Rajkiya Engineering College, Banda

Atarra, Banda-210201

KME 061
NON-DESTRUCTIVE TESTING
By
Ravi Shankar
Assistant professor
Department of Mechanical Engineering
Non destructive testing introduction
• Non destructive testing(NDT) is one of the important
methods used for development and quality control of
metal components.
• During testing, the metal component does not get
damaged.
• These tests are used to locate or find out the defects
or flaws in the component
 Definition of NDT
Non Destructive Testing (NDT) is
the process of doing inspections,
testing, or evaluating materials,
components or assemblies for
defects without destroying the
material or component.

In other words, “Inspect or measure

without doing harm.”
 Advantages of NDT
• Defects can be detected without damaging the
components
• Methods are quick and accurate
• Components can be sorted out on the basis of
electrical, magnetic or chemical properties
• Test results and other information can be
conveniently recorded on paper films, cassettes and
floppies
 Application areas of NDT
• NDT plays a vital role in assuring the safe operation of
equipment and systems
• Industries that utilize NDT:
– Airline and Aerospace
– Automotive and Railroad
– Construction
– Hydroelectric, Fossil, and Nuclear Power
– Textile and Manufacturing
– Chemical and Petrochemical
– Logistics and Supply
– Medical and Pharmaceutical
 Uses of NDT
• Flaw Detection and Evaluation - the size, shape, or
orientation of a flaw (such as a crack or porosity)
• Leak Detection
• Location Determination
• Dimensional Measurements
• Structure and Microstructure Characterization
• Stress (Strain) and Dynamic Response
Measurements
• Material Sorting and Chemical Composition
Determination
• The thickness of a material or coating
 When is NDT Used?

There are NDT application at almost any stage in the

production or life cycle of a component.
– To assist in product development
– To screen or sort incoming materials
– To monitor, improve or control manufacturing
processes
– To verify proper processing such as heat treating
– To verify proper assembly
– To inspect for in-service damage
 Importance of NDT
• NDT increases the safety and reliability of the product during
operation.
• It decreases the cost of the product by reducing scrap and
conserving materials, labor and energy.
• It enhances the reputation of the manufacturer as a producer of
quality goods. All of the above factors boost the sales of the product
which bring more economical benefits for the manufacturer.
• NDT is also used widely for routine or periodic determination of
quality of the plants and structures during service.
• This not only increases the safety of operation but also eliminates
any forced shut down of the plants.
 Difference Between Destructive And
Non Destructive Test
NON DESTRUCTIVE TEST DESTRUCTIVE TEST
Used for finding out defects of Used for finding out the properties of
materials the material
Load is not applied on the material Load is applied on the material

No load applications, so no chance for Due to load application, material gets

material damage damaged
No requirement of special equipments Special equipments are required

Non expensive Expensive

Less skill Skill is required
e.g: dye penetrate test, ultrasonic, e.g: tensile test, compression test,
radiography, etc hardness test, etc
 Methods of NDT
• Visual Inspection
• Dye Penetration Testing (DPT)
• Magnetic Particle Testing (MPT)
• Ultrasonic Testing (UT)
• Eddy Current Testing (ECT)
• Radiography Testing (RT)
 Visual Inspection
• Visual testing is the most basic and common
inspection method involves in using of human eyes to
look for defects. But now it is done by the use special
tools such as video scopes, magnifying glasses,
mirrors, or borescopes to gain access and more closely
inspect the subject area.
• VI is particularly effective detecting macroscopic
flaws, such as poor welds like crater cracking,
undercutting, slag inclusion, incomplete penetration
welds etc.
 Cont…
• VI is also suitable for detecting flaws in composite
structures and piping of all types. Essentially, visual
inspection should be performed the way that one
would inspect a new car prior to delivery, etc.
• Bad welds or joints, missing fasteners or components,
poor fits, wrong dimensions, improper surface finish,
delaminations in coatings, large cracks, cavities,
dents, inadequate size, wrong parts, lack of code
approval stamps and similar proofs of testing.
 Visual Testing Equipments
1. Optical Aids-Magnifying glasses, Microscopes,
Borescopes, Closed circuit television (CCTV)
systems, Video scope.

2. Mechanical Aids- Micrometers, Callipers, Depth

gauges, Thread pitch gauges, Feeler gauges
 1. Magnifying glass
• A magnifying glass uses a convex lens, which
is a converging lens to produce an image. The
image produced is upright, magnified and
virtual as long as the object is at or within the
focal length of the lens.
• A magnifying glass can be used to focus light.
• The magnification of a magnifying glass
depends upon where it is placed between the Fig:
user's eye and the object being viewed, and Magnifying
glass
the total distance between them.
 2. Borescopes
• Borescopes (sometimes spelled "boroscopes")
allow inspectors to examine places that are
otherwise inaccessible or not viewable by the
naked eye. This is made possible by a camera
that is connected to an eyepiece via a relay
tube, which may be flexible or rigid.
• Because of their ability to offer up-close access
to these places without having to dismantle or
destructure the object, borescopes are valuable Fig:
tools for inspections, especially in non Borescopes
destructive testing.
 Cont…
• Rigid borescopes- The more popular type (mainly
due to its cost), these consist of an optical device
that’s attached to a non-bendable straight tube.
1. Cheap
2. Easy to use
3. High-quality images- Rigid borescopes offer clear
images and the ability to identify imperfections like
cracks as minute as 0.001
4. Limited motion and viewing capability.
 Cont…
• Flexible borescope- As its name suggests, a flexible
borescope is not rigid, all thanks to a twistable rod that
links the camera to the eyepiece on one end. As such, a
flexible borescope can be used to peek into curvy pipes,
ducts, vents, even chimneys.
1. High degree of free movement
2. Greater area coverage at a farther distance
3. Great image quality
4. May be more challenging to maneuver
5. Pricier than traditional ones
 3. Microscopes
• A microscope is an instrument used to see objects
that are too small to be seen by the naked eye. 
1.  light microscopes
2. Electron microscopes- uses a beam of electrons
rather than light to generate an image.
3. Scanning probe microscopes- a scanning probe
microscope from quantum tunnelling theory that read
very small forces exchanged between a probe and the
surface of a sample.
 Cont…
• Fluorescence microscopes- The most recent
developments in light microscope largely centre on
the rise of fluorescence microscopy in biology. The
main groups of techniques involve targeted chemical
staining of particular cell structures, for example, the
chemical compound DNA. Mostly laser technology
used in fluorescence microscopes.
• X-ray microscopes- X-ray microscopes are
instruments that use electromagnetic radiation usually
in the soft X-ray band to image objects.
 4.Videoscope
• A flexible Videoscope or Video Borescope is an
advanced type of borescope.
• The video image is relayed from the distal tip and
focusable lens assembly back to the display via
internal wiring. This is unlike a traditional rigid
borescope and flexible fiberscope.
• Rigid borescopes use hard optical relay components
to transfer the image from the tip to an eyepiece and
flexible biberscopes use coherent image fiberoptics to
relay the image to one's eye through an eyepiece.
 Cont…
The image
quality of a
videoscope
is superior
to a
fiberscope
and could be
compared to
that of a
high-end
Video
Camcorder.
 Advantages of visual inspection
• It can be a very simple but effective test to perform and often
does not need expensive equipment.
• Experienced operators and advanced equipment make it
possible for visual inspection to be very sensitive.
• It allows discontinuities to be seen and not be just a blip on
the screen.
• Many different surface-breaking discontinuities can be found.
• Training and experience times can be short.
• Virtually any component can be examined anywhere on the
surface.
 Disadvantages of visual inspection
• Many variables can lead to discontinuities being
missed.
• At its worst, it relies totally on the human factor.
• Many organisations pay little attention to the proper
training of operators.
• Sub-surface discontinuities will not be seen.
 Chalk test (Oil whitening test)
• The principle is based upon the absorption by chalk
of fluids. A penetrant oil is applied to the surface of
the parts to be checked and, after removing the
surplus oil, a layer of chalk is applied. Oil entrapped
in defects is absorbed by the chalk, the resulting
stains indicating their position.
• There are two basic methods of applying the process,
i.e. the 'Hot Fluid Process' and the 'Cold Fluid
Process'.
 1. Hot Fluid Process
• To obtain satisfactory results it is essential that the parts
should be thoroughly cleaned before immersion.
• The parts to be examined should be immersed in a solution
consisting of approximately 28% (by volume) of lard oil in
paraffin.
• The solution should be maintained at a temperature of
approximately 80°C, and the period of immersion must be
sufficient to allow the parts to attain this temperature.
• Preferred, solutions consisting of three parts paraffin and one
part lubricating oil, or 50% paraffin and 50% spindle oil, may
be used.
 Cont…
• After immersion the parts should be dried quickly and
thoroughly with a non-fluffy rag; excellent final cleaning
can be achieved by the use of unglazed tissue paper.
• The parts should then be placed in the chalk cabinet and
a fine layer of dry powdered French chalk should be
applied, preferably by a method that will distribute the
chalk in a gentle cloud.
• A paint spray gun with a conical funnel fitted in front of
the jet, operated at a pressure of about 0·70 kg/sq cm,
will be found suitable for this purpose.
 Cont…

• The gun should be provided with an efficient water

trap. Surplus chalk should be removed by lightly
tapping the parts on a block of wood.
• The parts should be inspected for defects when quite
cool and it will be found that if any cracks are
present.
• the examination should be made with the aid of a
strong light.
 2. Cold Fluid Process
• The efficiency of this process is not equal to the hot fluid
process, and it should be used only where the application of
the latter process would not be practicable, e.g. when
examining parts of assembled structures or parts too large for
immersion.
• The parts should be thoroughly cleaned and then coated with a
solution of lard oil and paraffin, or lubricating oil and paraffin.
• After the surfaces to be examined have been thoroughly
coated, all traces of the solution should be removed with a
non-fluffy rag, followed by final wiping with unglazed tissue
paper.
 Cont…
• The surface should then be coated with French chalk.
• Any oil entrapped in defects will be drawn out by the
absorbent chalk, the resulting stains indicating the
position of the defects. It is essential that the
examination should be made with the aid of a strong
light.
 Limitations of Chalk test (Oil
whitening test)
• The processes are not considered suitable for the
detection of minute flaws or tightly shut cracks.
• The processes are quite effective for such applications
as the detection of large cracks in rough castings.
• Defect indications, at best, will appear only as dark
grey stains on a light grey background, and are not
sufficiently defined to make the detection of small
cracks practicable, particularly when examining parts
having dark surfaces
 Cont…
• When the hot oil process is used for parts which are
dimensionally large or are of intricate shape, it is
often not possible to remove the surplus oil quickly
enough to be able to apply the chalk before the parts
become cool, thus the object of heating is defeated.
On the other hand, if the drying is not done
efficiently, masking of defects may occur due to the
spontaneous staining of the chalk in damp areas
 Conclusion
• Visual inspection can often be a cheap replacement
for other more expensive exotic NDT methods, which
still providing a good level of sensitivity.
• It may be the only method, when using remote
viewing techniques, able to inspect internal
component condition and it is probably the most
widely used form of NDT, with other techniques still
requiring an inspector to perform a visual inspection.