Probability of Detection for Applied Ultrasonic Inspection

Acquisition and analysis of inspection capability data for volumetric NDE techniques, such as ultrasonic (UT) or X-ray inspection, set several challenges beyond those faced in quantifying surface techniques such as penetrant (PT) or eddy-current (ET) inspection. For the latter, well-established methodologies have been developed [1,2] and extensively applied. Typically, for both PT and ET, use is made of “synthetic” flaws, which appear to have properties close to those of the naturally-occurring flaws that they represent. Synthetic flaw characteristics such as length, orientation and location may be controlled, and can be confirmed by direct non-destructive measurements