scholarly journals Infrared Thermography for Weld Inspection: Feasibility and Application

2018 ◽  
Vol 3 (4) ◽  
pp. 45 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sattar Dorafshan ◽  
Marc Maguire ◽  
William Collins
Keyword(s):  
Infrared Thermography ◽  
Ultrasonic Testing ◽  
Surface Defects ◽  
Contact Method ◽  
Lack Of Fusion ◽  
Limited Success ◽  
Skilled Operator ◽  
Highly Skilled ◽  
Weld Inspection

Traditional ultrasonic testing (UT) techniques have been widely used to detect surface and sub-surface defects of welds. UT inspection is a contact method which burdens the manufacturer by storing hot specimens for inspection when the material is cool. Additionally, UT is only valid for 5 mm specimens or thicker and requires a highly skilled operator to perform the inspections and interpret the signals. Infrared thermography (IRT) has the potential to be implemented for weld inspections due to its non-contact nature. In this study, the feasibility of using IRT to overcome the limitations of UT inspection is investigated to detect inclusion, porosity, cracking, and lack of fusion in 38 weld specimens with thicknesses of 3, 8 and 13 mm. UT inspection was also performed to locate regions containing defects in the 8 mm and 13 mm specimens. Results showed that regions diagnosed with defects by the UT inspection lost heat faster than the sound weld. The IRT method was applied to six 3 mm specimens to detect their defects and successfully detected lack of fusion in one of them. All specimens were cut at the locations indicated by UT and IRT methods which proved the presence of a defect in 86% of the specimens. Despite the agreement with the UT inspection, the proposed IRT method had limited success in locating the defects in the 8 mm specimens. To fully implement in-line IRT-based weld inspections more investigations are required.

scholarly journals Quality Control Approach for the Detection of Internal Lower Density Areas in Composite Disks in Industrial Conditions Based on a Combination of NDT Techniques

Sensors ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 21 (21) ◽  
pp. 7174
Author(s):  
Andrzej Katunin ◽  
Krzysztof Dragan ◽  
Tomasz Nowak ◽  
Marek Chalimoniuk
Keyword(s):  
Quality Control ◽  
Infrared Thermography ◽  
Ultrasonic Testing ◽  
Surface Defects ◽  
Polymer Matrix Composites ◽  
Hybrid Approach ◽  
Testing Procedure ◽  
Near Surface ◽  
Manufacturing Defects ◽  
Control Approach

Voids in polymer matrix composites are one of the most common manufacturing defects, which may influence the mechanical properties and structural behavior of the final parts made of composites by various manufacturing methods. Therefore, numerous non-destructive testing (NDT) techniques were developed and applied for quality control and in-service testing of such structures. In this paper, the authors analyzed various alternatives to the reference technique, X-ray computed tomography (XCT) NDT, which is used for industrial testing of composite disks having defects in the form of the lower density areas. Different candidates, namely: vibration-based testing, infrared thermography, vibro-thermography, as well as ultrasonic testing were analyzed in terms of their sensitivity and technical feasibility. The quality of the results, the complexity of the testing procedure, time and labor consumption, and the cost of the equipment were analyzed and compared with the reference technique. Based on the conducted research the authors finally proposed a hybrid approach to quality control, using a combination of two NDT techniques–infrared thermography (for initial scanning and detection of near-surface defects) and ultrasonic testing (for a more detailed analysis of products that pass the first testing procedure). It allowed for replacing the costly XCT diagnostics with a much cheaper, but almost equally effective, alternative.

Features of ultrasonic control of butt welded joints of polyethylene pipes

2020 ◽  
pp. 46-52
Author(s):  
N.P. Aleshin ◽  
D.M. Kozlov ◽  
L.YU. Mogilner
Keyword(s):  
Quality Control ◽  
Welded Joints ◽  
Ultrasonic Testing ◽  
Ultrasonic Inspection ◽  
Mechanical Tests ◽  
Ultrasonic Control ◽  
Lack Of Fusion ◽  
Polyethylene Pipes ◽  
End To End

The reliability of ultrasonic testing (UT) of the quality of welded joints of polyethylene pipelines, made end-to-end with a heated tool, is considered in comparison with mechanical tests and radiography. The greatest detection of solid defects is provided by ultrasonic inspection with the use of chord tipe probes (not less than 90 %). When detecting defects translucent for ultrasound (lack of penetration, lack of fusion, etc.), the reliability decreases to 70÷80 %. Keywords: welding, polyethylene pipeline, quality control, ultrasonic testing, chord tipe probe. [email protected]

scholarly journals Design Considerations for the Use of Ultrasonic Phased Array Probes in Weld Inspection

2000 ◽  
Author(s):  
Paul A. Meyer
Keyword(s):  
Ultrasonic Testing ◽  
Phased Array ◽  
Design Considerations ◽  
Array Probe ◽  
Ultrasonic Phased Array ◽  
Weld Inspection ◽  
Service Inspection

Ultrasonic testing of metal welds has been in use for many years. Scanning methods using both contact and immersion methods are often used at the time of manufacture and also during periodic in-service inspection programs. But because of a variety of component configurations and potential flaw geometries it is often necessary to perform several inspections, each with a different probe configuration to assure adequate defect delegability. It is possible that a properly designed phased array probe can perform several different inspections without changing hardware thereby reducing inspection times. This presentation reviews the design and operation of ultrasonic phased array transducers and the necessary features to achieve the desired performance. Situations in which these probes have already been implemented effectively are also discussed.

Use of Synthetic Flaws to Assess Pipeline Seam Weld Inspection Performance

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Joseph W. Krynicki ◽  
Lujian Peng ◽  
Gustavo Gonzalez ◽  
Neeraj Thirumalai
Keyword(s):  
Nondestructive Testing ◽  
Cost Effective ◽  
Fabrication Technology ◽  
Field Validation ◽  
Performance Specification ◽  
Lack Of Fusion ◽  
Naturally Occurring ◽  
Weld Inspection ◽  
Detection Capabilities ◽  
Inspection Performance

Abstract Pipeline seam welds are often inspected using ultrasonic In-Line Inspection (ILI) technologies. The measurement performance specification of an ultrasonic ILI tool is based on simple, planar, machined notches which are very reproducible, but are not representative of the complex flaw morphologies that occur naturally in seams such as hook cracks and tilted lack of fusion flaws. In order to assess ILI performance on naturally occurring flaws, “in-the-ditch” Nondestructive Testing (ITD NDT) is performed to validate a subset of the population of ILI reported features. Due to the limited number, type, and dimensional (height and length) uncertainty of these flaws, the field validation approach has limitations in terms of efficiency and accuracy in determining ILI detection capabilities and sizing performance. Recently, specialized synthetic flaw fabrication technology has been developed and provides complex, natural crack-like morphologies with reliable and reproducible size dimensions. Effective validation spools with flaws (of representative geometries) can be achieved through engineered designs that consider the number, size and shape of manufactured flaws. This enables owners to quickly and reliably assess the performance of both ILI tools and ITD NDT operators. Assessing performance with the synthetic flaw approach provides results that are more comprehensive and cost-effective compared to the typical field validation approach alone. This is because the flaw population is designed rather than randomly selected from excavation data. This paper addresses the design, use and field experience with validation spools. This paper will present the performance of ILI tools and UT examiners based on synthetic flaw qualification exams, and how this supports related ILI and operator validation work.

scholarly journals Remote surface damage detection on rotor blades of operating wind turbines by means of infrared thermography

2018 ◽  
Vol 3 (2) ◽  
pp. 639-650 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dominik Traphan ◽  
Iván Herráez ◽  
Peter Meinlschmidt ◽  
Friedrich Schlüter ◽  
Joachim Peinke ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Wind Turbine ◽  
Flat Plate ◽  
Infrared Thermography ◽  
Wind Turbines ◽  
Remote Monitoring ◽  
Surface Defects ◽  
Early Stage ◽  
Rotor Blades ◽  
Stereoscopic Particle Image Velocimetry ◽  
Small Surface

Abstract. Wind turbines are constantly exposed to wind gusts, dirt particles and precipitation. Depending on the site, surface defects on rotor blades emerge from the first day of operation on. While erosion increases quickly with time, even small surface defects can affect the performance of the wind turbine. Consequently, there is demand for an easily applicable remote monitoring method for rotor blades that is capable of detecting surface defects at an early stage. In this work it is investigated if infrared thermography (IRT) can meet these requirements by visualizing differences in the thermal transport and the corresponding surface temperature of the wall-bounded flow.Firstly, a validation of the IRT method compared to stereoscopic particle image velocimetry measurements is performed comparing both types of experimental results for the boundary layer of a flat plate. Then, the main characteristics of the flow in the wake of generic surface defects on different types of lifting surfaces are studied both experimentally and numerically: temperature gradients behind protruding surface defects on a flat plate and a DU 91-W2-250 profile are studied by means of IRT. The same is done with the wall shear stress from Reynolds-averaged Navier–Stokes simulations of a wind turbine blade. It is consistently observed, both in the experiments and the simulations, that turbulent wedges are formed on the flow downstream of generic surface defects. These wedges provide valuable information about the kind of defects that generate them. At last, experimental and numerical performance measures are taken into account for evaluating the aerodynamic impact of surface defects on rotor blades. We conclude that the IRT method is a suitable remote monitoring technique for detecting surface defects on wind turbines at an early stage.

scholarly journals Remote surface damage detection on rotor blades of operating wind turbines by means of infrared thermography

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dominik Traphan ◽  
Iván Herráez ◽  
Peter Meinlschmidt ◽  
Friedrich Schlüter ◽  
Joachim Peinke ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Wind Turbine ◽  
Flat Plate ◽  
Infrared Thermography ◽  
Wind Turbines ◽  
Performance Monitoring ◽  
Surface Defects ◽  
Early Stage ◽  
Rotor Blades ◽  
Stereoscopic Particle Image Velocimetry ◽  
Monitoring Method

Abstract. Wind turbines are constantly exposed to wind gusts, dirt particles, and precipitation. Depending on the site, surface defects on rotor blades emerge from the first day of operation on. While erosion increases quickly with time, even small defects can affect the performance of the wind turbine due to nonlinear interaction. Consequently, there is a demand for a remote and easily applicable condition monitoring method for rotor blades that is capable of detecting surface defects at an early stage. In this work it is analyzed if infrared thermography (IRT) can meet these requirements by visualizing differences in the thermal transport and the corresponding surface temperature of the wall-bounded flow. Firstly, a validation of the IRT method against stereoscopic particle image velocimetry measurements is performed comparing both types of experimental results for the boundary layer of a flat plate. Then, the main characteristics of the flow in the wake of generic surface defects on different types of lifting surfaces are studied both experimentally and numerically: temperature gradients behind protruding surface defects on a flat plate and a DU 91-W2-250 profile are studied by means of IRT. The same is done with the wall shear stress from RANS simulations of a wind turbine blade. It is consistently observed both in the experiments and the simulations that turbulent wedges are formed on the flow downstream of generic surface defects. These wedges provide valuable information about the kind of defect that generates them. At last, experimental and numerical performance measures are taken into account for evaluating the aerodynamic impact of surface defects on rotor blades. We conclude that the IRT method is a suitable remote condition and performance monitoring technique for detecting surface defects on wind turbines at an early stage.

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