Assessment of NDE for Pre-Crack Fatigue

Damage in Boiler Pressure Components

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Technical Report
Assessment of NDE for Pre-Crack
Fatigue Damage in Boiler Pressure
Components

1000313

Final Report, December 2000

EPRI Project Manager

R. Tilley

EPRI • 3412 Hillview Avenue, Palo Alto, California 94304 • PO Box 10412, Palo Alto, California 94303 • USA
800.313.3774 • 650.855.2121 • askepri@epri.com • www.epri.com.
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iii
REPORT SUMMARY

Background
Fatigue damage occurs in metal components operating under fluctuating or cyclic stress. Metal
pressure components such as boiler tubing, headers, and steam piping in fossil-fired power plants
operate at variable conditions conducive to generating fatigue damage over the operating life of
the component. To ensure the safe and reliable operation of such components in service, utilities
periodically inspect them using nondestructive evaluation (NDE) techniques for evidence of
damage. Traditionally, the inspections are targeted at detecting late stage creep damage in which
cracking is active in the component. Recent advances in NDE technology provide enhanced
capabilities for detecting damage at earlier stages.

Objective
• To provide a state-of-knowledge review of current NDE technology as applied to the
detection of pre-crack fatigue damage in fossil-fired boiler pressure components, including a
description of the technique, its current commercial availability, and future development
prospects for additional improvement or refinement

Approach
This report was developed through EPRI-sponsored research in NDE techniques, review of
technical literature, and discussions with NDE professionals in the power industry. The
information presented in this report is current at the time of publication, and continuing
development efforts are likely to provide additional tools and techniques. It is planned that this
topic will be periodically revisited.

Results
Currently, several advanced NDE techniques show sensitivity to the microstructural changes that
occur in metal components prior to the initiation of fatigue cracking. Acoustic microscopy,
ultrasonic attenuation, laser speckle pattern analysis, advanced eddy current testing, and acoustic
and magnetoacoustic emission provide the capability of detecting fatigue damage at the pre-
crack stage in fossil boiler applications. These techniques are, at best, in the early stages of actual
field use and have different levels of performance with respect to subsurface damage detection
and damage level calibration. Other techniques, such as selected area diffraction (SAD), show
sensitivity to pre-crack damage but require physical sampling and subsequent analysis. Finally,
some NDE methods are sensitive to local stress conditions and may be useful in a survey mode
to identify areas of likely future fatigue damage. These techniques would require some level of
follow-up testing to better define the extent of damage.

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EPRI Perspective
The ability to detect damage at an earlier stage provides utilities with a longer planning window
in which to take action. This longer action period, in turn, gives utilities the opportunity to
optimize operating, maintenance, and replacement strategies to achieve overall cost reductions.
Continuing technology advances are likely to further improve NDE performance for detection of
early stages of fatigue damage. Of particular note are the continuing improvements in
computational tools that allow more refined signal processing to be undertaken. These tools
improve both the detection sensitivity and the correct interpretation of the NDE data.

Keywords
Fatigue damage
Fossil power plants
NDE

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CONTENTS

1 INTRODUCTION.................................................................................................................. 1-1
1.1 Background............................................................................................................... 1-1
1.2 Boiler Component Applications ................................................................................. 1-2
1.2.1 Boiler Tubing ........................................................................................................ 1-2
1.2.2 Inlet and Outlet Headers and Drums..................................................................... 1-2
1.2.3 Steam Piping ........................................................................................................ 1-3

2 INSPECTION CONSIDERATIONS ...................................................................................... 2-1

2.1 Field Deployable Techniques .................................................................................... 2-1
2.2 Fatigue Measurements.............................................................................................. 2-2
2.3 Stress Measurements ............................................................................................... 2-2

3 REVIEW OF NDE TECHNIQUES FOR PRE-CRACK FATIGUE DAMAGE......................... 3-1

3.1 Ultrasonic Techniques............................................................................................... 3-3
3.1.1 Theory .................................................................................................................. 3-3
3.1.2 Field Practice for Fatigue Damage........................................................................ 3-4
3.2 Magnetic/Electromagnetic Techniques...................................................................... 3-5
3.2.1 Theory .................................................................................................................. 3-5
3.2.2 Field Practice........................................................................................................ 3-5
3.3 Acoustic Emission Techniques.................................................................................. 3-7
3.3.1 Theory .................................................................................................................. 3-8
3.3.2 Field Practice........................................................................................................ 3-8
3.4 Optical Techniques ................................................................................................... 3-9
3.4.1 Theory .................................................................................................................. 3-9
3.4.2 Field Practice........................................................................................................ 3-9
3.5 Nuclear Techniques ................................................................................................ 3-10
3.5.1 Theory ................................................................................................................ 3-10
3.5.2 Field Practice...................................................................................................... 3-11

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4 CONCLUSIONS................................................................................................................... 4-1

5 REFERENCES .................................................................................................................... 5-1

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LIST OF TABLES

Table 3-1 Summary of NDE Techniques for Fatigue Damage ................................................. 3-1

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1
INTRODUCTION

1.1 Background

Metal components subject to fluctuating or cyclic stresses develop damage over time that leads
to failure through crack initiation and growth. The stress at which failure occurs is much lower
than that which would produce failure from a single application of load. Such damage occurring
under cyclic loading is commonly called fatigue [1]. Sources of cyclic stress may be mechanical
(produced by vibration or bending) or thermal (produced by heating and cooling). Boiler
components frequently experience cyclic stresses from both sources during plant operations.

Efforts to accurately model the fatigue damage process have been limited because of the infinite
variety of stressing conditions that can be produced during actual operation of a boiler
component. For example, the fatigue life of a material is different under conditions of high
amplitude stress cycles followed by lower amplitude cycles from that life seen when low
amplitude cycles are followed by high amplitude cycles. Fatigue life is also strongly affected by
the properties of the material and can vary even within a class of similar materials. Accordingly,
periodic inspection for damage—at the cracking stage—has been a key element of life
management strategy for boiler components subject to fatigue damage.

A further distinction for fatigue damage is made on the basis of cycles of loading required to
produce failure. High-cycle fatigue (HCF) is generally defined as occurring above 10 4 applied
cycles with low-cycle fatigue (LCF) defined as below 10 4 cycles. Note that there is no clear
distinction in the nature of damage progression for either range. Accordingly, for the purposes of
nondestructive evaluation (NDE) techniques covered in this report, there is no need to address
this differentiation other than as a factor to be considered in establishing appropriate inspection
intervals. For HCF conditions, the cracking damage initiates and propagates rapidly during the
last 3–10% of component life. Therefore, determination of damage prior to crack initiation is of
great value. For LCF, there is generally a longer interval after crack initiation for crack growth to
the point of failure. In these instances, longer times may be available to monitor crack growth
and avoid failure. The more common fatigue mechanism for boiler components is LCF, which
lends itself to periodic inspection efforts to avoid in-service failures.

Of great interest are the factors that determine the susceptibility to, and rate of accumulation of,
damage to a boiler component experiencing cyclic stress loading that leads to fatigue damage.
EPRI report GS-6693 [1] provides a detailed review of such factors, but it is especially important
to note the role of stress concentration factors arising from both the physical structure and the
metallurgical makeup of the component. Such local stress conditions are keys to actually
producing the fatigue damage and are also capable of being identified through application of
NDE. Section 3 provides a review of several NDE techniques for stress measurements. For the

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Introduction

overall objective of early, pre-crack detection of fatigue damage, the ability to identify areas of
high local stresses may be valuable. These high-stress areas frequently correspond to areas of
fatigue damage. As stated previously, the current NDE approach is based upon periodic
inspection to detect cracking in the component.

1.2 Boiler Component Applications

For fossil-fired power plants, the metal components in the steam generation circuits operate at
varying conditions capable of producing fatigue damage. These components consist of boiler
tubing, inlet and outlet headers, and reheat and main steam piping. The materials used in these
components are typically low-alloy ferritic steels, although types of austenitic steels have also
been used. Sources of cyclic stresses are the normal temperature and pressure variations that
occur in changing power output levels of the plant coupled with flowing media, such as air or
flue gases, water, and steam. In addition, boiler components may experience a combined
degradation from both fatigue and creep factors [1].

1.2.1 Boiler Tubing

Previous EPRI work has identified boiler tube failure mechanisms involving fatigue damage
accumulation [2]. Boiler tubing in all sections of the furnace can suffer fatigue damage as a
result of mechanical, thermal, and combined stresses. Also, corrosion mechanisms at work in the
boiler can produce pitting that, in turn, concentrates stress in a local area that can further
accelerate fatigue damage. This failure mechanism, called corrosion fatigue, is a specific
example of this situation for boiler tubing [2].

Because boiler tube failures typically require that the unit be removed from service as a forced
(or unplanned) outage, the ability to detect damage at an early state is critical. In addition to the
case of the corrosion fatigue mechanism, boiler tubing may experience fatigue damage resulting
from 1) mechanical stresses from attachment or support structures that constrain the tubing
relative to flowing media or 2) thermal expansion and contraction that occur during load
changes. The large number of tubes and the complexity of their structure make inspection a
challenge. Extensive EPRI work on boiler tube failure mechanisms includes guidance in
identifying the most likely locations for fatigue damage to assist utilities in reducing the areas to
be inspected. Small probe sizes and lightweight equipment are essential to field inspections of
boiler tubing.

1.2.2 Inlet and Outlet Headers and Drums

Fossil plant headers are tubular pressure vessels in which steam is either distributed to boiler
tubing (inlet header) or collected from boiler tubing (outlet header) for transmission to the
turbine. Steam drums are used in many fossil plants to separate moisture from steam produced as
water circulates through the boiler tubing heated in the furnace section. Headers and drums
experience operating temperatures and pressures that vary during normal service and can cause
fatigue damage.

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Introduction

Typical superheater outlet headers provide steam to the high pressure stage of the turbine. The
pressure ranges from ~2,400 to 3,600 psi (16.5 to 24.8 MPa) with header wall thickness in the
range of ~3.5–6.5 inches (88.9–165.1 mm). The header is usually fabricated from sections of flat
plate steel that are rolled into a tubular shape and welded. The boiler tubing is connected to the
headers using stub tubes that are welded to counter-sunk holes bored through the header body.
The thickness of the header wall material allows transient thermal stresses to develop during
plant load changes or other operating shifts that can lead to fatigue damage. This is especially
true where physical constraints exist to provide additional stress concentration as the metal
structures expand and contract.
Fatigue damage can develop in the header in a nonuniform manner as a result of temperature and
stress variations seen throughout the component [3]. Variations in temperature are created by the
changing steam flows while varying stress conditions are caused by geometric features and the
presence of weldments.

1.2.3 Steam Piping

Both main and reheat steam piping in a fossil plant typically operate at temperatures above
1,000ºF (538ºC). The main steam line operates at higher pressure and is fabricated with spool
pieces having correspondingly thicker walls. Main steam lines are generally fabricated without
longitudinal seam welds, although some seam-welded spool pieces have been placed in service
in the piping runs from the outlet header in the boiler penthouse. These runs of piping connect to
seamless spool pieces at the wall of the boiler. The piping system is constructed by welding
together individual sections of pipe. The piping support system is designed to allow the piping to
accommodate expansion and contraction during normal plant startup and load changes without
significantly stressing the piping welds. Actual service conditions sometimes produce failures in
the support system such that unexpected stresses are applied to the piping during plant cycles.

Many hot reheat lines are fabricated from seam-welded piping. The reheat piping is typically 18–
42 inches (457–1,067 mm) in diameter with wall thickness of 0.75 to 2.5 inches (19.05 to 63.5
mm). The seam weld is subject to the pressure (hoop) stress during service and exhibits creep
damage much earlier than is seen in the base metal of the pipe wall. EPRI has previously
investigated this situation and provided a comprehensive guideline on managing the life of seam-
welded piping [4]. The life management process includes a periodic inspection of the weldments
to detect damage before actual failure occurs. Historically, the process has involved the ability to
detect early stage creep cracking in which through-wall extent is at least 0.050 inch (1.27 mm)
[4]. Fatigue damage may, however, also be a factor—especially for the circumferential welds
that join individual piping sections.

NDE using high-sensitivity ultrasonic testing has been the dominant inspection technique for
crack damage to the weldments. The ability to detect damage at an even earlier stage would
clearly give utilities greater confidence in avoiding a pipe rupture and increased flexibility in
planning re-inspections and/or pipe replacement.

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2
INSPECTION CONSIDERATIONS

This assessment focuses on inspection technology capable of having a near-term impact on

current practice. Accordingly, a key inspection requirement is that the technique be capable of
being applied to the component at the power plant. Specific considerations in this regard are
summarized in the following subsection.

Consideration is also given to the nature of the inspection approach as it relates to actually
detecting the fatigue damage at an early stage. As indicated previously, the desire is to detect
damage at a stage prior to the formation of cracking. Direct detection of such fatigue damage
would entail detecting and correlating changes occurring in the metal microstructure that lead to
the initiation of fatigue cracking. Alternatively, the inspection may identify susceptible locations
for fatigue damage by accurately measuring the local stresses in the material resulting from
cyclic conditions. Such indirect approaches do not require the absolute resolution of the direct
approach but may still provide earlier indication of fatigue damage than afforded by fatigue
cracking. Both direct detection of fatigue damage and indirect assessment through stress
measurement are reviewed in the subsections that follow.

As discussed in Section 3, “Review of NDE Techniques for Pre-Crack Fatigue Damage,” the
ability to detect damage developing subsurface in the boiler component is a significant issue for
some boiler situations. Most of the techniques reviewed show better performance for near-
surface damage. This limitation must be considered in the application of the inspection
technique. For example, fatigue damage in thick section headers can initiate on the inside surface
and propagate as cracking to the outside surface. Early detection of fatigue in this instance would
eliminate many of the approaches discussed in Section 3.

2.1 Field Deployable Techniques

A starting point in this assessment of NDE techniques for pre-crack fatigue damage was the
requirement that the technique be capable of being applied to the components of interest at the
power plant. In general, this requirement places significant limits on the weight, size, and
complexity of inspection equipment. The power plant environment (which can include high
ambient temperatures and high levels of dust) and component accessibility must also be
considered in evaluating whether an inspection technique is usable in the plant. Techniques that
require scaffolding or similar structures to gain component access and that may require
component preparation for inspection—including insulation removal or surface cleaning—are
not excluded from consideration in this assessment.

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Inspection Considerations

The techniques reviewed in this report are employed by human operators and may consist of
separate sensor and data acquisition systems that are set up in proximity to the component to be
evaluated. Some inspection systems use multiple sensors connected to a data acquisition system.
Setup for inspection can require considerable time but is generally accomplished well within
time constraints during plant maintenance outages. A few techniques can be applied during plant
operations and pose no practical constraints on setup time.

Although the requirement for being field deployable excludes some diagnostic techniques, such
as acoustic microscopy and positron annihilation, it is not intended to be a final factor in this
assessment. Continuing developments in miniaturization of electronic and mechanical
components may bring some techniques into future use.

2.2 Fatigue Measurements

As noted previously, early stage fatigue damage is characterized by changes in the

microstructure of the metal matrix. Direct measurement techniques can detect such changes
within the material prior to the initiation of a crack. Section 3 presents information on several
NDE techniques that have been demonstrated to detect such microstructural changes. In addition,
one technique is cited that requires small physical samples for further processing and analysis.
Current technology makes the obtaining of small samples possible without significantly
impacting the component’s integrity in service. Most of the NDE techniques have limited depth
penetration into the component to detect damage. For fatigue damage, the surface conditions
generally reflect the area of damage in the component; therefore, limited depth penetration is not
viewed as a major shortcoming. Finally, several techniques are referenced that do not currently
meet the requirement for field deployment but may be useful as benchmarking tools used in
conjunction with a field technique.

2.3 Stress Measurements

Stress measurement techniques detect the presence of high local stresses that could likely lead to
fatigue damage. These approaches include ultrasonic testing, acoustic emission (AE) monitoring,
and magnetic property response. In general, a correlation is developed between the presence of
damage and the degree of inspection signal response. Because the actual fatigue damage is not
resolved by the inspection, these techniques require greater attention to equipment calibration
and data interpretation. In addition, a one-to-one correspondence does not exist between high
local stresses and fatigue damage. Creep damage is accelerated under conditions of local stress
and may be active in combination with fatigue damage [1]. Nonetheless, this type of
measurement has enjoyed more recent activity with respect to the development of commercial
systems and offers some current opportunities for actual field use.

This group of techniques has grown considerably in recent years, primarily because of the
availability of low-cost, high-speed computing. Such technology has allowed researchers to both
capture and effectively process more signal information generated by inspection sensors. Further
refinements are likely and mentioned in the sections covering specific inspection techniques.

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3
REVIEW OF NDE TECHNIQUES FOR PRE-CRACK
FATIGUE DAMAGE

This section reviews NDE techniques being applied to the detection of fatigue damage in boiler
components. As noted previously, the techniques are limited to those being applied under field
conditions. The broad techniques of ultrasonic inspection, AE monitoring, magnetic property
response, and field metallography are covered in the subsections. This review summarizes the
theory behind the techniques and notes the results reported to date. Details of specific techniques
are included by reference to published documents and are not included in this review.
Table 3-1
Summary of NDE Techniques for Fatigue Damage

NDE Technique Strengths Weaknesses

Ultrasonic
Signal attenuation Standard, well-developed
equipment used for
measurements. Volumetric
rather than surface sensitivity.
Velocity change Standard, well-developed
equipment used for
measurements. Volumetric
rather than surface sensitivity.
Magnetic/electromagnetic
Eddy current Large technology base that
will facilitate field application.
Advanced techniques show
correlation with fatigue
damage.
Intrinsic variability of material
properties makes calibration
and correlation with level of
damage difficult or adds large
uncertainty.
Small changes in velocity to
correlate with damage.
Intrinsic variability of material
properties makes calibration
and correlation with level of
damage difficult or adds large
uncertainty.
Provides only near-surface
measurements. Intrinsic
variability of material
properties makes calibration
and correlation with level of
damage difficult or adds large
uncertainty.

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Review of NDE Techniques for Pre-Crack Fatigue Damage
Table 3-1 (cont.)
Summary of NDE Techniques for Fatigue Damage
NDE Technique
Magnetic Barkhausen
Magnetic property change
(multiple parameters)
Acoustic
Multiparameter monitoring
Acoustic Barkhausen/
magneto acoustic emission
Optical
Laser speckle pattern
Replication
Nuclear
Positron annihilation
Neutron diffraction
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Strengths
Established sensitivity to both
fatigue damage and stress
conditions.
Shows more robust potential
for correlation with damage
level. Provides correlation with
residual stress. Commercial
equipment is currently in use.
Builds on traditional AE
research and can potentially
be used in an on-line mode.
There is an established
correlation with the
microstructural damage
mechanism leading to fatigue
cracking.
There is an established
correlation with the
microstructural damage
mechanism leading to fatigue
cracking.
This is an established
technique for assessing
surface microstructure.
There is an established
correlation with the
microstructural damage
mechanism leading to fatigue
cracking.
There is an established
correlation with the
microstructural damage
mechanism leading to fatigue
cracking.
Weaknesses
Provides only near-surface
measurements. Intrinsic
variability of material
properties makes calibration
and correlation with level of
damage difficult or adds large
uncertainty.
Intrinsic variability of material
properties makes calibration
and correlation with level of
damage difficult or adds large
uncertainty.
Response characteristics are
not well known and change
with increasing damage prior
to cracking.
Intrinsic variability of material
properties makes calibration
and correlation with level of
damage difficult or adds large
uncertainty.
Provides only a surface
characterization. Field
application to be established.
Requires precision
assessment under difficult field
conditions.
Provides only a surface
characterization. May require
additional databases for
comparison.
Specimen preparation and
equipment required are not
conducive to field application.
Specimen preparation and
equipment required are not
conducive to field application.
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Review of NDE Techniques for Pre-Crack Fatigue Damage

Table 3-1 (cont.)

Summary of NDE Techniques for Fatigue Damage

NDE Technique Strengths Weaknesses

X-ray diffraction
Selected area diffraction
There is an established
correlation with the
microstructural damage
mechanism leading to fatigue
cracking.
There is an established
correlation with the
microstructural damage
mechanism leading to fatigue
cracking. Small physical
specimen allows removal
without impact on component
structural integrity.
Provides only a near-surface
measurement. Specimen
preparation and equipment
required are not conducive to
field application.
Provides only a near-surface
measurement. Specimen
preparation and equipment
required are not conducive to
field application.

3.1 Ultrasonic Techniques

Ultrasonic testing (UT) uses the active injection of a sound wave into a material with the
resulting response being detected and correlated to the presence of defects or damage in the
material. Historically, the technique has been widely used to successfully detect cracking damage
in materials. Newer transducer technology and data interpretation techniques have further refined
the envelope of UT application.

As noted previously, the role of enhanced data acquisition and computing systems is especially
significant in moving UT applications to earlier stages of damage. The UT response can now be
far more completely and effectively captured and analyzed. This includes the capture and
analysis of individual waveforms from the UT signal. This level of data acquisition, in turn,
allows a much higher level of postprocessing to improve both feature interpretation and noise
discrimination. Fundamentally, these developments are the key to moving UT applications to
pre-crack damage assessment.

3.1.1 Theory

To move UT to pre-crack damage detection and characterization requires that the UT signal
generated from interaction with the material of the boiler component be interpretable.
Historically, UT has been used most successfully for planar, or crack-like, defects. Proper
selection of an incident UT beam angle can produce strong reflected signals from such planar
defects that are readily detected and interpreted. Sizing of planar defects is accomplished by the
diffracted signal produced at each end of the defect. For the case of pre-crack detection, the
interaction of the ultrasound with the microstructure of the material must be made and
interpreted relative to fatigue damage. Fortunately, opportunities exist to make such
measurements.

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Review of NDE Techniques for Pre-Crack Fatigue Damage

Research has previously noted the sensitivity of ultrasonic attenuation to microstructural changes
that occur during fatigue tests on small specimens [5]. The movement of dislocations in the metal
lattice is a key prerequisite to fatigue damage and is also a factor in the ultrasound attenuation
response. Other work has looked at fatigue damage impact on other ultrasound parameters [6]. In
this instance, the use of an adaptive learning network to process the acquired ultrasonic data was
able to significantly improve the correlation of test results to levels of fatigue damage. Other
investigations have focused on the use of ultrasound to identify stress conditions [7].
Specifically, ultrasound velocity is affected by applied stress such that refined measurements of
velocity change can be related to the residual stresses in the material.

The challenge to date has been to effectively use this ultrasound sensitivity to broad
microstructural changes in order to assess fatigue life. As noted previously, actual fatigue
performance depends on material properties that can vary significantly even within a specific
material type. This variability is a function of minor material defects, such as inclusions and
vacancies, combined with differing manufacturing and heat treating processes. Ultimately, these
variations in actual fatigue performance must be accounted for in the calibration and
interpretation of the inspection results.

3.1.2 Field Practice for Fatigue Damage

To date, the sensitivity of ultrasound measurements to microstructural changes associated with

fatigue damage has not evolved into a routine, field-applied inspection technique suitable for
boiler components. One key limiting issue is the generally small variations that must be detected
and the corresponding need for sophisticated and costly equipment. The measurements also have
required refined surface preparation that adds to the overall time and cost of inspection. Further,
the issues of inspection calibration and data interpretation have not been resolved to allow
confident inspection of similar boiler components or even different areas on the same
component. The practical ultrasonic approaches in use today are tied to crack growth monitoring
in components operating under conditions of LCF where crack growth occurs over an extended
period of time (such as several operating years).

Work is continuing, however, in this area of direct fatigue assessment using ultrasound. One
recent variation on the inspection technique has employed an electromagnetic acoustic
transducer (EMAT) approach for making measurements [8]. In this case, the EMAT is used to
acquire both attenuation and velocity changes in surface waves. While this technique is still at
the laboratory stage of application, it does use a more robust, multiparameter approach that
allows several paths to correlate damage with NDE data. Further, the laboratory work showed
correlation of inspection results to the actual remaining life of the specimens. As described in
subsequent sections, the use of multiple parameters offers the best prospects for overcoming
material variability and obtaining correlation with actual damage.

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Review of NDE Techniques for Pre-Crack Fatigue Damage

3.2 Magnetic/Electromagnetic Techniques

Magnetic and electromagnetic NDE approaches, most commonly magnetic particle testing and
eddy current testing, have been routinely used to inspect boiler components for cracking damage.
The general basis of inspection centers on damage to the component structure, causing changes
in the response of magnetic and electromagnetic sensors. The critical issues tend to revolve
around the efforts to refine such approaches for earlier—pre-cracking—levels of damage and to
improve their use for damage occurring below the component surface. In addition, the ability to
calibrate such techniques in order to provide absolute assessment of damage is complicated by
the broad variations in material properties, such as those influenced by chemical composition and
levels of minor defects. The material variations may produce sensor responses equal to those
produced by damage.

3.2.1 Theory

As noted for the case of ultrasonic inspection, material changes at the microstructural level that
occur under stress loading (as in fatigue) can be detected through the impact of such changes on
the magnetic response of the material [9]. Microstructural changes, such as dislocation
movement and the formation of vacancies and defects, cause corresponding changes to both the
material magnetic state and the response of the material to an applied magnetic field. Stress has
also been shown to affect material magnetic properties [10, 11].

Magnetic property characteristics such as magnetic hysteresis, permeability, coercivity, and

remanence can be measured as a response to an applied magnetic field. These magnetic
properties may also undergo change as a result of the environmental conditions, especially stress,
experienced by the material in service. By careful correlation of the variations in these
parameters with the microstructural changes occurring in the material, it is possible to use
magnetic response as an NDE technique. The next section briefly describes the variety of
inspection systems that are being developed and used for this purpose.

Further, for ferromagnetic materials commonly used in fossil plant boiler components, magnetic
domains are established within the material and can be made to move with a detectable release of
energy via the Barkhausen effect [12]. These domain wall movements, or jumps, are detected as
voltage pulses in a process called magnetic Barkhausen effect (MBE). The characteristics of the
jumps are influenced by microstructural changes that offer potential correlation with fatigue
damage or stress conditions. As noted previously, stress conditions—especially those producing
local stress concentrations—are key precursors to fatigue damage.

3.2.2 Field Practice

Given that material microstructural changes are reflected in changing magnetic responses, many
different magnetic or electromagnetic NDE approaches have been used to assess material
condition. These inspection approaches may be active, in which a magnetic field is applied to the
material to produce a response detected by a sensor, or passive, in which a sensor is designed to
detect information about the material though the detection of intrinsic magnetic characteristics.
This latter category applies only to ferromagnetic materials.

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The development of these techniques to detect early stage fatigue damage has generally involved
an initial application to monitoring damage accumulation under controlled fatigue tests in a
laboratory. This process helps to identify the sensitivity of key magnetic characteristics—
hysteresis, permeability, coercivity, and others—to changing levels of fatigue damage. Indicative
of this approach for magnetic-based NDE is the Magnescope developed by Jiles, Hariharan, and
Devine [13]. In this inspection approach, remanence and coercivity were correlated to material
damage accumulation under fatigue conditions. Although the results were promising, the
application to boiler components showed significant issues with respect to calibration. Absolute
measurement of damage from a single set of measurements is difficult because of the previously
noted variability in material properties. EPRI-sponsored work in using this approach for creep
damage detection showed similar sensitivity to normal material variations as well as the
variations produced by weldments that made correlation between magnetic properties
measurements and level of material damage difficult [14].

A potential mechanism for resolving calibration issues for some boiler components would be to
use measurement results from an “undamaged” area of the component as a reference point. For
the case of creep damage in seam-welded piping, the areas near the circumferential welds
connecting pipe sections tend to exhibit much slower rates of damage because of the
compressive stresses produced in the vicinity of the circumferential weld [14]. For some boiler
components subject to fatigue damage, a similar approach may be effective but would require
extensive field data to validate. The other key lesson learned from these efforts to exploit
magnetic property changes for damage assessment is that cross-correlation using several
parameters or the interrelationships between parameters tended to produce better results than the
use of a single parameter such as hysteresis loss [15]. The availability of improved data
acquisition systems and more powerful computers for data processing allows better use of such
cross-correlation techniques.

The use of magnetic properties to assess residual stress has evolved to commercially available
inspections services [16]. This application has also been undergoing progressive refinements as
additional field testing results are obtained and compared to destructive evaluations of material
removed from service. The important consideration in using residual stress measurements as
indicators for fatigue damage is that additional operating information must be acquired to allow
determination of the relationship between the stress conditions and the likely development of
fatigue damage. Accordingly, such nondestructive surveys for stress distribution can be useful in
managing fatigue life but are not sufficient for accurate life management. For the case of
magnetic Barkhausen effect (MBE), the development of field deployable testing equipment is
also ongoing. It this instance, somewhat greater success has been achieved in correlating MBE
with stress distributions [17]. Again, field application development is focused on achieving better
correlation between inspection results and actual stress conditions.

Of specific interest in the correlation of magnetic parameters to fatigue damage is work using
advanced eddy current sensors. Eddy current technology and support are generally well
established for detecting macroscopic flaws, such as surface pitting and cracking. Work reported
by Goldfine et al. on fatigue monitoring for aircraft applications provided good correlation
between inspection results and the accumulation of microstructural damage leading to fatigue
cracking [18]. The advanced eddy current approach uses a magnetometer with meandering
windings in conjunction with a grid measurement system to map local, absolute conductivity
values in the structure. Conductivity in the material is influenced by the microstructural

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Review of NDE Techniques for Pre-Crack Fatigue Damage

properties of the material. To date, the focus of this technique has been on aircraft components,
but the technique should allow application to boiler components. Correlation between
conductivity reading and the level of fatigue damage remains to be assessed.

Finally, several companies are marketing inspection devices for stress mapping without an
applied magnetic field [19, 20]. These devices are based on the magnetization effects—called
magnetic memory—produced in ferromagnetic materials during plant operations. The sensor is a
magnetometer capable of detecting the residual magnetism in the material. To the extent that
applied stresses cause orientation of magnetic domains, these sensors are able to assess areas of
tensile and compressive stresses. As noted previously, areas of high local stresses can contribute
strongly to fatigue damage but are not an absolute indicator of fatigue life. These types of survey
measurements are limited to surface conditions and can be invalidated if the component to be
inspected is exposed to external magnetic fields. The devices are, however, low in cost and may
provide a useful screening function. Further assessment of these techniques is desirable.

While none of the techniques reviewed provides a fully proven capability to detect pre-crack
fatigue damage in boiler components, ongoing work suggests that future refinements are likely to
produce usable inspection options. Today, capability exists to assess residual stresses using
magnetic-based techniques [16, 19, and 20]. These techniques are useful for surveying
components for potential areas of future damage but are not a reliable indicator for fatigue
damage.

3.3 Acoustic Emission Techniques

AE techniques have been widely used when damage progresses to the crack initiation and growth
stage. The use of AE is based on the fact that crack growth produces displacement waves that
can be detected and interpreted. The availability of more powerful, low-cost computers and
higher performance electronic equipment offers opportunities to detect and correlate lower level
emissions generated prior to crack initiation. Note also that because the acoustic waves can travel
significant distances with little attenuation, these NDE techniques can potentially be used for
damage occurring on the inside surface of the component being inspected. Finally, the use of
welded waveguides to carry the AE signal from the structure to the sensor allows the possibility
of on-line inspection or monitoring. This may provide an opportunity to overcome issues
associated with calibration of sensor response to actual level of damage.

AE techniques, though sensitive to both the microstructural and the macrostructural changes
occurring in the material, have generally been used to survey components for damage. This is a
result of the difficulty in calibrating specific damage levels with detected emissions. However,
efforts are continuing in this area to take advantage of the multiple signal features contained in
the AE wave to provide correlation to conditions occurring in the material. EPRI continues to
sponsor research in the use of AE monitoring for the detection of early stage creep damage [21].

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3.3.1 Theory

In broad terms, acoustic emission refers to the stress waves produced by a sudden internal stress
redistribution within the material [22]. Such stress redistribution can be prompted by changes in
the material microstructure, such as those caused by dislocation movement, twinning, disbonding
of inclusions, and other factors that lead to crack initiation and growth under applied stresses.
The detection of these waves is typically performed though piezoelectric transducers affixed to
the structure to be tested. The stresses required to activate the AE can be produced in many
components during normal plant operations. In this fashion, AE testing is a passive listening
process in which detected signals are correlated with levels of damage in the structure.
Alternatively, it is also possible to induce emission by an applied magnetic field. The
Barkhausen effect (described in Section 3.2.1) has an analogous acoustic effect referred to as the
acoustic Barkhausen effect (ABE) [23]. Domain wall movement can produce an acoustic wave in
addition to the electric pulses detected through MBE. The ABE is used in a fashion similar to
MBE for possible correlation with fatigue damage and stress states. ABE, also referred to as
magnetoacoustic emission (MAE), has the advantage that the acoustic waves have reduced
attenuation in the material and allow deeper penetration of the inspection process to detect
damage.

3.3.2 Field Practice

AE monitoring to detect material cracks has been used extensively in field applications over the
past several decades with varying degrees of success. The required inspection equipment—
sensors, data acquisition electronics, and a computer system for data analysis—has evolved over
that time and provides additional opportunities to improve the detection limits for material
damage. The multiple characteristics (such as amplitude, duration, rise time, counts, energy, and
frequency) of the AE signal provide the capability of mapping such characteristics to the
response from changes in the material leading to fatigue damage. The current approach is to
perform AE monitoring on fatigue tests in a laboratory to assess the relationships between
emissions and material degradation [22]. The results of such testing have presented both
opportunities and challenges. The opportunities exist because detectable AEs are produced in
materials that have accumulated fatigue damage but have not initiated cracks. These AE signals
are believed to represent a first stage in the evolution of damage in which dislocation movement
and cyclic hardening or softening is causing the emissions [22]. The challenge lies in a second
stage in which emissions are greatly reduced. This stage is believed to represent somewhat
steady-state conditions but requires further investigation. The third stage is, again, acoustically
active and corresponds to crack initiation and growth in which plastic deformation likely plays
the major role. As a result of this current situation from laboratory testing, the use of AE for
early stage fatigue damage has not been significantly attempted on boiler components in plant
environments. These same arguments apply to the use of ABE or MAE.

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EPRI has, however, performed significant work on the use of AE to monitor active crack growth.
Most notably, a guideline document has been produced to cover the use of AE for crack
monitoring in high temperature headers [24]. Although this approach for AE monitoring of
cracking is unlikely to yield significant success in pre-crack damage identification, it may be a
useful approach when the component to be monitored is operating in the LCF regime. Under
LCF, the period after crack initiation can represent a significant part of the component’s total
life. In this situation, on-line AE monitoring would be an effective way to manage component
life if an appropriate correlation is developed between AE response and crack severity. Work of
this type is ongoing in the industry. The current guideline serves as a qualitative standard for
detecting active crack growth; however, the AE monitoring process does not yet correlate to
crack size.

3.4 Optical Techniques

The structure of a material can be examined with a high-resolution microscope to identify

features that correlate with fatigue damage. This is, of course, the basis for physical
metallography that is used to evaluate materials—frequently to confirm the mechanism of
component failure. The critical requirements are the inspection equipment and a well-prepared
surface for inspection. In general, these requirements are not easily met under field conditions at
the power plant. Nonetheless, a process involving replication of the surface of a component using
an acetate film has been routinely used [25]. Further, laser technology has provided another tool
for use in examining surface conditions of a material. The key restriction for these approaches is
that they inspect only the material surface.

3.4.1 Theory

The principle behind optical techniques is that defects that develop in the material and that can
lead to cracking and, ultimately, failure are visible when viewed through a high-resolution
microscope. Trained metallurgists can observe the microstructure of a specimen and classify it as
to level of damage based on comparison with calibration samples of the same type of material
subject to different degrees of fatigue damage. This approach is, however, limited by the same
material and fatigue behavior variations produced by different loading conditions that make
calibration difficult for other NDE techniques. The potential for computer-based, pattern
recognition software and reduced-cost, portable scanning systems may yet make this
fundamental approach to material characterization a field reality.

3.4.2 Field Practice

The metal surface conditions can be viewed nondestructively under a microscope using a process
called replication [25]. In this process, the surface to be viewed is finely polished and etched so
that an acetate film applied over this prepared area with a solvent can record the physical
structure of the material. The acetate replica is then removed and examined under a microscope.
Databases of replica images have been developed to allow the interpretation of the metallurgical
conditions. The accuracy of the damage assessment depends on the quality of the replica and the
experience of the metallurgist.

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An alternative approach is made possible through the fine resolution scanning of a material
surface made possible by use of a laser. A specific technique has used the speckle pattern created
by the reflected laser light illuminating a material surface [26]. The speckle pattern is influenced
by the slipbands in the metal lattice created on the surface as a result of fatigue cycles. Initial
research on this technique used a laboratory fatigue test in which the laser speckle pattern was
captured continuously during the test. An image processing system was used to quantitatively
assess changes in response with increasing levels of fatigue damage. The results showed
correlation between the changes in speckle pattern and the changes in fatigue damage
accumulation. The follow-on steps will center on techniques to apply this technique in a field
environment. For the laboratory tests, the test samples required very high quality surface
preparation and polishing.

3.5 Nuclear Techniques

Although this class of inspection techniques offers the best potential correlation with early
damage because the sensor interaction with the material is at the material lattice level, these
techniques currently fail to meet the general requirements for field deployment. The two major
hurdles are the extent and cost of the inspection equipment and the requirement for refined
material preparation for the inspection. The opportunities for these techniques currently lie in the
validation of field measurements made on similar components. In this situation, the potential for
removing a sample for refined testing is high. This may be especially useful in attempting to
correlate stress measurements to fatigue damage levels. Future developments in equipment
miniaturization may yet bring one or more of these techniques into field use.

3.5.1 Theory

In this group of techniques, interaction at the microstructural level in the material lattice is the
basis for damage detection. The most common approach is based upon a diffraction response of
incident x-rays interacting with the structure of the metal to provide a measurement of lattice
spacing that can be correlated to damage or stress factors [9]. Neutron diffraction is a variant of
this process that allows for deeper penetration into the material. In the case of positron
annihilation, there is an interaction between the incident positrons and atoms in the metal lattice
that produces an indirect measurement of the density of vacancies in the lattice. The vacancy
density can be correlated to levels of incipient damage.

In recent years, EPRI-sponsored research on fatigue damage has found successful correlation
between fatigue damage and a process called selected area diffraction (SAD) [27]. This process
relies on a detailed transmission electron microscopy (TEM) analysis of small specimens
removed from the fatigued component. Of particular note for this study was the effort to consider
correlation with different strain ranges that may impact both the rate and morphology of the
fatigue damage. The TEM analysis is based on the measurement of cell-to-cell misorientation in
grains oriented around the <111> zone axis. The average angular deviation of the cells is
correlated to the level of fatigue damage.

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3.5.2 Field Practice

As noted at the beginning of this subsection, these techniques are not currently used in the field
for boiler component inspections. Several techniques may never evolve to a field deployable
form. Many, however, are used in laboratory environments and to investigate component failures
or validate other types of information. For example, x-ray diffraction has been used extensively
to assess residual stresses in materials. In the case of the SAD, it is important to note that the
specimen examined using TEM is very small: 3-mm diameter by 0.1-mm thick (0.12-inch
diameter by 0.004-inch thick). Such specimens may require the development of a special tool but
could be obtained from many boiler components without significantly affecting the in-service
performance of the component. The issues for more routine application are likely to be the
establishment of correlations for typical boiler component steel and the analysis automation
required to reduce costs.

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4
CONCLUSIONS

Review of NDE techniques for the detection of fatigue damage at a stage prior to cracking has
identified a variety of techniques for potential use in power plants. The current state of the art
provides several options taken from UT, AE testing, and magnetic property change testing that
may be used on metal boiler components.
There are trade-offs to be considered in selecting from the available techniques. Most techniques
are sensitive to microstructural states and are, thus, sensitive to the common material variations
seen in boiler components. This sensitivity makes absolute correlation to the degree of damage
difficult. Detection of pre-crack damage in components likely to experience HCF conditions is
viewed as more valuable because crack initiation and growth occur over a brief time interval
near the actual end of life (component failure by through-wall cracking). For components
experiencing LCF conditions, detection and monitoring of crack growth may be the most cost-
effective life management strategy. In this instance, more traditional NDE processes may be
adequate.
The key is to carefully consider the specific component application and use of information. For
example, assessment of local stresses can be an effective screening tool to identify areas of likely
fatigue damage. The lack of precise fatigue damage information, however, requires that the stress
results be followed by more quantitative NDE, such as meandering winding magnetometer
measurements or small sample removal and assessment to actually characterize the level of
damage. The use of stress testing for an entire component may still make it a cost-effective
approach for screening because the fatigue damage develops locally and nonuniformly. Most of
the inspection techniques are applicable only to near-surface damage detection because the
volume of material influencing the measurements is limited. This factor must be considered
when selecting the inspection method: some boiler components have fatigue damage
mechanisms that initiate on the inside surface, well removed from outside surface effects.
This assessment has not found a specific NDE technique that can reliably and cost-effectively
detect pre-crack fatigue damage for all boiler components. The usual constraints to reliable NDE
performance are tied to inherent variability in the material characteristics of the boiler
components. This level of variability results in misleading interpretation of inspection results
based on microstructural differences. In addition, many of the components experience damage
resulting from other mechanisms (such as creep and corrosion) that interferes with the
assessment of fatigue damage alone. Nonetheless, several promising developments have been
identified that can provide useful information to fossil plant staffs. It is becoming possible to
detect earlier stage damage in critical boiler components. Use of such information will allow
even greater safety and reliability in plant operations. It is planned that this topic will be revisited
on a periodic basis. Ongoing improvements in sensors, support electronics, and computers
coupled with an increasing database of field experience can be expected to yield additional
opportunities to detect early stage fatigue damage.

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5
REFERENCES

1. Damage Mechanisms and Life Assessment of High-Temperature Components. EPRI, Palo

Alto, CA: 1989. GS-6693.

2. Boiler Tube Failures: Theory and Practice. EPRI, Palo Alto, CA: 1996. TR-105261.

3. Life Assessment of Boiler Pressure Parts, Volume 3: Heavy Section Crack Initiation and
Propagation. EPRI, Palo Alto, CA: November 1993. TR-103377-V3.

4. Guidelines for the Evaluation of Seam-Welded High Energy Piping. EPRI, Palo Alto, CA:
September 1996. TR-104631.

5. N. R. Joshi, “Pre-Crack Damage and Crack Propagation Study with Ultrasonic Attenuation,”
Material Evaluation, September 1979, pp. 57–61.

6. J. M. Carson and J. L. Rose, “An Ultrasonic Nondestructive Test Procedure for the Early
Detection of Fatigue Damage and the Prediction of Remaining Life,” Materials Evaluation,
April 1980, pp. 27–34.

7. E. Drescher-Krasicka and J. R. Willis, “Mapping Stress with Ultrasound,” Nature. Vol. 384,
pp. 52-55 (November 1996).

8. H. Ogi, Y. Minami, S. Aoki, and M. Hirao, “Contactless Monitoring of Surface-Wave

Attenuation and Nonlinearity for Evaluating Remaining Life of Fatigued Steels.” Paper
th
presented at the 15 World Conference on Nondestructive Testing in Rome, Italy (October
2000).

9. C. B. Scruby, M. T. Hutchings, and D. J. Buttle, “Nondestructive Methods for Determination

of Residual Stress and Material Degradation and Their Potential for Life Assessment.” Paper
presented at the 3rd International Conference on Engineering Structural Integrity Assessment
in Cambridge, UK (September 1996).

10. D. A. Kaminski, D. Jiles, S. B. Biner, and M. J. Sablik, “Stress Detection in Steels through
Variations in Magnetic Properties.” Paper presented at the Conference on Quantitative NDE
in La Jolla, CA (July 1992).

11. M. J. Sablik, “Modeling Stress Dependence of Magnetic Properties for NDE of Steels,”
Nondestructive Testing Evaluations. Vol. 5, pp. 49–65 (1989).

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References

12. G. A. Matzkanin, R. E. Beissner, and C. M. Teller, “The Barkhausen Effect and Its
Applications to Nondestructive Evaluations,” NTIAC-79-2, Nondestructive Testing
Information Analysis Center, San Antonio, TX, pp. 1–49 (October 1979).

13. D. C. Jiles, S. Hariharan, and M. K. Devine, “Magnescope: A Portable Magnetic Inspection

System for Evaluation of Steel Structures and Components,” IEEE Transactions on
Magnetics. Vol. 26, No. 5, pp. 2577–2579 (September 1990).

14. M. J. Sablik and D. C. Jiles, “Magnetic Measurement of Creep Damage: Modeling and
Measurement,” SPIE Proceedings. Vol. 2947, pp. 166–176 (December 1996).

15. S. Chifan, R. Grimberg, A. Savin, A. Andreescu, R. Steigmann, and V. Palihovici,

“Evaluation of Fatigue State of Ferromagnetic Steels by Magnetic Methods.” Paper presented
at the 15th World Conference on Nondestructive Testing in Rome, Italy (October 2000).

16. D. J. Buttle, “Measurement of Residual Stress Distributions.” Metallurgica, May 1995, p.

205.

17. S. F. Silva Jr., T. R. Mansur, and E. S. Palma, “Determining Residual Stresses in

Ferromagnetic Materials by Barkhausen Noise Measurement.” Paper presented at the 15th
World Conference on Nondestructive Testing in Rome, Italy (October 2000).

18. N. Goldfine, D. Schlicker, and A. Washabaugh, “Surface-Mounted Eddy Current Sensors for
On-Line Monitoring of Fatigue Tests for Aircraft Health Monitoring.” Paper presented at the
Second Joint NASA/FAA/DoD Conference on Aging Aircraft (August 1998). (Copy of paper
provided by JENTEK Sensors, Inc.)

19. S. J. Brzozowski, Z. Moser, and A. Dubow, Use of Magnetic Measurement of Stress

Concentration for Early Detection of Impending Failures in Pressure Elements, unpublished
paper provided by Timcaz Pty Ltd., Turramurra, New South Wales, Australia (March 1995).

20. EMS-2000 Intelligent Magnetic Memory Metal Diagnostic Instrument, sales brochure
obtained from Internet site (www.eddysun-dt.com), June 2000.

21. J. M. Rodgers and R. M. Tilley, “Summary of Field Experience for Acoustic Emission
Monitoring of Seam-Welded High Energy Piping.” Paper presented at the 1999 EPRI Fossil
Plant Maintenance Conference in Atlanta, GA (June 1999). TR-113534-CD, pp. 6D1–6D13.

22. M. Huang, L. Jiang, P. K. Liaw, C. R. Brooks, R. Seeley, and D. L. Klarstrom, “Using

Acoustic Emission in Fatigue and Fracture Materials Research,” JOM-e (web-based
component of JOM). Vol. 50, No. 11 (November 1998).

23. G. L. Burkhardt, R. E. Beissner, G. A. Matzkanin, and J. D. King, “Acoustic Methods for

Obtaining Barkhausen Noise Stress Measurements,” Materials Evaluation. Vol. 40, No. 6,
pp. 669–675 (June 1982).

24. Acoustic Emission Monitoring of High Energy Headers. EPRI, Palo Alto, CA: October 1997.
TR-107839-V1.

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References

25. Life Assessment of Boiler Pressure Parts: Volume 5: European Replica Database
Evaluation. EPRI, Palo Alto, CA: November 1993. TR-103377-V5.

26. A. Kato and M. Hayashi, “Fatigue Life Estimation of Steel Using Laser Speckle Sensor,”
NDT&E International. Vol. 32, No. 3, pp. 139–145 (April 1999).

27. Measuring Fatigue Damage in Materials – Phase I. EPRI, Palo Alto, CA: March 1998. TR-
110250.

5-3
Target:
Boiler Life and Availability Improvement
About EPRI
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