Chapter 4.

Corrosion Monitoring and Testing

http://www.corrosion-club.com/testinghome.htm

1
Learning Objectives
• To establish appreciation of the necessity and importance of corrosion
monitoring and testing.
• To gain understanding and knowledge of common corrosion monitoring
and testing techniques.

Topics and Key Points

Exposure testing
• Be able to describe the procedure of exposure tests with coupons
• Understand the Planned Interval Test procedure
• Be able to calculate corrosion penetration rates
Industrial corrosion monitoring
• Know the range of industrial corrosion monitoring techniques
• Understand the use of different corrosion measurement and monitoring probes
• Be aware of the various non-destructive testing techniques used for corrosion inspection

Most figures are from M.G. Fontana, Corrosion Engineering, 3rd ed., McGraw-Hill International Editions, 1987
or D.A. Jones, Principles and Prevention of Corrosion, Prentice-Hall, Inc. 1996.
2
Standard
Procedure after
Corrosion Failure Analysis

Testing Monitoring Inspection

3
Corrosion testing objectives:
• Determine probable service life;
• Screen materials to find the best candidate for a specific application;
• Evaluate new materials/alloys/treatments (e.g. salt-spray test for new coatings);
• Evaluate corrosivity of the environment or a new process;
• Quality control of corrosion resistant materials (e.g. Huey test for stainless steels);
• Evaluate the effects of inhibitors or environmental changes on corrosion;
• Finding the most economical means of corrosion reduction;
• Study corrosion mechanisms.

Four types of corrosion exposure testing:

• Laboratory tests: usually as screening tests, accelerated short-time tests, less
expensive but have many disadvantages.
• Pilot-plant tests: more expensive tests, carried out in a small-scale device or plant
model, close simulation of real conditions, long-time tests.
• Plant or actual in-service tests: verification tests, testing under real conditions,
actual parts.
• Field tests: long term tests but under real conditions.

4
Exposure and Immersion Test
• Exposure testing involves exposing samples or
actual parts to a corrosive environment and
measuring and observing any changes due to Accelerated atmospheric exposure
corrosion reactions (weight loss, corrosion testing chamber is able to provide
products, strength loss). controlled temperature, moisture and
• Most exposure testing methods are applicable UV radiation cycles continuously.
to measuring uniform corrosion rates.
• Localized corrosion (e.g., crevice, pitting, stress
corrosion cracking) usually requires different
testing designs and procedures.

Test rack for atmospheric exposure of panel samples

http://www.directindustry.com/prod/vlm-gmbh/laboratory-evaporators-
for-sample-concentration-28204-239485.html

http://maisonbisson.com/blog/post/11956/corrosion-test-facility-not-as-rusty-as-expected/
5
Testing Procedure with Coupons – general rules

Coupon preparation:
• Record material ID and properties (supplier, alloy ID, batch #, composition, heat treatment,
surface finish, etc.)
• Coupons fabrication (usually plates by punching, stamping or cutting. Particular shapes
are made as required for real application)
• Removal of obvious mechanical damages, such as grinding of edges of cold worked
pieces or sheared pieces
• Identification numbers or marks made to the coupons; care to be taken for the marks to
survive the testing
• Real surface finish has to be reproduced if tests are conducted in-service. For laboratory
tests the surfaces are usually ground, shot blasted, or polished.

Measuring and weighing before testing:

• Measurement of area exposed to corrosion
• Cleaning, degreasing
• Weighing (commonly upto 0.1 mg)

Testing the effect

of coating damage
http://www.corrosion-club.com/testinghome.htm 6
Exposure method for coupons
Disc
• Laboratory flasks sample
• Autoclaves for elevated pressures and temperatures
• Atmospheric exposure racks
• Coupon holders or racks inserted in pipelines or
vessels for in-plant or in-service exposures; not to alter
flow pattern and velocity
• Insulation of sample coupons, to avoid Galvanic coupling After testing
• Duration of exposure: duration(hrs) = 50/𝑟𝑟(mmpy)
e.g., if the sample is expected corrode at 10 mm/yr,
then need to test for 50/10=5 hours – completely empirical
http://www.prodigital.com.au/cor.html

High pressure/temperature
SS316L Autoclaves Rack
Coupons

Teflon
spacers

http://corrosion.curtin.edu.au/resear
ch/facilities.cfm
7
Planned Interval Test
Note: 𝐀𝐀𝟐𝟐 represents the observed or
• Planned interval test is a testing procedure
measured difference between 𝐀𝐀 𝐭𝐭+𝟏𝟏 and 𝐀𝐀𝐭𝐭 .
that allows investigation of both changes in
solution corrosivity and specimen corrodibility 𝐀𝐀𝟐𝟐
(corrosion rate) over time. 𝐀𝐀𝐭𝐭+𝟏𝟏
• 4 identical specimens: 𝐀𝐀 𝟏𝟏 , 𝑩𝑩, 𝐀𝐀𝐭𝐭 , 𝐀𝐀𝐭𝐭+𝟏𝟏

Corrosivity Weight Changes Criteria 𝐀𝐀𝐭𝐭

Unchanged 𝐴𝐴1 = 𝐵𝐵
Liquid
Decreased 𝐴𝐴1 > 𝐵𝐵 𝐀𝐀𝟏𝟏 𝑩𝑩
corrosiveness
Increased 𝐴𝐴1 < 𝐵𝐵
Unchanged 𝐴𝐴2 = 𝐵𝐵
Metal 𝟎𝟎 𝟏𝟏 Time (unit) 𝒕𝒕 𝒕𝒕 + 𝟏𝟏
Decreased 𝐴𝐴2 < 𝐵𝐵
corrodibility Increased 𝐴𝐴2 > 𝐵𝐵 Time unit can be 1 h, 1 day, 1 week …
Combinations of Situations
Liquid Corrosiveness Metal Corrodibility Criteria
Unchanged Unchanged 𝐴𝐴2 = 𝐴𝐴1 = 𝐵𝐵
Unchanged Decreased 𝐴𝐴2 < 𝐴𝐴1 = 𝐵𝐵
Unchanged Increased 𝐴𝐴1 = 𝐵𝐵 < 𝐴𝐴2
Decreased Unchanged 𝐴𝐴2 = 𝐵𝐵 < 𝐴𝐴1
Decreased Decreased 𝐴𝐴2 < 𝐵𝐵 < 𝐴𝐴1
Decreased Increased 𝐴𝐴1 > 𝐵𝐵 < 𝐴𝐴2
Increased Unchanged 𝐴𝐴1 < 𝐴𝐴2 = 𝐵𝐵
Increased Decreased 𝐴𝐴1 < 𝐵𝐵 > 𝐴𝐴2
Increased Increased 𝐴𝐴1 < 𝐵𝐵 < 𝐴𝐴2
8
Post Exposure Treatment
Post-exposure handling may be the most vital step in obtaining an accurate measurement of
corrosion in practical terms. Mishandling in cleaning specimens causes far greater errors in
weight loss measurement than most weighing instruments do. Various techniques used for
cleaning corrosion products from a test piece may be classified into three categories:
• Physical removal, including scraping, brushing, scrubbing with abrasives and sand blasting.
A commonly applied method is to scrap the surface using a rubber stopper under a stream of
tap water.

• Chemical cleaning using chemicals, which are often specific to specific metals and corrosion
products. This is not commonly used for uniform corrosion, but is particularly useful in
examining metal surface for pitting and other localised attack.

Typical cleaning agents for some metals:

Al alloys 70% HNO3 solution
Cu alloys 5-10% H2SO4 solution or 15-20% HCl solution
Cast irons warm 20% HCl or H2SO4 with organic inhibitors
carbon steels boiling 20% NaOH + 10% Zn dust
stainless steels hot 70% HNO3 solution
Pb alloys boiling 1% acetic acid
Ni alloys 15-20% HCl or 10% H2SO4 solutions
9
Post Exposure Treatment
• Electrolytic cleaning, which involves making the specimen the
cathode under an impressed current in a variety of chemicals.
A typical electrolytic cleaning procedure is as following:
Solution 5wt% H2SO4 aqueous solution
Anode graphite
Cathode test specimen
Current density on cathode 20 𝐴𝐴/𝑑𝑑𝑑𝑑2
Temperature 350 𝐾𝐾
Exposure time 180 𝑠𝑠
Inhibitor 2 𝑚𝑚𝑚𝑚/𝐿𝐿 Rhodine

Shown here is an
example of electrolytic
cleaning using
household items:

http://americanwoodworker.com/blogs/tools/archive/
2009/02/23/clean-rusty-tools-by-electrolysis.aspx 10
Data Recording and Presentation
A comprehensive and accurate record is of vital importance to the
correct interpretation of the result of a corrosion test. Record of a
corrosion test usually contains the following information:
1. Corrosive media: initial concentration, concentration changes during (after) testing,
pH change during (after) testing
2. Volume of test solution
3. Temperature
4. Aeration: techniques and conditions (e.g., purging N2, Ar, air or sealed)
5. Agitation: techniques, velocity
6. Apparatus and type of test rack
7. Duration
8. Material: composition, trade name, product type, metallurgical condition, size and
shape, sampling location
9. Exposure location
10. After-exposure visual examination, and photographic recording
11. Cleaning technique
12. Weight change, as appropriate
13. Type and nature of localised attack
14. Corrosion rate

11
Crevice Corrosion Testing

http://www.corrosion-club.com/coupons.htm

Multiple crevice corrosion test specimens

Crevice corrosion test specimen

(ASTM Practice G 46-76B)

Electrochemical crevice-corrosion equipment

12
Crevice Corrosion Testing
CA-15: 14%Cr cast stainless steel
CF-8M: also known as AISI type 304 SS; contains19%Cr-9%Ni ASTM A487 (CA-15) Stainless Steel
Categories: Metal; Ferrous Metal; ASTM
Steel; Stainless steel; Cast stainless steel
Mechanical Properties
Hardness, Rockwell C ≤ 23.0
Tensile Strength,
≥ 690 MPa
Ultimate
Tensile Strength, Yield ≥ 520 MPa
Elongation at Break ≥ 17.0 %
Component Elements Properties
Carbon, C ≤ 0.15 %
Chromium, Cr 11.5 - 14.0 %
Copper, Cu ≤ 0.50 %
Iron, Fe 77.6 - 84.6 %
Manganese, Mn ≤ 1.0 %
Molybdenum, Mo 0.40 - 1.0 %
Nickel, Ni 3.50 - 4.50 %
Phosphorous, P ≤ 0.040 %
Probability plots for crevice corrosion depths in CA-15 and CF-8M Silicon, Si ≤ 1.0 %
stainless steels immersed in seawater at 15℃ for 32 days Sulfur, S ≤ 0.030 %
Tungsten, W ≤ 0.10 %
Vanadium, V ≤ 0.050 %

ASTM International, formerly known as the American Society for Testing and Materials (ASTM), is
a globally recognized leader in the development and delivery of international voluntary consensus
standards. Today, some 12,000 ASTM standards are used around the world to improve product quality,
enhance safety, to facilitate market access and trade, and to build consumer confidence.
http://www.astm.org/ABOUT/overview.html 13
Stress corrosion cracking testing
– constant strain testing

(a)

U-bend test Double U-bend test

(b)
Bent beam testing methods C-ring test
(a) 3-point load; (b) 4-point load

http://www.imoa https://www.llnl.gov/st
.info/moly_uses/ r/April04/McCright.ht
moly_grade_sta ml
inless_steels/ar
chitecture/pool_
building_design Limitation of these testing methods: once SCC
_article.php
occurs, the strain is released. 14
 http://ltsm.mead.upatras.gr/lab/public/UserF
Stress corrosion cracking testing iles/File/image023.jpg

– constant load testing

15
Stress corrosion cracking testing
– slow strain rate testing (SSRT)

16
Stress corrosion cracking testing
– alloy/environment combinations
• austenitic stainless steels and aluminium alloys crack in chloride solutions
• mild steel cracks in the alkaline solutions (boiler cracking) and nitrates
• copper alloys crack in ammonia solutions (season cracking)

Alloy KIC (MN/m3/2) SCC environment KISCC (MN/m3/2)

13Cr steel 60 3% NaCl 12
18Cr-8Ni 200 42% MgCl2 10
Cu-30Zn 200 NH4OH, pH=7 1
Al-3Mg-7Zn 25 Aqueous halides 5
Ti-6Al-1V 60 0.6M KCl 20
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stress_corrosion_cracking

Stress intensity factor: 𝑲𝑲𝑰𝑰𝑰𝑰 = 𝒀𝒀𝝈𝝈 𝝅𝝅𝒂𝒂

17
Stress corrosion cracking testing
– Comparison of SCC Test Methods

18
Pitting testing
Pitting corrosion may be tested in two ways:
• simple immersion test and then evaluate the degree of damage
• electrochemical measurement of pitting potential.

Pitting starts here

Rating
1

e.g., A5-B4-C3-f
19
Sensitisation testing for stainless steels
Nitric Acid Test
• Huey test is a near standard acceptance test of austenitic stainless steels after heat
treatment, to detect sensitisation.
• It is done by exposing the steels to boiling 65% HNO3 for 5 periods of 48 hours each.
Sensitised steels exhibit higher corrosion rate.
• The test conditions may not match the real operation situation; but the materials surviving the
test (which is a very strong corrosive environment) have very high success rate in service.
• There are accepted specifications for each stainless steel, in mmpy (mm/year).
• Huey test is lengthy and costly.

Oxalic Acid Test

• A faster test routine serving as a screening test is
to test a stainless steel with a metallographically
polished surface (area) in a stainless steel
beaker containing 10% oxalic acid under an
anodic current of the density of 1 A/cm2 through
the specimen.
• The test time is very short, 90 second.
• The conclusion is obtained by microscopic
examination: a step-like surface structure
indicates a uniform attack whilst a grain boundary
network attack signifies the intergranular attack
of sensitised materials.
20
Corrosion Monitoring

Industry Surveyed
• Oil and gas production
• Oil refining
• Chemical and petrochemical production
• Industrial boiler plant
• Industrial cooling water systems
• Gas distribution
• Electricity generation
• Pipelines
• Mining

Summary of interests
• Increased awareness of the need for corrosion monitoring requirements to be considered
at the plant design stage
• Expanded use of corrosion monitoring in many companies
• Greater appreciation of the qualitative nature of corrosion monitoring data and the need to
learn by experience
• Concerns of reliability of equipment
• Maintenance costs often too high
• Desire for more automatic and on-line monitoring
• Awareness that system installation is expensive
• Widespread interest in new techniques

21
Hydrogen Probe

• Thin-wall tube (~0.5 mm)

inserted with a rod, forming a
small free volume by a tight
tolerance of 0.005 mm.
• Pressure in the small cavity
produced by hydrogen atoms
diffusing through the thin wall
is measured by a pressure
gauge or transducer.
• The rate at which the pressure
increases is measured and
interpreted as being
proportional to the
concentration of [H] in the
medium.

22
Hydrogen Probe

Outside tip diameter

http://www.unisense.com/H2/ Ranging from 10 – 500 µm

• Unisense hydrogen microsensor measures hydrogen partial pressure, by

allowing diffusion of hydrogen through a silicone membrane to a platinum
anode upon which the hydrogen is oxidized.
• The oxidation current, typically in the picoampere (10−12 A) range, is then
measured.
• Generally the detection limit of the sensors is 0.3 µM in water.

23
 http://www.alspi.com/probes.htm
Corrosion Probes
- direct measurement of corrosion rate using probes
Electrical resistance probes, also known
as corrosometer, operate on electrical Flush-end
corrosometer
resistance principle. probe from
•The wire element in the probe corrodes Cosasco Ltd.
in solution and reduces its cross-
section.
•An increase in resistance is directly
interpreted as a loss of cross-sectional http://www.cosasco.com/
2700/2705-corrosometer-
area, from which rate of corrosion fixed-flush-element-
(depth) can be determined. probe-p-12410-l-en.html

•Retractable corrosion probes can be

inserted into and removed from the
equipment through standard gate
valves.
•There are a variety of wire materials
available commercially. A probe of the
same wire material to the structure to be
monitored should always be chosen.
•Care should be taken for probe
installation to avoid stagnant condition,
erosive wear on probe and disturbing
flow pattern.
24
Electrical Resistance Probe
Key considerations for the filament (materials being tested) design:
• Light weight
• Large exposed surface area
• Well-defined surface area during corrosion

(1) (2) (3) (4)

(5) (6) (7) (8)

Various designs of electrical resistance probes

25
Electrical Resistance Probe
For example, Microcor Probe
of Rohrback Cosasco Systems (http://www.cosasco.com)
The Microcor® probe is an electrical resistance (ER) probe. It
measures electrical resistance of metal filament (a conductor) that
is exposed to the corroding environment. An increase in electrical
resistance implies a reduction of the cross-section of the filament,
which can be converted in metal loss (thickness loss), caused by
corrosion. From the collection of these metal loss readings over
time, the corrosion rate can be computed. The filament electrode
needs to be the metal of interest.

200 40
180 35
160
30
Corrosion Rate (µm/y)

140

Metal Loss (µm)

120 25
100 20
80 15
60
10
40
20 5
0 0
2/12/14 30/12/14 27/01/15 24/02/15
Time (date) 26
Linear Polarisation Resistance (LPR) Probe ∆𝜼𝜼 𝜷𝜷𝒂𝒂 𝜷𝜷𝒄𝒄
=
The LPR probes measure the current flowing between two ∆𝒊𝒊 𝟐𝟐. 𝟑𝟑 � 𝒊𝒊𝒄𝒄𝒄𝒄𝒄𝒄𝒄𝒄 𝜷𝜷𝒂𝒂 + 𝜷𝜷𝒄𝒄
identical electrodes when a small over voltage is applied
across them in the linear polarisation regime. The slope of
the linear relationship is called “linear polarisation
resistance”, expressed as shown on the right. In this way
the corrosion current density, thus corrosion rate, is
determined. The tip material is the metal to be monitored.

0.40 0.40
0.35 0.35
0.30 0.30
Corrosion Rate (mm/y)

0.25 0.25

Imbalance
0.20 0.20
0.15 0.15
0.10 0.10 Imbalance

0.05 0.05 General corrosion

0.00 0.00 Pitting corrosion

01/12/14
31/12/14
30/01/15
01/03/15
31/03/15
30/04/15
30/05/15
29/06/15
29/07/15
28/08/15
27/09/15
27/10/15
26/11/15
26/12/15
25/01/16
24/02/16
25/03/16
24/04/16
24/05/16
23/06/16
23/07/16
22/08/16

Significant pitting

Test Time (date)

27
Linear Polarisation Resistance (LPR) Probe

• A variation to LPR probe is Galvanic

probe, which has two different tips
(e.g., carbon steel vs copper).
• The galvanic corrosion current is
nearly proportional to dissolved
oxygen in the solution when properly
calibrated.

28
 http://www.
Corrosion monitoring cathelco.co Principles will
m/userfiles/
using reference electrodes Corrosion be discussed in
• These structures (e.g., ships, underwater
%20Monito Chapter 5.
ring%20Kit.
pipelines, bridges and jetties) are often jpg
Cathelco Portable
protected by cathodic protection. Corrosion Monitoring kit
• The effectiveness of the protection is monitored with Ag-AgCl reference
by measuring the potential of the structure electrode:
protected, relative to a reference electrode. 𝐸𝐸 = +0.197 𝑉𝑉 (𝑆𝑆𝑆𝑆𝑆𝑆)
• It can be easily done by using a portable
corrosion monitoring kit, which consists of a http://ih0.redbubble.net/image.6378547.5445/flat,550x550,075,f.jpg
reference electrode, a long cable and a high
impedance voltmeter.

The Grain Terminal in Rockingham is protected by

impressed current cathodic protection. The corrosion
(or protection) condition of the structure can be
monitored by dropping a reference electrode from the
jetty and reading the potential between the electrode
and the structure.

http://www.stoprust.com/img/large_vstring.jpg

Ag-AgCl reference
electrode
permanently
mounted on an
underground
pipeline for
http://hdwpapers.com/walls/bulk_carri
monitoring potential
er_cargo_ship_wallpaper-other.jpg of the steel pipe. 29
Corrosion monitoring in remote operations

Case example: Rohrback Cosasco Systems

(http://www.cosasco.com)

Microcor® data logger and wireless transmitter

The Microcor® online corrosion/erosion
monitoring system is equipped to operate
electrical resistance (ER) probes, linear
polarization resistance (LPR) probes,
corrosion/erosion coupons and bio probes in
remote operations, with capability of data
recording for prolonged periods and wireless
transmission via satellite to base control.

Remote data
collection unit Data logger and
wireless transmitter

30
Corrosion monitoring in remote operations
Case example: Rohrback Cosasco Systems
(http://www.cosasco.com)

Flush discs
and plate coupons

Bio probe and

biostuds

31
Non-destructive testing (NDT)
• Much corrosion monitoring is done by means
of non-destructive testing (NDT).
• Common NDT techniques used include:
- ultrasonic method
- eddy current method
- radiographic method
- die-penetrant method
- magnetic particle method
• NDT techniques are widely used in http://www.qualitydigest.com/nov01 http://www.hotfrog.co.uk/Companies/Worcester
/assets/images/NDT-image2.jpg -NDT_5967432/Ultrasonic-Testing-127261
mechanical, manufacturing, corrosion, forensic,
civil, electrical and system engineering.

Ultrasonic Techniques - Reflection method (pulse-echo method)

This method utilises the principle that ultrasonic waves travel through metals in straight lines and reflects
back upon impinging on a surface. This technique can be used
• to measure wall thickness of pipes and pressure vessels by measuring the time for an ultrasonic wave to
traverse the depth of a metal, when the device is calibrated using standard of known thickness.
• to scan large areas for detecting internal flaws; pits of 1.5 mm in diameter and 1.5 mm in depth can be
detected.
There exist two basic configurations of ultrasonic device:
• back reflection device.
• angular reflection device, allowing detection of cracks oriented perpendicularly to approachable surfaces.
• portable ultrasound devices are available, which consists of a transducer probe to transmit ultrasonic waves
to the metal, a detector probe to collect reflection signal and an oscilloscope for displaying the signal.
Also noting:
• the frequency range of ultrasonic waves is usually between 0.2 to 25 MHz, with the low frequencies giving
deeper penetration and the high frequencies giving better resolution.
• the working temperature for conventional ultrasonic probes is below 130 °C. 32
Ultrasonic Techniques

• An engineer is measuring damage map of a

pipe using an ultrasonic phased array
instrument.
• The scanner consists of a frame with
magnetic wheels which hold the probe in
contact with the pipe by a spring.
• The wet area is the ultrasonic coolant that
allows the sound to pass into the pipe wall.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Ultrasonic_pipeline_test.JPG

A map of interior corrosion of a pipe measured

using ultrasonic pules-echo method.
http://www.phoenixisl.com/images/application-img/clip_image005.jpg
33
Ultrasonic Techniques
Resonance method
•This technique utilises the
principle that a material vibrates at
a natural frequency determined by
its elasticity, mass and geometry.
•For a pressure vessel or a pipe,
for example, the natural frequency
is thus only dependent on its wall
thickness.
•In this device an electronic http://www.krautkramer.com.au/USM%20Go1.jpg
oscillator generates a vibration
which is transmitted by a
transducer to the metal under test.
•When the frequency of the
oscillator is tuned to be the same
as the natural resonance
frequency of the component, a
signal is given out by the device.
•This device operates at
frequencies ranging from 2 ~ 4
MHz, at temperatures below
130°C and is able to penetrate a
Typical locations of
wall thickness of 5 - 130 mm.
corrosion monitoring points 34
Eddy Current Method
Eddy current testing makes use of magnetoelectric
induction to detect surface and subsurface flaws in
conductive materials.
• The test setup consists of a circular excitation coil
placed on the test surface, to which an alternating
current is applied. This generates a changing
magnetic field that interacts with the conductive
test surface and produces eddy current.
• The eddy current density is greatest at the test
surface adjacent to the coil and decreases rapidly
with the distance from the surface, and is sensitive
to any discontinuity in the material.
http://www.ndt-ed.org/GeneralResources
• Eddy current testing can be used in /MethodSummary/MethodSummary.htm
- detecting cracks in metal sheets and thin walled
tubing
- detecting breakdown of metallic coating, such as
plated or galvanised surfaces
- identifying corrosion under aircraft skin
- detecting internal corrosion of heat exchanger
tubes via detecting change of wall thickness
- determine the thickness of nonconductive
coatings over conductive substrates.

35
Eddy Current Method

http://www.mermecgroup.com/mermec- Scan for stress corrosion cracking

incorso/images/Image/Products/Diagnostics/TI_RP_TecnoRail2.jpg

http://static3.olympus-
ims.com/data/Image/appnotes/ECA_for_SCC_img_1.jpg?rev=E9D5 36
Radiographic Method

There are two types of radiation: x-ray

radiation and gamma-ray radiation.
• x-ray radiography: This technique
requires electric power to operate. It is
suitable for wall thickness between 3 -
20 mm. Significant reduction in wall thickness
in elbow region of metal pipeline
• γ-ray radiography: This technique utilises
radioactive isotopes as source materials
to generate gamma-ray radiation. http://www.energyworkforce.net/?p=62
• Isotope sources for this technique
include:
Isotope Half-life Photon Energy Penetration
Period (MeV) (mm)
192 Ir 74 days 0.61 ~ 0.13 75 (steel)
60 Co 5.3 years 1.17, 1.33 225 (steel)
137 Cs 33 years 0.66 75 (steel)
170 Th 128 days 0.084 12 (Al)

37
Dye Penetrant Method

Viewing under “black” light:

A black light is a long

wavelength (UV-A)
ultraviolet light

Dye spray cans

The sprays are mixed with
fluorescent dyes to allow
vision under black light.

38
Summary

The many contents of this chapter can be grouped into three main areas:
1. Laboratory and industrial testing
Common types of tests: appreciate the steps and procedure of immersion test;
understand the planed internal test; know and recognise test sample designs for various
tests; understand the types of SCC tests; familiar with the standard for pitting test; familiar
with crevice test and the sample designs; rough idea of sensitisation test (not to
memorise)

2. Industrial corrosion monitoring

Understand working principles of hydrogen probe, ER probe, linear polarisation resistance
probe; familiar with monitoring methods of various structures; aware of remote monitoring
equipment

3. Corrosion inspection
Mostly non-destructive testing techniques: dye penetrant test, radiographic method, eddy
current method, ultrasonic techniques.

4. Electrochemical testing
This part is partially covered in Chapter 3. List here for the entirety of knowledge. Not
expected in this chapter.
39