Materials Research.

2019; 22(1): e20180366

DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.1590/1980-5373-MR-2018-0366

Continuous Scanning Technique with Barkhausen Magnetic Noise for Carbon Steel Sheets

Leosdan Figueredo Norisa,b, Linilson Rodrigues Padoveseb, Sérgio Souto Maior Tavaresc* ,

Juan Manuel Pardala,c

Programas de Pós-Graduação em Engenharia Mecânica (PGMEC) e Montagem Industrial,

a

Universidade Federal Fluminense - UFF, Rua Passo da Pátria, 156, CEP 24210-240, Niterói, RJ,
Brasil
b
Departamento de Engenharia Mecânica, Escola Politécnica, Universidade de São Paulo - USP, Av.
Prof. Mello Moraes 2231, 05508-900, SP, Brasil
c
Programa de Pós-graudação em Engenharia Mecânica e Tecnologia de Materiais - Centro Federal de
Educação Celso Suckow da Fonseca - CEFET-RJ, Av. Maracanã, 229, Bloco E, 5° andar 20271-110,
Rio de Janeiro, RJ, Brasil

Received: May 24, 2018; Revised: October 03, 2018; Accepted: November 16, 2018

This work studies the application of a Non-Destructive Inspection Technique (NDIT), based on
the Magnetic Barkhausen Noise (MBN), for the detection of non-homogeneous regions in carbon
steel plates. It presents the advances in the development of a variant of a new non-destructive
magnetic test technique, called Continuous Scanning Magnetic Barkhausen Noise (CSMBN). The
non-homogeneous or damaged regions were produced by plastic deformations in rolled and annealed
sheets of SAE 1060 and 1070 steels.MBN is generated by abrupt changes in the magnetization of
materials when subjected to alteration. The sensitivity of the MBN signals in the detection of plastic
deformations was analyzed varying parameters such as excitation magnetic field frequency and the
speed of movement of the probe. The behavior of the root mean square of magnetic Barkhausen Noise
signal (RMSMBN) parameter was correlated with the position of the nonhomogeneous regions detected
in the samples. An evaluation of the technique applied to the measurement was made, comparing the
results obtained with the Static Magnetic Barkhausen Noise (SMBN) technique, which is a method
already established in the literature. The results showed that in all cases studied it was possible to
detect the position of the damage, due to variation of the magnetic field. These changes are affected
by the presence and distribution of elastic stresses (compression and traction), plastic deformation and
microstructure modification. The results of CSMBN were similar to the SBMN with the advantage
of being a continuous and more productive procedure. This new technique increases the spectrum of
NDIT solutions for problems not contemplated by existing techniques.
Keywords: Barkhausen Magnetic Noise, Non Destructive Testing, Plastic Strain, Stress,
Barkhausen Continuous, Surface Mapping.

1. Introduction
which is to minimize the chances of failure and to maximize
The design of mechanical and structural components system availability.
in engineering is limited by the mechanical properties The Barkhausen Magnetic Noise (MBN) technique has
of the materials as well as by the methods used in their been widely used in the NDIT area. For more than 14 years,
manufacture. Once in service the components will undergo the Dynamics and Instrumentation Laboratory (LADIN)
thermo-chemical processes that changes their characteristics of the University of São Paulo has developed proprietary
and affect the projected life. NDIT technology based on MBN. This development covers
In this context, the use of Non-destructive Testing (NDT) the manufacture of equipment, software and technological
methods plays an important role on the evaluation of damage applications.
that affect the life of the component. The MBN is a technological alternative with great
A wide range of Non-Destructive Inspection techniques potential, above all for its low cost, simplicity of use and
(NDIT) has been developed to address these problems. Most for opening possibilities of characterization of ferromagnetic
of them cannot detect changes in the microstructure, because materials that are not possible with other NDIT.
they only detect volumetric defects such as pores and cracks. Some industrial applications of MBN measurement
Although the use of NDIT does not guarantee that a technique are:
failure will not happen, they play a very important role, • Process and quality control in the production of
gears, valves, bearings, crankshaft, valve control,
and other important parts of engines and aircraft.
*e-mail: ssmtavares@terra.com.br
2 Noris et al. Materials Research

• Evaluation of contact fatigue damage in gears and probe is moved at constant speed over the sample, and the
bearings. Barkhausen noise is monitored continuously9. This new
• Evaluation of residual stresses in welded pipes and technique was used in the inspection of mechanical defects
rolling cylinders. in pipes.
• Evaluation of the shot peening effect in steel. Also in Desvaux et al.10, a real-time instrumentation
• Measurement of the inversion of residual stresses was designed to estimate the degree of residual stresses in
in railway wheels by thermal effect. the contact zone between the balls and the runway. This
• Evaluation of thermal degradation in boiler pipes. method has the advantage of being reliable and applicable
• Detection of phase transformations and precipitation to the geometry of circular rings.
reactions in ferromagnetic alloys1-2. The CMBN method was later used by Franco11 in his
• Detection of temper embrittlement in steels3. doctoral thesis. In this work, volumetric defect mapping results
The aim of this work is to study and develop a surface were obtained, which were later published corroborating
scanning technique, based on Continuous Scanning Magnetic some of the observations of Crouch12, such as the effect of
Barkhausen Noise (CSMBN), for the detection of non- velocity and field strength on the obtained MBN quality.
homogeneous regions, related to sub and microstructural Subsequently, Ilker et al.13 used a continuous-motion
changes, in carbon steel plates. The influences of the probe with a highly cyclic excitation (around hundreds of
scanning speed and the excitation frequency in the detection Hz), which allows to inspect residual stresses inserted in
of non-homogeneous regions are evaluated. The results of the welding process.
continuous inspection (CSMBN) are compared to the static In another more recent work a magnetic NDT technique
procedure (SMBN). based on the Barkhausen effect, called Barkhausen Continuous
Rotational Magnetic Noise (CRMBN), was developed. This
2. Classical Barkhausen Magnetic Noise and technique was used satisfactorily to perform real-time high-
Non-Destructive Testing resolution magnetic anisotropy measurements, exceeding
the technical limitations of classic MBN 14.
The Barkhausen Effect is a phenomenon of discontinuous The above mentioned work of Franco and Morgan,
changes in flux density within a ferromagnetic material developed in the LADIN, is an important advance in this
when subjected to a variable magnetic field. This was first technique, that until the moment, has received a little attention.
discovered by the German scientist Heinrich Barkhausen4. In both works, new applications were explored, overcoming
He discovered that during the magnetization of an iron rod, in the process many stability problems. The techniques, while
short voltage electric pulses are induced in a coil wound still at a stage of development, offer promising alternatives
around the bar. These pulses were detected as audible clicks for applications in the industry.
on a speaker.
Most Barkhausen events are produced by the irreversible 3. Experimental Procedures
movement of 180º domain walls, and occur in the region of
greater slope of the magnetization curve5,6. In the advancement 3.1 Materials
of the magnetization process, other factors begin to contribute,
as the motion of walls of 90º, rotation of domains, and Two carbon steel plates were used, a low carbon SAE
annihilation of walls. As the process approaches magnetic 1006 and high carbon SAE 1070, with chemical compositions
saturation, the motion of walls disappears7. The location shown in Table 1. Both materials were cold rolled and
of the maximum pulses that make up the MBN was found annealed, without skin pass after annealing. Cold reduction
shortly before the coercive field8. was about 60% in seven passes for SAE 1006 and 45% in 5
Statistical analysis of the MBN signal can provide passes for SAE 1070 steel. Annealing of SAE 1006 steel was
information on the interaction between domain walls done at 900ºC, while SAE 1070 steel was annealed at 820ºC.
and the configuration of stresses, deformations or on the In both cases the sheets were slowly cooled after soaking.
microstructure features of the material. The microstructures obtained are shown in Figs. 1(a-b).SAE
1006 has a typical ferritic structure with reduced pearlite
2.1 MBN continuous
and some free Fe3C carbides. SAE 1070 has coarse pealite
In the classical technique an electromagnet produces an with small portions of pro-eutectoid ferrite.
alternating magnetization between its poles while a reader
coil is fixed on the surface of the material to capture the
magnetic response thereof. Therefore, it is considered as a Table 1. Chemical compositions of steels (% wt.).
Static Barkhausen Magnetic Noise Measurement (SMBN). Steel plate C Mn P S Si
On the other hand, a new "continuous Barkhausen" SAE 1006 0.040 0.261 0.015 0.0066 -
(CMBN) measurement technique was created in which the
SAE 1070 0.712 0.610 0.018 0.0010 0.24
 Continuous Scanning Technique with Barkhausen Magnetic Noise for Carbon Steel Sheets 3

3.2 Pattern preparation The two red lines indicate the points were the measurements
by continuous scanning (CSMBN) start and end.
Three lines were drawn in the samples (yellow lines SMBN and CSMBN inspection were performed in the
in Fig. 2), parallel to the rolling direction, through which sheets before plastic deformation, for comparison.
the measuring probe would pass. Measurements of SMBN
3.3 Equipment and methods used in CSMBN
were carried out in the sample set with the aim of find non-
homogeneous zones and use them as a pattern for comparison The standard arrangement for the CSMBN is shown
to measurements made with CSMBN. Localized plastic in Fig. 3.
deformations were produced in two points along each yellow The total control of the system was accomplished
line. An hydraulic press and a rectangular penetrator were through the software BarkView developed in LADIN. The
used to produce indentations with 45 x 4 mm dimensions, equipment is responsible for generation and control of the
applying a controlled pressure of 110 kPa. The indentations excitation current, as well the acquisition and filtering of
had the longitudinal axis (45 mm) perpendicular to the yellow the voltage signals generated by the MBN sensor. Using
line, as indicated in blue color in Fig.2. a bipolar source, the "BarkTech" generates sinusoidal
In the case of discrete (point-to-point) inspection, excitation currents with frequencies of 0.4 to 100 Hz, and
measurements were made every centimeter on both sides of amplitudes of excitation from 0 to 5A. MBN signals can be
the localized plastic deformation. Considering 4 measurements acquired in different frequency ranges and amplified with
in each side of the two indentations, plus the exact points of different gain values. All these functions are controlled by
indentations, it results in 18 positions, as can be seen in Fig.2. the computer. During the measurement process, the sample

Figure 1. Microstructure of (a) SAE 1006 and (b) SAE 1070.

Figure 2. Geometry and dimensions of the samples in (mm), and areas where MBN measurements were performed: (a) SAE 1006 (left)
and (b) SAE 1070 (right).
4 Noris et al. Materials Research

always remained static, and the probe moved at different methodology they calculated the root mean square values
speeds in the horizontal direction. of the magnetic Barkhausen Noise (RMSMBN) according to:

/ QVn--V1 V
The current wave injected into the electromagnets n 2
was always sinusoidal at frequencies of 5 and 10 Hz. All
RMS RMB =
i a
(1)
signals from the MBN probe were acquired at a sampling i

frequency of 450kHz. Where Vi is the voltage value of a pulse and Va is the

For the control of the movement a cart was developed, average voltage value of all n pulses of the Barkhausen signal.
in which the probe is positioned as can be seen in Fig.4. The plates were locally damaged by controlled plastic
Therefore, the movement of the probe is performed by deformation as will be described.
this trolley, which moves on the samples. The control is
3.4 Magnetic signal measurement procedure
performed through an Arduino UNO microcontroller, which
allows to vary the speed and determine the position of the The signals were acquired for two complete periods of
cart at each instant of time. current (two MBN signals). The MBN signals were acquired
The signal processing method developed by Padovese with different measurement parameters:
et al.15 was used in the analysis of CSMBN signals. In this • Excitation frequencies: 5 and 10 Hz.
• Excitation currents: 3 A.
• Signal acquisition: Each measurement is composed
of MBN signals generated in two complete
magnetization cycles. The sampling rate was
maintained at 450 kHz. And 10 repetitions of each
measurement condition were recorded.
• Probe Orientation: The orientation of the probe
controls the direction of the magnetic field. Thus,
MBN measurements were made by magnetizing
the sample towards the rolling direction (RD) that
coincides with the direction of easy magnetization.
• Scanning speed: Five speeds were used for
conducting the search (14, 16, 19, 22 and 25 mm/s).

4. Results

The results show that the evolution of the RMSMBN

Figure 3. Experimental setup for acquisition of CSMBN.
parameter obtained with the SMBN technique was similar

Figure 4. Image of the cart and probe used for the CSMBN.
 Continuous Scanning Technique with Barkhausen Magnetic Noise for Carbon Steel Sheets 5

to behavior of RMSMBN parameter obtained with CSMBN 4.2 Preliminary study 2. Detection of non-
inspection. In both cases it was possible to identify the position homogeneous zones using the CSMBN
of the two deformations zones inserted in the samples. As technique
expected, the RMSMBN values, and therefore the Barkhausen
signal, decreased with increasing plastic deformation. This This section presents the results of tests performed with
is explained by the high density of dislocations present in five scanning speeds (14, 16, 19, 22 and 25 mm/s). Figs. 7
these zones of the material, making more difficult to move to 11 show the variation of the RMSMBN parameter of the
the domain walls during magnetization. signal, for each scanning speed, with excitation frequency
5Hz. It is observed that with the 5 speeds used, the technique
4.1 Preliminary study 1. Detection of non-
can detect and locate the plastic deformations
homogeneous zones using the SMBN
technique 5. Discussion
As the conceptual gaps in the application of the technique
are large, due to complexity, a preliminary phase of preliminary It can be verified that the RMSMBN parameter profile
tests was performed. The objective was to evaluate proposals shows how the Barkhausen signal decreases with the
of measurement procedures, probe configurations, methods localized plastic deformation, which is a typical response
of signal analysis, and other factors that could determine the in SMBN measurements. The high density of dislocations
feasibility of applying the new technique in the detection introduced by plastic deformation hinders the movement
of material damage. of the domain walls.
Based on the experience gained in classical MBN From the analysis of Figs. 7-11(5 Hz) and 12-16 (10 Hz)
measurements (static measurements), samples with easily it is observed that the technique can detect the location of the
detectable plastic deformations were designed. Thus, the plastic deformation with all five speeds used. It can also be
measurement parameters and preliminary results of SMBN observed that the speed variation within the 14 to 25 mm/s
were obtained. range does not have a significant influence on detection.
The results for the case of the discrete measurement Therefore, higher speeds can be used, which results in an
on both steel plates are shown in Figs. 5 and 6, for 5 Hz advantage of the technique when considering its application
and 10 Hz, respectively. In both frequencies, a decrease in in the industrial area.
RMSMBN values in the positions 5 and 14 were observed, The influence of the excitation frequency can be analyzed
which corresponds to the locations of the indentations. with the aid of Fig.17. It is observed that the increase of

Figure 5. Graphs for SAE 1006 and SAE 1070 sheets, lines 1, 2 and 3; Frequency 5Hz before and after deformation, discrete measurement
(SMBN).
6 Noris et al. Materials Research

Figure 6. Graphs for SAE 1006 and SAE 1070 sheets, lines 1, 2 and 3; Frequency 10Hz before and after deformation, discrete measurement
(SMBN).

Figure 7. Graphs for SAE 1006 and 1070, lines 1, 2 and 3, frequency 5Hz, and speed 14 mm/s.
 Continuous Scanning Technique with Barkhausen Magnetic Noise for Carbon Steel Sheets 7

Figure 8. Graphs for SAE 1006 and 1070, lines 1, 2 and 3, frequency 5Hz, and speed 16 mm/s.

Figure 9. Graphs for SAE 1006 and 1070, lines 1, 2 and 3, frequency 5Hz, and speed 19 mm/s.
8 Noris et al. Materials Research

Figure 10. Graphs for SAE 1006 and 1070, lines 1, 2 and 3, frequency 5Hz, and speed 22 mm/s.

Figure 11. Graphs for SAE 1006 and 1070, lines 1, 2 and 3, frequency 5Hz, and speed 25 mm/s.
 Continuous Scanning Technique with Barkhausen Magnetic Noise for Carbon Steel Sheets 9

Figure12. Graphs for SAE 1006 and 1070; Lines 1, 2 and 3; Frequency 10Hz; Speed 14 mm/s.

Figure 13. Graphs for SAE 1006 and 1070; Lines 1, 2 and 3; Frequency 10Hz; Speed 16 mm/s.
10 Noris et al. Materials Research

Figure 14. Graphs for SAE 1006 and 1070; Lines 1, 2 and 3; Frequency 10Hz; Speed 19 mm/s.

Figure 15. Graphs for SAE 1006 and 1070; Lines 1, 2 and 3; Frequency 10Hz; Speed 22 mm/s.
 Continuous Scanning Technique with Barkhausen Magnetic Noise for Carbon Steel Sheets 11

Figure 16. Graphs for SAE 1006 and 1070; Lines 1, 2 and 3; Frequency 10Hz; Speed 25 mm/s.

Figure 17. Comparison of RMSMBN curves for the two frequencies (5 and 10 Hz), for SAE 1006 and 1070 steels.
12 Noris et al. Materials Research

excitation frequency from 5 to 10 Hz causes the increase 3. Kameda J. Characterization of tempered martensite
of RMSMBN values. The explanation is based on the fact that microstructure and embrittlement by acoustic and magnetic
Barkhausen signal measurement. Scripta Metallurgica.
as the magnetization frequency increases, the number of
1988;22(9):1487-1492.
jumps of the domain walls per unit of time also increases16,17.
Therefore the amplitude of the signal and the RMSMBN 4. Barkhausen H. Two with help of new repeating rediscovered
parameter also increase. appearances by H Barkhausen - The silence during unmagnetising
of iron. Physikalische Zeitschrift. 1919;20:401-403.
With greater variations of magnetic flux in the material,
wall motion avalanches are becoming more frequent, and the 5. Becker R, Döring W. Ferromagnetismus. Berlin Heidelberg:
superposition of pulses in the measuring system is increased. Springer-Verlag; 1939.
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the parameter RMSMNB followed in an acceptable way the Oxford University Press; 1997. 668 p.
location of the deformed zones in the samples. 7. Jiles DC. Review of magnetic methods for nondestructive
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6. Conclusions 8. Jiles DC. The effect of stress on magnetic Barkhausen activity
in ferromagnetic steels. IEEE Transactions on Magnetics.
1989;25(5):3455-3457.
A new approach to surface inspection NDT is described,
based on Barkhausen Continuous Magnetic Noise Scan 9. Crouch AE, Beuker T. In-Line Stress Measurement by the
(CSMBN) technique. Continuous Barkhausen Method. In: Proceedings of 2004
International Pipeline Conference; 2004 Oct 4-8; Calgary,
The CSMBN technique was used on the evaluation
AB, Canada. p. 997-1003.
for the detection of non-homogeneous zones of samples of
low carbon SAE 1006 and high carbon SAE 1070 annealed 10. Desvaux S, Duquennoy M, Gualandri J, Ourak M. The
steels. CSMBN was able to detect indentations with plastic evaluation of surface residual stress in aeronautic bearings
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deformation produced in both steels.
2004;37(1):9-17.
Five (14, 16, 19, 22 and 25 mm/s) scan speeds and two
excitation frequencies (5 and 10 Hz) were tested. It was 11. Franco Grijalba FA. Desenvolvimento de Ensaio Não
found that the quality of the diagnosis does not depend on Destrutivo baseado no Ruído Magnético de Barkhausen
para caracterização de tensões elásticas e deformações
the scan speed, within the range investigated. The increase
plásticas em aços. [Thesis]. São Paulo: University of São
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parameter, but it did not affect the detection of plastic
deformation spots. 12. Franco FA, Padovese LR. NDT flaw mapping of steel surfaces
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detection case. NDT & E International. 2009;42(8):721-728.
traditional MBN technique, which retains all of its applicability
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sheet scanning process. determination of residual stress state in steel weldments by
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14. Morgan MAC. Ruído magnético de Barkhausen contínuo
Authors are grateful to Brazilian Research agencies rotacional. [Thesis]. São Paulo: University of São Paulo;
2013.
CNPq and CAPES for financial support.
15. Padovese LR, Martin N, Millioz F. Time-frequency and
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