Magnetization Time Lag Caused by Eddy Currents and Its Influence on High-Speed Magnetic Flux Leakage Testing

In high-speed magnetic flux leakage (MFL) testing, the tested workpieces pass rapidly through magnetizers. Thus, the magnetization time for workpieces is short. Because of the eddy current effect, the magnetic field inside the workpieces cannot instantly reach equilibrium, and if the magnetizing time is insufficient for the field to reach equilibrium, the MFL signals will be changed because of incomplete magnetization. In this article, the magnetization time lag caused by eddy currents and the influence of this lag on high-speed MFL testing is investigated. The time required for magnetic field to reach equilibrium in specimens, including steel bars and pipes, is obtained by theoretical calculations, finite element simulations, and experiments. The results indicate that the time required for a magnetic field inside a specimen to reach equilibrium is in the range of 50–100 ms. Using conventional magnetizers, the defect signals at testing speed of 10 m/s change because the workpiece reaches the detection zone before the magnetic field inside reaches the stable state. A simple solution is to increase the axial length of the magnetizing coil. After this procedure, signals obtained at 0.1 m/s and 10 m/s are almost identical.     

Remote Field Eddy Current Technique: Phantom Exciter Model Calculations

Abstract

High resolution results of finite element calculations for remote field eddy current “phantom exciter” simulations of slit defect interactions using single through wall transit are presented. These show that fine circumferential slits cause almost no field perturbations in the case of nonferromagnetic tubes but big perturbations in ferromagnetic tubes where high magnetic H fields occur in the slits. Defect-induced magnetic field perturbations must therefore be considered in addition to eddy current perturbations when ferromagnetic materials are inspected, particularly in the case of fine slits orthogonal to the magnetic field direction. Additional details seen are the funnelling of energy into slits in ferromagnetic pipes and precursor disturbances of fields approaching defects. It is suggested that these are due to the reflection of the electromagnetic waves dictates by boundary conditions at the near side defect boundary.     

Finite-element calculations of remote field eddy current interactions with slit defects

Remote field eddy current (RFEC) excitation is a promising approach for detection of the very fine axial cracks typical of stress corrosion cracking (SCC) in pipelines. Interactions between adjacent cracks or slits can enhance responses in some cases. Detailed finite-element modeling was undertaken to establish the behavior and interactions of multiple slits such as those occurring in SCC. Three different field/slit configurations are considered, with anomalous source models used to aid interpretation of the results. The study noted that magnetic perturbations generated by ferromagnetic material tend to be vanishingly small, and that the interactions between multiple cracks give minimal enhancement, indicating that eddy current rather than magnetic field excitation is best for the detection of SCC. With eddy current excitation, field perturbations are generated by even very fine slits, and are larger in non-ferromagnetic material. For nonferromagnetic pipes, the perturbations tend to merge as a circumferential separation between parallel axial cracks decreases, resulting in significant interaction and signal enhancement.     

A Permeability-Measuring Magnetic Flux Leakage Method for Inner Surface Crack in Thick-Walled Steel Pipe

It is difficult for traditional magnetic flux leakage (MFL) methods to detect inner surface cracks of thick-walled steel pipe or plate due to magnetic shielding of the wall and strong magnetic background noise, and for eddy current testing (ECT) as well due to its skin effect. On the basis of the nonlinear magnetic permeability of ferromagnetic materials, a new non-destructive testing method (NDT) permeability-measuring magnetic flux leakage (P-MFL) is proposed, in which the magnetization is perpendicular to the inner surface crack, and the surface layer permeability distortion caused by magnetic field distortion is measured by differential pick-up coils. Afterwards, its detection mechanism is presented and analyzed, and its feasibility is verified by simulations and experiments. Finally, some application cases for steel pipe are also realized effectively. Meanwhile, its testing characteristics for cracks are given and effects of crack size, specimen thickness, scanning paths to testing signal amplitude are briefly analyzed. Finally, the proposed P-MFL method compared to traditional MFL method is discussed in detail.     

Remote field eddy current technique: Phantom exciter model calculations

High resolution results of finite element calculations for remote field eddy current phantom exciter simulations of slit defect interactions using single through wall transit are presented. These show that fine circumferential slits cause almost no field perturbations in the case of nonferromagnetic tubes but big perturbations in ferromagnetic tubes where high magnetic H fields occur in the slits. Defect-induced magnetic field perturbations must therefore be considered in addition to eddy current perturbations when ferromagnetic materials are inspected, particularly in the case of fine slits orthogonal to the magnetic field direction. Additional details seen are the funnelling of energy into slits in ferromagnetic pipes and precursor disturbances of fields approaching defects. It is suggested that these are due to the reflection of the electromagnetic waves dictates by boundary conditions at the near side defect boundary.     

Finite Element Method Applied in Electromagnetic NDTE: A Review

The paper contains an original comprehensive review of finite element analysis (FEA) applied by researchers to calibrate and improve existing and developing electromagnetic non-destructive testing and evaluation techniques, including but not limited to magnetic flux leakage (MFL), eddy current testing, electromagnetic-acoustic transducers (EMATs). Premium is put on the detection and modelling of magnetic field, as the vast majority of ENDT involves magnetic induction, either as a primary variable MFL or a complementary phenomenon (EC, EMATs). FEA is shown as a fit-for-purpose tool to design, understand and optimise ENDT systems, or a Reference for other modelling algorithms. The review intentionally omits the fundamentals of FEA and detailed principles of NDT. Strain-stress FEA applications in NDT, especially in ultrasonography and hole-drilling methodology, deserve as well a separate study.     

Finite-Element Calculations of Remote Field Eddy Current Interactions with Slit Defects

Abstract

Remote field eddy current (RFEC) excitation is a promising approach for detection of the very fine axial cracks typical of stress corrosion cracking (SCC) in pipelines. Interactions between adjacent cracks or slits can enhance responses in some cases. Detailed finite-element modeling was undertaken to establish the behavior and interactions of multiple slits such as those occurring in SCC. Three different field/slit configurations are considered, with anomalous source models used to aid interpretation of the results. The study noted that magnetic perturbations generated by ferromagnetic material tend to be vanishingly small, and that the interactions between multiple cracks give minimal enhancement, indicating that eddy current rather than magnetic field excitation is best for the detection of SCC. With eddy current excitation, field perturbations are generated by even very fine slits, and are larger in non-ferromagnetic material. For non-ferromagnetic pipes, the perturbations tend to merge as a circumferential separation between parallel axial cracks decreases, resulting in significant interaction and signal enhancement.     

Applications of non-destructive testing techniques for post-process control of additively manufactured parts

This paper presents an overview on the principle of operation for post-process inspection non-destructive testing (NDT) techniques. The techniques include visual inspection, liquid penetrant testing, magnetic particle testing, eddy current testing, ultrasonic testing, and radiography. The applications of these NDT techniques in additive manufacturing (AM) and their suitability for defects detection of additively manufactured parts are reviewed. The sensitivity, and the advantages and disadvantages of each technique are evaluated. The types of defect, and the detectability of these defects by NDT techniques are assessed. The applicability of each NDT technique for different categories of AM process is discussed. The categories of AM are, namely, material extrusion, powder bed fusion, vat photopolymerisation, material jetting, binder jetting, sheet lamination, and directed energy deposition.     

De-noising of Magnetic Flux Leakage Signals Based on Wavelet Filtering Method

ABSTRACT

To improve the accuracy of the magnetic flux leakage (MFL) nondestructive testing in practical applications, it is very significant and key to deal with the detected MFL signals. As for the de-noising process of the MFL signals, a multilevel filtering approach based on wavelet de-noising combined with median filtering is proposed. By analyzing and comparing the de-noising properties of three wavelet families, i.e., Daubechies wavelet, Coiflets wavelet, and Symlets wavelet, two wavelet bases with the best de-noising performance are recognized and selected, namely sym6 and sym8 (the Symlets wavelet functions of order 6 and 8). Then, a new cascaded filter is constructed by combining sym6 and sym8 wavelets and cascading the median filtering method. An experimental platform is established to carry out the MFL testing, through the de-noising process for the measured MFL signals, and the results indicate that the proposed improved algorithm integrates with the merits of wavelet de-noising and median filtering. Compared with the traditional wavelet de-noising, the improved algorithm can not only improve the signal-to-noise ratio (SNR), but also reduce the de-noising error, resulting in enhancing signal quality to facilitate subsequent defect recognition.     

储罐底板缺陷自动定位与可视化方法研究

针对储罐底板漏磁检测的实际需要,研究了根据异常数据点进行缺陷自动定位、定量描述及可视化的基本方法.通过定义扫描、板块和储罐底板的特征参数,基于图形几何变换建立了缺陷定位的数学模型,运用窗口自动生长算法实现了缺陷分布区域的有效识别.实践证明,储罐底板漏磁检测系统能根据所添加板块和扫描的特征参数,自动绘制储罐底板上缺陷的整体分布图并提供直观的可视化检测报告,克服了现有检测系统的不足,提高了储罐底板漏磁检测系统的检测效率、可靠性和实用性.     

Numerical Analysis for Eddy Current Characteristics of Magnetically Saturated Ferromagnetic Tubes

Abstract

Magnetic saturation is applied to ferromagnetic tubes inspected by the encircling or inner coil because suppressing magnetic noise is important for the eddy current testing technique. Eddy current signal characteristics in magnetically saturated tubes are different from those in nonmagnetic tubes. In ferromagnetic tubes, defect signal phase angle is not useful for estimating defect depth because it does not depend on the defect depth. In this paper, numerical eddy current analysis has been done in order to explain the relationship between the defect depth and the phase angle in magnetically saturated tubes. This analysis is performed as follows: 1) The magnetic permeability near the defect is calculated as the non-linear magnetostatic problem. 2) The eddy current distribution is calculated as the linear magnetodynamic problem using the incremental permeability value calculated in step 1. The numerical analysis results reveal that the permeability around the defect remains inhomogeneous and it causes the unique eddy current characteristics. Based on these calculated results, a quantitative evaluation method of determining defect depth is proposed. After determining the defect shape by using signal characteristics obtained from the strongly magnetizing state, the defect depth can be estimated by using the signal amplitude.     

Three-Dimensional Localization of Defects in Stay Cables Using Magnetic Flux Leakage Methods

The application of magnetic flux leakage (MFL) methods to the nondestructive evaluation (NDE) of metal parts has been known for several decades. The inspection of large-diameter cables (Ø 100 mm), such as bridge stay cables, is a new field of application for the MFL method. The large cross-section of the cables requires the generation of strong magnetic fields in order to obtain the induction fields necessary for an accurate inspection of the cables. A new device for the inspection of stay cables has been developed in order to meet the requirements given by the size of the cables. Measurements performed with the developed device on full-scale specimens in the laboratory and first calculations confirm the validity of the MFL approach to the inspection of bridge stay cables. The equipment was used satisfactorily in 2001 for the NDE inspection of the 68 locked coil stay cables (121 mm < Ø < 167 mm) of a bridge in Southeast Asia. For such cables, no exact localization within the cross section was performed. Thus far, an accurate indication of the position of the detected flaws along the length of the cables could be given. A qualitative statement about position and size of the flaws within the cross section of the cable could also be made. Given the large steel cross-section of the cables, no other nondestructive method to confirm the findings could be applied to assess the exact size and position of the detected flaws. The proposed analytical method presented in this paper makes it possible to increase the amount of information that can be extracted from the measured MFL data with regard to the exact location of the detected flaws within a cross section of a stay cable.     

用变频扫描励磁方法定量检测裂纹

目的 实现对疵病的定量检测和对材料的定性检测。方法 通过改变磁场交变频率从而引致导体中的涡流发生变化，来观测工件材料的疵病。结果 实验证明文该方法对于提高检测精度是有效的。结论 用变频扫描励磁方法进行裂纹定量检测可提高检测的可靠性。     

Analytical solutions to eddy current in carbon fiber-reinforced composites induced by line current

This paper presents analytical solutions to eddy current distribution in carbon fiber-reinforced plastics induced by line current. Derived solutions show that eddy current distribution in unidirectional carbon fiber composite is dependent only on electrical conductivity in the drive current direction when the drive current is directed in the fiber direction or the transverse direction. Moreover, according to the derived analytical solution, skin depth of eddy current depends not only on frequency of drive current but on lift-off and width of the drive current unlike general expression of skin depth. Finally, we discuss improvement of sensitivity of eddy current conductivity sensor using analytical solutions. It is found that analytical solutions can clearly divide effects of magnetic field from drive current and that from eddy current. Sensitivity of eddy current sensor can be improved by 10 times placing pickup coil at region where the effect of magnetic field from eddy current is large.     

CNG储气井井筒腐蚀的漏磁检测探索

为了对CNG储气井安全隐患进行有效检测,根据漏磁检测原理,应用ANSYS对CNG储气井井筒漏磁磁场分布进行模拟.仿真结果表明,在合适的磁化参数下可以有效地检测出腐蚀状况.在此基础上,采用交变磁化方式,以锰锌铁氧体作为磁化材料,用霍尔元件阵列检测漏磁信号,加以计算机组成漏磁检测系统.实验结果表明.该系统能够检测出井筒的缺陷,但是精度还需进一步提高.     

Pulsed Eddy Current Technology: Characterizing Material Loss with Gap and Lift-off Variations

Abstract

Ownership costs of operational aircraft have increased steadily over the years. One of the major cost drivers is structural deterioration due to corrosion. Beyond the economics, finding and characterizing corrosion is essential for the continued airworthiness of aircraft fleets. To this end, the pulsed eddy current technique holds the potential of becoming the primary means of detecting corrosion in multilayered structures. Its wide-band frequency spectrum allows the determination of a large number of parameters, such as defect size and location. Pulsed eddy current is still considered an experimental nondestructive technique because of realistic inspection problems (e.g., probe tilting, protrusion of rivets, and thickness variations in adhesive and paint) have not been addressed in the past. Recent advances change this situation and allow pulsed eddy current to be a credible field technique.     

钢管漏磁在线检测技术的研究

介绍了钢管漏磁检测的基本原理，对钢管在线漏磁检测系统进行总体设计。分析了漏磁场理论模型和讨论了影响缺陷漏磁信号的一些因素及补偿方法，针对该系统的特点设计了高速数据采集板，借助Windows系统平台，在所研制硬件的基础上，采用多线编程和虚拟设备驱动技术编制了数据采集、分析、状态显示、实时控制等面向对象、多功能模块化的软件，详细叙述了漏磁信号数据分析的方法和过程。这种系统具有检测速度快、数据吞吐量大、效率高、钢管缺陷分辨率高等特点。     

Modeling and Experimental Studies on 3D-Magnetic Flux Leakage Testing for Enhanced Flaw Detection in Carbon Steel Plates

ABSTRACT

For enhanced detection of flaws in engineering components using magnetic flux leakage (MFL) technique, measurement of the leakage magnetic field components along the three perpendicular directions is beneficial. This article presents the three dimensional-magnetic flux leakage (3D-MFL) modeling and experimental studies carried out on carbon steel plates. Magnetic dipole model has been used for the prediction of MFL signals and images. Sensitivity of the MFL signals peak amplitudes of tangential (H_X), circumferential (H_Y), and normal (H_Z) components with respect to flaw length, width, depth and lift-off have been studied. A 3D-GMR sensor has been used for simultaneous measurement of all the three components of leakage magnetic fields from surface flaws in 12 mm thick carbon steel plates. The experimental MFL images have been compared with the model predicted MFL images. The sensor has shown the capability to detect and image 0.9 mm deep surface flaws with a signal to noise ratio of 8 dB. Principal component analysis (PCA)-based image fusion has been performed for fusion of the 3D-MFL images to obtain a geometrical profile of the flaws. Study reveals that 3D-GMR enhances the capability for detection of flaws having irregular geometries.     

Alternating Current Electric Flux Leakage Testing for Defect Detection and Characterization

This paper analyzes the inspection characteristics of the alternating current electric flux leakage (AC-EFL) testing method. Three specimens with different conductivity are prepared, and a series of experiments is carried out to explore the advantages and disadvantages of the AC-EFL method. For metal materials that carry an alternating current (AC), defect detection can be realized using both AC-EFL and electric current perturbation (ECP). However, the signal noise ratio (SNR) from using the AC-EFL method is lower than that obtained using the ECP method according to the experimental results obtained from an aluminum plate. For both the Ni–Zn ferrite specimens with very low conductivity and the carbon fiber reinforced polymer (CFRP) specimens with low anisotropic conductivity, the ECP method failed to detect defects because of the weak disturbed magnetic field that was caused by the defects, whereas the AC-EFL method was able to realize the defect detection. These proof-of-concept experimental results indicate that compared to magnetic field testing method, the AC-EFL is more suitable for inspecting low-conductivity materials.     

Eddy Current Assessment of Near-Surface Residual Stress in Shot-Peened Nickel-Base Superalloys

It is shown in this paper that, in contrast with most other materials, shot-peened nickel-base superalloys exhibit an apparent increase in eddy current conductivity at increasing inspection frequencies, which can be exploited for nondestructive residual stress assessment of subsurface residual stresses. It has been found that the primary reason why nickel-base superalloys, which are often used in the most critical gas-turbine engine components, lend themselves easily for eddy current residual stress assessment lies in their favorable electro-elastic behavior, namely that the parallel stress coefficient of the eddy current conductivity has a large negative value while the normal coefficient is smaller but also negative. As a result, the average stress coefficient is also large and negative, therefore the essentially isotropic compressive plane state of stress produced by most surface treatments causes a significant increase in conductivity parallel to the surface. The exact reason for this unusual behavior is presently unknown, but the role of paramagnetic contributions cannot be excluded, therefore the measured quantity will be referred to as apparent eddy current conductivity. Experimental results are presented to demonstrate that the magnitude of the increase in apparent eddy current conductivity correlates well with the initial peening intensity as well as with the remnant residual stress after thermal relaxation.