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H A P T E R
Introduction to Electromagnetic Testing
Marvin W. Trimm, Westinghouse Savannah River Company, Aiken, South Carolina (Parts 1 and 2) Holger H. Streckert, General Atomics, San Diego, California (Part 3) Andrew P. Washabaugh, Jentek Sensors, Waltham, Massachusetts (Part 2)
PART 1. Nondestructive Testing
Definition
Nondestructive testing (NDT) has been defined as comprising those methods used to test a part or material or system without impairing its future usefulness.1 The term is generally applied to nonmedical investigations of material integrity. Strictly speaking, this definition of nondestructive testing includes noninvasive medical diagnostics. Ultrasound, X-rays and endoscopes are used by both medical and industrial nondestructive testing. Medical nondestructive testing, however, has come to be treated by a body of learning so separate from industrial nondestructive testing that today most physicians do not use the word nondestructive. Nondestructive testing is used to investigate specifically the material integrity or properties of the test object. A number of other technologies for instance, radio astronomy, voltage and amperage measurement and rheometry (flow measurement) are nondestructive but are not used specifically to evaluate material properties. Radar and sonar are classified as nondestructive testing when used to inspect dams, for instance, but not when they are used to chart a river bottom. Nondestructive testing asks Is there something wrong with this material? In contrast, performance and proof tests ask Does this component work? It is not considered nondestructive testing when an inspector checks a circuit by running electric current through it. Hydrostatic pressure testing is another form of proof testing, one that sometimes destroys the test object. Another gray area that invites various interpretations in defining nondestructive testing is future usefulness. Some material investigations involve taking a sample of the tested part for a test that is inherently destructive. A noncritical part of a pressure vessel may be scraped or shaved to get a sample for electron microscopy, for example. Although future usefulness of the vessel is not impaired by the loss of material, the procedure is inherently destructive and the shaving itself in one sense the true test object has been removed from service permanently.
MOVIE. Need for nondestructive testing.
The idea of future usefulness is relevant to the quality control practice of sampling. Sampling (that is, less than 100 percent testing to draw inferences about the unsampled lots) is nondestructive testing if the tested sample is returned to service. If the steel is tested to verify the alloy in some bolts that can then be returned to service, then the test is nondestructive. In contrast, even if spectroscopy used in the chemical testing of many fluids is inherently nondestructive, the testing is destructive if the samples are poured down the drain after testing. Nondestructive testing is not confined to crack detection. Other discontinuities include porosity, wall thinning from corrosion and many sorts of disbonds. Nondestructive material characterization is a growing field concerned with material properties including material identification and microstructural characteristics such as resin curing, case hardening and stress that have a direct influence on the service life of the test object.
Methods and Techniques

Nondestructive testing has also been defined by listing or classifying the various techniques.1-3 This sense of nondestructive testing is practical in that it typically highlights methods in use by industry. In the Nondestructive Testing Handbook, the word method is used for a group of test techniques that share a form of probing energy. Ultrasonic test methods, for example, use acoustic waves faster than sound. Infrared and thermal testing and radiographic testing both use electromagnetic radiation, each in a defined wavelength range. A technique, in contrast, has features that adapt the method to the application. Through-transmission immersion testing is a technique of the ultrasonic method, for example.
Purposes of Nondestructive Testing

Since the 1920s, the art of testing without destroying the test object has developed
Electromagnetic Testing
from a laboratory curiosity to an indispensable tool of fabrication, construction, manufacturing and maintenance processes. No longer is visual testing of materials, parts and complete products the principal means of determining adequate quality. Nondestructive tests in great variety are in worldwide use to detect variations in structure, minute changes in surface finish, the presence of cracks or other physical discontinuities, to measure the thickness of materials and coatings and to determine other characteristics of industrial products. Scientists and engineers of many countries have contributed greatly to nondestructive test development and applications. The various nondestructive testing methods are covered in detail in the literature but it is always wise to consider objectives before details. How is nondestructive testing useful? Why do thousands of industrial concerns buy the testing equipment, pay the subsequent operating costs of the testing and even reshape manufacturing processes to fit the needs and findings of nondestructive testing? Modern nondestructive tests are used by manufacturers (1) to ensure product integrity and in turn reliability, (2) to avoid failures, prevent accidents and save human life (see Figs. 1 and 2), (3) to make a profit for the user, (4) to ensure customer satisfaction and maintain the manufacturers reputation, (5) to aid in better product design, (6) to control manufacturing processes, (7) to lower manufacturing costs, (8) to maintain uniform quality level and (9) to ensure operational readiness. These reasons for widespread and profitable nondestructive testing are sufficient in themselves but parallel
developments have contributed to its growth and acceptance.
Increased Demand on Machines

In the interest of greater performance and reduced cost for materials, the design engineer is often under pressure to reduce weight. This can sometimes be done by substituting aluminum alloys, magnesium alloys or composite materials for steel or iron but such light parts may not be the same size or design as those they replace. The tendency is also to reduce the size. These pressures on the designer have subjected parts of all sorts to increased stress levels. Even such commonplace objects as sewing machines, sauce pans and luggage are also lighter and more heavily loaded than ever before. The stress to be supported is seldom static. It often fluctuates and reverses at low or high frequencies. Frequency of stress reversals increases with the speeds of modern machines and thus parts tend to fatigue and fail more rapidly. Another cause of increased stress on modern products is a reduction in the safety factor. An engineer designs with certain known loads in mind. On the supposition that materials and workmanship are never perfect, a safety factor of 2, 3, 5 or 10 is applied. However, a lower factor is often used that depends on considerations such as cost or weight. New demands on machinery have also stimulated the development and use of new materials whose operating characteristics and performance are not completely known. These new materials
FIGURE 2. Boilers operate with high internal steam pressure. Material discontinuities can lead to sudden, violent failure with possible injury to people and property.
FIGURE 1. Fatigue cracks contributed to damage to aircraft fuselage in flight (April 1988).
could create greater and potentially dangerous problems. For example, an aircraft part was built from an alloy whose work hardening, notch resistance and fatigue life were not well known. After relatively short periods of service, some of the aircraft using these parts suffered disastrous failures. Sufficient and proper nondestructive tests could have saved many lives. As technology improves and as service requirements increase, machines are subjected to greater variations and to wider extremes of all kinds of stress, creating an increasing demand for stronger or more damage tolerant materials.
Rising Costs of Failure

Aside from awards to the injured or to estates of the deceased and aside from costs to the public (because of evacuation occasioned by chemical leaks) consider briefly other factors in the rising costs of mechanical failure. These costs are increasing for many reasons. Some important ones are (1) greater costs of materials and labor, (2) greater costs of complex parts, (3) greater costs because of the complexity of assemblies, (4) greater probability that failure of one part will cause failure of others because of overloads, (5) trend to lower factors of safety, (6) probability that the failure of one part will damage other parts of high value and (7) part failure in an integrated automatic production machine, shutting down an entire high speed production line. When production was carried out on many separate machines, the broken one could be bypassed until repaired. Today one machine is tied into the production of several others. Loss of such production is one of the greatest losses resulting from part failure.
Engineering Demands for Sounder Materials

Another justification for nondestructive tests is the designers demand for sounder materials. As size and weight decrease and the factor of safety is lowered, more emphasis is placed on better raw material control and higher quality of materials, manufacturing processes and workmanship. An interesting fact is that a producer of raw material or of a finished product sometimes does not improve quality or performance until that improvement is demanded by the customer. The pressure of the customer is transferred to implementation of improved design or manufacturing. Nondestructive testing is frequently called on to deliver this new quality level.
Applications of Nondestructive Testing

Nondestructive testing is a branch of the materials sciences that is concerned with all aspects of the uniformity, quality and serviceability of materials and structures. The science of nondestructive testing incorporates all the technology for detection and measurement of significant properties, including discontinuities, in items ranging from research specimens to finished hardware and products in service. By definition nondestructive test methods provide a means for examining materials and structures without disruption or impairment of serviceability. Nondestructive testing makes it possible for internal properties or hidden discontinuities to be revealed or inferred. Nondestructive testing is becoming increasingly vital in the effective conduct of research, development, design and manufacturing programs. Only with appropriate nondestructive testing methods can the benefits of advanced materials science be fully realized. The information required for appreciating the broad scope of nondestructive testing is available in many publications and reports.
Public Demands for Greater Safety

The demands and expectations of the public for greater safety are apparent everywhere. Review the record of the courts in granting high awards to injured persons. Consider the outcry for greater automobile safety, as evidenced by the required automotive safety belts and the demand for air bags, blowout proof tires and antilock braking systems. The publicly supported activities of the National Safety Council, Underwriters Laboratories, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration and the Federal Aviation Administration in the United States, as well as the work of similar agencies abroad, are only a few of the ways in which this demand for safety is expressed. It has been expressed directly by passengers who cancel reservations following a serious aircraft accident. This demand for personal safety has been another strong force in the development of nondestructive tests.
Classification of Methods
The National Materials Advisory Board (NMAB) Ad Hoc Committee on Nondestructive Evaluation adopted a
system that classified techniques into six major method categories: visual, penetrating radiation, magnetic-electrical, mechanical vibration, thermal and chemical/electrochemical.3 A modified version is presented in Table 1.1 Each method can be completely characterized in terms of five principal factors: (1) energy source or medium used to probe the object (such as X-rays, ultrasonic waves or thermal radiation); (2) nature of the signals, image or signature resulting from interaction with the object (attenuation of X-rays or reflection of ultrasound, for example); (3) means of detecting or sensing resultant signals (photoemulsion, piezoelectric crystal or inductance coil); (4) means of indicating or recording signals (meter deflection, oscilloscope trace or radiograph); and (5) basis for interpreting the results (direct or indirect indication, qualitative or quantitative and pertinent dependencies). The objective of each method is to provide information about one or more of the following material parameters: (1) discontinuities and separations (cracks, voids, inclusions, delaminations and others); (2) structure or malstructure (crystalline structure, grain size, segregation, misalignment and others); (3) dimensions and metrology (thickness, diameter, gap size, discontinuity size and
others); (4) physical and mechanical properties (reflectivity, conductivity, elastic modulus, sonic velocity and others); (5) composition and chemical analysis (alloy identification, impurities, elemental distributions and others); (6) stress and dynamic response (residual stress, crack growth, wear, vibration and others); (7) signature analysis (image content, frequency spectrum, field configuration and others); and (8) abnormal sources of heat. Material characteristics in Table 1 are further defined in Table 2 with respect to specific objectives and specific attributes to be measured, detected and defined. The limitations of a method include conditions to be met for method application (access, physical contact, preparation and others) and requirements to adapt the probe or probe medium to the object examined. Other factors limit the detection or characterization of discontinuities, properties and other attributes and limit interpretation of signals or images generated.
Classification Relative to Test Object

Nondestructive testing techniques may be classified according to how they detect indications relative to the surface of a test object. Surface methods include liquid
TABLE 1. Nondestructive testing method categories.

Categories Basic Categories Mechanical and optical Penetrating radiation Electromagnetic and electronic color, cracks, dimensions, film thickness, gaging, reflectivity, strain distribution and magnitude, surface finish, surface flaws, through-cracks cracks; density and chemistry variations; elemental distribution; foreign objects; inclusions; microporosity; misalignment; missing parts; segregation; service degradation; shrinkage; thickness; voids alloy content; anisotropy; cavities; cold work; local strain, hardness; composition; contamination; corrosion; cracks; crack depth; crystal structure; electrical conductivities; flakes; heat treatment; hot tears; inclusions; ion concentrations; laps; lattice strain; layer thickness; moisture content; polarization; seams; segregation; shrinkage; state of cure; tensile strength; thickness; disbonds; voids crack initiation and propagation; cracks, voids; damping factor; degree of cure; degree of impregnation; degree of sintering; delaminations; density; dimensions; elastic moduli; grain size; inclusions; mechanical degradation; misalignment; porosity; radiation degradation; structure of composites; surface stress; tensile, shear and compressive strength; disbonds; wear anisotropy, bonding; composition; emissivity; heat contours; plating thickness; porosity; reflectivity; stress; thermal conductivity; thickness; voids; cracks; delaminations; heat treatment; state of cure; moisture; corrosion alloy identification; composition; cracks; elemental analysis and distribution; grain size; inclusions; macrostructure; porosity; segregation; surface anomalies Objectives
Sonic and ultrasonic
Infrared and thermal
Chemical and analytical Auxiliary Categories Image generation Signal image analysis
dimensional variations; dynamic performance; anomaly characterization and definition; anomaly distribution; anomaly propagation; magnetic field configurations data selection, processing and display; anomaly mapping, correlation and identification; image enhancement; separation of multiple variables; signature analysis
penetrant testing, visual testing, grid testing and moir testing. Surface/near-surface methods include tap, potential drop, holographic, shearographic, magnetic particle and electromagnetic testing. When surface or near-surface methods are applied during intermediate manufacturing processes, they provide preliminary assurance that
volumetric methods performed on the completed object or component will reveal few rejectable discontinuities. Volumetric methods include radiography, ultrasonic testing, acoustic emission testing and less widely used methods such as acoustoultrasonic testing and magnetic resonance imaging. Through-boundary techniques include leak testing, some
TABLE 2. Objectives of nondestructive testing methods.

Objectives Discontinuities and Separations Surface anomalies roughness, scratches, gouges, crazing, pitting, imbedded foreign material Surface connected anomalies cracks, porosity, pinholes, laps, seams, folds, inclusions Internal anomalies cracks, separations, hot tears, cold shuts, shrinkage, voids, lack of fusion, pores, cavities, delaminations, disbonds, poor bonds, inclusions, segregations Structure Microstructure Matrix structure Small structural anomalies Gross structural anomalies Dimensions and Metrology Displacement; position Dimensional variations Thickness; density linear measurement; separation; gap size; discontinuity size, depth, location and orientation unevenness; nonuniformity; eccentricity; shape and contour; size and mass variations film, coating, layer, plating, wall and sheet thickness; density or thickness variations molecular structure; crystalline structure and/or strain; lattice structure; strain; dislocation; vacancy; deformation grain structure, size, orientation and phase; sinter and porosity; impregnation; filler and/or reinforcement distribution; anisotropy; heterogeneity; segregation leaks (lack of seal or through-holes), poor fit, poor contact, loose parts, loose particles, foreign objects assembly errors; misalignment; poor spacing or ordering; deformation; malformation; missing parts Attributes Measured or Detected
Physical and Mechanical Properties Electrical properties Magnetic properties Thermal properties Mechanical properties Surface properties resistivity; conductivity; dielectric constant and dissipation factor polarization; permeability; ferromagnetism; cohesive force, susceptibility conductivity; thermal time constant and thermoelectric potential; diffusivity; effusivity; specific heat compressive, shear and tensile strength (and moduli); Poissons ratio; sonic velocity; hardness; temper and embrittlement color, reflectivity, refraction index, emissivity
Chemical Composition and Analysis Elemental analysis Impurity concentrations Metallurgical content Physiochemical state detection, identification, distribution and/or profile contamination, depletion, doping and diffusants variation; alloy identification, verification and sorting moisture content; degree of cure; ion concentrations and corrosion; reaction products
Stress and Dynamic Response Stress, strain, fatigue Mechanical damage Chemical damage Other damage Dynamic performance Signature Analysis Electromagnetic field Thermal field Acoustic signature Radioactive signature Signal or image analysis potential; intensity; field distribution and pattern isotherms, heat contours, temperatures, heat flow, temperature distribution, heat leaks, hot spots, contrast noise, vibration characteristics, frequency amplitude, harmonic spectrum, harmonic analysis, sonic emissions, ultrasonic emissions distribution and diffusion of isotopes and tracers image enhancement and quantization; pattern recognition; densitometry; signal classification, separation; and correlation; discontinuity identification, definition (size and shape) and distribution analysis; discontinuity mapping and display heat treatment, annealing and cold work effects; stress and strain; fatigue damage and life (residual) wear, spalling, erosion, friction effects corrosion, stress corrosion, phase transformation radiation damage and high frequency voltage breakdown crack initiation, crack propagation, plastic deformation, creep, excessive motion, vibration, damping, timing of events, any anomalous behavior
infrared thermographic techniques, airborne ultrasonic testing and certain techniques of acoustic emission testing. Other less easily classified methods are material identification, vibration analysis and strain gaging. No one nondestructive testing method is all revealing. In some cases, one method or technique may be adequate for testing a specific object or component. However, in most cases, it takes a series of test methods to do a complete nondestructive test of an object or component. For example, if surface cracks must be detected and eliminated and if the object or component is made of ferromagnetic material, then magnetic particle testing would be the appropriate choice. If the material is aluminum or titanium, then the choice would be liquid penetrant or electromagnetic testing. However, if internal discontinuities are to be detected, then ultrasonic testing or radiography would be the selection. The exact technique in each case would depend on the thickness and nature of the material and the types of discontinuities that must be detected.
Overview of Other Nondestructive Testing Methods

To optimize the use of nondestructive testing it is necessary first to understand the principles and applications of all the methods. This volume features electromagnetic testing (Fig. 3) only one of the nondestructive test methods. The following section briefly describes several other methods and the applications associated with them.
FIGURE 3. Electromagnetic testing: (a) representative setup for eddy current test; (b) in-service detection of discontinuities. (a)
Primary electromagnetic field Coil in eddy current probe
Direction of primary current
Value of Nondestructive Testing

The contribution of nondestructive testing to profits has been acknowledged in the medical field and computer and aerospace industries. However, in industries such as heavy metals, although nondestructive testing may be reluctantly accepted, its contribution to profits may not be obvious to management. Nondestructive testing is sometimes thought of only as a cost item and can be curtailed by industry downsizing. When a company cuts costs, two vulnerable areas are quality and safety. When bidding contract work, companies add profit margin to all cost items, including nondestructive testing, so a profit should be made on the nondestructive testing. The attitude toward nondestructive testing is positive when management understands its value. Nondestructive testing should be used as a control mechanism to ensure that manufacturing processes are within design performance requirements. When used properly, nondestructive testing saves money for the manufacturer. Rather than costing the manufacturer money, nondestructive testing should add profits to the manufacturing process.
Induced field
Direction of eddy currents Conducting specimen Eddy current strength decreases with increasing depth
(b)
Visual Testing
Principles. Visual testing (Fig. 4) is the observation of a test object, either directly with the eyes or indirectly using optical instruments, by an inspector to evaluate the presence of surface anomalies and the objects conformance to specification. Visual testing should be the first nondestructive testing method applied to an item. The test procedure is to clean the surface, provide adequate illumination and observe. A prerequisite necessary for competent visual testing of an object is knowledge of the manufacturing processes by which it was made, of its service history and of its potential failure modes, as well as related industry experience. Applications. Visual testing provides a means of detecting and examining a variety of surface discontinuities. It is the most widely used method for detecting and examining for surface discontinuities associated with various structural failure mechanisms. Even when other nondestructive tests are performed, visual tests often provide a useful supplement. When the eddy current testing of process tubing is performed, for example, visual testing is often performed to verify and more closely examine the surface condition. The following discontinuities may be detected by a simple visual test: surface discontinuities, cracks, misalignment, warping, corrosion, wear and physical damage.
of minute surface openings by capillary action. The cavities of interest can be very small, often invisible to the unaided eye. The ability of a given liquid to flow over a surface and enter surface cavities depends principally on the following: cleanliness of the surface, surface tension of the liquid, configuration of the cavity, contact angle of the liquid, ability of the liquid to wet the surface, cleanliness of the cavity and size of surface opening of the cavity. Applications. The principal industrial uses of liquid penetrant testing include postfabrication testing, receiving testing, in-process testing and quality control, maintenance and overhaul in the transportation industries, in-plant and machinery maintenance and in testing of large components. The following are some of the typically detected discontinuities: surface discontinuities, seams, cracks, laps, porosity and leak paths.
Magnetic Particle Testing

Principles. Magnetic particle testing (Fig. 6) is a method of locating surface and slightly subsurface discontinuities in ferromagnetic materials. It depends on the fact that when the material or part under
FIGURE 5. Liquid penetrant indication of cracking.
Liquid Penetrant Testing

Principles. Liquid penetrant testing (Fig. 5) reveals discontinuities open to the surfaces of solid and nonporous materials. Indications of a wide variety of discontinuity sizes can be found regardless of the configuration of the work piece and regardless of discontinuity orientations. Liquid penetrants seep into various types
FIGURE 4. Visual test using borescope to view interior of cylinder.
FIGURE 6. In magnetic particle testing, particles gather where lines of magnetic force leak from discontinuity.
Magnetic particles
S N
N S
Crack Legend N = north pole S = south pole
test is magnetized, discontinuities that lie in a direction generally transverse to the direction of the magnetic field will cause a leakage field to be formed at and above the surface of the part. The presence of this leakage field and therefore the presence of the discontinuity is detected with fine ferromagnetic particles applied over the surface, with some of the particles being gathered and held to form an outline of the discontinuity. This generally indicates its location, size, shape and extent. Magnetic particles are applied over a surface as dry particles or as wet particles in a liquid carrier such as water or oil. Applications. The principal industrial uses of magnetic particle testing include final, receiving and in-process testing; for quality control; for maintenance and overhaul in the transportation industries; for plant and machinery maintenance; and for testing of large components. Some of the typically detected discontinuities are surface discontinuities, seams, cracks and laps.
Radiographic Testing
Principles. Radiographic testing (Fig. 7) is based on the differential absorption of penetrating radiation either electromagnetic radiation of very short wavelength or particulate radiation (X-rays, gamma rays and neutron rays) by the part or object being tested. Different portions of an object absorb different amounts of penetrating radiation because of differences in density and variations in thickness of the part or differences in absorption characteristics
caused by variation in composition. These variations in the absorption of the penetrating radiation can be monitored by detecting the unabsorbed radiation that passes through the object. This monitoring may be in different forms. The traditional form is through radiation sensitive film. Radioscopic sensors provide digital images. X-ray computed tomography is a radiographic technique. Applications. The principal industrial uses of radiographic testing involve testing of castings and weldments, particularly where there is a critical need to ensure freedom from internal discontinuities. For example radiography is often specified for thick wall castings and weldments for steam power equipment (boiler and turbine components and assemblies). Radiography can also be used on forgings and mechanical assemblies, although with mechanical assemblies radiography is usually limited to testing for conditions and proper placement of components. Typically detected discontinuities and conditions include inclusions, lack of fusion, cracks, corrosion, porosity, leak paths, missing or incomplete components and debris.
Ultrasonic Testing
Principles. Ultrasonic testing (Fig. 8) is a nondestructive method in which beams of sound waves at a frequency too high to hear are introduced into materials for the detection of surface and subsurface discontinuities in the material. These acoustic waves travel through the material with some attendant loss of energy (attenuation) and are reflected at interfaces. The echoes are then analyzed to define the presence and locations of discontinuities. Applications. Ultrasonic testing of metals is widely used, principally for the detection of discontinuities. This method can be used to detect internal discontinuities in most engineering metals and alloys. Bonds produced by welding, brazing, soldering and adhesives can also be ultrasonically examined. Inline techniques have been developed for monitoring and classifying materials as acceptable, salvageable or scrap and for process control. Other applications include testing of piping and pressure vessels, nuclear systems, motor vehicles, machinery, structures, railroad rolling stock and bridges and thickness measurement.
FIGURE 7. Representative setup for radiographic testing.

Radiation source
Specimen Void
Leak Testing
Image plane Discontinuity images
Principles. Leak testing is concerned with the flow of liquids or gases from pressurized or into evacuated components. The principles of leak testing
involve the physics of fluid (liquids or gases) flowing through a barrier where a pressure differential or capillary action exists. Leaking fluids (liquid or gas) can propagate from inside a component or assembly to the outside, or vice versa, as a result of a pressure differential between the two regions or as a result of permeation through a barrier. Leak testing encompasses procedures that fall into these basic functions: leak location, leakage measurement and leakage monitoring. There are several
FIGURE 8. Classic setups for ultrasonic testing: (a) longitudinal wave technique; (b) shear wave technique. (a)
subsidiary methods of leak testing, entailing tracer gas detection (Fig. 9), pressure change measurement, observation of bubble formation and other means. Applications. Like other forms of nondestructive testing leak testing has an impact on the safety and performance of a product. Reliable leak testing decreases costs by reducing the number of reworked products, warranty repairs and liability claims. The most common reasons for performing a leak test are to prevent the loss of costly materials or energy; to prevent contamination of the environment; to ensure component or system reliability; and to prevent the potential for an explosion or fire.
Acoustic Emission Testing

Principles. Acoustic emissions are mechanical waves produced by sudden movement in stressed materials. The classic sources of acoustic emission are discontinuity related deformation processes such as crack growth and plastic deformation. Sudden movement at the source produces a stress wave that radiates out into the structure and excites a sensitive piezoelectric sensor. As the stress in the material is raised, emissions are generated. The signals from one or more sensors are amplified and measured to produce data for display and interpretation.
Crack
Time Bolt Back surface
Transducer Crack
FIGURE 9. Leakage measurement dynamic leak testing using vacuum pumping: (a) pressurized system mode for leak testing of smaller components; (b) pressurized envelope mode for leak testing of larger volume systems. (a)
Envelope Leak detector Crack System under test
(b)
Source of tracer gas
(b)
Entry surface Crack Envelope
System under test Leak detector
Skip distance where a = b Source of tracer gas
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The source of acoustic emission energy is the elastic stress field in the material. Without stress there is no emission. Therefore, an acoustic emission test (Fig. 10) is usually carried out during a controlled loading of the structure. This can be a proof load before service; a controlled variation of load while the structure is in service; a fatigue, pressure or creep test; or a complex loading program. Often a structure is going to be loaded hydrostatically anyway during service and acoustic emission testing is used because it gives valuable additional information about the expected performance of the structure under load. Other times, acoustic emission testing is selected for reasons of economy or safety and a special loading procedure is arranged to meet the needs of the acoustic emission test. Applications. Acoustic emission is a natural phenomenon occurring in a wide range of materials, structures and processes. The largest scale events observed with acoustic emission testing are seismic and the smallest are small dislocations in stressed metals. The equipment used is highly sensitive to any kind of movement in its operating frequency (typically 20 to 1200 kHz). The equipment can detect not only crack growth and material deformation but also
such processes as solidification, friction, impact, flow and phase transformations. Therefore acoustic emission testing is also used for in-process weld monitoring; detecting tool contact and tool wear during automatic machining; detecting wear and loss of lubrication in rotating equipment; detecting loose parts and loose particles; detecting and monitoring leaks, cavitation and flow; preservice proof testing; inservice weld monitoring; and leak testing.
Infrared and Thermal Testing

Principles. Conduction and convection are the primary mechanisms of heat transfer in an object or system. However, electromagnetic radiation is emitted from a heated body when electrons in that body change to a lower energy state. Thermal testing involves the measurement or mapping of surface temperatures when heat flows from, to or through a test object. Temperature differentials on a surface, or changes in surface temperature with time, are related to heat flow patterns and can be used to detect discontinuities or to determine the heat transfer characteristics of an object. For example, during the operation of an electrical breaker, a hot spot detected at an electrical termination may be caused by a loose or corroded connection (Fig. 11). The resistance to electrical flow
FIGURE 10. Acoustic emission testing setup in which eight sensors permit computer to calculate location of crack propagation.
FIGURE 11. Infrared thermography of automatic transfer switches of emergency diesel generator. Hot spots appear bright in thermogram (inset).
Acoustic event Preamplifier Sensor
Computer
Test object Preamplifier
11
through the connection produces an increase in surface temperature of the connection. Applications. There are two basic categories of infrared and thermal test applications: electrical and mechanical. The specific applications within these two categories are numerous. Electrical applications include transmission and distribution lines, transformers, disconnects, switches, fuses, relays, breakers, motor windings, capacitor banks, cable trays, bus taps and other components and subsystems. Mechanical applications include insulation (in boilers, furnaces, kilns, piping, ducts, vessels, refrigerated trucks and systems, tank cars and elsewhere), friction in rotating equipment (bearings, couplings, gears, gearboxes, conveyor belts, pumps, compressors and other components) and fluid flow (steam lines; heat exchangers; tank fluid levels; exothermic reactions; heating, ventilation and air conditioning systems; leaks above and below ground; cooling and heating; tube blockages; environmental assessment of thermal discharge; boiler or furnace air leakage; condenser or turbine system leakage; pumps; compressors; and other system applications).
Other Methods
There are many other methods of nondestructive testing, including optical methods such as holography, shearography and moir imaging; material identification methods such as chemical spot testing, spark testing and spectroscopy; strain gaging; and acoustic methods such as vibration analysis and tapping.
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PART 2. Management of Electromagnetic Testing
Selection of Electromagnetic Testing4

Electromagnetic tests are an important and widely used method within the broad field of nondestructive materials testing. The electromagnetic test method includes several subsidiary methods, sometimes called submethods or techniques: eddy current testing, remote field testing, flux leakage testing, alternating current field measurement testing and microwave testing. Of these several submethods, conventional eddy current testing is the most widely used. Magnetic particle testing is an electromagnetic test that industry administers as a separate method. Applications of eddy current tests in industry are numerous and widespread. The total number of test measurements made annually by this nondestructive test method may exceed that of all other methods combined. Eddy current testing is used for the following: 1. noncontacting measurement of the thickness of metallic foils, sheets, plates, tube walls and machined parts from one side only; 2. measurement of the thickness of coatings over base materials where the coating and base material have significantly different electrical or magnetic properties; 3. identifying or separating materials by composition or structure; 4. detecting material discontinuities that lie in planes transverse to the eddy currents, such as cracks, seams, laps, score marks or plug cuts, drilled and other holes and laminations at cut edges of sheet or plate; 5. identifying and controlling heat treatment conditions and evaluation of fire damage to metallic structures; 6. determining depths of case hardening of steels and some ferrous alloys; 7. locating hidden metallic objects such as underground pipes, buried bombs or ore bodies, or metallic objects accidentally packaged in foodstuffs; 8. timing or locating the motions of hidden parts of mechanisms, counting metallic objects on conveyor lines or detecting metallic missiles in flight; and
9. precise dimensional measurement of symmetric, machined or ground and polished metallic parts, such as bearings and bearing races, small mechanism components and others.
Advantages of Electromagnetic Testing

Modern eddy current and electromagnetic test techniques offer low cost means for high speed, large scale testing of metallic materials such as those used in nuclear, aerospace, marine, high pressure, high temperature and high speed engineering systems where premature failures could represent economic disasters or the endangering of human life. The methods special suitability for testing of automobiles, engines, machine parts and consumer products has long been recognized. Like other nondestructive methods, eddy current tests permit measurements of material properties and dimensions and detection of discontinuities. In general, electromagnetic tests provide nearly instantaneous measurements. The test speed and modern signal analysis permit such analysis to be performed in real time. Consequently, the method can be used in production lines to test swiftly moving bars, tubes, sheets, plates, welds and other symmetric parts. These parts either pass through test coils or are scanned by moving test probes. The automation of eddy current testing and test data evaluation permits mass testing of similar parts at high rates, with economies not attainable by other commonly used nondestructive tests. The results can be optimized for automation of test systems, for sorting of test parts, for control of manufacturing processes and for automatic documentation for process control and statistical quality control. Small, portable forms of eddy current test instrumentation provide simple and rapid means for (1) manual quality tests by individual operators and (2) mechanized test systems to sort mixed lots of materials, to follow deterioration of materials and equipment in service and to verify process quality.
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Limitations of Eddy Current Tests

Limitations of eddy current tests are a direct consequence of the specific nature of the test and of the response of electrically conductive test materials to the externally applied, time varying magnetic fields used to excite eddy current flow. In general, eddy current tests are applicable only to test materials with significant electrical conductivity, such as metals and alloys and composites with conducting layers or reinforcing fibers. They can be used, however, to measure thicknesses of nonconducting layers on the surface of conducting metallic materials by the liftoff effect in which the coating separates the test probe from the conducting material by the thickness of the nonconductive coating or sheet material. Eddy current tests provide maximum test sensitivity for the surface and near surface layers of the test material adjacent to the source of excitation. In some cases it may be difficult or impossible to penetrate to the center of thick specimens because of skin effect and attenuation of the electromagnetic field at certain depths below the surface. Eddy current tests tend to be insensitive to laminar discontinuities, which lie parallel to the induced eddy currents. They do tend to respond, however, to discontinuities that lie transverse to the flow of eddy currents within test materials, where these discontinuities interrupt, lengthen or distort the current flow paths.
primary paths are (1) service companies, (2) consultants and (3) in-house programs. Although these are the primary paths, some programs may, routinely or as needed, require support personnel from a combination of two or more of these sources. Before a final decision is made, advantages and disadvantages of each path must be considered. Therefore the following details must be considered.
Service Companies
1. Who will identify the components within the facility to be examined? 2. Will the contract be for time and materials or have a specific scope of work? 3. If a time and materials contract is awarded, who will monitor the time and materials charged? 4. If a scope of work is required, who is technically qualified to develop and approve it? 5. What products or documents (test reports, trending, recommendations, root cause analysis and others) will be provided once the tests are completed? 6. Who will evaluate and accept the product (test reports, trending, recommendations, root cause analysis and others) within the service company? 7. Do the service company workers possess qualifications and certifications required by contract and by applicable regulations? 8. Do the service company workers require site specific training (confined space entry, electrical safety, hazardous materials and others) or clearance to enter and work in the facility? 9. Does the service company retain any liability for test results?
Management of Electromagnetic Testing Programs

Management of an electromagnetic testing program will require consideration of many items before a program can produce the desired results. Six basic questions must be answered before a true direction can be charted. They are as follows. 1. Are regulatory requirements in place that mandate program characteristics? 2. What is the magnitude of the program that will provide desired results? 3. What provisions must be made for personnel safety and for compliance with environmental regulations? 4. What is the performance date for a program to be fully implemented? 5. Is there a cost benefit of electromagnetic testing? 6. What are the available resources in personnel and money? Once these questions are answered, then a recommendation can be made to determine the best path forward. Three
Consultants
1. Will the contract be for time and materials or have a specific scope of work? 2. If a scope of work is required, who is technically qualified to develop and approve it? 3. Who will identify the required qualifications of the consultant? 4. Is the purpose of the consultant to develop or update a program or is it to oversee and evaluate the performance of an existing program? 5 Will the consultant have oversight responsibility for tests performed? 6. What products (trending, recommendations, root cause analysis and others) are provided once the tests are completed?
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7. Who will evaluate the consultants performance (test reports, trending, recommendations, root cause analysis and other functions) within the sponsoring company? 8. Does the consultant possess qualifications and certifications required by contract and by applicable regulations? 9. Does the consultant require site specific training (confined space entry, electrical safety, hazardous materials and others) or clearance to enter and work in the facility? 10. Does the consultant retain any liability for test results?
a supervisors initial or signature after each step. The following is a typical format for an industrial procedure. 1. The purpose identifies the intent of the procedure. 2. The scope establishes the latitude of items, tests and techniques covered and not covered by the procedure. 3. References are specific documents from which criteria are extracted or documents satisfied by implementation of the procedure. 4. Definitions are needed for terms and abbreviations that are not common knowledge to people who will read the procedure. 5. Statements about personnel requirements address specific requirements to perform tasks in accordance with the procedure issues such as personnel qualification, certification, access clearance and others. 6. Equipment characteristics, calibration requirements and model numbers of qualified equipment must be specified. 7. The test procedure provides a sequential process to be used to conduct test activities. 8. Acceptance criteria establish component characteristics that will identify the items suitable for service. 9. Reports (records) provide the means to document specific test techniques, equipment used, personnel performing activity, date performed and test results. 10. Attachments may include (if required) items such as report forms, instrument calibration forms, qualified equipment matrix, schedules and others. Once the procedure is completed, typically an expert in the subject matter evaluates it. If the procedure is judged to meet identified requirements, the expert will approve it for use. Some codes and standards also require the procedure to be qualified that is, demonstrated to the satisfaction of a representative of a regulatory body or jurisdictional authority.
In-House Programs
1. Who will determine the scope of the program, such as which techniques will be used (eddy current, flux leakage and others)? 2. What are the regulatory requirements (codes and standards) associated with program development and implementation? 3. Who will develop a cost benefit analysis for the program? 4. How much time and resources are available to establish the program? 5. What are the qualification requirements (education, training, experience and others) for personnel? 6. Do program personnel require additional training (safety, confined space entry or others) or qualifications? 7. Are subject matter experts required to provide technical guidance during personnel development? 8. Are procedures required to perform work in the facility? 9. If procedures are required, who will develop, review and approve them? 10. Who will determine the technical specifications for test equipment?
Test Procedures for Electromagnetic Testing

The conduct of facility operations (in-house or contracted) should be performed in accordance with specific instructions from an expert. This is typically accomplished using written instructions in the form of a technical procedure. In many cases, codes and specifications will require a technical procedure to perform required tests. The procedure process can take many forms, including general instructions that address only major aspects of test techniques. Or a procedure may be written as a step-by-step process requiring
Test Specifications for Electromagnetic Testing4

An electromagnetic specification must anticipate a number of issues that arise during testing.
Means of Induction and Detection of Magnetic Fields

Electromagnetic nondestructive test methods use either static or time varying electromagnetic fields as a probing medium (1) to explore the properties of test materials, (2) to locate discontinuities
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or (3) to detect variations in geometry and dimensions of test materials. The magnitudes, time lags, phase angles and flow patterns of the resulting fields are sensed by using probes such as sensing coils or solid state magnetic field detectors (such as hall effect devices).
Eddy Current Test Frequencies

A single electromagnetic test system can be used for many different measurements through the selection of test frequencies. These frequencies are those of the excitation current applied to the coils of the electromagnetic test probes. Frequency is measured in hertz (Hz), where 1 Hz = 1 cycle per second. Most industrial electromagnetic tests are made in the frequency range between 5 Hz and 10 MHz. Most types of electromagnetic test equipment provide either variable frequency oscillators or several fixed frequency steps. Thus, appropriate test frequencies can be readily selected by the user to meet special test requirements. Low excitation frequencies are used to penetrate deeper within a conducting test material. High test frequencies can be used for selective examination of near surface regions, testing of thin materials and for testing of materials that have low electrical conductivities.
To achieve this goal, the probability of finding a rejectable discontinuity must be high and the inspector must be both proficient in the testing process and motivated to perform with maximum efficiency. A reckless inspector may accept parts that contain discontinuities, with the result of possible inservice part failure. A conservative inspector may reject parts that contain rejectable discontinuities but the inspector also may reject parts that do not contain rejectable discontinuities, with the result of unnecessary scrap and repair. Neither scenario is desirable.
Electromagnetic Testing Standards

Traditionally, the purpose of specifications and standards has been to define the requirements that goods or services must meet. As such, they are intended to be incorporated into contracts so that both the buyer and provider have a well defined description of what one will receive and the other will provide. Standards have undergone a process of peer review in industry and can be invoked with the force of law by contract or by government regulation. In contrast, a specification represents an employers instructions to employees and is specific to a contract or work place. Specifications may form the basis of standards through a review process. Standards and specifications exist in three basic areas: equipment, processes and personnel. 1. Standards for equipment include criteria that address probes, artificial discontinuities and test results. Reference standards are work pieces that contain artificial discontinuities for instrument calibration and test procedure verification. 2. ASTM International and other organizations publish standards for test techniques. Some other standards are for quality assurance procedures and are not specific to a test method or even to testing in general. Tables 3 and 4 list some standards used in electromagnetic testing. The United States Department of Defense has replaced most military specifications and standards with industry consensus specifications and standards. A source for nondestructive testing standards is the Annual Book of ASTM Standards.5 3. Qualification and certification of test personnel are discussed below with specific reference to recommendations of ASNT Recommended Practice No. SNT-TC-1A.6
Interpretation
Interpretation may be complex, especially before a procedure has been established. The interpreter must have a knowledge of the following: (1) the underlying physical process, (2) techniques and equipment used to obtain the data and displays, (3) details about the item being examined (configuration, material characteristics, fabrication process, potential discontinuities and intended service conditions) and (4) acceptance criteria.
Ensuring Reliability of Test Results

When a test is performed, there are four possible outcomes: (1) a rejectable discontinuity can be found when one is present; (2) a rejectable discontinuity can be missed even when one is present; (3) a rejectable discontinuity can be indicated when none is present and (4) no rejectable discontinuity is found when none is present. A reliable testing process and a qualified inspector should find all discontinuities of concern with no discontinuities missed (no errors as in case 2 above) and no false calls (case 3 above).
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Personnel Qualification and Certification

One of the most critical aspects of the test process is the qualification of test personnel. Nondestructive testing is sometimes referred to as a special process. The term simply means that it is very difficult to determine the adequacy of a test by merely observing the process or the documentation generated at its conclusion. The quality of the test is
largely dependent on the skills and knowledge of the inspector. The American Society for Nondestructive Testing (ASNT) has been a world leader in the qualification and certification of nondestructive testing personnel for many years. By 1999, the American Society for Nondestructive Testing had instituted three major programs for the qualification and certification of nondestructive testing personnel.
TABLE 3. Electromagnetic testing standards published by ASTM International.

Miscellaneous E 543, Standard Practice for Agencies Performing Nondestructive Testing E 1004, Standard Practice for Determining Electrical Conductivity Using the Electromagnetic (Eddy-Current) Method E 1312, Standard Practice for Electromagnetic (Eddy-Current) Examination of Ferromagnetic Cylindrical Bar Product above the Curie Temperature E 1316, Standard Terminology for Nondestructive Examinations: Section C, Electromagnetic Testing E 1571, Standard Practice for Electromagnetic Examination of Ferromagnetic Steel Wire Rope E 1606, Standard Practice for Electromagnetic (Eddy-Current) Examination of Copper Redraw Rod for Electrical Purposes E 1629, Standard Practice for Determining the Impedance of Absolute Eddy Current Probes F 673, Standard Test Methods for Measuring Resistivity of Semiconductor Slices or Sheet Resistance of Semiconductor Films with a Noncontact Eddy-Current Gage Coating Thickness B 244, Standard Test Method for Measurement of Thickness of Anodic Coatings on Aluminum and of Other Nonconductive Coatings on Nonmagnetic Basis Metals with Eddy-Current Instruments B 499, Standard Test Method for Measurement of Coating Thicknesses by the Magnetic Method: Nonmagnetic Coatings on Magnetic Basis Metals B 659, Standard Guide for Measuring Thickness of Metallic and Inorganic Coatings E 376, Standard Practice for Measuring Coating Thickness by Magnetic-Field or Eddy-Current (Electromagnetic) Test Methods Geophysical Measurements D 4748, Standard Test Method for Determining the Thickness of Bound Pavement Layers Using Short-Pulse Radar D 6429, Standard Guide for Selecting Surface Geophysical Methods D 6432, Standard Guide for Using the Surface Ground Penetrating Radar Method for Subsurface Investigation D 6565, Standard Test Method for Determination of Water (Moisture) Content of Soil by the Time-Domain Reflectometry (TDR) Method D 6639, Standard Guide for Using the Frequency Domain Electromagnetic Method for Subsurface Investigations D 6726, Standard Guide for Conducting Borehole Geophysical Logging Electromagnetic Induction Material Identification E 566, Standard Practice for Electromagnetic (Eddy-Current) Sorting of Ferrous Metals E 703, Standard Practice for Electromagnetic (Eddy-Current) Sorting of Non-Ferrous Metals E 1476, Standard Guide for Metals Identification, Grade Verification, and Sorting Tubular Products A 135, Standard Specification for Electric-Resistance-Welded Steel Pipe E 215, Standard Practice for Standardizing Equipment for Electromagnetic Examination of Seamless Aluminum-Alloy Tube E 243, Standard Practice for Electromagnetic (Eddy-Current) Examination of Copper-Alloy Tubes E 309, Standard Practice for Eddy-Current Examination of Steel Tubular Products Using Magnetic Saturation E 426, Standard Practice for Electromagnetic (Eddy-Current) Examination of Seamless and Welded Tubular Products, Austenitic Stainless Steel and Similar Alloys E 570, Standard Practice for Flux Leakage Examination of Ferromagnetic Steel Tubular Products E 571, Standard Practice for Electromagnetic (Eddy-Current) Examination of Nickel and Nickel-Alloy Tubular Products E 690, Standard Practice for In Situ Electromagnetic (Eddy-Current) Examination of Nonmagnetic Heat Exchanger Tubes E 1033, Standard Practice for Electromagnetic (Eddy-Current) Examination of Type F Continuously Welded (CW) Ferromagnetic Pipe and Tubing above the Curie temperature E 2096, Standard Practice for In Situ Examination of Ferromagnetic Heat-Exchanger Tubes Using Remote Field Testing
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1. Recommended Practice No. SNT-TC-1A provides guidelines for personnel qualification and certification in nondestructive testing. This recommended practice identifies the specific attributes that should be considered when qualifying nondestructive testing personnel. It requires the employer to develop and implement a written practice (procedure) that details the specific process and any limitation in the qualification and certification of nondestructive testing personnel.6
2. ANSI/ASNT CP-189, Standard for Qualification and Certification of Nondestructive Testing Personnel resembles SNT-TC-1A but also establishes specific attributes for the qualification and certification of nondestructive testing personnel. However, CP-189 is a consensus standard as defined by the American National Standards Institute (ANSI). It is recognized as the American standard for nondestructive testing. It is not considered a recommended practice; it is a national standard.7
TABLE 4. Some standards for electromagnetic testing.

Issuing Organization American National Standards Institute Representative Standards and Related Documents
ANSI B3.1, Rolling Element Bearings Aircraft Engine, Engine Gearbox, and Accessory Applications Eddy Current Inspection American Petroleum Institute API 510, Pressure Vessel Inspection Code: Maintenance Inspection, Rating, Repair and Alteration API 570, Piping Inspection Code: Inspection, Repair, Alteration, and Rerating of In-Service Piping Systems API 650, Welded Steel Tanks for Oil Storage API 1104, Welding, Pipelines and Related Facilities American Society for Nondestructive Testing ASNT Recommended Practice No. SNT-TC-1A ANSI/ASNT CP-189, ASNT Standard for Qualification and Certification of Nondestructive Testing Personnel American Society of Mechanical Engineers ANSI/ASME B31.1, Power Piping ANSI/ASME B31.3, Process Piping ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code: Section V Power Boilers: Article 8, Eddy Current Examination of Tubular Products ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code: Section XI Inservice Inspection of Nuclear Vessels. N-553-1, Eddy Current Surface Examination Section XI, Division 1 ASME PTC 19-1, Performance Test Codes, Supplement on Instruction and Apparatus American Welding Society AWS D1.1, Structural Welding Code Steel ASTM International See Table 3 Canadian General Standards Board CAN/CGSB-48.9712, Non-Destructive Testing Qualification and Certification of Personnel 48.14-M86-CAN/CGSB, Advanced Manual for: Eddy Current Test Method Amendment No. 1 May 1997 R(1997) Chinese National Standards Z8005100, General Rules for Eddy Current Testing Deutsche Institut fr Normung DIN 54141-3, Non-Destructive Testing; Eddy Current Testing of Pipes and Tubes; Procedure European Association of Aerospace Industries AECMA PREN 2002-20, Aerospace Series Test Methods for Metallic Materials: Part 20: Eddy Current Testing of Circular Cross-Section Tubes, Edition P 1 European Committee for Standardization EN 12084, Non-Destructive Testing Eddy Current Testing General Principles and Guidelines International Organization for Standardization ISO 9712, Nondestructive Testing Qualification and Certification of Personnel Japanese Standards Association JIS Z 2314, Test Methods for Performance Characteristics of Eddy Current Testing Instruments Society of Automotive Engineers SAE ARP 891A, Determination of Aluminum Alloy Tempers through Electrical Conductivity Measurement (Eddy Current) (R 1988) SAE ARP 1926, Cure Monitor, Electrical Methods SAE ARP 4402, Eddy Current Inspection of Open Fastener Holes in Aluminum Aircraft Structure SAE ARP 4462, Barkhausen Noise Inspection for Detecting Grinding Burns SAE AS 4787, Eddy Current Inspection of Circular Holes in Nonferrous Metallic Aircraft Engine Hardware SAE DFT K-89AW, Eddy Current Inspection of Circular Holes in Nonferrous Metallic SAE J 425, Electromagnetic Testing by Eddy Current Methods, Information Report; March 1991 United States Department of Defense MIL-P-85585, Probes, Eddy Current, Unshielded, Single Coil, Absolute MIL-STD-1537B, Electrical Conductivity Test for Verification of Heat Treatment of Aluminum Alloys, Eddy Current Method MIL-STD-2032, Eddy Current Inspection of Heat Exchanger Tubing on Ships of the United States Navy MIL-STD-2195, Inspection Procedure for Detection and Measurement of Dealloying Corrosion on Aluminum Bronze and Nickel-Aluminum Bronze Components
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3. The ASNT Central Certification Program (ACCP), unlike SNT-TC-1A and CP-189, is a third party certification process that identifies qualification and certification attributes for Level II and Level III nondestructive testing personnel. The American Society for Nondestructive Testing certifies that the individual has the skills and knowledge for many nondestructive test method applications. It does not remove the responsibility for the final determination of personnel qualifications from the employer. The employer evaluates an individuals skills and knowledge for application of company procedures using designated techniques and equipment identified for specific tests.8
Selections from Recommended Practice No. SNT-TC-1A

To give a general idea of the contents of these documents, the following items are specified in the 2001 edition of Recommended Practice No. SNT-TC-1A. (The following text has been excerpted and adapted. The original text is arranged in outline format and includes recommendations that are not specific to electromagnetic testing.)
Scope. This recommended practice has been prepared to establish guidelines for the qualification and certification of nondestructive test personnel whose specific jobs require appropriate knowledge of the technical principles underlying the nondestructive tests they perform, witness, monitor or evaluate. This document provides guidelines for the establishment of a qualification and certification program. Written Practice. The employer shall establish a written practice for the control and administration of nondestructive testing personnel training, examination and certification. The employers written practice should describe the responsibility of each level of certification for determining the acceptability of materials or components in accordance with the applicable codes, standards, specifications and procedures. Education, Training, Experience Requirements for Initial Qualification. Candidates for certification in nondestructive testing should have sufficient education, training and experience to ensure qualification in those nondestructive testing methods for which they are being considered for certification. Table 6.3.1A [Table 5 in this volume, for electromagnetic testing] lists the recommended training and experience factors to be considered by the employer in establishing written practices for initial qualification of Level I and II individuals.
Training Programs. Personnel being considered for initial certification should complete sufficient organized training to become thoroughly familiar with the principles and practices of the specified nondestructive test method related to the level of certification desired and applicable to the processes to be used and the products to be tested. Examinations. For Level I and II personnel, a composite grade should be determined by simple averaging of the results of the general, specific and practical examinations described below. Examinations administered for qualification should result in a passing composite grade of at least 80 percent, with no individual examination having a passing grade less than 70 percent. The examination for near vision acuity should ensure natural or corrected near distance acuity in at least one eye such that the applicant can read a minimum of jaeger size 2 or equivalent type and size letter at a distance of not less than 305 mm (12 in.) on a standard jaeger test chart. This test should be administered annually. Practical Examination for NDT Level I and II. The candidate should demonstrate ability to operate the necessary nondestructive test equipment and to record and analyze the resultant information to the degree required. At least one selected specimen should be tested and the results of the nondestructive test analyzed by the candidate. Certification. Certification of all levels of nondestructive test personnel is the responsibility of the employer. Certification of nondestructive test personnel shall be based on demonstration of satisfactory qualification [in accordance with sections on education, training, experience and examinations] as described in the employers written practice. Personnel certification records shall be maintained on file by the employer.
TABLE 5. Recommended training and experience for electromagnetic testing personnel according to Recommended Practice No. SNT-TC-1A.6 Level I
High school graduatea Two years of collegeb Work experiencec 40 h 24 h 210 h
Level II
40 h 40 h 630 h
a. Or equivalent. b. Completion with a passing grade of at least two years of engineering or science study in a university, college or technical school. c. Minimum work experience per level. Note: for Level II certification, the experience shall consist of time as Level I or equivalent. If a person is being qualified directly to Level II with no time at Level I, the required experience shall consist of the sum of the times required for Level I and Level II and the required training shall consist of the sum of the hours required for Level I and Level II.
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Recertification. All levels of nondestructive testing personnel shall be recertified periodically in accordance with the following: evidence of continuing satisfactory performance; and reexamination in those portions of the examination deemed necessary by the employers NDT Level III. Recommended maximum recertification intervals are three years for Level I and II and five years for Level III.
The minimum number of questions that should be administered in the written examination for eddy current test personnel is as follows: 40 questions in the general examination and 20 questions in the specific examination. The number of questions is the same for Level I and Level II personnel. These recommendations from Recommended Practice No. SNT-TC-1A are cited only to provide a general idea of the specific items that must be considered in the development of an in-house nondestructive testing program. Because the items are paraphrased, those developing a personnel qualification program should consult the complete text of SNT-TC-1A and other applicable procedures and practices. If an outside agency is contracted for electromagnetic test services, then the contractor must have a qualification and certification program to satisfy most codes and standards.
(d) radiographic testing; (e) ultrasonic testing and that the system described in this International Standard may also apply to visual testing (VT), leak testing (LT), neutron radiography (NR), acoustic emission (AE) and other nondestructive test methods where independent certification programs exist. The applicability of ISO 9712 to electromagnetic testing therefore depends on activity of the national certifying body.
Safety in Electromagnetic Testing

To manage an electromagnetic testing program, as with any testing program, the first obligation is to ensure safe working conditions. The following are components of a safety program that may be required or at least deserve serious consideration. 1. Before work is to begin, identify the safety and operational rules and codes applicable to the areas, equipment and systems to be tested. 2. Provide proper safety equipment (protective barriers, hard hat, safety harnesses, steel toed shoes, hearing protection and others). 3. Before the test, perform a thorough visual survey to determine all the hazards and to identify necessary safeguards to protect test personnel and equipment. 4. Notify operative personnel to identify the location and specific material, equipment or systems to be tested. In addition, it must be determined whether signs or locks restrict access by personnel. Be aware of equipment that may be operated remotely or may be started by time delay. 5. Be aware of any potentially explosive atmosphere. Determine whether it is safe to take test equipment into the area. 6. Do not enter any roped off or no entry areas without permission and approval. 7. When working on or around moving or electrical equipment, the inspector should remove pens, watches, rings or objects in pockets that may touch (or fall into) energized equipment. 8. Know interplant communication and evacuation systems. 9. Never let unqualified personnel operate equipment independently from qualified supervision.
Central Certification
Another standard that may be a source for compliance is contained in the requirements of the International Organization for Standardization (ISO). The work of preparing international standards is normally carried out through technical committees of the International Organization for Standardization, a worldwide federation of national standards bodies. Each ISO member body interested in a subject for which a technical committee has been established has the right to be represented on that committee. International organizations, governmental and nongovernmental, in liaison with the International Organization for Standardization, also take part in the work. Technical Committee ISO/TC 135, Non-Destructive Testing Subcommittee SC 7, Personnel Qualification, prepared international standard ISO 9712, Nondestructive Testing Qualification and Certification of Personnel.9 In its statement of scope, ISO 9712 states that it establishes a system for the qualification and certification, by a certification body, of personnel to perform industrial nondestructive testing (NDT) using any of the following methods: (a) eddy current testing; (b) liquid penetrant testing; (c) magnetic particle testing;
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10. Keep a safe distance between the inspector and any energized equipment. In the United States, these distances can be found in documents from the Occupational Safety and Health Administration, the National Fire Prevention Association (National Electric Code),10 the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (National Electrical Safety Code)11 and other organizations. 11. Be aware of the personnel responsibilities before entering a confined space. All such areas must be tested satisfactorily for gas and oxygen levels before entry and periodically thereafter. If odors are noticed or if unusual sensations such as ear aches, dizziness or difficulty in breathing are experienced, leave the area immediately. Most facilities in the United States are required by law to follow the requirements in the applicable standard. Two Occupational Safety and Health Standards in the United States that should be reviewed are Occupational Safety and Health Standards for general industry12 and the Occupational Safety and Health Standards for the Construction Industry.13 Personnel safety is always the first consideration for every job.
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PART 3. Units of Measure for Electromagnetic Testing

Origin and Use of SI System
In 1960, the General Conference on Weights and Measures established the International System of Units. Le Systme International dUnits (SI) was designed so that a single set of measurement units could be used by all branches of science, engineering and the general public. Without SI, this Nondestructive Testing Handbook volume could have contained a confusing mix of obsolete centimeter-gram-second (CGS) units, imperial units and the units preferred by certain localities or scientific specialties. SI is the modern version of the metric system and ends the division between metric units used by scientists and metric units used by engineers and the public. Scientists have given up their units based on centimeter and gram and engineers made a fundamental change in abandoning the kilogram-force in favor of the newton. Electrical engineers have retained their ampere, volt and ohm but changed all units related to magnetism. Table 6 lists the seven SI base units. Table 7 lists derived units with special names. Table 8 gives examples of conversions to SI units. In SI, the unit of time is the second (s) but hour (h) is recognized for use with SI. For more information, the reader is referred to the information available through national standards organizations and specialized information compiled by technical organizations.14-17
TABLE 6. SI base units.

Quantity Length Mass Time Electric current Temperature Amount of substance Luminous intensity Unit meter kilogram second ampere kelvin mole candela Symbol m kg s A K mol cd
TABLE 7. SI derived units with special names.a

Relation to Other SI Unitsb CV1 s1 mol AV1 Nm 1s1 kgms2 WbA1 lmm2 cdsr As WA1 VA1 Vs Wbm2 1 Js1 Nm2 Jkg1 Jkg1 1s1 1 K 3600 s dm3
Quantity Capacitance Catalytic activity Conductance Energy Frequency (periodic) Force Inductance Illuminance Luminous flux Electric charge Electric potentialc Electric resistance Magnetic flux Magnetic flux density Plane angle Power Pressure (stress) Radiation absorbed dose Radiation dose equivalent Radioactivity Solid angle Temperature, celsius Timea Volumea
Units
Symbol F kat S J Hz N H lx lm C V Wb T rad W Pa Gy Sv Bq sr C h L
Multipliers
In science and engineering, very large or very small numbers with units are expressed by using the SI multipliers, prefixes of 103 intervals (Table 9). The multiplier becomes a property of the SI unit. For example a millimeter (mm) is 0.001 meter (m). The volume unit cubic centimeter (cm3) is (0.01 m)3 or 106 m3. Unit submultiples such as the centimeter, decimeter, dekameter (or decameter) and hectometer are often avoided in scientific and technical uses of SI because of their variance from the 103 interval. However, dm3 and cm3 are commonly used. Note that 1 cm3 is not equal to 0.01 m3. Nevertheless, in equations, submultiples
farad katal siemens joule hertz newton henry lux lumen coulomb volt ohm weber tesla radian watt pascal gray sievert becquerel steradian degree celsius hour liter
a. Hour and liter are not SI units but are accepted for use with the SI. b. Number one (1) expresses dimensionless relationship. c. Electromotive force.
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TABLE 8. Examples of conversions to SI units.

Quantity Angle Measurement in Non-SI Unit Multiply by 2.908 882 104 1.745 329 102 645 0.1 25.4 1.055 4.184 0.293 4.19 1.36 6.89 601 10.76 10 000 10.76 1 550 3.426 3 183 (= 10 000/) 1 10 000 37 0.258 0.454 0.556 (F 32)/1.8 (F 32)/1.8) + 273.15 To Get Measurement in SI Unit radian (rad) MOVIE. radian (rad) 2) Radian of circle. square millimeter (mm nanometer (nm) millimeter (mm) kilojoule (kJ) joule (J) watt (W) kilojoule per kilogram per kelvin (kJkg1K1) joule (J) kilopascal (kPa) hertz (Hz) lux (lx) lux (lx) candela per square meter (cdm2) candela per square meter (cdm2) candela per square meter (cdm2) candela per square meter (cdm2) candela per square meter (cdm2) candela per square meter (cdm2) gigabecquerel (GBq) millicoulomb per kilogram (mCkg1) kilogram (kg) kelvin (K) or degree celsius (C) degree celsius (C) kelvin (K)
minute (min) degree (deg) Area square inch (in.2) Distance angstrom () inch (in.) Energy British thermal unit (BTU) calorie (cal), thermochemical Power British thermal unit per hour (BTUh1) Specific heat British thermal unit per pound degree fahrenheit (BTUlbm1F1) Force (torque, couple) foot-pound (ft-lbf) Pressure pound force per square inch (lbfin.2) Frequency (cycle) cycle per minute Illuminance footcandle (ftc) phot (ph) Luminance candela per square foot (cdft2) candela per square inch (cdin.2) footlambert (ftl) lambert nit (nt) stilb (sb) Radioactivity curie (Ci) Ionizing radiation exposure roentgen (R) Mass pound (lbm) Temperature (difference) degree fahrenheit (F) Temperature (scale) degree fahrenheit (F) Temperature (scale) degree fahrenheit (F)
such as centimeter (cm) or decimeter (dm) are often avoided because they disturb the convenient 103 or 103 intervals that make equations easy to manipulate. In SI, the distinction between upper and lower case letters is meaningful and should be observed. For example, the meanings of the prefix m (milli) and the prefix M (mega) differ by nine orders of magnitude.
TABLE 9. SI prefixes and multipliers.

Prefix yotta zetta exa peta tera giga mega kilo hectoa deka (or deca)a decia centia milli micro nano pico femto atto zepto yocto Symbol Y Z E P T G M k h da d c m n p f a z y Multiplier 1024 1021 1018 1015 1012 109 106 103 102 10 101 102 103 106 109 1012 1015 1018 1021 1024
SI Units for Electromagnetic Testing

CGS Units
Table 10 gives examples of centimeter-gram-second (CGS) units. These units are not accepted for use with the SI. Furthermore, no other units of the various CGS systems of units, which includes the CGS electrostatic, CGS electromagnetic and CGS gaussian systems, are accepted for use with SI except such units as the centimeter (cm), gram (g) and second (s) that are also defined in SI. The oersted, gauss and maxwell are part of the electromagnetic
a. Avoid these prefixes (except in dm3 and cm3) for science and engineering.
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TABLE 10. Units from the centimeter-gram-second (CGS) system of units and not accepted for use with SI. Factor to convert each CGS unit to SI unit is given.
Physical Quantity Basic CGS Units Magnetic field intensity Magnetic flux Magnetic flux density Magnetic potential difference Electromagnetic CGS Units Capacitance Charge Conductance Current Inductance Magnetic field intensity Potential Resistance Electrostatic CGS Units Capacitance Charge Conductance Current Inductance Potential Resistance CGS Unit Multiply by SI Unit SI Symbol
oersted (Oe) maxwell (Mx) gauss (G) gilbert (Gb) abfarad abcoulomb abmho abampere abhenry abampere per centimeter abvolt abohm statfarad statcoulomb statmho statampere stathenry statvolt statohm
103(4)1 108 104 10(4)1 109 10 109 10 109 103 108 109 1.112 650 1012 3.3356 1010 1.112 65 1012 3.335 641 1011 8.987 552 1011 2.997 925 102 8.987 55 1011
ampere per meter weber tesla ampere farad coulomb siemens ampere henry ampere per meter volt ohm farad coulomb siemens ampere henry volt ohm
Am1 Wb T A F C S A H Am1 V F C S A H V
three-dimensional CGS system. When only mechanical and electric quantities are considered, these three units cannot strictly speaking be compared each to the corresponding unit of SI, which has four dimensions. Ampere per Meter Replaces Oersted. One ampere per meter (Am1) equals about one eightieth of an oersted (Oe). The relationship is 1 Oe = 1000(4)1 Am1 = 79.57747 Am1. Tesla Replaces Gauss. One tesla (T) equals ten thousand gauss (G). 1 G = 104 T = 0.1 mT. Weber Replaces Maxwell. One weber (Wb) equals 108 maxwell (Mx). 1 Mx = 108 Wb = 0.01 Wb = 10 nWb.
TABLE 11. Conversion of Units for Conductivity and Resistivity .

From Unit Operation To Get Unit
Conductivity and Resistivity

In the twentieth century, the conductivity of a given metal was conventionally expressed as a percentage of pure coppers conductivity with reference to the International Annealed Copper Standard (IACS).18 In SI, conductivity is expressed in siemens per meter (Sm1). The conductivity of pure copper (100 percent IACS) is 58 MSm1. Resistivity is the inverse of conductivity and is expressed in ohm meter. Table 11 gives the formulas for conversion to and from units for conductivity and resistivity.
Conductivity Unit to Conductivity Unita Sm1 (Sm1) 106 MSm1 Sm1 (Sm1) (1.724 106) %IACS MSm1 (MSm1) 106 Sm1 MSm1 (MSm1) 1.724 %IACS %IACS %IACS (5.800 105) Sm1 %IACS %IACS 0.580 MSm1 Conductivity Unita to Resistivity Unit Sm1 1 (Sm1) m 1 Sm (1 108) (Sm1) cm MSm1 (1 106) (MSm1) m MSm1 (1 102) (MSm1) cm %IACS (1.724 106) %IACS m %IACS 172.4 %IACS cm Resistivity Unit to Conductivity Unita m 1 (m) Sm1 6) (m) m (1 10 MSm1 6) (m) m (1.724 10 %IACS cm (1 108) (cm) Sm1 cm (1 102) (cm) MSm1 cm 172.4 (cm) %IACSa Resistivity Unit to Resistivity Unit m (m) 108 cm m (m) 108 m
a. %IACS: percentage of International Annealed Copper Standard.18
24
References
1. Nondestructive Testing Handbook, second edition: Vol. 10, Nondestructive Testing Overview. Columbus, OH: American Society for Nondestructive Testing (1996). 2. Wenk, S.A. and R.C. McMaster. Choosing NDT: Applications, Costs and Benefits of Nondestructive Testing in Your Quality Assurance Program. Columbus, OH: American Society for Nondestructive Testing (1987). 3. Nondestructive Testing Methods. TO33B-1-1 (NAVAIR 01-1A-16) TM43-0103. Washington, DC: Department of Defense (June 1984). 4. Nondestructive Testing Handbook, second edition: Vol. 4, Electromagnetic Testing. Columbus, OH: American Society for Nondestructive Testing (1986). 5. Annual Book of ASTM Standards: Section 3, Metals Test Methods and Analytical Procedures. Vol. 03.03, Nondestructive Testing. West Conshohocken, PA: ASTM International (2001). 6. Recommended Practice No. SNT-TC-1A. Columbus, OH: American Society for Nondestructive Testing (2001). 7. ANSI/ASNT CP-189, Standard for Qualification and Certification of Nondestructive Testing Personnel. Columbus, OH: American Society for Nondestructive Testing (2001). 8. ASNT Central Certification Program (ACCP), Revision 3 (November 1997). Columbus, OH: American Society for Nondestructive Testing (1998). 9. ISO 9712, Nondestructive Testing Qualification and Certification of Personnel. Geneva, Switzerland: International Organization for Standardization. 10. NFPA 70, National Electric Code, 2002 edition. Quincy, MA: National Fire Prevention Association (2001). 11. National Electrical Safety Code, 2002 edition. New York, NY: Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (2001). 12. 29 CFR 1910, Occupational Safety and Health Standards [Code of Federal Regulations: Title 29, Labor.] Washington, DC: United States Department of Labor, Occupational Safety and Health Administration; United States Government Printing Office.
13. 29 CFR 1926, Occupational Safety and Health Standards for the Construction Industry [Code of Federal Regulations: Title 29, Labor]. Washington, DC: United States Department of Labor, Occupational Safety and Health Administration; United States Government Printing Office. 14. IEEE/ASTM SI 10-1997, Standard for Use of the International System of Units (SI): The Modernized Metric System. West Conshohocken, PA: ASTM International (1996). 15. Taylor, B.N. Guide for the Use of the International System of Units (SI). National Institute of Standards and Technology Special Publication 811, 1995 edition. Washington, DC: United States Government Printing Office (1995). 16. Taylor, B.N., ed. Interpretation of the SI for the United States and Federal Government and Metric Conversion Policy. NIST Special Publication 814, 1998 Edition. Washington, DC: United States Government Printing Office (1998). 17. Taylor, B.N., ed. The International System of Units (SI), 2001 edition. NIST Special Publication 330. Washington DC: United States Government Printing Office (2001). 18. IEC 60028, International Standard of Resistance for Copper. Geneva, Switzerland: International Electrotechnical Commission (2001).
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Introduction to Electromagnetic Testing

PART 1. Nondestructive Testing

MOVIE. Need for nondestructive testing.

Methods and Techniques

Purposes of Nondestructive Testing

developments have contributed to its growth and acceptance.

Increased Demand on Machines

Introduction to Electromagnetic Testing

Rising Costs of Failure

Engineering Demands for Sounder Materials

Applications of Nondestructive Testing

Public Demands for Greater Safety

Classification Relative to Test Object

TABLE 1. Nondestructive testing method categories.

Sonic and ultrasonic

Infrared and thermal

Introduction to Electromagnetic Testing

TABLE 2. Objectives of nondestructive testing methods.

Overview of Other Nondestructive Testing Methods

Direction of primary current

Value of Nondestructive Testing

Introduction to Electromagnetic Testing

Magnetic Particle Testing

FIGURE 5. Liquid penetrant indication of cracking.

Liquid Penetrant Testing

FIGURE 4. Visual test using borescope to view interior of cylinder.

Crack Legend N = north pole S = south pole

FIGURE 7. Representative setup for radiographic testing.

Introduction to Electromagnetic Testing

Acoustic Emission Testing

Time Bolt Back surface

Source of tracer gas

System under test Leak detector

Skip distance where a = b Source of tracer gas

Infrared and Thermal Testing

Acoustic event Preamplifier Sensor

Test object Preamplifier

Introduction to Electromagnetic Testing

PART 2. Management of Electromagnetic Testing

Selection of Electromagnetic Testing4

Advantages of Electromagnetic Testing

Introduction to Electromagnetic Testing

Limitations of Eddy Current Tests

Management of Electromagnetic Testing Programs

Test Procedures for Electromagnetic Testing

Test Specifications for Electromagnetic Testing4

Means of Induction and Detection of Magnetic Fields

Introduction to Electromagnetic Testing

Eddy Current Test Frequencies

Electromagnetic Testing Standards

Ensuring Reliability of Test Results

Personnel Qualification and Certification

TABLE 3. Electromagnetic testing standards published by ASTM International.

Introduction to Electromagnetic Testing

TABLE 4. Some standards for electromagnetic testing.

Selections from Recommended Practice No. SNT-TC-1A

Introduction to Electromagnetic Testing

Safety in Electromagnetic Testing

Introduction to Electromagnetic Testing