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Leak Testing Basic Principles - Background Information of Leaks and Leak Testing from TQC

Contact Us :: How to Find Us :: Site Map :: TQC Home News & Information Career Opportunities Employee News Employee News Archive First Solar Tube Handling Machines Delivered About Us Product Datasheets Video Clips Latest News Leak Testing Basics Basic Principles Useful leak specification guidelines Guide to Helium Leak Testing Contract Leak Testing Services Leak Test Machines TQC Leak Test Systems Series 10 Standard Leak Testing Fixture Series 20 Standard Leak Testing Fixture Series 40 Standard Leak Testing Fixture Twin Station Series 40 Standard Leak Testing Fixture Series 40 Standard Leak Test Machine with Interchangeable Fixtures Leak Test Applications TQC Equipment Automotive Brake Leak & Flow Testing 'Chilled Beam' Leak Test Fuel Rail Leak & Burst Testing Fuel Tank Leak Testing
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leak testing - basic principles

What is a Leak?
A leak is a flow of gas (or liquid) through the wall of a vessel (via an imperfection such as a hole, crack or bad seal). Leaks require a pressure difference to generate the flow; they always go from higher pressure to lower pressure. Leaks are pictured as going from positive pressure (inside an object) to outside (at atmospheric pressure). This is not always the case (a leak could be from atmosphere to inside an evacuated object), but it helps to think about it this way because the units and terminology are based on this model.

Leak Testing - what units do you use?

For leaks of air into atmosphere, units are usually expressed as mm3 or cm3 (cc) per second or minute. So 16.6 mm3/sec = 1 cm3/min. A bubble under water is about 30 - 50 mm3, so 1 bubble per second is about 30 mm3/sec or 2 cm3/min. A standard unit of leakage which takes account of air pressure is the mbarl/sec. (Millibar-litre per second). A leak into atmosphere of 1 mbarl/sec is equivalent to a volume leak of 1000 mm3/sec.

Leak Testing - what technique should be used?

Key questions at the start of any leak test requirement are:What size is the component and what is Is there access to inside or is it a sealed its internal volume? unit? What is the leak limit? Does it have hidden internal volumes that may affect leak measurements? Are the parts clean and dry? Is it rigid or flexible? Are parts at ambient temperature? What is the surface finish of any sealing surfaces?

Based on the acceptable leak rate limit (shown in ml/sec) alone the following test method can be used Tracer Gas Flow Rate

Water Submersal / Dunk Tank

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Leak Testing Basic Principles - Background Information of Leaks and Leak Testing from TQC Fuel Tank Leak Testing High Vacuum Helium Air Decay Helium Leak Testing of Automotive Fuel Pipes 1 5 10-9 10-8 10-7 10-6 10-5 10-4 10-3 10-2 10-1 High Speed Leak Testing of Plastic Vials for the Leak Testing - generic systems Medical Industry High Speed Leak Testing of Pipe Fittings pressure/vacuum Leak Testing of Engine Blocks The test piece and the reference volume Plastic Sump Pipe Leak are simultaneously pressurised (or Test & Inserter evacuated) to a preset pressure. The air Leak Test, Flexible Facility in the system is then allowed to stabilise, Leak Test Facility for with the supply valves all closed. The Water Valves Differential Pressure Transducer is Medical Device Leak automatically zeroed. Testing Medical Filter Leak Test After this stabilisation time, the pressure Machine change in the test piece is compared to Medical Shower Head the pressure change in the reference Leak Test Facility volume, using the Transducer. If the test Small Medical Device piece is leaking, the difference will Leak Test increase and be measured, an alarm limit V6 Cylinder Head Leak may be set for a pass/fail decision. Test Machine The sequence is fully automatic, the V8 Cylinder Head Leak accuracy and sensitivity of the system is Test Machine defined by the method of setting the V8 Engine Block Leak preset pressure together with the quality Test Machine and type of control valves and V6 Engine Leak Testing Differential Pressure Transducer. Valve Block Leak Test Vauxhall Leak Test Machine helium systems Water Submersal Leak Detection A vacuum pump evacuates the test Weapon Leak Test chamber and test piece simultaneously

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to a preset vacuum. At this preset level, the chamber and the test piece are isolated and the chamber evacuated further to a very low pressure. A positive pressure variation is therefore created between the test piece and the chamber. Helium gas is then introduced into the test piece, often in a 10% concentration. A Mass Spectrometer analyses a sample from the chamber as the vacuum continues to be drawn. The Mass Spectrometer measures the helium leakage and sets the pass/fail decision. The test piece pressure is often compared to the chamber pressure before dosing with helium, to avoid saturating the Mass Spectrometer in the
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Leak Testing Basic Principles - Background Information of Leaks and Leak Testing from TQC

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