ASNT Fall Conference and Quality Testing Show 2007 [Las Vegas, NV, November 2007]: pp 144-147 © Copyright

2007, 2011,
American Society for Nondestructive Testing, Columbus, OH.

Ultrasonic Thickness Testing for Corrosion

Ken L. Heaps
Kakivik Asset Management, LLC
111 West 16th Suite 100, Anchorage, AK 99511
(907) 770-9400; e-mail kheaps@kakivik.com

INTRODUCTION
Ultrasonic thickness testing today is recognized by ASNT SNT-TC-1A and CP-189 as a limited certification; meaning it
requires less hours of experience and training. No doubt the petrochemical industry was a strong supporter of this because
it takes less time and money to get a UT II thickness limited technician out there scanning pipes, vessels and tanks for
corrosion. It all works well as long as the corrosion exhibits large pits with broad reflective surfaces. Once this changes there
are many setbacks that can drastically affect the results and create interpretation problems for the technician. This paper
explores those setbacks and attempts to educate end users on how various factors affect their data.

HISTORY
It wasn’t that long ago when analogue flaw detectors were the standard equipment used for corrosion scanning. The analogue
flaw detector provided a cathode ray tube (CRT) for viewing signals. The CRT had a fluorescent ‘trace’ that illuminated the
baseline. When the receiver circuit detected a low voltage spike it provided the time and amplitude component to the trace to
create a signal. Underneath the ‘trace’ was the scale the operator read; it usually had ten primary increments with five minor
increments in-between (see Figure 1). When an operator read the location of the signal on the scale the best he or she could
do was to read the signal to one of the smaller increments. If the screen was calibrated to a 0.500” range and there were five
minor increments within each major then each minor increment would equal 0.010”. Therefore, the operator could read the
distance to a signal with an accuracy of 0.010” .

Figure 1: Analogue scope with Figure 2: Digital scope with

50 increment scale. three digit read out.

Today’s digital flaw detectors utilize on board processing chips that ‘digitize’ the analogue signal and store it. By assigning
evenly distributed sample points to the analogue signal it is digitized, just like creating a dot to dot replica. With the advent
of digital scopes came electronic gates. The gates identify the area of the baseline which signals could be measured by the
onboard electronics. When a signal was captured within the gate the distance to that signal was not read off a scale, it was
computed and displayed on the screen as a three digit number (see Figure 2).

Today, engineers and other end users of ultrasonic corrosion data are given thickness information to the nearest thousandth of
an inch, as compared to the nearest ten thousandths of an inch their coworkers received a decade ago. This increase in
‘accuracy’ often leads to expectations which cannot be met. Realistically, repeatability of 0.001” cannot be obtained under
field conditions. The reason can be broken into two components, the signal and the reflector.

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 ASNT Fall Conference and Quality Testing Show 2007 [Las Vegas, NV, November 2007]: pp 144-147 © Copyright 2007, 2011,
American Society for Nondestructive Testing, Columbus, OH.

The Signal
Although the full wave rectified wave form is generally displayed (as seen in photos on previous page) on ultrasonic flaw
detectors and thickness gauges the radio frequency (RF) wave form is the raw or original waveform produced by the
electronic circuits. RF wave forms can be rectified as shown in Figure 3. The full wave rectification mirrors the negative half
wave cycles to the positive side of the baseline. The half wave rectification takes away either the positive or the negative
cycles, leaving only one half the cycles displayed.

The transducer frequency, damping and pulse length determine the size (number of waves) of the RF wave form packet. A
properly adjusted flaw detector will display an RF wave form packet similar to Figure 3. The amplitude of the wave packet
builds up and peaks in the middle then tapers back down. This is only discernable when zoomed in on the signal; i.e., the
screen range is adjusted to a small value.

ASTM E 797 ‘Standard Practice for Measuring Thickness by Manual Ultrasonic Pulse-Echo Contact Method’ acknowledges
errors in thickness readings by reading different half cycles of the wave packet. To calculate the thickness value of this error
with a 5 MHz transducer in steel you can start with the wave length formula Velocity / Frequency = Wavelength.
(0.230” usec / 5 MHz = 0.046”). In a pulse-echo system this wave length travels through the same material twice in order
for the reflection to get back to the transducer. Therefore the thickness equivalent of one wavelength is 0.023” (0.046” / 2)
and the thickness equivalent of one half wave length is 0.0115”. This error is demonstrated in Figure 4. Assume a thickness
of 0.500” at Gate A. It would change to about 0.488” at Gate B and about 0.477” at Gate C. This error alone can create
frustration for an engineer trying to manage asset life of a pipeline by maintaining mils per year (MPY) wall loss no greater
than ten.

Figure 3.1: RF wave form. Figure 3.2: Full wave rectified Figure 3.3: Negative half wave
wave form. rectified wave form eliminates the
lower amplitude first half cycle.

To minimize this error the ultrasonic thickness testing procedure should specify the RF wave form be analyzed then half
wave rectified to eliminate the first half cycle, leaving the higher amplitude second half cycle as the first one available
for measurement.

The Reflector
The best reflector is a broad parallel surface. Unfortunately, this is seldom the case when testing for corrosion. A corroded
surface reflects much of the sound energy away from the transducer. This loss of energy creates a loss of signal amplitude on
the A-scope display. Figure 5 illustrates energy lost from unparallel surfaces. Loss of energy can create situations where
corrosion is undetected.

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 ASNT Fall Conference and Quality Testing Show 2007 [Las Vegas, NV, November 2007]: pp 144-147 © Copyright 2007, 2011,
American Society for Nondestructive Testing, Columbus, OH.

Detection
To minimize situations of undetected corrosion the procedure should
specify sensitivity settings that provide ample scanning amplitude to
detect corrosion pits. A 1/16” diameter flat bottom hole (FBH) works
well, as does scanning at +12 db over an 80% FSH back wall. Even
when scanning at a specified sensitivity, the operator should be keen to
any areas that exhibit a loss of amplitude. If the loss of amplitude is not
a coupling problem it may be a corroded back surface. Pinhole type
corrosion can often be mistaken for near ID inclusions. A procedure
should specify an angle beam examination to detect corner traps; this
verifies the zero degree indications are connected to the ID.
Figure 4: Thickness error equals 11-12 mils per
Detection problems also occur when the minimum remaining wall half cycle.
thickness gets down to 0.200” or less; signals begin approaching the
dead zone and delay lines or dual element transducers focused at 0.200” should be used. When the minimum remaining wall
thickness gets down to 0.100” or less a step wedge with a 0.050” or 0.075” step should be used for calibration and a small
diameter (0.25”) dual transducer focused at 0.100” should be used. It becomes apparent that as wall thickness approaches the
0.100” range different calibrations blocks and transducers are required to obtain the best results. Even then interpreting the
correct signal can be subjective.

Figure 5.1: 100% reflection of energy Figure 5.2: About 8% reflection of

from broad parallel surface. energy from unparallel surface.

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 ASNT Fall Conference and Quality Testing Show 2007 [Las Vegas, NV, November 2007]: pp 144-147 © Copyright 2007, 2011,
American Society for Nondestructive Testing, Columbus, OH.

Monitoring
Once the corrosion is detected the next challenge is obtaining an accurate and repeatable reading. This begins with the
calibration; which should utilize a half wave rectified wave form as described in Figure 3. The calibration should also include
a minimum of three steps, one step less than the minimum remaining wall thickness, one greater than the nominal wall
thickness and one in between. Each step should be calibrated at a gain level that produces a signal with a first half cycle at
80% Full Screen Height (FSH).

The gate should be set at 40% FSH or lower if noise levels allow. The gain (db) and the thickness should be recorded for all
three steps.

After calibration you are ready to scan. Scanning a small area is preferred over placing the transducer on a single point for a
spot reading. The scan sensitivity should be set at +12 db over an 80% FSH back wall signal. This is often a more convenient
and economical method to establish sensitivity as compared to custom made calibration blocks with holes drilled into them.
A sensitivity level of +12 db is comparable to an 80% FSH signal from a 1/16th inch FBH. When a corrosion pit is detected
the gain should be adjusted so that the first half cycle is at 80% FSH. The gain (db) and remaining wall thickness should be
recorded for each location. Recording this data provides information that can later be reviewed and help determine
characteristics of pit growth as well as identify inconsistencies when collecting data.

Incorporate these recommendations into your ultrasonic corrosion testing procedures and overall you should see better
accuracy and repeatability from all of you technicians.

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