Ultrasonic Testing

By –
Rhea Thomas
 Introduction
• Ultrasonic testing uses high
frequency sound waves
(>20,000 Hz) to conduct
examinations and make
measurements.
• Ultrasonic examinations
can be conducted on a wide
variety of material forms
including castings, forgings,
welds and composites.

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 Advantages of Ultrasonic Testing

• Depth of penetration for flaw detection or

measurement is very accurate
• Only single-sided access is needed when pulse-echo
technique is
used.
• Not hazardous to the personnel.
• Electronic equipment provides instantaneous results.
• Detailed images can be produced with automated systems.

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 Limitations of Ultrasonic Testing

• Not always reliable for surface and near surface discontinuities.

• Skill and training is more extensive than with some other
methods.
• Precise lateral location and sizing of discontinuities is often
not possible
• Materials that are rough, irregular in shape, very small,
exceptionally thin or not homogeneous are difficult to
inspect.
• Identification of type of discontinuity is very subjective and
requires experience to figure out.
• Other methods such as electromagnetic testing, radiographic
testing etc. have to be used in conjunction with ultrasonic
testing.
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 Ultrasound Generation
Ultrasound is generated with a transducer.

The transducer is capable of A piezo-electric material in a

both transmitting and transducer converts electrical
receiving energy energy into mechanical
vibrations (sound) and vice
versa.

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 Basic Principles of Sound

• Sound is produced by a
vibrating body and travels in
the form of a wave.
• Sound waves travels
through material by
vibrating the particles that
make up the material.
• The pitch of the sound is
determined by the
frequency of the wave.

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 Basic Principles of Sound(cont.)
• The measurement of sound waves from crest to crest
determines its wavelength (λ).
• The sound wavelength
is inversely proportional
to its frequency. (λ =1/f)
• Several wave modes of
vibration are used in
ultrasonic inspection.
The most common are
longitudinal, shear, and
Rayleigh (surface) waves.

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 Ultrasonic Testing Equipment

Equipment for ultrasonic testing is very diversified. Proper

selection is important to insure accurate inspection data as
desired for specific applications.
In general, there are six basiccomponents that comprise an
ultrasonic testsystem:
- Transmitters
- Receivers
- Time base generators
- Power supplies
- Displays
- Probes

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 Transmitters

• It is an electronic signal generator that imposes a

short interval of high frequency alternating voltage
on transducer.
• It along with clock circuit controls the repetition rate,
pulse duration and damping of ultrasonic signals
1. Clock Circuit – produces timed pulses and
coordinates the operation of entire system.
2. Repetition Rate – determines the number of times
per second that a pulse is transmitted
3. Pulse Duration – length of time the pulser is
imposing an alternating voltage on the transducer

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 Receivers
• It electronically amplifies the signals returned from the test
object to the receiving transducer and modifies these
signals into a from suitable for display.
• The output from the receiver is a signal directly related to
the intensity of ultrasonic waves.

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 Displays

• Information from ultrasonic testing is displayed either in

video or radio frequency mode.
• In radio frequency the cycles in each pulse are shown
on screen.
• In video mode, only a rectified envelope of pulse is
shown.

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 Probes
• Probes are used for generation and detection of
ultrasonic waves using electromechanical transducer
• Transducers are categorized in a number of ways
which include:
- Contact probe
- Immersion probe
- Dual transducer
• In selecting a transducer
for a given application, it is
important to choose the
desired frequency,
bandwidth, size, and in some cases focusing
which optimizes the inspection capabilities.

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 Contact Probe
Contact transducers are
designed to withstand
rigorous use, and usually
have a wear plate on the
bottom surface to protectthe
piezoelectric element from
contact with the surface of
the test article.

Straight beam probes generate a longitudinal wave

ultrasonic beam in the test object at an angle of 90 degrees

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 Contact Probe (Contd.)

• Angle beam probes generate an

ultrasonic beam at an angle of
less than 90 degrees to material
surface.
• They usually consist of
longitudinal wave, straight
beam probe with a wedge
shaped plastic contact shoe
that causes the beam to strike
the test surface at an angle.
• Common application is in weld
examination.

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 Immersion Probe

• Immersion transducers are

designed to transmit sound
whereby the transducer andtest
specimen are immersed in a liquid
coupling medium (usually water).

• Since they are immersed in water,

they must be thoroughly
waterproofed and well grounded.
• Immersion transducers
are manufactured with
planar, cylindrical or spherical
acoustic lenses (focusing lens).

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 Dual Transducers (Special Action
Probes)
• Contact transducers are
available with two
piezoelectric crystals in one
housing. These transducers are
called dual element
transducers.
• One crystal acts as a
transmitter, the other as a
receiver.
• Dual elements are commonly
employed in thickness
gauging of thin materials.

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 Probe Design

1. Backing Material – Provides damping of the transducer

oscillation and mechanical support.
2. Electrodes – Primarily silver or
gold deposited on the
piezoelectric element.
3. Wear Face – Provides
contact with test
test object. Made of thin
layers of aluminum oxide,
sapphire, ruby, boron
or carbides.

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 Probe Design (Contd.)
• Resolution
It is the ability of an ultrasonic testing inspection system to
separate the ultrasonic reflections from two discontinuities that
are located close together in time, depth or distance from probe.

• Sensitivity
It is the ability of an ultrasonic testing inspection system to detect
small discontinuities. The wavelengths of the testing beam must
be no more than half the smallest dimension of discontinuity
perpendicular to the beam.
 Test Techniques
• Ultrasonic testing is a very versatile inspection method, and
inspections can be accomplished in a number of different ways.
• Ultrasonic inspection techniques are commonly divided into
two primary classifications.
– Pulse-echo and ThroughTransmission
(Relates to whether reflected or transmittedenergy is used)
– Contact and Immersion
(Relates to the method of coupling the transducer to the test article)

Each of these techniques will be discussed briefly

in the following slides.

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 Test Techniques – Pulse Echo
• In pulse-echo testing, a transducer sends out a pulse of
energy and the same or a second transducer listens for
reflected energy (an echo).
• Reflections occur due to the presence of discontinuities
and the surfaces of the test article.
• The same transducer receiving and transmitting has the
advantage in terms of simplicity of inspection.
initial
pulse
back surface
echo

crack
echo
crack

0 2 4 6 8 10 plate
Test Techniques – Pulse Echo (Contd.)

Digital display showing signal generated from

sound reflecting off back surface.
The major disadvantage of pulse echo testing
is that the initial electric pulse saturates the
detection circuitry and causes the transducer to
“ring”.

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Test Techniques – Through Transmission

11
• Two transducers located on
opposing sides of the test T R

specimen are used. One

transducer acts as a transmitter,
the other as a receiver. T R

• The amplitude of the signal

transmitted through the test object
is compared to the amount of the 11

signal transmitted through a known

good are (Reference area).
2

0 2 4 6 8 10
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 Test Techniques – Contact
• To get useful levels of sound energy into a material,
the air between the transducer and the test article
must be removed. This is referred to as coupling.
• In contact testing (shown on the previous slides) a
couplant such as water, oil or a gel is applied
between the transducer and the part.
• The transducer is scanned over the surface of the
object, either manually or mechanically.
• In order to ensure complete testing, the transducer
must pass over (overlap) previous path by a known
minimum amount
 Test Techniques – Immersion
• In immersion testing, the part and the transducer are
place in a water bath. This arrangement allows better
movement of the transducer while maintaining
consistent coupling.
• The couplant thickness amounts to a long, fluid delay
line, which must be adjusted so that other signals do not
interfere with reflections from within the object.
• Focused search units are often used in immersion
testing to increase the test sensitivity in critical portions
of the object.
 Special Ultrasonic Testing Techniques
i. Delta Testing – Indirect, pitch catch test used primarily for
weld metal. It is good for detecting discontinuity but has
limitation while detecting their depth or size
ii. Tip Diffraction – Sizing cracks, difficult depth or through
wall dimension
iii. Creeping Waves – Small cracks at or near surface,
especially in dissimilar metal weld joints
iv. Synthetic Aperture Focusing Ultrasonic Tonography –
computer enhanced imaging technique that detect and
characterize discontinuities, produce images of discontinuity
and tonography can be used for map stress concentrations
v. Resonance Testing – Material thickness gauging and bond
testing
 Reference And Calibration Standards
• To ensure accurate and repeatable inspection,
ultrasonic testing equipment must be standardized and
calibrated so that data taken by different operators are
comparable and can be matched against inspection
norms.
• Selection of a standard is determined by the testing
technique, the material to be inspected and its forms,
the type of discontinuity to be detected and the
specification requirements.
• ASTM, ASME or AWS specification are used.
 Reference And Calibration Standards
• Blocks with flat bottom holes are used to standardize the
amplitude of the detected signal w.r.t to effective are or
distance.
• Sometimes, it is preferred to prepare a reference
standard from the same material as that to be tested by
introducing notches and holes.
• Advantage – Same composition, manufacturing history,
surface condition and geometry
• Disadvantage – Fewer artificial reflectors and it may not
be possible to manufacture the reflector as accurately as
possible.
 Inspection Of Material Forms
Material forms commonly inspected by ultrasonic
testing include

1. Ingots
2. Pipes and Tubular Products
3. Plate and Sheet
4. Bar and Rod
5. Forgings
6. Castings
7. Composites
8. Weld
9. Bonded Structures
10. Special Products
 1. Ingots
• An ingot is a refined
material that is cast into a
convienient shape for
further processing into
products such as bars,
plates and tubes
• UT is performed to
determine the
discontinuities or large
inclusions.
2. Pipes And Tubes
• Pipes and Tubes are
manufactured through
various techniques such as
extrusion, swaging,
drawing, forging and
welding.
• Typical discontinuities are:
I. Blisters and porosity
II. Gouges
III. Seams
IV. Laps and Scabs
V. Cracks
VI. Lack of penetration
VII. Inclusions
3. Plate and Sheet
• Plate and Sheet are
manufactured by heating an
ingot or billet and passing it
between two rotating
mechanical rollers.
• Laminations, scabs,seams
and edge cracks are the
discontinuities usually
sought by Ultrasonic
Testing.
4. Bar and Rod
• Bars and Rods are usually
manufactured from billets
by forging, drawing,
extrusion or rolling.
• Typical types of
discontinuities include
cracks, laps, seams, bursts
and, in large size bars, may
include flakes.
5. Forgings
• Forgings are manufactured
hammering or pressing
ingots or billets into open or
closed dies.
• Discontinuities that are
present include
1. Cracks
2. Bursts
3. Flakes
4. Laps
6. Castings
• Castings are produced by
pouring molten metal into
simple or complex shaped
molds.
• Typical discontinuities
associated with castings
include various kinds of
shrinkage cavities, cold
shuts, hot tears, cracks, gas
or blow holes, porosity,
inclusions, core shift and
unfused chaplets.
7. Composites
• Composites are
inhomogeneous materials
usually consisting of layers
of different materials that
are bonded together or
embedded in a matrix.
• Discontinuities found
include delamination, voids,
porosity, and ply gaps.
8. Welds
• Welding processes widely
used in manufacturing
include electron beam,
plasma arc, fusion, arc, spot
and resistance welding.
• Common weld
discontinuities include hot
cracks, cold cracks,
porosity, inclusions,
incomplete fusion,
incomplete penetration,
undercut and melt through.
9. Bonded Structures
• Metallic brazing, soldering
and adhesive bonding are
the common types.
• Brazing and soldering use
filler metals heated to
temperatures above their
melting point. Adhesive
bonding uses adhesives to
bond adjoining parts.
• Discontinuities are
incomplete fill, voids, base
metal erosion, lack of bond
and delamination.
10. Special Products
• Specialized pulse echo
techniques using
attenuation and velocity
measurements have been
used successfully to
examine wood, rubber,
glass and ceramic materials
• Due to the local density
variations, microstructure
and surface conditions,
ceramic and glass materials
require specialized
techniques and reference
standards.
 Welding
• Definition: The process of joining two pieces of metal by
application of heat and or pressure.
• Types of welding:
1. Fusion welding
2. Solid phase welding
• Advantages:
1. Compact joints and no need of additional plates
2. Water or fluid tight joints
3. High corrosion resistance
4. Many types of joints possible
• Applications: Automobile, Aircraft Frames, Structural Work,
Tanks, Machine Repairs, Ship Building, Pipe-Line
Fabrication, etc.
Fusion Welded Joints
Classification
 Welding Preparation

Weld Joints – Parts of a Weld Joints

• Joint root
• Groove face, Root face and Root Edge
• Root Opening and Bevel
• Bevel angle, Groove angle and Groove radius
 Weld Joints
Weld joints – Types of Weld Joints

• Butt Joint
• Lap Joint
• T Joint
• Corner Joint
• Edge Joint
 Welded Joints
Joint Roots Groove face, Root face,
Groove edge
 Root Opening and Bevel Angle

• Root opening is the separation of the work piece at

the joint of the root.
• Bevel (chamfer) is an angular edge preparation.
Bevel angle, Groove angle, Groove
radius
 Types Of Joints

Butt joint, lap joint, corner joint and

edge joint.
Gas Welding
Gas welding, Filler rod and Fluxes
•Filler metal is integral part of weld & generally in
the form of rod.
•They have almost same chemical compositions
as the base metal.
•Fluxes protect the weld pool from contamination by
oxygen and nitrogen, they are normally in paste
form placed on a heated filler rod before welding
begins.
 Disadvantages of Gas Welding

• Refractory and reactive metals cannot be welded.

• Gas welding takes long time to heat the metal
than arc welding.
• Safety problem associated with handling and
storing of gas.
• Fluxes used in gas welding produces fumes that
are irritating to the eyes, nose, throat and lungs.
 Arc Welding Equipment
1. A.C or D.C machine
2. Electrode and holder
3. Cables and connectors
4. Earthing clamps
5. Chipping hammer
6. Wire brush
7. Helmet, safety goggles,
hand gloves, apron etc.
 Arc Welding Types
1. Carbon arc welding
2. Shielded metal arc welding
3. Submerged arc welding
4. Gas tungsten arc welding
5. Gas metal arc welding
6. Electroslag welding
7. Plasma arc welding
8. Flux cored arc welding
9. Stud arc welding
2. Shielded metal arc welding
3. Submerged arc welding
4. Gas tungsten arc welding
5. Gas metal arc welding
6. Electroslag welding
7. Plasma arc welding
8. Flux cored arc welding
9. Stud arc welding
 Solid Phase Welding

• This group of welding processes uses pressure and

heat to produce coalescence between the pieces to
be joined without the use of filler metal.
• Solid phase welding methods:
1. Friction
2. Ultrasonic
3. Diffusion
4. Explosive
5. Forge
6. Hammer
7. Cold
1. Friction welding
2. Ultrasonic welding
3. Diffusion welding
4. Explosive welding
5. Forge welding
6. Hammer welding
7. Cold welding
Microstructure of Weld
 Welding defects

• Weld defect may be in the form of variations from the

intended weld bead shape, size and quality.
• Defects may be on the surface or inside the weld
metal. Certain defects such as crack are never
tolerated and acceptable permissible limits.
• Welding defects may result into the failure of the
components under service conditions leading to
serious accidents and causing the loss of property.
• Defects can be classified into cracks, porosity, solid
inclusions, lack of fusion and inadequate penetration,
imperfect shape and miscellaneous defects.
1. Cracks

• Cracks may be of micro or macro size and may appear in

the weld metal or base metal and weld metal boundary.
• Different categories of cracks are longitudinal cracks,
transverse cracks or radiating/star cracks and cracks in
the weld crater.
• Cracks occur when localised stresses exceed the
ultimate tensile strength of material. These stresses are
developed due to shrinkage during solidification of weld
material.
Cracks in Weld
2. Porosity

• Porosity results when the gases are entrapped in the

solidifying weld metal. These gases are generated from
the flux or coating constituents of the electrode or
shielding gasses during welding.
• Rust, dust, oil and grease present on the surface of
work pieces or on electrodes are also source of gases
during welding.
• Porosity can also be controlled if excessively high
welding currents, faster welding speeds and long arc
lengths are avoided flux and coated electrodes are
properly baked.
Forms of Porosities
3. Solid Inclusion
• Solid inclusions may be in the form of slag or any other
non-metallic material entrapped in the weld metal as
these may not able to float on the surface of the
solidifying weld metal.
• During arc welding flux either in the form of granules or
coating after melting, reacts with the molten weld metal
removing oxides and other impurities in the form of
slag and it floats on the surface of weld metal due to its
low density.
• However, if the molten weld metal has high viscosity or
too low temperature or cools rapidly then the slag may
not be released from the weld pool and may cause
inclusion.
Slag Inclusion in Weldments
• Slag Inclusion can be prevented if proper groove is
selected, all the slag from the previously deposited
bead id removed, too high or too low welding currents
and long arcs are avoided.
4. Lack of Fusion
• Lack of fusion the failure to fuse together either the
base metal and weld metal or subsequent beads in
multipass welding because of failure to raise the
temperature of base metal or previously deposited
weld layer to melting point during welding.
• Lack of fusion can be avoided by properly cleaning of
surfaces to be welded, selected proper current, proper
welding technique and correct size of electrode.
5.Inadequate penetration

• Incomplete penetration means that the weld depth is

not upto the desired level or root faces have not
reached to melting point in a groove joint.
• If either low currents or larger arc lengths or large root
face or small root gap or too narrow groove angles are
used then it results into poor penetration.
6. Imperfect Shapes of Weld

• Imperfect shape means the variation from the desired

shape and size of the weld bead.
• During under cutting a notch if formed either on one
side of the weld bead or both sides in which stresses
tend to concentrate and it can result in the early failure
of the joint. Main reasons for undercutting are the
excessive welding currents, long arc lengths and fast
travel speeds.
• Underfilling may be due to low currents, fast travel
speeds and small size of electrodes.
• Overlap may occur due to low currents, longer arc
lengths and slower welding speeds.
Imperfect Shapes of Weld