Ultrasonic Testing Methods

PULSE ECHO
METHOD

 US projected perpendicularly
into the specimen-generally
longitudinal waves
 With single crystal probe-
probe acts as emitter and
receiver at the same time
 CRT indicate transmission
pulse, backwall echo and
flaw echo
 small defect

large defect

0 10 20 30 40 50 0 10 20 30 40 50 0 10 20 30 40 50
100% 100% 100%
Backwall echo
Backwall echo
50% 50% 50%

Defect echo Defect echo

0 0 0
% % %
Defect free specimen Specimen with small defect Specimen with large defect

 Anything that reflect sound wave is called reflector (e.g defect and
backsurface)
 Flaw size indicated by the signal height
 Flaw depth indicated by by echo position on the time base
 If no flaw-only transmission pulse and backwall echo presented.
 T R
Through
Transmission Defect free
specimen

Technique
 Oldest method in UT T R
 Use 2 probes one as emitter
another as receiver
 compare sound intensity Specimen
from flawless and with flaw with small
defect
signal T R
 flaw shade the sound energy
 Reduction or loss of signal or
indicates the presence of
defect Specimen
with large
defect
 Through
Transmission Defect free
specimen

Technique
 normally large flaw shade more
energy
 Normally applied for large ingot
and castings inspection
(attenuation is high) Specimen
with small
 limitations: defect

 variation of amplitude due to

couplant and different

geometries of sample
 Require good coupling and

alignment between transducer Specimen

 no information on the depth with large
defect
and size of flaw
Resonance Method
 Resonance is a condition when thickness of
material equal to half of the wavelength or
any multiple thereof in material
 can be establish by generating sound with
varying in frequency
 Frequency (controllable parameter in
inspection) hence wavelength can be varies
so that resonance can be established
 resonance condition can be identified by
increased in received pulse signal
 Resonance Method
 When resonance condition is achieved,
thickness of material (t) can be calculated
as:
V
t 
2f
 V: US velocity, f: fundamental frequency
 Resonance Method
 Not easy to determine f, thus normally
obtained from the difference of successive
resonance frequency
V
t 
2( f n  f n 1 )

 Fn: frequency at nth harmonic and fn-1

frequency at (n-1)th harmonic
 Method rarely used, substituted by pulse
echo due to advance in transducer design
TRANSDUCER
CONSTRUCTION
PROBE CONSISTS OF:
•PIEZOELECTRIC CRYSTAL
•BACKING MATERIAL
•MATCHING TRANSFORMER (TO
MATCH TRANSDUCER ELECTRICAL
IMPEDANCE WITH THAT OF CABLE
•CASE TO HOLD PROBE
•OFTEN INCORPORATE A WEAR
TRANSDUCER
PLATE TO PROTECT THE MATCHING CROSS
LAYER AND ACTIVE ELEMENT FROM SECTION
SCRATCH.
Piezoelectric
transducer
 Probe normally excited by voltage pulse of
less than 10μsec duration
 Pulse consists of band of frequency with
maximum amplitude at resonance frequency
of the transducer
 At resonance t  V , f  V
r
2f 2t
 Equation is used to determine thickness of
transducer
Backing material
 Function
 Holding firm the crystal in place

 Damping the vibration thus avoid ringing-

like shock absorber on automobile

 Absorb sound propagated by the back side

of the crystal, thus eliminate backward

vibration
 Sensitivity:ability to obtain maximum
response from a small discontinuity
 Resolution: ability to define closely associated
small discontinuities
Backing material
 affect damping characteristics of a
transducer.
 Maximum damping achieved when impedance
of backing material= impedance transducer
 At maximum damping resolution is optimum
(US will pass to backing material and quickly
attenuated)
 Backing material must have high attenuation
and absorption
 Backing
material
 Maximum damping however produce less
sensitivity transducer, so mismatch
impedance must be balance
 For quartz, mismatch impedance between
transducer and material 5:1, 1.1:1 for
lithium sulphate
 Normally made of fibrous plastic or metal
powder + various plastic materials
 Attenuation controlled by the grain size and
impedance by proportion of metal to plastic
 Damped and undamped
transducer
 Undamped
 Designed to ring on
 Long and high energy sound
Undamped
 Good sound penetration- pulse
appropriate for long shaft or
coarse grain material
 Damped
 Produced short pulse of 3 or
4 wavelength
damped
pulse
Transducer Parameter
 Frequency
 function of thickness of crystal
 Typically 1MHz, 2.25MHz, 4.0MHz, 5.0MHz,
10MHz
 Diameter
 Limited by frequency
 Low frequency Φ = or > 0.5” (typically 1”)
 High frequency Φ < 0.5”
Contact type
 When use probe in direct contact with
the surface
 Equipped with wear plate to avoid wear
at probe surface
 Normally thin couplant is required
between wear plate and transducer for
maximum sound transmission
Normal Beam

 Transmit longitudinal wave into

specimen perpendicular to
specimen surface
 2 types:
 Single crystal
 Double crystal
 Single crystal
probe
 Use single transducer as
emitter and receiver
 Transducer has common
connection to emitter and Transmitter unit
Amplifier unit

amplifier, thus produce

large transmission pulse
 Large dead zone thus Single crystal
probe
useless for near surface
flaw detection
Single and Double cable
Crystal Probe Metal
housing
socket
metal coil Acoustic
housing
barrier
coil Crystal roof
angle

s Delay
Damping block
block
d
crystal
Protective
layer
 cable

Double crystal
Metal
housing

probe coil
Acoustic
barrier

Crystal
 Design to eliminate dead zone roof angle
Delay
 2 transducer in a casing, 1 s
block

emitter and 1 receiver

d
 Separated by acoustic barrier
 Crystal inclined to give focusing
effect Transmitter unit
Amplifier unit

 Sensitivity at certain point is

maximum
 Delay block allow sound at far Twin crystal
field to enter specimen probe
 Double crystal probe-
roof angle

Dead zone
Maximum sensitivity
sensitivity
Dead zone

Great roof angle

small roof angle
Maximum
sensitivity

Distance
Dead zone from surface
 Angle Beam Probe
 Normally used to transmit
transverse wave in material
 Can come in fixed angle or housing crystal
normal probe fixed in
angled wedge
 Make use of mode
conversion and refraction
Damping wedge
block
 Angle Beam housing crystal

Probe
 LT wave transmitted and
travel through delay block
at a specific angle Damping wedge
block
 Angle of incidence >1st critical angle so that
only transverse wave transmitted to the metal
 LT wave totally reflected in wedge and
damped by damping material
 Normally refracted angle in steel and exit point
or probe index are marked the probe
 Angle Beam
Probe
 Can become surface wave housing crystal
probe if angle is chosen so
that the refraction angle for
transverse wave=90o
 If use for ‘other than steel’ the
refracted angle should be
Damping wedge
taken into account block
 Waterproof
housing

Immersion probe
 Similar construction as normal Electrical Electrical
contact + contact -
probe
Backing
 Designed for water environment material
 Place in water proof housing Piezoelectric
material
 No wear plate require Plastic face
 can be purchased with in a
planner, cylindrically focused or
spherically focused lens
 typically used inside a water
tank or as part of a squirter or
bubbler system in scanning
applications
 •Contact Type
•Surface Wave
•Immersion Technique
 NORMAL BEAM
TECHNIQUE

 US projected perpendicularly
into the specimen-generally
longitudinal waves
 May use single, double or
twin crystal probes
 Single probe limit detection
close to the surface due to
transmission pulse, also
ineffective for thin specimen
 Normal Beam Technique
 For irregular specimen Transmitting unit Receiving unit
or backwall is not
parallel to the surface,
double normal beam
probe is used
 For thin wall and near
surface detection, twin Sound reflected to

crystal probe is used receiving unit

 Thickness Measurement With
Single Crystal Probe

 When probe placed on plate 0 10 20 30 40 50

like specimen CRT display
100%

transmission pulse + 1 or 50
%
more back-wall
 Distance between 2 0
%

consecutive back-wall 0 10 20 30 40 50
proportional to the thickness
100%

 With proper calibration 50

%

thickness can be determine

0
%
 Thickness Measurement With
Single Crystal Probe

 For best result choose the 0 10 20 30 40 50

100%
shortest range that allow Single

first backwall to appear (e.g 50

%
backwall
technique

for 9mm plate, calibrate full

x-scale at 10 mm to 0
%

minimize inaccuracy
0 10 20 30 40 50
 May use single backwall 100%

echo or multiple backwall 50

multiple
backwall
echo techniques %
technique

0
%
 Thickness Measurement With
Single Crystal Probe

 When using single backwall 0 10 20 30 40 50

100%
echo, thickness is Single

determined from the left 50

%
backwall
technique

edge of the echo

0
 If use multiple backwall, % Thickness is
determined
thickness=thickness of last here
0 10 20 30 40 50
multiple echo divided by the 100%

number of backwall 50
multiple
backwall
displayed %
technique

0
%
 0 10 20 30 40 50
100%

1
Thickness Measurement 2 3
With Single Crystal Probe 50%
4
5
 Example: 5th backwall
echo appear at 0%

40mm, then:
 T=40/5mm=8mm 0
100%
10
1
20 30 40 50

2
 Care must be taken
3
sometime some echo 50% 4
buried in the 5
transmission pulse
0%
 Velocity Correction
 Example: measure thickness of Al
(about 20mm) using steel IIW block
 Calibrate at 25mm
 Place probe on Al plate (as if it steel), let
say 18.5mm
 Correct for velocity as:

V Al 6400
T xindicatedthickness  T x18.5  19.866mm
Vst 5960
 Thickness Measurement With
Twin Crystal Probe

 Applicable for up to 1mm thickness 0 10 20 30 40 50

plate
100%

 Require special calibration 50

procedure using step wedge

%

1. Probe measure the thinner (e.g. 0

4mm)-position the signal accordingly %

(adjust using delay control)

2. Probe measure the thicker (e.g. 8mm) 0 10 20 30 40 50
100%
and position the signal accordingly
3. Repeat adjustment untuk both echoes 50
%
at their correct position
0
%
 Thickness Measurement With
Twin Crystal Probe

 Additional echo (after 4mm) is 0 10 20 30 40 50

100%
due to mode conversion
 Error due to V shape of the 50
%

beam minimum when

measuring thickness between
0
%

4mm to 8 mm or when
difference between 2 chosen
thickness is not too large
Lamination test
 Common prior to welding inspection
 Procedure
 Calibrate time base to allow at least 2 backwall echo
 Place probe on workpiece and adjust gain control so
that the 2nd backwall at FSH
 Perform scanning-lamination exist if echo exist at half
thickness and backwall echo amplitude will drop
 2nd backwall echo may also reduced even if there is
no lamination due to poor couplant or poor surface
condition
 0 10 20 30 40 50
100%

Lamination test 50%

 Multiple echo technique for

t<10mm 0%

 procedure Pattern without lamination

 Place probe on lamination free area

or calibration block 0 10 20 30 40 50
100%
 Adjust time base and gain control
for many echo in a decay pattern
over the first half of the time base
50%
 Scan the work piece (Presence of
lamination indicated by change of
pattern because each of the many
echoes closer to their neighbour 0%

Pattern with lamination

 Brazed Joint
Examination
 If the thickness allow separation
0 10 20 30 40 50
between 2 backwall echoes, 100%

standard method for lamination

check can be adopted 50%

 Small signal appears between 2

backwall due to slight difference in 0%
braze material acoustic impedance
Good braze
 Increase in braze echo amplitude
indicate bad joints 0
100%
10 20 30 40 50

 If wall too thin-use multiple

echoes technique similar to 50%

lamination check
0%

Bad braze
Bonded Joint 0
100%
10 20 30 40 50

Examination Metal

Some energy 50%

absorbed

Rubber
0%

Pattern for good joint

 Bond may be metal to metal or nonmetal to metal (eg

rubber block to steel plate
 Apply multiple echo technique
 If bond good, each time sound pass some energy will be
transmitted through and absorbed and some reflected
back-resulting in quick decay pattern because of energy
loss each time it reaches interface
Bonded Joint 0 10 20 30 40 50

Examination
100%
Metal

Bond failure
50%

Rubber
0%

Pattern for bad joint

 If joint is bad all sound is reflected at the

interface
 Decay pattern is longer because of no sound
being transmitted hence no energy loss due to
transmission
 Angle Beam testing
 US transmitted into
specimen at
predetermined angle
 Could be transverse wave
alone, or plus longitudinal
wave or surface wave-
depends on selected
angle.
 Normally use transverse
wave probe
 Angle use 35o to 80o
 Angle Beam testing-
Various Distance
B C
A t

D
 AB=BC: half skip distance (HSD)
 AC: Full skip distance (FSD)
 AD=CD:Half skip beam path length (HSBPL)
 AD+DC:Full skip beam path length (FSBPL)
 Angle Beam testing-
Various Distance
F 35o 45o 60o 70o 80o
HSD Factor 0.7 1.0 1.73 2.75 5.67
FSD Factor 1.4 2 3.46 5.40 11.34
HSBPL Factor 1.22 1.41 2.0 2.92 5.76
FSBPL Factor 2.44 2.82 4.0 5.85 11.52

DISTANCE REQUIRED=F X t
F: Probe angle factor
US penetration for
thick walled pipe
 Normal transverse
Angle Beam testing-
Various Distance
B C
A t
t

D
 HSD= t tanθ
 FSD= 2 x t tanθ
 HSBPL= t/Cosθ
 FSBPL= 2 t/Cosθ
 Maximum thickness
of pipe inspected by defect 45o

angle beam
 Normal angle probes are Pipe
bore
45o, 60o and 70o may not
penetrate certain thickness
of thickwalled pipe
 Maximum thickness for a
given probe angle is given
defect θo
as:
d d
t 2(  t )
d  2t
sin   2  2 
d d d Pipe d
bore
2
d  2t  d sin  t
d (1  sin  )
t
2
 Maximum thickness
of pipe inspected by defect 45o

angle beam
d d Pipe
 t 2(  t ) bore
2 2 d  2t
sin    
d d d
2
d  2t  d sin 
defect θo
d (1  sin  )
t
2 Pipe d
bore
2t
  sin (1  )
1
t
d
Maximum thickness of pipe
inspected by angle beam
Probe Angle 35o 45o 60o
pipe od

4” (100mm) 21.3mm 14.6mm 6.7mm

6” (150mm) 31.95mm 21.9mm 10.05mm
8” (200mm) 42.6mm 29.2mm 13.4mm
10” (250mm) 53.25mm 36.5mm 16.75mm
12” (300mm) 63.9mm 43.8mm 20.1mm
14” (350mm) 74.55mm 51.1mm 23.45mm
16” (400mm) 85.2mm 58.4mm 26.8mm
18” (450mm) 95.85mm 65.7mm 30.15mm
20” (500mm) 106.5mm 73.0mm 33.5mm
 Tandem Technique
 Use 2 probe, emitter s

and receiver
 Also called pitch and d φ φ
t
catch method
 Example: for crack in
weld that is
perpendicular to surface S=2(t-d)tan φ
 Position of probes
depend on t and
location of defects
 Tandem Technique
 Normally probes interconnected s
by guiding device for:
 speed up inspection
d φ φ
 Maintaining constant angle
t
 Maintaining s

 Corroded surface need grinding

or blasting prior to inspection
 New surface clean by steel brush
 For horizontal surface better use S=2(t-d)tan φ
water couplant and oil or grease
for vertical surface
 Commonly used for:
 Thickwalled vessel (e.g.

nuclear reactor)
 Doubled-V weld
Surface Wave Technique
 SW follow gentle contour, reflected only
by sharp changes
 Energy concentrated at about one
wavelength-good for thin section
 Mainly used in aircraft industry
 In steel industry is not common
because most surface is not smooth,
thus wave attenuated
 Example of SW application
 Crack can exist at the edge of the
blade out to 2/3 of blade length or in
root area
 SW probe at blade end send SW to
the root, round the radius and
reflected by the edge of the root
 Crack will give reflection at earlier
time than the root
 Blade also consists duct that make
shear wave useless
 Correct choice of frequency produce
SW at depth that does not affected by
ducts
 Example of SW application
 Crack detection in a pipe
with change of section
where crack can be from
outside or inside the pipe
at this region
 By choosing the right
frequency, pipe thickness
can be fully covered by
SW
 SW travels following the
contour and reflected if
there are discontinuities
Limitations of SW technique
 Wave quickly attenuated
 Rough surface

 Presence of scale or oxide

 Presence of liquid or couplant

 Presence of any pressure applied by another

object

 Ridges left by scanning and object resting on

surface produce spurious signals that can be
misinterpret
 Immersion manipulator probe

technique
water
 mainly used in lab or large
installation doing automatic ut plate
 both probes and specimens in
water
manipulator probe
 water act as couplant and always
constant thickness
 both longitudinal and transverse water
wave can be propagated by
changing angle
 inspection can be by normal beam plate
technique or angle beam technique
 Immersion technique-
normal beam
manipulator probe

 sound propagate through water and enter water

specimen
 Ensure water path perpendicular to specimen plate
surface by adjustment of manipulator

 at the interface some sound is transmitted and some

reflected
 the transmitted wave will be back-reflected when meet
backwall
 water delay line must have a specified length
 Immersion
manipulator probe

technique water
d1
 Water gap is about the plate
d2
thickness of the plate but
1st water path echo
timebase distance Transmission pulse 2nd water path echo
(Td1>Td2) due to 0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90 100
difference in velocity, 100%

Vwater=1/4Vsteel
 To have 1st BW echo in- 50%
between 1st and 2nd
surface echo, d1 must be
bigger than (1/4)d2.
0%
Td1 Td2
 Immersion
technique
 Example d2=35mm
 If screen calibrated at 0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90 100
100%
100mm steel using V1 and 1st 1st surface echo
surface echo delayed at 0, 1st badkwall echo
signal appears as in screen
2nd backwall echo
 1st surface echo resemble 50%
transmission pulse in contact
testing but smoother
 Scanning in water normally in
zig-zag pattern maintaining
d1 path 0%
 ‘gate’ is normally equipped in Td1 Td2
monitor to trigger audible
signal if exceeded
 Immersion Technique-
Bubbler Squirter
transducer
 Wave directed to
specimen through water Water
couplant
column supply
 Normally used for
automated system for
high speed scanning of
plate, sheet, strip etc
 Wave can be directed Test
specimen
perpendicular or angular
(for shear wave)
 Immersion Technique- Water filled tyre

Wheel Transducer Stationary axle

transducer
 Waves sent to specimen Test
through water filled tyre specimen
 Probe mounted to wheel
axle and wheel and axle Wheel move
rotate freely over material
 Wheel can be mounted
on mobile apparatus and
run across the specimen
or fixed but specimen
moved past it. Material move
 Immersion Technique-Wheel
Transducer

Sound propagated into material at 45o

Sound directed forward

Sound directed sideward

Angle of propagation may be varied by

Sound directed at an angle to the adjusting position of wheel mounting yokje
side and forward