-R.

Manikandan
-17MC34
 The basic concept of Acoustic Emission stimulation is
to locate a yield point of the material where it can
lead to a leakage or similar problems.
 The yield point causes a stress wave that propagates
through the structure elastically. At some point, it
reaches the surface and stimulates a piezoelectric
sensor. This sensor will convert mechanical energy
into an electrical signal, amplified to be able to
perform the analysis process.
 Acoustic emission testing is normally practiced on
welded piping
high energy steam piping in fossil power plants
 It is now one of the most used non-destructive types
of testing.
 Acoustic Emission (AE) refers to the generation of
transient elastic waves produced by a sudden
redistribution of stress in a material. When a
structure is subjected to an external stimulus (change
in pressure, load, or temperature), localized sources
trigger the release of energy, in the form of stress
waves, which propagate to the surface and are
recorded by sensors.
 AE’s have also been measured and recorded
in polymers, wood, and concrete among
other materials.
 Because of the versatility of Acoustic Emission
Testing (AET), it has many industrial
applications
Assessing structural integrity.
Detecting flaws.
Testing for leaks.
Monitoring weld quality.
 It is used extensively as a research tool.
 The inspection by acoustic emission differs
from other non-destructive inspections on
the following points:
 The signal detected is generated by the same
material
 The evaluation is comprehensive and not
limited by its geometry
 The method is used in evaluating the
response of the material.
 It is a dynamic technique.
Acoustic Emission can assess
the structural integrity
 structure behavior.
 where degradation is occurring
 when and where other non-destructive
inspections should be performed.
 presence of a potential weakness.
The inspection can be
done with a small
number of sensors.
This ability of the
acoustic emission
application is quite
attractive to large
structures (sausages),
spheres, heat
exchangers where
access and inspection
areas is difficult and
takes too long.
 It can distinguish abnormalities that are
growing and others that are structurally
insignificant.
 With other techniques, it is possible to
establish the presence of an abnormalities, but
it is difficult to assess the effect on the
structure when it is in service.
 Aircraft life estimation
 Structural integrity testing
 Materials testing
 Concrete corrosion monitoring
 Pipeline monitoring
 Bridge monitoring
 Leak detection
 Earthquake prediction
 Bridges contain many welds, joints and
connections, and a combination of load and
environmental factors heavily influence
damage mechanisms such as fatigue
cracking and metal thinning due to
corrosion.
 Bridges receive a visual inspection about
every two years and when damage is
detected, the bridge is either shut down, its
weight capacity is lowered, or it is singled
out for more frequent monitoring.
 Acoustic Emission is increasingly being
used for bridge monitoring applications
because it can continuously gather data and
detect changes that may be due to damage
without requiring lane closures or bridge
shutdown.
 In fact, traffic flow is commonly used to
load or stress the bridge for the AE testing.