behavior based on the physical damage progression of the tested wire. Test results implied that resistance spectroscopy analysis could serve as a nondestructive wire fault diagnosis method, providing damage progression in real time.