Diagnostics of the technical condition of pressure vessels operating under internal pressure by a thermal (thermal imaging) method

Cylindrical reservoirs made of polymer composite materials (PCMs) operating under high internal pressures are presently used in the gas, petrochemical, aerospace, and other industries. Thermal imaging is used for testing of micro- and macroflaws in vessels during pressurizing. Experiments and theoretical studies have shown that, beginning at 5–10% of the maximum acceptable pressure, thermal testing ensures reliable detection and identification of flaws with an accuracy no worse than 15%. This ensures a lower damage hazard to articles without decreased reliability of tests and leads to significant savings due to a decrease in energy consumption and working hours during testing. In addition, a lower damage hazard allows the number of repeatedly occurring flaws to be decreased.