January 2015, Vol. 242, No. 1

TechNotes

Rental Instruments Help Develop Advanced Gas Pipe QC Tests

Aberdeen, Scotland-based Forth Inspection Service hired advanced non-destructive testing (NDT) equipment from Ashtead Technology to develop test methods as part of the quality-control procedures for new gas pipelines.

The test procedures were developed and validated with Alness-headquartered Scotia Automated Inspection Services, a division of ShawCor UK ltd, which is responsible for the ongoing quality-control work. The equipment included a second-generation Olympus OmniScan MX2-P2 Ultrasonic Flaw Detector in conjunction with an Olympus CHAIN Scanner Kit.

“We manufactured welded reference samples with seeded defects and conducted blind trials to assist in the development and validation of the test procedures,” said Forth Inspection’s Darren Kinsella.

“In addition to demonstrating compliance with ASME Code Case 181, the test procedures now offer a measure of weld quality and workmanship while providing sizing and defect characterisation.”

The OmniScan® MX2 is the latest in a line of ultrasonic flaw detectors, stretching back over 20 years, and offers high acquisition rates. The MX2 comes with powerful software features for manual and automated inspection performance, combined with a new streamlined software interface displayed on a large bright touchscreen.

The next-generation MX2 increases testing efficiency, ensuring superior manual and advanced automated ultrasonic testing (AUT) application performance with faster setups, test cycles, and reporting, in addition to universal compatibility with all phased array and ultrasound modules.

The MX2 unit is equipped with advanced features such as the ability to use phased array (PA) and ultrasound testing (UT) channels simultaneously. As a modular platform, the MX2 houses more than 10 Olympus modules and Ashtead Technology’s engineers are able to advise on the best setup for every application.