Acoustic Emission Testing
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Acoustic Emmission Testing

Acoustic emission (AE) is the phenomenon of radiation of acoustic (elastic) waves in solids that occurs when a material undergoes irreversible changes in its internal structure. These changes can result from processes like crack formation, plastic deformation, or aging. When a structure is subjected to an external stimulus (change in pressure, load, or temperature), localized sources trigger the release of energy, in the form of stress waves, which propagate to the surface and are recorded by sensors. This occurs when a small surface displacement of a material is produced.

TCR Advanced has procured state of the art 16 channel AE System form Vallen Systeme, Germany. TCR has experienced technicians and Advance softwares to interpret Data to accurately identify flaws of critical jobs with accuracy.The main advantage of Acoustic Emission testing is fast and complete volumetric inspection using multiple sensors, permanent sensor mounting for process control, and no need to disassemble and clean a specimen.

Advantages of Acoustic Emmission TEsting:

  • High sensitivity.
  • Early and rapid detection of defects, flaws
  • Identifiaton of Crack growth
  • Real time monitoring.
  • Cost reduction
  • Minimization of plant downtime for inspection, no need for scanning the whole structural surface.

Key Applications of Acoustic Emmission Testing :

  1. Structural Health Monitoring: Bridges, buildings, dams.
  2. Aerospace Industry: Aircraft components, spacecraft.
  3. Power Generation: Pressure vessels, boilers, turbines.
  4. Petrochemical and chemical: Storage tanks, reactor vessels, offshore platforms, drill pipe, pipelines, valves, hydro-treater
  5. Manufacturing: Material testing, weld inspection.
  6. Mining Industry: Rock mechanics, ore processing.
  7. Civil Engineering: Dam monitoring, retaining walls.
  8. Railway Industry: Track monitoring, rolling stock.
  9. Real-time leakage test and location within various components: small valves, steam lines, tank bottoms

Case Study :- Detection of Stress Corrosion Crack on SS plate sample

  1. Stainless steel plate samples were immersed in hydrochloric acid (HCl) to create a corrosive environment while applying a controlled tensile load to induce stress corrosion cracking.
  2. Acoustic sensors were strategically placed to capture high-frequency emissions during the immersion, allowing for real-time detection of crack initiation and growth.
  3. The number of events recorded during the immersion period from the sample plate that could not be distinguished as specific crack events.
  4. A V-shaped notch, 2mm deep, was created on a separate stainless steel plate sample, and the remaining surface was coated with paint. This setup aimed to isolate and identify specific acoustic emissions or events related to cracking originating from the notch area.
  5. Crack and corrosion like signals/hits were recorded during the immersion period from the coated sample plate.