Post-Emulsifiable method 23
CLEAN
DRY
PENETRANT
DRAIN
EMULSIFY
RINSE
DRY AQUEOUS DEVELOPER DRY
DRY DEVELOPER DRY NON AQUEOUS
DEVELOP
REJECT INSPECT ACCEPT CLEAN
Solvent removal method 24
This is oil based inspection process. This is used primarily for inspecting small
localized areas. This method requires hand wiping the surface with a cloth
moistened with the solvent remover, and is, therefore, too labor intensive for
most production situations.
When a solvent removable penetrant is used, care must also be taken to carefully
remove the penetrant from the part surface while removing as little as possible from
the flaw.
The first step in this cleaning procedure is to dry wipe the surface of the part in one
direction using a white, lint-free, cotton rag. One dry pass in one direction is all that
should be used to remove as much penetrant as possible.
Next, the surface should be wiped with one pass in one direction with a rag
moistened with cleaner. One dry pass followed by one damp pass is all that is
recommended. Additional wiping may sometimes be necessary; but keep in mind
that with every additional wipe, some of the entrapped penetrant will be removed
and inspection sensitivity will be reduced.
Solvent removal method 25
CLEAN
DRY
PENETRANT
DRAIN
SOLVENT WIPE
NON AQUEOUS DEVELOPER
DRY
DEVELOP
INSPECT ACCEPT
REJECT CLEAN
Quality control of penetrant 26
Quality control of the penetrant inspection process is essential to get good and consistent
results. Since several steps and materials are involved in the inspection process, there are
quality control procedures for each of them.
The quality of a penetrant inspection is highly dependent on the quality of the
penetrant materials used. Only products meeting the requirements of an industry
specification, such as AMS 2644, should be used. Deterioration of new penetrants
primarily results from aging and contamination.
Virtually all organic dyes deteriorate over time, resulting in a loss of color or fluorescent
response, but deterioration can be slowed with proper storage. When possible, keep the
materials in a closed container and protect from freezing and exposure to high heat.
Contamination can occur during storage and use. Of course, open tank systems are much
more susceptible to contamination than are spray systems. Regular checks must be
performed to ensure that the material performance has not degraded.
penetrant is first received from the manufacturer, a sample of the fresh solution should be
collected and stored as a standard for future comparison. The standard specimen should be
stored in a sealed, opaque glass or metal container
Lighting for Penetrant 27
After a component has been properly processed, it is ready for inspection. While
automated vision inspection systems are sometimes used, the focus here will be on
inspections performed visually by a human inspector, Proper lighting is of great
importance when visually inspecting a surface for a penetrant indication. Obviously, the
lighting requirements are different for an inspection conducted using a visible dye
penetrant than they are for an inspection conducted using a fluorescent dye penetrant.
Visible Dye Fluorescent Dye
Penetrant penetrant
• Inspections can be conducted • Since fluorescent brightness is linear with respect
using natural lighting or to ultraviolet excitation, a change in the intensity
artificial lighting. of the light (from age or damage) and a change in
the distance of the light source from the surface
• When using natural lighting, it
being inspected will have a direct impact on the
is important to keep in mind
inspection.
that daylight varies from hour
to hour, so inspectors must • For UV lights used in component evaluations, the
stay constantly aware of the normally accepted intensity is 1000 microwatt per
lighting conditions and make square centimeter when measured at 15 inches
adjustments when needed. from the filter face (requirements can vary from
800 to 1200 µW/cm2).
APPLICAIONS & 28
LIMITATIONS
APPLICATIONS
The method is capable of detecting discontinuities open to the surface of the
material under test. These are usually cracks, laps, seams, porosity etc. in products
like pressure vessels, pipes, weld joints etc.
Penetrant method is very reliable in the detection of fatigue cracks which occur
during the service life of a material. Penetrant method has a significant advantage
over other NDT methods.
part can be tested over its complete surface in a relatively short time, irrespective of
shape, size and orientation of the defect.
LIMITATIONS
Extensive, time-taking pre-cleaning critical—surface contaminants can mask defects.
Sensitive to surface-breaking defects only.
Direct connection to the surface under test necessary.
Works on relatively non-porous surface materials only.
No depth sizing.
Multi-process testing procedure.
Time-taking; post-cleaning also necessary.
No recordable data handy for progress monitoring.
User dependent.
Environmental concerns—may require disposing of chemicals and expensive handling.
Properties of good penetrant
Wetting Ability:
A good penetrant should have excellent wetting ability, meaning it can
easily spread and cover the surface, ensuring complete and even
coverage.
Penetration:
It must be able to penetrate into even the smallest surface-breaking
defects by capillary action.
Retention:
The penetrant should remain within the defects after excess is
removed from the surface, allowing for easy detection.
Removability:
It should be easily removable from the surface after the inspection
process, allowing for post-inspection cleaning or coating.
Visibility:
The penetrant should be highly visible or fluoresce brightly to
produce clear indications of defects.
Safety:
The penetrant should not be harmful to the material being tested or
the inspector.
Viscosity:
A low to medium viscosity is ideal to ensure the penetrant can
quickly seep into fine cracks while also being easy to apply.
Dwell Time:
The time the penetrant is allowed to remain on the surface directly
affects the sensitivity of defect detection. Longer dwell times
generally lead to increased penetrant absorption into defects,
resulting in higher sensitivity.
Specific Gravity:
Penetrant chemicals used in a tank system must have a specific
gravity less than one, to assure that water will not float on top of the
penetrant and prevent the penetrant from covering the test object