CICNDT LLC

CICNDT is utilizing aerial, surface, and robotic technologies to provide non-destructive testing (NDT) inspections for the oil & gas, petrochemical, civil infrastructure, energy, and utility industries. CICNDT has a program with maintenance and inspection processes to reduce downtime and costs, making them safer and more efficient, all while working diligently to integrate the best platform and payload technologies to meet demanding industry needs.

• High-resolution video/still cameras
• Infrared imagers and gas detection
• Multispectral and hyperspectral cameras
• UV imagers
• Environmental sensors and more

Phased array ultrasonics (PA) is an advanced method of ultrasonic testing that has applications in medical imaging and industrial nondestructive testing. Common applications are to noninvasively examine the heart or to find flaws in manufactured materials such as welds. Single-element (non-phased array) probes, known technically as monolithic probes, emit a beam in a fixed direction. To test or interrogate a large volume of material, a conventional probe must be physically scanned (moved or turned) to sweep the beam through the area of interest. In contrast, the beam from a phased array probe can be focused and swept electronically without moving the probe. The beam is controllable because a phased array probe is made up of multiple small elements, each of which can be pulsed individually at a computer-calculated timing. The term phased refers to the timing, and the term array refers to the multiple elements. Phased array ultrasonic testing is based on principles of wave physics, which also have applications in fields such as optics and electromagnetic antennae.

The PA probe consists of many small ultrasonic transducers, each of which can be pulsed independently. By varying the timing, for instance by pulsing the elements one by one in sequence along a row, a pattern of constructive interference is set up that results in a beam at a set angle. In other words, the beam can be focused and steered electronically. The beam is swept like a searchlight through the tissue or object being examined, and the data from multiple beams are put together to make a visual image showing a slice through the object.

Phased array is widely used for non-destructive testing in several industrial sectors, such as construction, pipelines, and power generation. This method is an advanced NDT method that is used to detect discontinuities i.e. cracks or flaws and thereby determine component quality. Due to the possibility to control parameters such as beam angle and focal distance, this method is very efficient regarding defect detection and speed of testing. Apart from detecting flaws in components, phased array can also be used for wall thickness measurements in conjunction with corrosion testing. Phased array can be used for the following industrial purposes:

• Inspection of Welds
• Thickness measurements
• Corrosion inspection
• Flaw detection

Eddy current testing is based on the physics phenomenon of electromagnetic induction. In an eddy current probe, an alternating current flows through a wire coil and generates an oscillating magnetic field. If the probe and its magnetic field are brought close to a conductive material like a metal test piece, a circular flow of electrons known as an eddy current will begin to move through the metal like swirling water in a stream. That eddy current flowing through the metal will in turn generate its magnetic field, which will interact with the coil and its field through mutual inductance. Changes in metal thickness or defects like near-surface cracking will interrupt or alter the amplitude and pattern of the eddy current and the resulting magnetic field. This in turn affects the movement of electrons in the coil by varying the electrical impedance of the coil. The eddy current instrument plots changes in the impedance amplitude and phase angle, which can be used by a trained operator to identify changes in the test piece. 

Eddy current density is highest near the surface of the part, so that is the region of the highest test resolution. The standard depth of penetration is defined as the depth at which the eddy current density is 37% of its surface value, which in turn can be calculated from the test frequency and the magnetic permeability and conductivity of the test material. Thus, variations in the conductivity of the test material, its magnetic permeability, the frequency of the AC pulses driving the coil, and coil geometry will all affect test sensitivity, resolution, and penetration. 

Corrosion is the degradation of metal usually resulting from interaction with the environment around it.  Over time, corrosion will gradually reduce the original wall thickness reducing the strength.  In the oil & gas industry alone, corrosion can lead to failures, expensive repairs, unscheduled shutdowns and reduced efficiency costing billions of dollars.  With external structures, the outside surfaces are often accessible and easily protected, and so most corrosion cannot be seen, occurring from the inside of closed structures like tanks and pipelines and this can be the most dangerous.

The standard approach for inspection is to measure remaining wall thickness using thickness gauging but there is a growing requirement for corrosion mapping using portable systems with semi or fully automated scanners.  This allows for more complete coverage and better sizing, therefore improving the overall monitoring process and consequent safety.

Corrosion inspection is usually done with dual-element transducers and with the correct gauge, measurements can also be made through a coating or paint. 

CIC NDT offers a range of dual-element hand-held thickness gauges for point measurements with the option for encoded B-scan imaging using a hand-held scanner.  For area corrosion mapping on pipes or vessels, we offer the unique, portable and battery-operated Corrosion Inspection Package for covering large areas with C-scan results. 

Flaw detection is the process of identifying and sizing sub-surface defects in materials.  One of the most common techniques to identify defects is ultrasonic inspection where sound waves, propagated through the material, are used to identify such anomalies. The high-frequency sound behaves predictably when interacting with surfaces and internal defects.

Flaw detection can be applied in almost any industry from composites and metals used in aerospace to petrochemical oil and gas pipelines, storage tanks and power generation including nuclear power.  The most common anomalies include cracks, voids and porosity in metals, ceramics and plastics in addition to delaminations and disbonds in composites. 

Advantages of ultrasonic testing include:

• Access is only required from one side for pulse-echo mode
• The depth of penetration is superior to other methods
• Highly accurate flaw sizing and shape
• Minimal part preparation is required.
• Results are in real-time

Modern portable flaw detectors interpret the distinctive sound echoes given off by the anomalies.   Imaging flaw detectors provide colour and manual or automated scanning ability to generate easy-to-understand, full-field, C-scan images of the material and reduce inspection time dramatically.