Commonly used non-destructive testing methods for steel pipes

The commonly used nondestructive testing methods for steel pipes include radiographic testing (RT), ultrasonic testing (UT), magnetic particle testing (MT), and penetrant testing (PT), which are called the four major conventional steel testing methods. These four methods are the most commonly used non-destructive testing methods for manufacturing quality testing and in-use testing of pressure-bearing special equipment.

Among them, RT and UT are mainly used to detect the internal defects of the test piece, and MT and PT are mainly used to detect the surface defects of the test piece. Other non-destructive testing methods used for pressure-bearing special equipment include eddy current testing (ET for short), acoustic emission testing (AE for short).

There are many types of rays, among which X-rays, gamma rays, and neutron rays are easy to penetrate materials. These three types of rays are all used for non-destructive testing, among which X-ray and γ-ray are often used for defect detection of pressure equipment welds and other industrial products and structural materials, while neutron rays are only used for some special occasions. Radiographic testing is an important professional category of industrial non-destructive testing. The main application is the detection of macroscopic geometric defects (flaw detection) inside the test piece.