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About NDT

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What is NDT?
The field of Nondestructive Testing (NDT) is a very
broad, interdisciplinary field that plays a critical role in
assuring that structural components and systems perform
their function in a reliable and cost effective fashion. NDT
technicians and engineers define and implement tests that
locate and characterize material conditions and flaws that
might otherwise cause planes to crash, reactors to fail,
trains to derail, pipelines to burst, and a variety of less
visible, but equally troubling events. These tests are
performed in a manner that does not affect the future
usefulness of the object or material. In other words, NDT allows parts and material to be
inspected and measured without damaging them. Because it allows inspection without
interfering with a product's final use, NDT provides an excellent balance between quality
control and cost-effectiveness. Generally speaking, NDT applies to industrial inspections.
The technologies that are used in NDT are similar to those used in the medical industry, but
nonliving objects are the subjects of the inspections.

NDT in use!
Rail Inspection
A ircraft Inspection
Liberty Bell Inspection
Bridge Inspection
Storage Tank Inspection
Wire Rope Inspection
Pipeline Inspection

What is NDE?
Nondestructive evaluation (NDE) is a term that is often used interchangeably with NDT.
However, technically, NDE is used to describe measurements that are more quantitative in
nature. For example, an NDE method would not only locate a defect, but it would also be
used to measure something about that defect such as its size, shape, and orientation. NDE
may be used to determine material properties, such as fracture toughness, formability, and
other physical characteristics.
Some NDT/NDE Technologies:
Many people are already familiar with some of the technologies that are used in NDT and
NDE from their uses in the medical industry. Most people have also had an X-ray taken and
many mothers have had ultrasound used by doctors to give their baby a checkup while still
in the womb. X-rays and ultrasound are only a few of the technologies used in the field of
NDT/NDE. The number of inspection methods seems to grow daily, but a quick summary
of the most commonly used methods is provided below.
Visual and Optical Testing (VT)
The most basic NDT method is visual examination. Visual examiners follow
procedures that range from simply looking at a part to see if surface
imperfections are visible, to using computer controlled camera systems to
automatically recognize and measure features of a component.
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Radiography (RT)
RT involves using penetrating gamma- or X-radiation on materials and
products to look for defects or examine internal or hidden features. An X-ray
generator or radioactive isotope is used as the source of radiation. Radiation is
directed through a part and onto film or other detector. The resulting
shadowgraph shows the internal features and soundness of the part. Material
thickness and density changes are indicated as lighter or darker areas on the
film or detector. The darker areas in the radiograph below represent internal
voids in the component.

Magnetic Particle Testing (MT)

This NDT method is
accomplished by inducing a
magnetic field in a
ferromagnetic material and then
dusting the surface with iron
particles (either dry or
suspended in liquid). Surface
and near-surface flaws disrupt
the flow of the magnetic field within the part and force some of the field to leak
out at the surface. Iron particles are attracted and concentrated at sites of the
magnetic flux leakages. This produces a visible indication of defect on the
surface of the material. The images above demonstrate a component before
and after inspection using dry magnetic particles.
Ultrasonic Testing (UT)
In ultrasonic testing, high-frequency sound
waves are transmitted into a material to
detect imperfections or to locate changes in
material properties. The most commonly
used ultrasonic testing technique is pulse
echo, whereby sound is introduced into a
test object and reflections (echoes) from
internal imperfections or the part's
geometrical surfaces are returned to a
receiver. Below is an example of shear wave weld inspection. Notice the
indication extending to the upper limits of the screen. This indication is
produced by sound reflected from a defect within the weld.
Penetrant Testing (PT)

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With this testing method, the test object is

coated with a solution that contains a
visible or fluorescent dye. Excess solution
is then removed from the surface of the
object but is left in surface breaking
defects. A developer is then applied to
draw the penetrant out of the defects. With
fluorescent dyes, ultraviolet light is used to
make the bleedout fluoresce brightly, thus
allowing imperfections to be readily seen. With visible dyes, a vivid color
contrast between the penetrant and developer makes the bleedout easy to see.
The red indications in the image represent a defect in this component.
Electromagnetic Testing (ET)
There are a number of electromagnetic
testing methods but the focus here will be
on eddy current testing. In eddy current
testing, electrical currents (eddy currents)
are generated in a conductive material by a
changing magnetic field. The strength of
these eddy currents can be measured.
Material defects cause interruptions in the
flow of the eddy currents which alert the
inspector to the presence of a defect or other change in the material. Eddy
currents are also affected by the electrical conductivity and magnetic
permeability of a material, which makes it possible to sort some materials
based on these properties. The technician in the image is inspecting an aircraft
wing for defects.
Leak Testing (LT)
Several techniques are used to detect and locate leaks in pressure containment
parts, pressure vessels, and structures. Leaks can be detected by using
electronic listening devices, pressure gauge measurements, liquid and gas
penetrant techniques, or simple soap-bubble tests.
Acoustic Emission Testing (AE)
When a solid material is stressed, imperfections within the material emit short
bursts of acoustic energy called "emissions." As in ultrasonic testing, acoustic
emissions can be detected by special receivers. Emission sources can be
evaluated through the study of their intensity and arrival time to collect
information (such as their location) about the sources of the energy.
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NDT - Liberty Bell

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NDT Used to Evaluate

Potential Damage to the Liberty Bell
Contribution made by Steve James and Lou Truckley, The Boeing Company.

Due to an unfortunate incident that occurred on April 6, 2001, Boeing employees

in Philadelphia were given the privilege of evaluating the Liberty Bell for damage
using NDT techniques. The Liberty Bell is over 200 years old, and is one of the
USA's most treasured symbols of liberty. In the early days of the American
colonies, the Liberty Bell was rung to call people together for special
announcements and events. The Liberty Bell rang out from the tower of
Independence Hall on July 8, 1776, summoning citizens to hear the first public
reading of the Declaration of Independence. The Bell has a very interesting
history which includes cracking on its test ring in 1752, being remelted and recast
only to have a poor tone, being remelted and recast for a third time in June of
1753. Sometime before 1846, the Bell developed a crack and on during its
ringing on George Washington's Birthday of that year, the crack grew to a length
that rendered the Liberty Bell unringable.
The Liberty Bell now rests in the Liberty Bell Pavilion on Independence Mall in
Philadelphia. Apparently during a regular tour, a man suddenly began to attack the Liberty Bell with a hammer. A park
service ranger had to tackle the man to end the assault. It was reported that there was minimal damage to the bell which
weighs over 2000 pounds. However, there was enough concern about damage for the National Park Service to call on
experts to perform an evaluation. Boeing was asked to help with the repair because of their expertise in metal structures
and nondestructive evaluation.
What kinds of nondestructive tests were conducted?
Boeing NDT specialists performed a series of nondestructive tests to
evaluate the possible damage to the Bell and also to document the overall
structural status of the Bell. These tests included:
Radiographs of the bell were taken that were compared to
radiographs taken more than 25 years ago.
Fluorescent penetrant inspection was performed on a small area of
the bell to check for possible cracks from the attack. (See picture)
Ultrasonic inspection was performed to attempt to locate any
internal flaws within the Bell.
An eddy current inspection was conducted to map the surface
cracks on the bell. The data obtained from this inspection was used as a baseline to compare and crack
propagation that may occur in the future.
Eddy current methods were used to measure the electrical conductivity of the Bell's bronze casing at a various
points to evaluate its uniformity. In the picture below, the white dots on the Bell indicate spots where conductivity
measurements were taken.
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More information on the Liberty Bell can be found at the following sites
http://www.ushistory.org/libertybell/
http://www.libertybellmemorial.com/

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Wire Rope Inspection

Wire Rope (Cable) Inspection

Most skiers and snowboarders rate ski resorts by their average powder base and
the overall quality of the slopes. Few likely give serious consideration to the safety of chair lifts
at their favorite mountains. It is likely, however, that many have looked up at that relatively small
cable that they are dangling from high in the air and hoped that someone had check to see that it
was in good working condition. Luckily, ski resort operators and governing authorities perform
regular inspections and maintenance of chair lifts to ensure passenger safety. One of the
components that gets close scrutiny is the cable.

Wire rope or cable is made by weaving many individual wires

together to produce a product that is both strong and flexible.
Wire rope is used in many safety critical applications in addition to chair lift and
gondola systems. Some of these applications include hoisting systems, such as cranes
and winches; guy wires used in tall antennas and towers; and mooring lines of oil
drilling platforms at sea. A cable failure in one of these applications could have very
serious consequences.

All wire rope eventually wears out making periodic inspections necessary throughout
the service life of the rope. Wire rope is prone to damage and wear due to abrasion,
fatigue, corrosion, and improper handling. NDT personnel look for localized flaws or
loss of metallic cross-sectional area using a variety of inspection methods. The least
sophisticated method is visual inspection. Inspector simply look for broken strands,
wear and corrosion on the surface of the cable. However, for a more thorough
evaluation, a number of instruments have been developed that allow inspectors to
assess the internal areas of the cable.

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One of the more widely used of these instruments uses magnetism

to inspect the rope. The inspection instrument is placed around the
wire rope and moved along the rope or the rope is pulled through
the instrument. Strong permanent magnets or electromagnets are
used to create a strong magnetic field within the rope. The rope is
said to be magnetically saturated because it is caring all the magnet
flux that it possibly can. In areas where the rope is damaged, it can
not support as much of the magnet flux and some of it "leaks" out of
the rope. Sensors in the inspection head detect the magnetic flux
leakage caused by the internal or external defects in the rope.
Defects as small as 0.05 % of the rope's cross-sectional area can
often be detected.

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NDT in Aerospace

NONDESTRUCTIVE TESTING
IN THE AEROSPACE INDUSTRY

How essential is nondestructive testing (NDT) to airplanes?

In the aerospace industry, as with other transportation industries,
NDT can make the difference between life and death. Aircraft
components are inspected before they are assembled into the
aircraft and then they are periodically inspected throughout their
useful life. Aircraft parts are designed to be as light as possible
while still performing their intended function. This generally means
that components carry very high loads relative to their material
strength and small flaws can cause a component to fail. Since
aircraft are cycled (loaded and unloaded) as they fly, land, taxi,
and pressurize the cabin, many components are prone to fatigue
cracking after some length of time. If you are unfamiliar with the
term "fatigue cracking" think about what happens when you bend a
paper clip or piece of wire back and forth ...eventually it will break. Even parts that are loaded well below the level that
causes them to deform can develop fatigue cracks after being cycled for a long time. This is what happens in aircraft.
After they are used for a while, fatigue cracks start growing in some of their parts. Cracking can also occur due to other
things like a lightning strike. Aircraft have some protection against lightning strikes but occasionally they occur and can
results in cracks forming at the strike location like the one shown in the picture.

Another problem that aircraft have is that they are under the constant attack of corrosion. When an aircraft lands and the
door is opened, the inside of the plane often fills with warm moist air. When the plane takes flight, and reaches altitude,
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the skin of the aircraft becomes very cold due to the temperature of the outside air. This cause the moisture held by the
air inside the cabin to condense on the inside of the aircraft skin. The water will collect at low areas and serve as the
electrolyte needed for corrosion to occur.
The good news is that aircraft are designed to withstand a certain amount of damage from cracking and
corrosion without cause for concern, and NDT inspectors are trained to find the damage before it becomes a
major problem. The rigorous process used to design aircraft either allow for a certain amount of damage to occur
before a part fails, or in many cases, a part can fail completely and performance of the aircraft will not be affected. The
job of the NDT inspector is to find the damage while it is within acceptable limits.
What kind of NDT techniques are used to ensure the safety of the airplane?
Over 80 percent of the inspections done to an aircraft are visual inspections. At regular intervals inspectors look at
various component of the aircraft for signs of damage. During heavy maintenance work, much of the interior of the
aircraft is stripped out so inspectors can look for damage on the inside surface of the fuselage. However, not all areas of
the aircraft can be accessed for visual inspection and not all damage can be detected by visual means. This is were NDT
plays a critical role in thoroughly inspecting airplanes.
NDT methods allow inspectors to inspect areas of the plane that would otherwise
be uninspectable without disassembling structure to gain access to the internal areas.
NDT methods also allow inspectors to detect damage that is too small to be
detected by visual means. Eddy current and ultrasonic inspection methods are used
extensively to locate tiny cracks that would otherwise be undetectable. These
techniques are also used to measure the thickness of the aircraft skin from the
outside and detect metal thinning from corrosion on the inside surface of the skin. Xray techniques are used to find defects buried deep within the structure and to locate
areas were water has penetrated into certain structure. Obviously, this task requires
trained professionals who are capable of performing a variety of different NDT
techniques to get a complete and accurate status of the airplane.
There is no question that the success of the airplane industry is dependent on NDT.
Without NDT, the cost of maintaining and flying in airplanes would increase
dramatically, while the safety of flying would decrease. When people step into an
airplane they trust that it will get them to their destination with as little turbulence as
possible. NDT plays a vital role in keeping air travel one of the safest modes of
transportation.

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05/06/2015

Pipeline Inspection

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Pipeline Inspection

In the United States, millions of miles of pipeline carrying everything

from water to crude oil. The pipe is vulnerable to attack by internal and external
corrosion, cracking, third party damage and manufacturing flaws. If a pipeline
carrying water springs a leak bursts, it can be a problem but it usually doesn't harm
the environment. However, if a petroleum or chemical pipeline leaks, it can be a
environmental disaster. More information on recent US pipeline accidents can be
found at the, National Transportation Safety Board's Internet site. In an attempt to
keep pipelines operating safely, periodic inspections are performed to find flaws
and damage before they become cause for concern.
When a pipeline is built, inspection personnel may use visual, X-ray, magnetic
particle, ultrasonic and other inspection methods to evaluate the welds and
ensure that they are of high quality. The image to the left show two NDT
technicians setting up equipment to perform an X-ray inspection of a pipe weld.
These inspections are performed as the pipeline is being constructed so gaining
access the inspection area is not problem. In some areas like Alaska, sections of
pipeline are left above ground like shown above, but in most areas they get
buried. Once the pipe is buried, it is undesirable to dig it up for any reason.
So, how do you inspect a buried pipeline?
Have you ever felt the ground move under your feet? If you're standing in New York City, it
may be the subway train passing by. However, if you're standing in the middle of a field in
Kansas it may be a pig passing under your feet. Huh??? Engineers have developed devices,
called pigs, that are sent through the buried pipe to perform inspections and clean the pipe. If
you're standing near a pipeline, vibrations can be felt as these pigs move through the pipeline.
The pigs are about the same diameter of the pipe so they range in size from small to huge. The
pigs are carried through the pipe by the flow of the liquid or gas and can travel and perform
inspections over very large distances. They may be put into the pipe line on one end and taken
out at the other. The pigs carry a small computer to collect, store and transmit the data for
analysis. In 1997, a pig set a world record when it completed a continuous inspection of the
Trans Alaska crude oil pipeline, covering a distance of 1,055 km in one run. Click here to read
more about this record setting inspection.

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Pigs use several nondestructive testing methods to perform the

inspections. Most pigs use a magnetic flux leakage method but
some also use ultrasound to perform the inspections. The pig shown
to the left and below uses magnetic flux leakage. A strong magnetic
field is established in the pipe wall using either magnets or by
injecting electrical current into the steel. Damaged areas of the pipe
can not support as much magnetic flux as undamaged areas so
magnetic flux leaks out of the pipe wall at the damaged areas. An
array of sensor around the circumference of the pig detects the
magnetic flux leakage and notes the area of damage. Pigs that use
ultrasound, have an array of transducers that emits a high frequency
sound pulse perpendicular to the pipe wall and receives echo
signals from the inner surface and the outer surface of the pipe. The
tool measures the time interval between the arrival of a reflected
echos from inner surface and outer surface to calculate the wall
thickness.

On some pipelines it is easier to use remote visual inspection equipment to assess the condition of the pipe. Robotic
crawlers of all shapes and sizes have been developed to navigate the pipe. The video signal is typically fed to a truck
where an operator reviews the images and controls the robot.

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05/06/2015

Rail Inspection

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Contributions
made by
Sperry Rail Service

Rail Inspection
One of the major problems that railroads have
faced since the earliest days is the prevention of
service failures in track. As is the case with all
modes of high-speed travel, failures of an essential
component can have serious consequences. The
North American railroads have been inspecting
their most costly infrastructure asset, the rail, since
the late 1920's. With increased traffic at higher
speed, and with heavier axle loads in the 1990's,
rail inspection is more important today than it has
ever been. Although the focus of the inspection
seems like a fairly well-defined piece of steel, the
testing variables present are significant and make
the inspection process challenging.
Rail is manufactured in different weights; there are
different rail conditions (wear, corrosion etc)
present; there are a significant number of potential
defects possible; and the task has to be performed
with some speed to reliably inspect the thousands
of miles of track stretching across the land. Sperry
Rail Service, one of the country's leading inspector
of railroad tracks, has been using specialized test
equipment mounted on self-propelled rail cars for
over seventy years to protect the safety of
passengers and freight. This information provides a
brief look at rail inspection.
The history of railroading is rooted in the production of the first metal rails near the city of Sheffield,
England in 1776. The rail improved the transportation of materials in industries such as mining. In 1803
the first railroad intended for public use was opened for operation between the London docks and
Croyden. This first railway, the Surrey Iron Railway, offered a smoother ride than a wagon, but offered
no real advantage in speed since draft animals were used for locomotion. However, the first steam
locomotive was soon to arrive on the scene. In 1804, a steam locomotive pulled a train of cars
carrying several tons of ore for the iron works at Merthyr Tydfil in South Wales. The first American
locomotive, the Best Friend of Charleston, was placed in operation on the South Carolina Railroad in
1831.

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The rails have evolved from cast iron plates to specially alloyed steels, which are rolled to a standard
shape and specially heat-treated to obtain the desired properties. The figures above show the
progression of rail development. Present day steel rails are vastly superior to their predecessors in both
strength and wear qualities, however defects still develop. The heavy loads and high speed of today's
trains can cause rails to fail in service unless regular inspections are performed.
Rail inspections were initially performed solely by visual means. Of
course, visual inspections will only detect external defects and sometimes
the subtle signs of large internal problems. The need for a better inspection
method became a high priority because of a derailment at Manchester,
NY in 1911, in which 29 people were killed and 60 seriously injured. In
the U.S. Bureau of Safety's (now the National Transportation Safety
Board) investigation of the accident, a broken rail was determined to be
the cause of the derailment. The bureau established that the rail failure was
caused by a defect that was entirely internal and probably could not have been detected by visual
means. The defect was called a transverse fissure (example shown on the left). The railroads began
investigating the prevalence of this defect and found transverse fissures were widespread.
In 1915, the Bureau of Standards began research to determine if magnetic testing could be used to
detect transverse fissures. The inspection technique involved passing a magnetizing solenoid along the
rail to establish a flux in the rail. Flux leakage caused by a defect was detected with search coils. The
technique was successful in the laboratory but was unable to differentiate between defects and nonrelevant rail features in the field.

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In 1923, Dr. Elmer Sperry, started to develop and

build a rail inspection car with the capability of
detecting transverse fissures in railroad rails. In 1927
Sperry built an inspection car (shown on the right)
under contract with the American Railway
Association. The small flatbed in front of the cab
contained the inspection equipment. The operator and
recording devices were housed in the cab.
In 1928, a Sperry built inspection car, SRS 102, was
testing rail on the Wabash Railway in Montpelier, Ohio. The inspection technique Sperry used
established a strong magnetic field in the rail by passing a large amount of low voltage current through
it. A pair of search coils, fixed at a constant distance from the rail, detected any changes in the
magnetic field around the rail. This magnetic induction flux leakage technique became the foundation of
early rail inspection.
This drawing on the left shows the basic operation
of rail inspection using the induction method.
Brushes are used to contact the rail and "inject"
electrical current. The current creates a strong
magnetic field in the rail. Where there is a defect in
the rail, the steel material will not support magnetic
flux and some of the flux is forced out of the part.
The sensing coil detects a change in the magnetic
field and the defect indication is recorded on the
strip chart. Computers are now being used to
record and evaluate the date.
Unfortunately, transverse fissures are not the only types of defects found in rail. Other manufacturing
and service-related defects that can occur include inclusions, seams, shelling, and corrosion. Fatigue
cracks can initiate from these defects, as well as normal features of the rail such as bolt-holes. If these
defects go undetected, they can lead to rail head and web separations. Many of these defects are not
detectable with the flux leakage method because the flaws run parallel to the magnet flux lines or the
flaws are too far away from the sensing coils to detect. The induction technique inspects mainly the
railhead.
To complement the flux leakage method, and detect additional flaw types, ultrasonic inspection has
become common. High-frequency sound is transmitted into the metal rail and reflections from rail joints
and surface conditions, as well as internal defects, are displayed on a screen or cause movement of a
pen on a recording tape. Both normal- and angle-beam techniques are used, as are both pulse-echo
and pitch-catch techniques. The different transducer arrangements offer different inspection
capabilities. Manual contact testing is done to evaluate small sections of rail but the ultrasonic
inspection has been automated to allow inspection of large amounts of rail, like the electromagnetic
technique previously discussed. The first all-ultrasonic inspection car was introduced in 1959. This car
was developed specifically to meet the needs of the New York City Transit Authority (NYCTA).
Fluid filled wheels or sleds are often used to couple the transducers to the rail. Sperry Rail Services
has, over the years, developed and made use of Roller Search Units (RSU's) comprising a
combination of different transducer angles to achieve the best inspection possible. A schematic of an
RSU is shown below.
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At Sperry, there are two primary inspection units. The

Sperry Rail Detector Car, referred to as the "big" car, uses
both ultrasonic and electromagnetic technologies to identify
defects. The inspection equipment on a Sperry test car is
carried in a carriage slung between the axles.
The Hi-Rail
trucks
currently use
only
ultrasonics
because the electromagnet equipment is too large for this
vehicle. The detector car will test rail between 6.5 and
13 miles per hour. However, higher speed units are in
development.

The data from the inspection equipment is fed to the operator

inside the car. A picture of the operator station is shown on
the right. Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) rules require
that any indication considered suspect by the test equipment
on the test car are hand verified immediately. This leads to a
stop-start test mode. When the operator sees something on
the tape indicating a problem, he uses a buzzer signal system
to tell the driver up front to stop. The car then backs up to the
point of examination where the operator gets out to hand test
the rail with an ultrasonic test set mounted on the rear of the car. If a defect is confirmed, it is marked
and a railroad work crew following the Sperry car will change the rail. If they can't get to it right away,
the section of track is assigned a slow order (slower speed) until the crew can repair it. The amount of
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rail being tested can be increased by the use of chase cars following the testing vehicles. The chase
cars will receive a radioed signal of the test being done by the lead truck and will stop to do the
necessary hand testing. This elimination of the need to back up to hand test, allows the testing vehicle
to move forward, continuously testing, with the results being sent and recorded for examination by the
chase car.

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Description

Description
FIRST ,SECOND OPERATION
FOURTH OPERATION
DRILLING AND TAPPING

Lot / Serial Details

SNO
Lot No.
1

Item

Order Qty.

0 METAL SEAT BODY 30 CF3M 73 FB FS

CL 150RF
Drawing No : MG-73-30-212M-TD

Process
S.No.
Process
1 12OP
2 4OP
3 DRTP

Line

Supplier :SS045-SKR INDUSTRIES

Rev.

E303287Z

Process
S.No.
Process
1 EFINS

2.000

Rate

Ext. Rate
0.10

0.20

0.10
0.10

0.20
0.20

Total :

0.60

Serial No.

Quantity

2.000

Description

Order Qty.

0 METAL SEAT END 30 CF3M 73 FB FS

CL.150RF
Drawing No : MG-73-30-883M-TC

2.000

Description
END FINISHING

Lot / Serial Details

SNO
Lot No.
1

Required Prod. Ord. No.

Date
13.05.2015 1516003967

Rate

Required Prod. Ord. No.

Date
13.05.2015 1516003968

Ext. Rate
0.10

0.20

Total :

0.20

Serial No.

Quantity

2.000

Total (Process) :

20,795.36

Tax Amount :

0.00

Total Amount :

20,795.36

For VAAS AUTOMATION PRIVATE LIMITED

Authorised Signatory
Prepared By

OSP3020 Run By :RAVI

Page 2 of 2

Run On : 05-JUN-15 03:05 PM

05/06/2015

Storage Tank Inspection

Home - A bout NDT

Storage Tank Inspection

Above Ground Tanks

Large chemical and petroleum product storage tanks can be found at chemical processing plants,
refineries, and industrial locations. They are huge metal structures 150 feet in diameter and 50-60
feet tall and can easily hold more than two million gallons of gas or other hazardous liquids. Most
tanks are made of steel plate that is welded together to form the structure. The material and the
welds are inspected for manufacturing defects when constructed but must also be periodically
inspected throughout their service life for signs of damage. The carbon steel is prone to attack by
corrosion and in some circumstances cracks can form over time. NDT personnel use visual, X-ray,
ultrasonic and other inspection methods to search for flaws and service-induced damage.
Inspections and thickness measurements of the tank walls can be made manually with the
inspector in a man lift or hanging down from the top. However a much safer way to make an
inspection is to use a crawling robot. These robots have magnetic wheels that allow them to
cling to the tank walls. Using remote controls, an operator guides them into positions and
makes the necessary measurements. They work great on the side walls, however, getting to a
tank floor is a different story since it is not accessible from the outside. The floor is
particularly prone to thinning due to corrosion attack and tank owners must find the weak
spots in the floors before they breach the tank's integrity. This often involves the costly
process of draining the contents, removing the layer of sludge from the bottom and cleaning
the tanks so inspection personnel may enter it.
However, researchers at the Department of
Energy's Idaho National Engineering and
Environmental Laboratory and Solex
Robotics in Idaho Falls, Idaho, have
developed a new robot to enter filled tanks
and make the inspections. His name is
Maverick and he is designed to go where no
person can or would want to go. He's a
remote-controlled, submersible robot who
will immerse himself in gasoline and other hazardous liquids to do his job. He looks like
a suitcase on steroids and is packed with an array of cameras, sonar and ultrasonic
devices. The inspectors lower him with a pulley to the bottom of as full a tank as
possible. A 500-foot umbilical cord connects him to the command trailer outside the
tank. Maverick has bright red spotlights that provide light for his infrared eyes, and he constantly pings out his position to
external sonar beacons as he searches the floor for flaws with his ultrasonic array. In the command trailer, separate
computers control Maverick's position, his cameras and the ultrasonic inspection system for the tank floor. Maverick's
automated ultrasonic array takes millions of measurements and makes a 3-D map of the inspected tank floor.
For more information on the Maverick robot see this story on the INEEL web site.
https://www.nde-ed.org/AboutNDT/SelectedApplications/TankInspection/TankInspection.htm

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05/06/2015

Storage Tank Inspection

Buried Tanks
Not all tanks are built above ground. A very special
inspection situation involves the tanks used to store
nuclear waste. Weapons, space, medical, and other
research and production programs in the United States
have generated millions of gallons of radioactive waste.
This waste has been stored in approximately 280
underground tanks, which are located primarily at five
Department of Energy sites in the US. These tanks were
built from the 1940's to the 1980's and have capacities
ranging from 13,000 to over 1,000,000 gallons. Many of
these tanks have exceeded their original design life, and
as the tanks age concerns about their leaks continue to
increase.
What makes these inspections especially difficult is that
the tanks are buried underground to help shield the
radiation. Since the waste is particularly hazardous,
special precautions must be taken to limit exposure to
personnel to the radiation and chemical hazards. This
extraordinary situation has resulted in many innovative
technologies being developed to inspect the tanks. Visual
examinations of the tanks are conducted using remote
video cameras. These cameras are mounted on robotic
arms that are lowered into the tanks. The images to the
right show what is know as the light-duty utility arm fitted
with the video inspection system inside a tank and being
deployed down into a tank from above. Some of the
tanks are manufactured with two shells and there is a small space between the walls of the shells. The robotic crawlers
can be lowered down into this space and used to perform ultrasonic inspections of welds and to make thickness
measurements of the tank walls.

https://www.nde-ed.org/AboutNDT/SelectedApplications/TankInspection/TankInspection.htm

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