Abstract
The anisotropy and inhomogeneity exhibited by austenitic steel in welds poses a challenge to nondestructive testing employing ultrasonic waves, which is predominantly utilized for the inspection of welds in power plants. In this study, we assess the reliability of phased array ultrasonic testing (PAUT) by analyzing the flaw detection sensitivity of ultrasonic beams in anisotropic welds, based on the inspection conditions. First, we simulated the sectorial scan technique, frequently employed for the inspection of actual welds, while taking into account the ultrasonic wave mode, frequency, and shape and position of a flaw. Subsequently, we analyzed the flaw sensitivity by comparing A-scan signals and S-scan results. The sensitivity analysis results confirmed the detection of all flaws by considering at least two inspection methods based on the shape and position of the flaw. Furthermore, we verified our model by performing an experiment under the same conditions as the simulation and found that the results were in agreement. Hence, we find that the simulation modeling technique proposed in this study can be utilized to develop suitable inspection conditions, according to the flaw characteristics or inspection environment.
Highlights
To ensure the long-term safe and reliable operation of nuclear and thermal power plants, it is important to secure their structural integrity by nondestructive testing (NDT)
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This study was conducted to verify the reliability of the phased array ultrasonic testing (PAUT) technique and improve the probability of detection (POD) for the inspection of anisotropic and inhomogeneous welds, such as austenitic steel welds
Summary
To ensure the long-term safe and reliable operation of nuclear and thermal power plants, it is important to secure their structural integrity by nondestructive testing (NDT). PAUT can obtain the images of the inside of a specimen in real time through linear/electronic scan, enabling high-speed electronic scanning within the length range of the PA probe, as well as sectorial scan (S-scan), which can create the required sectorial beam using a PA probe [3,4,5] This technique has been applied in various areas, such as power plants [6,7,8,9], railways [10,11,12], aerospace [13,14,15], and construction [16,17]. To reflect the actual inspection conditions as accurately as possible, we modeled a tube (SUS304H) that is used in thermal power plant boilers.
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