Introduction to UT Flaw Detector

Nail Widya Satya

 Sound
• Material structure is consist of many small particles or atoms
• Sound energy can be transmitted through a solid material by a series of particles displacement
within the material
• Sound can travel in solid, liquid, as well as in air
• Sound is a vibration and has frequency range
• Ultrasound is a sound waves with frequency higher than human upper audible limit (> 20K Hz)

• Ultrasonic testing is the process of applying ultrasonic

sound to a specimen to determine its soundness, thickness,
or some physical properties.
• Products such as welds, forgings, castings, sheet, or tubing
made from metal, plastic, composite, fiberglass, ceramic,
glass, etc. can be tested using UT
• UT has an advantage to detect subsurface
discontinuities with access to only one side of the
specimen
 Principle
• Electrical energy is applied through wires connected to crystals located
inside a transducer causing crystals to expand and contract, forming
mechanical vibrations
• This vibration generates sound energy that travels along the thickness of a
material until it reach the end and reflected back to the transducer
• When the reflected energy received by transducer, a microprocessor is
calculating the time needed for the sound to travel for a known frequency
of a transducer and thickness of a material (calibration)
• Wave length = Velocity / Frequency
• In practical situations, the smallest discontinuity
can be found using UT is about ½ wave length
• UT is a quantitative NDT method
 Sound Beam Velocity
• Sound beam is easier to travel in Metal
Longitudinal Shear Velocity Density Acoustic Impedance
higher density material Velocity (m/s) (m/s) (g/cm3) (g/cm2-sec x105)
Steel, 1095 5900 3190 7.8 46.02
• Sound velocity change as it Aluminum 6320 3130 2.7 17.1
moves from one medium to Brass 4280 2300 8.56 36.7
another Copper 4660 2330 8.93 41.61
Gold 3240 1200 19.32 62.6
• Acoustic Impedance = Density x Iron 5900 3230 7.7 45.43
Velocity Manganese 4660 2350 7.39 34.44
• Ultrasonic waves are reflected Nickel 5630 2960 8.88 49.99
Silver 3600 1590 10.5 37.8
when they encounter a medium Titanium 6070 3310 4.5 27.32
with different acoustical Zinc 4170 2410 7.1 29.61
impedance
• The surface at which reflection
occurs is called interface
 Frequency
• Frequency used in ultrasonic inspection is depends on test application
• Usually code or manual will state frequency range can be used

Frequency Range Test Application

Casting: gray iron, nodular iron, and relatively
200 kHz - 1 MHz coarse-grained material, e.g. copper, stainless
steel, etc.
Casting: steel, aluminium, brass, & other materials
400 kHz - 5 MHz
with refined grain size
Plastic and plastic-like materials, e.g. solid rocket
200 KHz - 2.25 MHz
propellant, powder grain, etc.
1 - 5 MHz Rolled products: metallic sheet, plate, bar, & billet
2.25 - 10 MHz Drawn & extruded products: bar, tube, & shape
1 - 10 MHz Forging
2.25 - 10 MHz Glass & ceramic
1 - 5 MHz Weld
1 - 10 MHz Maintenance inspection, e.g. fatigue crack
 Transducer
• Sound beam is generated by
transducer which causes particles
displacement within the specimen
• The ability of a transducer to
convert mechanical energy to
electrical and vice versa is called
piezoelectric effect
• Transducer is differentiated based
on type (normal / angle, single /
dual crystal), size, and frequency
• Code or manual regulates type,
size, and frequency can be used
• Usually transducer brand will be
same as UT instrument
 Ultrasonic Test System
• There are 2 basic ultrasonic test system, i.e. pulse echo system & through
transmission system
• Pulse echo use 1 transducer act as transmitter & receiver alternately while
through transmission use 2 (1 as transmitter, another as receiver)
• Only pulse echo system capable to measure discontinuity depth
 Ultrasonic Test Methods
• There are 2 test methods used in ultrasonic testing, i.e. contact
testing & immersion testing
• In contact testing, transducer is coupled to the material through a
thin layer of couplant, usually a liquid, semi-liquid, or paste
• In immersion testing, both the test specimen & transducer are
immersed in liquid couplant and ultrasonic vibrations are applied to
the specimen through the liquid. Transducer does not touch the
specimen being tested.
Contact Testing – Immersion Testing
 Ultrasonic Wave Mode
• Longitudinal / Compression
Particle vibrations in back & forth motion in wave propagation direction. It
can travel in all mediums.
• Transverse / Shear
Particle vibrations perpendicular to wave motion. It can’t travel through
liquid or gas. Typically VS = ½ VL. Wavelength is shorter than longitudinal
permitting to find smaller discontinuity
• Surface / Reyleigh
A 90o refracted shear waves generated when incident wave comes at 2nd
critical angle. Wave travels with elliptical particle motion. It is useful to
detect surface crack but only penetrate about 1 wavelength. It can follow
material surface contour.
• Plate / Lamb
Has ability to propagate through thin plates. It occupy part entire thickness.
Without saturating (memenuhi) the part, wave can’t exist.
 Snell's Law
• Sound beam will be reflected and
refracted when hitting interface
between 2 different media at
other than 90o angle
• Snell's Law used to determine
angular relationship between
media
• ꭤ1 = angle of incidence
• VL1 = usually longitudinal wave
speed in plastic angle beam probe
• VL2 or in different case VS2 are
longitudinal or shear wave speed
in material being tested
• To inspect weldment typically only Angle beam contact transducer are identified by
shear wave is utilized while o o o
longitudinal wave is made to refracted shear wave produced (45 , 60 , 70 , etc.) in
refract exit the material. a specific material.
 Probe & Materials Character
• For a given frequency, smaller probe -> greater beam spread (sin (half-
angle beam spread) = 1.22 x λ / D)
• Higher frequency -> more attenuation
• Higher frequency -> less penetration
• Higher frequency -> less beam spread
• Higher frequency -> better sensitivity
• Higher frequency -> better resolution
• Fine grain structured part (forging) has low sound beam damping
• Coarse grain structured part (casting) is more difficult to get sound
through. It produce “grass” / noise of irregular indication on instrument
screen
• Material having excessive fine porosity also present screen pattern similar
to coarse grain structure
 Couplant
• Couplant is used to provide a suitable sound
path between transducer & test surface
• Couplant must exclude all air from between
surfaces as air is a very poor sound
conductor
• Couplant smooths out part surface
irregularities
• Couplant aids transducer movement in
contact testing
• Oil, water-glycerine mix, or grease often
used as couplant
• Couplant application should be as thin as
possible to avoid sound beam alteration
 Calibration Block
• Calibration block shall be made
from same material to be tested
(chemical composition, heat
treatment, grain size) and
precisely machined
• Area amplitude blocks provide
standards for different size
discontinuities at same depth
• Distance amplitude blocks
provide standards for same size
discontinuities at different depth
 IIW Calibration Block
• IIW V1 block is used to verify angular relationship, transducer angle,
beam exit point, and transducer resolution
• IIW V2 block is used to calibrate angle beam transducer for field
application
 UT Indication Display
• A-scan
Time vs amplitude display which reveals discontinuity using “pip” on screen. Relative discontinuity size
can be found by comparing actual discontinuity signal height with signal from calibration block with a
known size artificial discontinuity.
• B-scan
Cross sectional view of tested material
• C-scan
Plan view presentation similar to X-ray picture. It
shows discontinuity shape & location but does not
show depth.
• D-scan
Modification of C-scan where the depth of
discontinuities from the surface is directly known
• S-scan
Sectoral scan obtained by phased array transducer.
It sweeps through a range of angles using same
focal distance and elements.
Example: PAUT-based defect detection method for
submarine pressure hulls
Sung-chul Shin
Department of Naval Architecture and Ocean Engineering, Pusan National University, Busan, South Korea
 UTFD Screen
• 1st signal is initial pulse. It’s generated by
single crystal transducer used (1 cable) as a
result from the time needed to “switch roles”
between transmitter & receiver.
• Initial pulse creates dead zone area making
examination of near surface discontinuity
impossible
• 2nd signal is backwall echo resulting from
back surface of a material (IIW V2 block)
• 3rd signal & forward are reflection of
backwall echo with amplitude reduction as
sound beam attenuated (block thickness 20
mm, range/Spath 100 mm)
 Distance Amplitude
Correction (DAC)
• Caused by attenuation, indication
amplitude from a discontinuity of a given
size decreases as it’s depth increases
• DAC control electronically compensates
sound attenuation as it penetrates deeper
into specimen by amplifies the signal
• DAC curve is consist of 3 curves, i.e. 20%,
50%, & 100%
• DAC curve is used to evaluate
discontinuity signal
 1st & 2nd Leg Method
• 1st and 2nd leg method used in weld inspection
• In 2nd leg calculation specimen is mirrored to measure depth of discontinuity
 Lamination Examination
• Examination performed using 0o 10 mm 4 MHz probe
• To determine edge of lamination, equalization technique is used
 Plate Weld Joint
Examination
• Two parallel lines outside
weldment are probe leg 1 & leg 2
• Examination is performed
between those leg to ensure
complete coverage of weld cross
section
• Exit point & actual angle must be
determined first using IIW V1
block
• UT “calculator” is used to
determine location of
discontinuity using specimen
thickness, probe angle, sound
path, & surface distance value
 Pipe Weld Joint Examination
• Before inspection, a DAC curve is made using BCB having ¼ T, ½ T, & ¾ T (T
= BCB thickness) from 1st and 2nd leg sound path
• Transfer of Losses (TOL) is performed to determine examination extra gain
(scanning level = dB 100% DAC (80% FSH) + 6 dB (ASME rule) + TOL)
• Discontinuity evaluation is refer to ASME Section VIII (Rules for
Construction of Pressure Vessels) Div 1 Mandatory Appendix 12
 Ultrasonic Indication
• Non relevant indication
Caused by interference from electrical component (improper
connection, noise, fault equipment), transducer, specimen surface,
sound beam mode conversion, specimen shape, or material structure
• Relevant indication
True indication that needs to be evaluated based on code or manual
used
• Every discontinuity has its own individual
characteristic, but actual screen display will vary
based on discontinuity size, orientation, and
location
• Interpretation of UT screen signals is a learned art,
not a science
Thank you!