Thermography is routinely used to inspect materials for flaws. We are currently testing a newly developed 2D and 3D heat flow simulation method. Below are several snapshots from a heat flow simulation. An aluminum plate is heated on one side and as the heat disperses across the plate it interacts with a small crack. 

 

 

The next picture demonstrates the heat flow around the crack as a streamline plot. Some heat flows through the crack, but most of the heat flows around the crack. The degree of the crack’s resistance to heat flow can be adjusted to study the heat interaction.