Table of Contents
- Introduction
- What is Non Destructive Testing?
- Industries in the modern era: Adopting new technologies
- Failure Prevention: The Core of NDT
- Non-destructive inspection technologies at the forefront of fault detection
- Brief review of the NDT market
- Integrity evaluation with NDT in failure prevention
- Conclusions
- References
Introduction
Material failures result in significant repercussions in any industrial sector. The timely detection of imperfections in materials plays a fundamental role in ensuring the reliability and safety of production processes; this is where Non Destructive Testing (NDT) becomes important. The application of these methodologies facilitates the inspection and testing of materials and components without incurring damage or compromising the integrity of the asset.
What is Non Destructive Testing?
Non-destructive testing is a multidisciplinary specialty that combines quality and material science. Used to inspect and evaluate materials, components or assemblies without destroying their serviceability. Through a set of test methods, trained technicians identify cracks, inclusions and weld discontinuities, as well as poorly assembled subcomponents1.
They are used to ensure product integrity and reliability, control manufacturing processes, reduce production costs, and maintain a uniform level of quality. Without them, the safety and reliability of components can be seriously compromised; Therefore, NDTs are essential to prevent catastrophic failures, such as aircraft and locomotive accidents, pipeline leaks and explosions, nuclear reactor failures, and ship disasters1.
Among the industries most demanding of these services are: oil and gas, aerospace, power generation, petrochemical, maritime and transportation; while the best known methods are: Radiographic Tests, Magnetic Particles, Penetrating Liquids, Ultrasound , Acoustic Emission, Electromagnetic Tests, Visual Inspection, among others.
Industries in the modern era: Adopting new technologies
Nowadays, most industrial sectors are characterized by continuous research and innovation, which has led to the integration of new technologies in their processes, in sharp contrast to the previous traditional craftsmanship. Keeping up to date and incorporating equipment, machinery and systems equipped with advanced technologies is necessary to optimize productivity, efficiency and safety.
Failure Prevention: The Core of NDT
Each method has its own importance, principles and unique applications, and can be applied individually or collectively. They allow the identification of possible defects, from the stages of manufacture and use, and throughout their useful life, without compromising or altering the integrity of the materials and equipment evaluated; therefore, these methods play a very important role in the proper functioning of all industrial sectors worldwide.
Failure prevention is essential for quality assurance, maintenance planning and risk assessment, ensuring the mechanical integrity of industrial assets.
In the context of aging industries, fault detection is increasingly essential. Over time, the need to employ more sensitive and precise NDT technologies is necessary to obtain reliable results that help maintain the mechanical integrity of existing assets.
To detect failures in materials or equipment, ultrasonic, radiographic, magnetic particle and penetrating liquid tests are commonly used, while, for the prevention of failures, routine inspections, quality controls, continuous monitoring are carried out, and the risks of the products are evaluated. items.
Non-destructive inspection technologies at the forefront of fault detection
New technologies offer precise and efficient solutions, and have considerably evolved the way industrial inspections are carried out today. The inclusion of new developments in these tests provides greater guarantee of the operation of industrial plants.
Non-destructive methods are widespread, with a variety of applications depending on each specific need. For example, the Ultrasound method has developed advanced techniques such as Phased Array Ultrasound (PAUT), Time-of-Flight Diffraction (TOFD), and in more recent years Phase Coherent Imaging (PCI), which are equipped with innovative software, providing high resolution images and guaranteeing quality and high productivity in the results.
Regarding digital radiography compared to conventional radiography, the various advances offer better image quality that allows clearer visualization of the internal structure, which facilitates the detection of defects or anomalies; and can be analyzed in real time, offering quick and efficient evaluations.
Another great advance refers to the automation and robotization of inspections, where equipment equipped with cameras, sensors, thermographs and integration of Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning have been developed that allow advanced analysis of the large amounts of data collected, facilitating the identification of patterns and anomalies.
Brief review of the NDT market
The Mordor Intelligence website offers an analysis of the global NDT Services market, through a report titled “Non-destructive testing market size and share analysis: trends and growth forecasts (2023-2028)” highlighting that “The size of the NDT market is estimated at $2.36 billion in 2023 and is expected to reach $3.37 billion by 2028, growing at a CAGR of 7.35% over the forecast period (2023-2028). )”.
“According to the British Institute of Non-Destructive Testing, more than 25,000 factory and on-site inspections are carried out every day in the UK to detect defects and damage to a wide range of products, plants and structures; It is estimated that there are more than 120,000 inspectors operating around the world.”
The same report indicates that “In addition, various government agencies and regional bodies, such as the American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) and the International Organization for Standardization (ISO), have been created around the world to take strict measures to ensure safety of instruments and supervision of engineering and testing services. This is important to obtain authorizations and certificates from the interested authorities.”
He also highlights that “The NDT market is competitive in nature. With the increase in regulations, which obliges different organizations to undergo a life assessment procedure as a safety measure, along with the periodic inspection required to verify any damage to the equipment and take the necessary measures, a market for these tests is being generated. Therefore, companies are participating in this great opportunity”.
All of the above underlines the importance of rigorous protocols in the application of NDT for effective defect detection and proactive failure prevention, thus highlighting the essence of these tests as fundamental tools in the management of asset integrity and reliability in environments. industrial.
Integrity evaluation with NDT in failure prevention
Each piece, equipment, structure or material has certain criteria for design, operation and expected life. In this sense, evaluations of the integrity and property of the materials are carried out to ensure that the elements function correctly and maintain an acceptable level of safety and efficiency during its life cycle.
This assessment involves the identification and analysis of defects or hazards that could result in minor or catastrophic failures, using non-destructive testing techniques to detect and monitor these anomalies without causing any damage.
Additionally, the adaptability of NDTs enables detailed inspections in various industrial conditions, facilitating accurate integrity assessment that helps plan strategies for scheduled maintenance.
Conclusions
Non Destructive Testing in modern industry is not only important for the detection and prevention of failures, but also highlights how the evolution of these techniques is intertwined with the adoption of new technologies in various industrial sectors. They have established themselves as a fundamental tool to ensure the integrity and reliability of production systems, making operations safer and more efficient.
Innovations in NDT methodologies and their integration with new technologies such as Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning are defining the future of industrial inspection, marking a path towards more accurate and proactive asset management and integrity assessment. With each advance, quality and safety parameters are redefined, fulfilling their role of maintaining integrity in modern industry in the most appropriate way.
