5 Ultrasonic Flaw Detection
5.1 Introduction to Ultrasonic Flaw Detection
This technique is used for the detection of internal and surface (particularly distant
surface) defects in sound conducting materials.
The principle is in some respects similar to echo sounding. A short pulse of
ultrasound is generated by means of an electric charge applied to a piezo electric
crystal, which vibrates for a very short period at a frequency related to the thickness
of the crystal. In flaw detection this frequency is usually in the range of one million to
six million times per second (1 MHz to 6 MHz). Vibrations or sound waves at this
frequency have the ability to travel a considerable distance in homogeneous elastic
material, such as many metals with little attenuation. The velocity at which these
waves propagate is related to the Young’s Modulus for the material and is
characteristic of that material. For example the velocity in steel is 5900 metres per
second, and in water 1400 metres per second.
Ultrasonic energy is considerably attenuated in air, and a beam propagated through a
solid will, on reaching an interface (e.g. a defect, or intended hole, or the backwall)
between that material and air reflect a considerable amount of energy in the direction
equal to the angle of incidence.
For contact testing the oscillating crystal is incorporated in a hand held probe, which
is applied to the surface of the material to be tested. To facilitate the transfer of
energy across the small air gap between the crystal and the test piece, a layer of
liquid (referred to as ‘couplant’), usually oil, water or grease, is applied to the surface.
As mentioned previously, the crystal does not oscillate continuously but in short
pulses, between each of which it is quiescent. Piezo electric materials not only
convert electrical pulses to mechanical oscillations, but will also transduce
mechanical oscillations into electrical pulses; thus we have not only a generator of
sound waves but also a detector of returned pulses. The crystal is in a state to detect
returned pulses when it is quiescent. The pulse takes a finite time to travel through
the material to the interface and to be reflected back to the probe.
The standard method of presenting information in ultrasonic testing is by means of a
cathode ray tube, in which horizontal movement of the spot from left to right
represents time elapsed. The principle is not greatly different in digitised instruments
that have a LCD flat screen. The rate at which the spot moves is such that it gives
the appearance of a horizontal line on the screen. The system is synchronised
electronically so that at the instant the probe receives its electrical pulse the spot
begins to traverse the screen. An upward deflection (peak) of the line on the left
hand side of the screen is an indication of this occurrence. This peak is usually
termed the initial pulse.