History of NDE

 Definition
An examination, test, or evaluation performed
on any type of object without changing
that object in any way, in order to determine the
absence or presence of conditions that might
have an effect on the usefulness of that object

 Terminology
NDE = nondestructive examination
 NDE= nondestructive evaluation
 NDE = nondestructive engineering
 NDI = nondestructive inspection
 NDS = nondestructive sensing
 NDT = nondestructive testing
With the advance of design
sophistication and construction
methodology came the proliferation
of structural failures.

Robert Ratay, Forensic Structural Engineering Handbook

 History of NDE
 What about NDE ?
 Incredibly fast growth and acceptance in the past 25
years
 Ideas for many NDT procedures come from the human
body, the ultimate NDT machine
 Optimum NDT process is NVT (nondestructive visual
testing) or simply VT (visual testing) performed by the
human body
 Misconceptions about NDE
 NDE will ensure there will be no failure and that the
material or structure are sound
 NDE provides a complete picture and requires no
information on the history of the material or structure.
 Regardless of NDE results, if a material or structure
meets codes and standards, there is no way a failure can
occur
 NDE results are objective and do not depend on the
engineer’s or operator’s abilities and opinions
 NDT technologies have maxed out
 History of NDE

 First account of NDE ?

 Book of “Genesis”: In the
beginning God created the
heavens and the earth, and he
saw that it was good.

 In the ancient Middle East,

warriors in Damascus would tap
their swords on a block or stone
and listen to the ring as a sing of
integrity.

 Street layers in ancient Rome

would tap on the cobblestone
streets with wooden poles
listening for changes in pitch to
indicate voids under the stone.
 History of NDE
 Early events leading to NDE

March, 1854 in Hartford, Conn. at the Fales and Gray Car

Works
 People had returned from lunch and ~ 2:00 p.m. a boiler
exploded destroying a good portion of the building. 21
people were killed and 50 seriously injured.
 Large safety factors, new
materials, and reputable
company did not prevent
explosion due to too much
steam pressure.
 A jury of peers suggested:
 workman certification
 safety inspections
 limit location
 provide minimum safety regulations
 History of NDE
 Inspection Laws

 1857 – 12 men in Connecticut formed the Polytechnic Club

met periodically to study problems related to boiler failures.

 1864 - Connecticut passed

first boiler inspection law
that provided guidelines
for inspection and
removed boilers that
did not pass inspection.
 History of NDE
 Early events leading to NDE (Cont’d)

April 27, 1865 the Mississippi steamboat, Sultana, was

steaming along near Memphis when 3 of 4 boilers exploded.

 A 375-person capacity boat

carrying ~2200 people, mostly
Union soldiers released from
prisons following Lee’s
surrender at Appomattox.

 Assumption of sabotage was

never proven. ~1600 people
died, making it the worst
maritime disaster ever.
[Note, the Titanic sinking
resulted in 1517 lost]
 History of NDE

 Inspection Laws

 1866 – Connecticut approved the Hartford Steam Boiler Inspection

and Insurance Co. charged with providing insurance but requiring
inspection.

 Premiums for $5,000 in coverage

were $60 per year, considered to
be exorbitant.

 1911 – work began on the 1st

boiler code which was
published in 1915.
 History of NDE
 Early events leading to NDE (Cont’d)

 Late 1800’s – numerous bridge

failures in cast iron bridges led
to more sophisticated analyses
methods and accelerated the
use of steel as a construction
material.
 History of NDE
 More Recent Events in NDE

1920 – Dr. H.H. Lester began work

on use of X-rays, discovered 27
years earlier, in examining welds
and castings and built the foundation
for today’s use of radiographic test
methods of NDE
 History of NDE
 More Recent Events in NDE

1920’s - a large number of railroad failures due to problems

with the tracks. Sperry and Drake developed the magnetic
field detection system that is still used today for the inspection
of track. Sperry Rail Service is the oldest, continuously
operated NDT company in the U.S.
 History of NDE
 More Recent Events in NDE

 1929 – Magnaflux Corporation was formed and used

magnetic principles in NDT, and led toward the
acceptance of magnetic particle testing (MT) as an NDT
procedure.
 History of NDE
 1926 – first eddy current instrument using
Faraday’s principles (from 1831) was used to
measure material thickness
 1930’s – Dr. Robert F. Mehl led in the
development of practical uses of gamma
radiography in NDT
 1940’s – Robert and Joseph Switzer led in
applications of penetrant testing (PT); expanded
“oil and whiting” techniques from the late 19th
century.
 1941 – American Industrial Radium and X-ray
Society (AIRXS) was founded and published
“Industrial Radiography.”
 1945 – AIRXS published first set of qualifications
for certification in what would become NDT.
 History of NDE (Cont’d)
 1950’s – material “crying” was investigated by Dr. Joseph
Kaiser in Germany and opened the field of acoustic
emissions (AE) as an NDT method for investigating in-field
conditions. High frequencies were used to detect material
flaws, refining work performed in the U.S., England, Russia,
and Germany during the previous 20 years.

 1950’s - first thermal imaging was developed using

techniques explored in the mid-1800’s for measuring
changes in radiant energy, during which time John Herschel
developed the first crude thermal “picture.”

 1961 – AIIXS journal which had been renamed “Materials

Evaluation” was now renamed “Nondestructive Testing,”
and the AIRXS name was changed to the American Society
for Nondestructive Testing (ASNT) and is one of the most
widely recognized NDT groups in the world.
 Certification of NDT

 Certification
 ASNT/ANSI – CP189 = general requirements
for NDT personnel
 MILSTD-410 = general requirements for
military and some aerospace personnel
 NAVSEA 250-1500 = general requirements for
naval nuclear program personnel
 ISO 9712 = international requirements for NDT
personnel
 ANST ACCP = centralized certification avoiding
employer-based programs
 PCN = personnel certification in NDT is a
centralized, 3rd party program that is the most
widely used program in the world
 NDT versus DT
NDT DT
Benefits Limitations Benefits Limitations

Sample Operator Reliable/ Sample specific

unchanged dependent accurate
Samples are
Large samples May not provide Useful for design spent
Portable permanent
methods records Standards/Specs Large, expensive
Quantitative
Examine in Qualitative data
service Measures service
Sample condition
Internal/surface has effects
Predicts useful
life
Cost effective Subjective
interpretation
….. failures are not just accidents, nor
acts of God. They are the results of
human error originating from
oversight, carelessness, ignorance, or
greed.

Robert Ratay, Forensic Structural Engineering Handbook

 Ultrasonic Methods
 Properties of Sound Waves - Refraction
 Ultrasonic Methods
 Properties of Sound Waves – Refraction and Mode
Conversion
 If “i” is small, most of the refracted wave is a compression
wave
 As “i” increases, the refracted wave becomes more of a shear
wave
 At some angle “i”, both a compression wave and a shear wave
are refracted, and they travel at different V’s.
 At some angle (1st critical angle) the compression wave from
incident sound wave is fully, internally reflected (water-to-steel
is 15o; plexiglas to steel = 28o)
in Medium 1, meaning R = 90o
leaving only a refracted shear wave
 Ultrasonic Methods
 Properties of Sound Waves – Refraction and Mode
Conversion

 “i” may be increased such that the shear wave is totally

reflected and a surface wave is generated (2nd critical angle).
 Beyond the 2nd critical angle there is no sound in the medium
(water-to-steel is 27o; plexiglas to steel = 58o); ie, there is
total internal reflection in medium 1.
 Ultrasonic Methods
 Properties of Sound Waves – Reflection and Mode
Conversion

 The incident wave is reflected at a matching angle “r.”

However, as “i” increases, a mode-converted shear wave
appears, becomes stronger, and causes confusion in ultrasonic
flaw detection.
 Often times, the angle (orientation) of the flaw in the material
is unknown, so even though the beam is perpendicular to the
surface, the angle of reflection is unknown and makes
adjustments difficult.
Compression

Shear
 Ultrasonic Methods

 Beam concerns

 Interference

 Diffraction

 Absorption

 Scatter

 Spread
 Ultrasonic Methods
 Effects of variables during an ultrasonic
investigation

 Temperature effects velocity of sound, so careful

calibration of equipment is required.
• Equipment components (calibration blocks and transducers,
for example) should be warmed up to the temperature of
the sample.

 Temperature can alter the attenuation (weakening) of the

sound in the material.

 Surface conditions are critical to the transfer of energy

across a surface; a surface should be smooth with tightly
adhering coatings.

 Pressure on the transducer can allow either too much air

(too little pressure) at the boundary or too little couplant
(too much pressure) on the surface.
 Ultrasonic Methods

 Common Applications

 Thickness measurement

 Discontinuity detection

 Bond testing

 Stress analysis
 Ultrasonic Methods
 Advantages
 Inspection from one
surface
 Detect small subsurface
flaws
 Control over test variables
 Diverse wave mode
 High-temperature
examination
 Examine thick and long
parts
 Inspect buried parts
 Accurate sizing
 Discontinuity depth
 Repeatability
 No evacuation of personnel
 No special licenses
 Minimum consumables
 Limitations
 Orientation of flaw is most
important factor in detection and
causes problems
 Flaws similar or smaller than
material’s grain structure may not
be detected
 Thin sections may cause problems
 Uneven scanning surfaces an cause
problems
 Mode conversion can cause
misinterpretation of signals
 Dependent on high level of skill and
training in the user