USOO6723185B1

(12) United States Patent (10) Patent No.: US 6,723,185 B1

Elfving et al. (45) Date of Patent: Apr. 20, 2004

(54) METHOD FOR PRODUCING DEFECTS AND 4.203,315 A 5/1980 Vieu et al.
TENSILE RESIDUAL STRESSES 4,229.235 A 10/1980 Matsuda et al.
4,704892. A 11/1987 Tarnai
(75) Inventors: Kai Elfving, Kirjala (FI); Hannu 4,729,235 A 3/1988 Podlech
Hanninen, TKK (FI); Mika 4,810,400 A 3/1989 Shinozaki et al.
Kemppainen, Kirkommuni (FI); Pekka 5,013,370 A 5/1991 Diaz
Saarinen, Helsinki (FI); Iikka
Virkkunen, Helsinki (FI) FOREIGN PATENT DOCUMENTS
(73) Assignee: Trueflaw Oy (FI) JP 410170421. A * 6/1998 - -- - - -- -- - -- GO1 N/3/60

(*) Notice: Subject to any disclaimer, the term of this WO WO 98/19 155 5/1998
patent is extended or adjusted under 35
U.S.C. 154(b) by 0 days. * cited by examiner
(21) Appl. No.: 09/856,008
(22) PCT Filed: Nov. 16, 1999 Primary Examiner Deborah Yee
(74) Attorney, Agent, or Firm-Skinner and Associates
(86) PCT No.: PCT/FI99/00949
(57) ABSTRACT
S371 (c)(1),
(2), (4) Date: Jul. 19, 2001 A method, which is used to make controlled defects corre
(87) PCT Pub. No.: WO00/29841 sponding to natural flaws and residual Stresses in various
kinds of test pieces. Defects identical to natural flaws are
PCT Pub. Date: May 25, 2000 required to qualify non-destructive testing (NDT) proce
(30) Foreign Application Priority Data dures. In the method, Sequential, repeated, heating-cooling
Nov. 16, 1998 (FI) ................................................. 982471 cycles are used to create defects and residual Stresses. The
shape of the heating and cooling pattern, the duration of the
(51) Int. Cl. ............................ C21D 11/00; C21D 9/00 heating and cooling, and the number of thermal cycles are
(52) U.S. Cl. ....................... 148/510; 148/508; 148/511; used to control the size of the defects and residual Stresses
148/639; 148/644 obtained. The defect is grown without initial flaw or other
(58) Field of Search ................................. 148/508, 511, nucleator. The defects correspond to natural flaws in terms
148/510, 639, 644 of morphology and also of the signals obtained with NDT
(56) References Cited methods, and are suitable for use in, for example, NDT.
qualification blockS.
U.S. PATENT DOCUMENTS
4,108,647 A 8/1978 Shaw ......................... 42O/448 6 Claims, 1 Drawing Sheet
U.S. Patent Apr. 20, 2004 US 6,723,185 B1
 US 6,723,185 B1
1 2
METHOD FOR PRODUCING DEFECTS AND the tensile residual StreSS is to be produced in more than one
TENSILE RESIDUAL STRESSES area, the initial State of each of them must be StreSS-free.
In the publication referred to, opposite Sides of the piece
The present invention relates to a method for producing are heated and cooled. This arrangement induces an uncon
controlled defects and residual Stresses in test pieces. trolled State of tensile StreSS in the area being treated.
Defects Such as thermal fatigue cracks may appear in According to the patent in, question, a crack can be created
Various components, e.g., in nuclear power plants, during in the induced field of tensile Stress, e.g., by means of an
operation. Non-destructive testing (NDT) procedures are aggressive crack-promoting environment, Such as a boiling
used to examine pre defined valves, pipes, pipe connections, magnesium chloride Solution, oxygenated water at a high
etc., during inspections carried out at regular intervals. In temperature, etc.
inspections carried out under field conditions, inaccuracies Unlike the invention according to U.S. Pat. No. 5,013,
due to both the method and the perSonnel carrying them out 370, the present invention can be used to create a wanted and
always arise. Test pieces incorporating artificially created controlled crack or a controlled residual stress state (either
cracks similar to real ones are used to qualify NDT proce tensile or compressive), with no environmental or stress
dures and inspectors. The international PISC I, II, and III 15 State demands. AS, in the present invention, the heating/
studies of the reliability of the non-destructive testing of cooling is not directed to different Sides of the piece, there
materials, which have revealed obvious deficiencies in the are no requirements concerning the size and shape of the
detection and definition of defects, have demonstrated the piece. In addition, there are no requirements concerning the
need for qualification. residual StreSS State in the test piece in its initial State.
For example, qualification is required in the inspection of The above and other advantages and benefits of the
nuclear power plants. Instructions have been issued for the invention are achieved by means of a method, the charac
qualification of the NDT inspection of nuclear power plants teristic features of which are described in the accompanying
(in the USA, ASME Code Section XI, in Europe, NRWG Claims.
and ENIQ), according to which equipment, test pieces, The basic idea of the invention is to repeatedly alter
procedures, and inspectors should be qualified. 25 nately heat and cool the piece being treated, i.e. to fatigue it
According to the European qualification procedures, the thermally, which will result in a crack identical to a natural
dimensions (diameter, wall-thickness, etc.) of test pieces flaws, or in a desired controlled State of residual StreSS.
should correspond to the real objects being inspected. In general, it can be Stated that cracks induced by means
Similarly, the test pieces other properties, Such as material, of the methods disclosed in the above publications do not
shape, Surface quality, method of manufacture, and location correspond to natural flaws, which is an obvious deficiency
of welds must also correspond to those in actual plant when manufacturing Such test pieces for qualification. At
components. The type, Shape, size, location, orientation, and present, cracks are produced in qualification test pieces
opening of the defects that occur must correspond closely either by Welding Separate pieces containing cracks into a
enough to natural flaws. The characteristics of the defects in test piece, or by welding a hot crack into a test piece, or
qualification test pieces are highly significant to the entire 35 Simply by machining a notch in a test piece. Cracks
qualification process. The use of test pieces with defects as implanted by welding may be natural and taken from actual
Similar as possible to natural defects will ensure that the pieces that have cracks in operation, or be artificially pro
inspection procedure in question can detect and define Such duced in Separate test pieces. No matter how the crack being
defects with the required precision. Personnel-qualification implanted has originated, the Weld from the implanting will
tests determine if the inspector can detect and define the 40 remain in the material. A hot crack is made by machining a
relevant defects with Sufficient accuracy. narrow groove in the test piece and then by welding it shut
At present, methods are known for producing various using parameters that will cause the Weld to crack in the
kinds of cracks and defects in test pieces. In the known desired direction. The welded joints in test pieces resulting
methods, an artificial crack is implanted to pieces usually by from these methods can be easily detected by NDT inspec
welding, a welding fault is made, or a notch is machined in 45 tion methods. Such aspects of machined notches as width
the test piece. Japanese patent publication JP 57-034439 and progression do not correspond to those of natural flaws.
discloses a method that can be used to produce a crack in the The method now developed can be used to flexibly
Surfacing of a plate-like piece. Another, also Japanese, manufacture cracks Similar to natural ones in any location in
patent publication JP 58-055752 discloses a method for the test piece, irrespective of the shape or dimensions. The
making an artificial crack, in which a hole is machined in the 50 cracks are nucleated directly in the Surface of the test piece.
Surface of a joint between two pieces, after which the pieces No crack initiator (machined notch etc.) is required. The
are joined together. A third Japanese patent publication, JP cracks are grown in the Surface of the test piece without the
8-219953, discloses a method for manufacturing defects by material experiencing micro-structural or other changes
machining grooves in a piece and filling them with a detectable by NDT methods. This is a significant advantage,
material with different acoustic properties to those of the 55 because when transplanted or welded cracks are used, the
parent material. No method is known for producing a defect inspector may notice the welded Seams in the test piece and
in a piece of any shape at all, at any place at all, and of any be alerted to make a more thorough Search for cracks in the
desired orientation and shape. Producing cracks Similar to Same area. Cracks created by the method that has been
natural ones is one of the central problems in qualification. developed also correspond well to natural cracks, in terms
A method for producing a State of tensile residual StreSS 60 Such as the propagation and branching of the crack and the
is also known from U.S. Pat. No. 5,013,370, in which a radius of the crack tip, all of which affect, for instance, the
tensile residual StreSS is induced in a test piece by cooling Signals received in ultrasonic inspection and their interpre
one Surface of the piece and locally heating the opposite tation.
surface. The invention disclosed in the above publication The method now developed is based on the phenomenon
requires the object or test piece being dealt with to have at 65 of thermal fatigue and a new application of it. The phenom
least one StreSS-free portion, where a State of tensile residual enon of thermal fatigue as Such has been known for a long
StreSS can be induced. Heating is directed to this area and, if time, particularly for materials used at high temperatures.
 US 6,723,185 B1
3 4
The rapid cycling of heating and cooling in thermal fatigue The method according to the invention was used to form
causes Steep temperature gradients to fluctuate in the test a single crack or multiple cracks in the parent material.
piece, resulting in StreSS and Strain cycling that depend on EXAMPLE 2.
the coefficient of thermal expansion of the material, and
finally leading to fatigue damage. The method was used to manufacture a crack or multiple
Cracks manufactured using the method now developed cracks in a welded Seam in a pipe. The cracks were manu
are suitable for use in test pieces used to qualify NDT factured in the inner Surface of the pipe.
procedures. The cracks can be manufactured according to The heating pattern was shaped in Such a way that it
the following requirements: extended over the root pass of the Weld, with its centre point
the morphology of the crack corresponds Sufficiently to a close to the root pass. During calibration, a temperature of
natural crack for the response to it, when inspected by 700 C. was achieved when a heating time of 6 s was used.
an NDT procedure, to be similar to that to a genuine The cooling time was 10 s. A total of 17803 cycles were
crack made during the test. Penetrant testing was performed,
the method can be used to manufacture individual cracks demonstrating that cracks had formed on both Sides of the
and networks of cracks 15 weld. Besides the aforementioned cracks, a Single crack, not
the orientations of individual cracks can be varied
extending over the root pass, had grown transversely to the
weld.
cracks can be made in different sizes and shapes, unaf The method can be used to manufacture cracks with
fected by the thickness of the material of the piece properties corresponding to those of natural flaws, and
if it is not intended to destruct the test pieces after the which thus can be used in qualification test pieces. The
qualification test, the size of the cracks to be manufac method can be used to grow both a network of cracks
tured can be evaluated either during the fatigue cycling Specific to thermal fatigue and Single cracks. Ultrasonic
or on the basis of the fatigue parameters inspections of the manufactured cracks showed that the
the heating and cooling patterns can be altered to make the cracks challenge to inspection procedures corresponded to
cracks grow in desired directions. 25 reality.
The method has been used in the manner described in the
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS above examples. In addition, the method can also be applied
In the following, the operation of the invention is to produce residual Stresses in a test piece. Residual Stresses
described with reference to the accompanying drawing, are also produced by thermally cycling on a desired area in
which show the heating and cooling arrangements. In the a test piece, when permanent residual StreSS State will arise
FIGURE, forced cooling (either liquid or gas cooling) is in the test piece. The changes of the residual StreSS-State
during the cycling depend on the heating and cooling
marked with the number 1, heating with the number 2, and parameters used.
the heating pattern (isotherms) with the number 3. It should be noted that the invention is in no way restricted
The arrangement according to the figure operates So that 35
to the above disclosure or examples, but can be varied within
heater 2 is used to heat the Surface to the desired
temperature, after which the Surface is cooled 1 to a lower the Scope of the following claims and the Stated inventive
idea.
temperature. During heating, a heating pattern 3, which is What is claimed is:
dependent on the heating output and time, arises, the shape 1. A method for producing artificial defects and/or
of the pattern influencing the orientation of the defects 40
residual Stresses in test pieces, characterized by the Steps of
created. alternately heating and cooling the test object, on the same
The operation of the invention is described with the aid of Side of the test object, to create the defects and/or residual
the following examples. StreSSeS.

EXAMPLE 1. 45
2. A method according to claim 1, characterized by
forming a shape of heating and/or cooling patterns whereby
A Single crack, or Several individual parallel cracks, was the defects and/or residual Stresses are created.
to be created in a pipe that corresponded to those used in a 3. A method according to claim 2, characterized in that the
nuclear power plant. The heating pattern was shaped with its shape of the heating pattern is controlled by cooling the test
longer dimension circumferential to the pipe. This caused 50
piece outside the area of the desired pattern.
the cracks to grow in the pipe's axial direction. The heating 4. A method according to claim 1, characterized by
and cooling cycles both lasted for 30s. During the test, the Sequentially repeating, a Sufficient number of times, alter
maximum temperature was approximately 700° C. and the nate heating and cooling cycles to achieve thermal fatigue
minimum temperature approximately 10 C. Forced cooling damage.
was used to prevent the heating pattern from Spreading by 55
5. A method according to claim 1, characterized by
thermal conduction. In forced cooling, cooling water is growing the defect without an initial flaw or other nucleator.
continuously directed to both sides of the heated area, also 6. A method according to claim 1, characterized by
during the heating cycle. controlling, by means of the heating and cooling output, the
The total number of cycles was 6500, both heating and duration of the heating and cooling, and the number of
cooling being included in a Single cycle. At this number of 60
thermal cycles, whereby the Size of the manufactured defects
and residual Stresses is controlled.
cycles, three axially-oriented cracks grew from micro-cracks
nucleated in the test piece. k k k k k