Guided wave testing (GWT) is one of NDT methods using low-frequency ultrasonic waves that propagate along the length of a pipeline. The procedure of GWT consists of cleaning pipe surface, install probe, turn on equipment, acquire data, record pipe information, analyze data, and report the findings. It is fundamentally the same as the conventional ultrasonic testing including testing procedure and analyzing data except using bigger size of ultrasonic probe, using low frequencies of 10 to 250 kHz, and inspecting a long distance of pipeline with a single test location.

Long Range Ultrasonic Testing(LRUT) is one of NDT methods using low-frequency ultrasonic waves. In this video, MsS Dry Coupling Tool has been used for LRUT of road-crossing pipeline, above ground pipeline, CUI application, and PMI application. Although LRUT is similar to conventional ultrasonic testing, it requires lots of training and experience for inspectors to do the field inspection and reporting properly. The difficulties of LRUT come from the long inspection range and the various pipeline conditions that include coating, buried or aboveground, viscosity of pipe content, many geometric features, different sizes of pipe, pipe temperature, and pipe surface condition.

Permanently Installed Monitoring Sensor (PIMS) is installed and left on pipe for guided wave monitoring. PIMS permits monitoring of cased section of pipelines or buried pipelines over time. Magnetostrictive sensor (MsS) monitoring technology provides accurate tracking of defect initiation and growth with time. It was developed for validating the effectiveness of MsS-based guided wave technique for long-term structural health monitoring (SHM) of “cased lines” at road crossings for External Corrosion Direct Assessment (ECDA) and Internal Corrosion Direct Assessment (ICDA).

This video shows how to use MsS sector probe to find small defects on a pipeline. The sector probe allows guided wave focusing on pipeline, pressure vessel, and tank wall. It has short dead zone length and can be used with multiple center frequency MsS Adapters. The sector probe is excellent for inspecting road-crossing, soil-air interface, CUI, pipe support, concrete boundary, and wall penetration.

Guided wave testing (GWT) system consists of MsSR3030R, laptop computer, main cable, adapters, ribbon cables, sector probe, FeCo strip, strip conditioner, and wrap-a-round.Its probes are designed for covering long-length of pipe circumference, for operating at multiple center frequencies to find different sizes of defects, and for propagating ultrasonic wave in different pipe conditions such as buried, coated, attachments, inner contents, and etc...