SonaFlex

Page 1:Set of Portable Multifunctional Equipment for Non-contactUltrasonic Examination of MaterialsSonaFlex

Page 2:2The main application field of SONAFLEX is the execution of ultrasound research works with implication of differentsensor types (EMAT, Piezo), that can be used for defect detection or definition of test object’s dimensions.SONAFLEX can be adjusted in order to achieve exact technical goals and fulfil the customer requirements.Up to 3 frequencies within one unit range of 0,5 – 7,0 MHz;Different types of sensors can be plugged to SONAFLEX: for generation and receiving of acoustic signals withdiverse parameters;Up to 16 independent multiprocessing channels may be implemented;One- or multi-channel transducers based on EMA or Piezo technology are applicable for the device. Phased arraycan be applied with this device as well;16 I.O.to external system connections.All this gives a possibility of wide range using of SONAFLEX.General Overview of the Testing Equipment“SonaFlex” is a unique intelligent ultrasonic testing systemwith flexible hardware architecture.Basic set of equipment could be easily re-configured forgeneration all possible type of ultrasonic waves for anykind of lab or industrial applications:Internal, surface and sub-surface detects detection;Precise wall thickness measurement;Material Properties evaluation.The SonaFlex could be used separately or as the part of automatic or semi-automatic ultrasonic testing systems. At thatall data from electronics unit will be transferred to computing unit by Ethernet or optical cable.This is a high-tech complex set of equipment, realizes atransmitting and receiving of acoustic signals with differentparameters as e.g.:Type of acoustic wave;Frequency;Beam angle;Etc.and makes possibility of using this product for creationof relatively small NDT-systems as well as for executionof different types of lab tests. SONAFLEX is available insome variations.«SonaFlex» system

Page 3:3SonaFlex –perfect portable instrumentfor generation of all kindof Ultrasonic WavesKey advantages of the systemNon-contact examination does not require any couplant. No consumption of water, no environmental and technicalproblems with water recycling;No corrosion of test objects as no water is needed;Equipment can test the object with really wide range of surface temperatures: from - 50°C up to 650°C;Very high notice immunity, achieved by application of sophisticated processing and filtration algorithms of UTESoftware;Gap, inclination of the EMAT-probe make almost no influence on the test results;As a rule, measurements are possible through coating (paint, oil, plastic, glass and etc.);Applied “Modular” design of Test Electronics, provide its convenient, timely replacements without long-terminterruption of testing procedure;Equipment is really ergonomic and allows convenient transportation;Because of hard aluminium case - electronic components are perfectly protected from the damages;Interface for external systems connections (8 inputs, 8 outputs);Light weight and portability.

Page 4:4Principle of generating/receiving of shears waves with EMAT.Waves are generated exactly normal to the surface.The ultrasonic flaw detection method is based on well-known physical principles. The specific of the currentproposal is applying a very modern and sophisticatedtechnology based on so called EMAT – non-contactultrasonic probes. These devices allow one to generateand receive ultrasonic waves without coupling, so that nowater is needed for ultrasonic inspection.General introduction of the EMAT technologyEMAT probe is the best instrument to test metal productsfor internal imperfections. The EMAT transformselectromagnetic energy into the energy of elastic wavesand (after interaction with borders of the material and/ordefects in it) performs inverse transformation.This double transformation is carried out in order to detectdefects in a very reliable and intelligent way.The active element of the EMAT intended for detectionof laminations and wall thickness measurement is anelectrical coil having a special “butterfly” shape (optimalparameters of these kind of coils are found and patentedby Nordinkraft). An example of such coil is representedbelow:Example of a “Butterfly” coil: the perfect device for transmitting andreceiving of ultrasonic waves normal to the surface of the material to betested.A pulse of current in the coil induces the respective eddycurrent of the similar shape in the test object’s surface.Because of the well-known physical phenomena (so called“Lorentz interaction”) some part of the electromagneticenergy is transformed into elastic polarized shear waves.These waves propagate into the material normal to itssurface and reflect from its surfaces and/or imperfections.A “Butterfly” coil is the basic element of the EMAT probefor detecting laminations in plates.One of the key advantages of the EMAT is that theultrasonic waves are generated into material and receivedfrom it without its direct contact with the material; no needin couplant!The second important advantage of the EMAT is thatultrasound is generated always normal to the materialsurface so that the direction of transmitting of ultrasonicwaves is always perpendicular to its surface: regardlessthe probe inclination or test object geometry change (seethe diagram in Fig. below):Inclination of the EMATEMAT is the most effective instrument to transmit andreceive share waves, allowing one to get the bestdetectability and resolution. This factor assumes onemore advantage of the EMAT-technology.

Page 5:5Detecting of Defects by means of SV-share WavesThe physical principle of defect detection is based on receiving and analysis of waves, reflected from the cracks on atop and bottom surface of the sample. These waves are being transform by EMAT to weak electrical signals, which afteramplification and processing are displayed in the A–scan.Detection of crack on the bottom surfacePrinciple of ultrasonic SV-waves generation with EMATFor cracks on the bottom surface, signal in the A-scan is correspond with the wave witch propagates from point A,reflects at point B and than being received at A.It is very easy to keep the angle β stable with the EMAT:the beam angle do not depend on the probe inclinationand test object dimensions or shape. On the contrary, apiezo probe will not work in our case: even a little ultrasonicbeam inclination or change of the tube shape (that ispractically inevitable with piezo probes) will immediatelyinfluence the beam angle.This phenomenon allows one to extend distances foroptimal detection of defects located on both sides of thewall. This is a very important feature of the EMAT as itsubstantially increases an industrial reliability of the testresults. This is a great advantage of the EMAT-technology.Thus, SV- waves transmitted by the EMATare an extremelyeffective instrument to detect internal and external defectsin flat samples, tubes, pipes, cylinders, and etc.Inclination of the EMAT

Page 6:6Equipment CompositionBasic set of SonaFlex equipment consist of the followingmain components:Test Electronics Unit;Electromagnetic Acoustic Transducer (EMAT);Control Computing Unit with installed UT Software.Detecting of Surface Defect by Means of EMATBased on the physical principle described above, EMAT probes are developed for ultrasonic inspection of surface orsubsurface of materials. EMAT transforms electromagnetic energy into the energy of surface elastic waves and (afterinteracting with defects) performs the inverse transformation. This double transformation is carried out in order to detectsurface and subsurface defects in a very reliable and intelligent way without mechanical rotation of probes.Generation of Surface waves by means of EMATPrinciple of surface defects detection by EMATSonaFlex composition

Page 7:7Test Electronics UnitTest electronics unit is the main part of the equipment. It is intended for generating of initial pulses, pre-amplification,amplification, processing, and filtering signals received from the test object.All test electronics components are assembled in a well-protected, airtight aluminium case with IP 65 protection level.Depending on the customer request – different configurations of the Test Electronics Unit is available. Basic type of TestElectronics Unit is shown on the figure below:Test Electronics UnitThe simplified principles of the test electronics operation are shown in the diagram below:General structure of the test electronicsComputing Unit supplies the FS-6A board with thepre-adjusted algorithm of operation (yellow line in thediagram). Electronic Equipment Controller (EECU) is apart of ADC7 board. Generator GE generates initial tonebursts (violet line in the diagram) in the coil of the probe.Ultrasonic waves are transmitted into the pipe.Ultrasonic waves are reflected by walls borders andreceived by the same coil the probe.The signals are pre-amplified by the preamplifiers PA andgo to the PR8В unit for the analog processing. ADC-7 unitcontrols the gain of the PR8D board. It can be controlledautomatically.After the final amplification, signals are entering the ADC-7 board for being digitalized and processed.Signals processing contains digital filtering and measuringof the relevant informative parameters.Digital signal processing includes also up to 64 cycles ofcoherent accumulation (averaging), detection, filtration,gating and assessment of received signals’ peak values.Data-flow from ADC-7 is transmitted to Computing Unit viathe Ethernet (green line in diagram). This data from ADC-7 is entering Computing Unit for secondary processing,storing and representing.

Page 8:8Design of the EMATEMAT probe for research/monitoring applications have a common appearance but different internal organization – shapeand dimensions of active element as well as configuration of permanent magnet should be specified for generation ofdifferent type of Ultrasonic Waves.EMAT probes for research/monitoring applicationsEMAT (electromagnetic-acoustic transducer)EMAT-probe is a very important component of the equipment. EMAT generates ultrasonic and receives ultrasonic wavesin the material by means of the electromagnetic-acoustic transformation. Transmitted ultrasonic waves propagatethrough the material, reflect from the opposite surface, and come back to the probe. In the receiving mode the EMATtransforms acoustical vibration of the TO surface into electrical signals.Typical probes for Lab applications are shown on the figure below:EMAT for wall thickness measurementand lamination detection;EMAT for angular ultrasound excitation; EMAT for surface waves generation/receiving

Page 9:9UTE SoftwareThe flexible UTE-software is an intellectual product of Nordinkraft AG. The same software is applicable for all theequipment produced and developed by Nordinkraft Group.Main functions of the UTE software are: The operation software is based on WINDOWS and provides TCP/IP interfaces to other WINDOWS programs; Support of EMAT- and Piezoelectric Probes; Support of TR-Probes and Phased Array Probes; Wall thickness measurement; Support of configurations for inspection of plates, strips, bars, billets and pipes; Support of up to 16 zones in the test object with separate testing standards and criteria; Fully adjustable test settings; Real-time visualization of test process; A-scan, B-scan, C-scan for every channel; Logging of test results in a database; Automatic adjustment of equipment parameters; Support of re-evaluation of testing results using new settings; Automatic test results saving in PDF format; Sensitivity adjustment window; "Channel State” window; “Test Results” window; “DAC” adjustment window; A-scan dynamic memory function; Test reports in accordance with supported standards.UTE software: A-scan, gates positions window, channels diagnostics window (for reference)

Page 10:10Main Technical Data of the EquipmentOverall DimensionsElectronic Unit 600mm x 240mm x160mm (LxWxH)EMAT 40mm x 55mm (øxH)Computing Unit To be discussed with the customerWeightElectronic Unit 15 kgEMAT 178 gComputing Unit To be discussed with the customerPower SupplyPower voltage a.c. 110-230 VNumber of phases 1Frequency 50-60HzPower consumption, about 400WAir temperature -20°C up to 50°CTemperature of the test object -50°C up to 650°CDisplay of results In millimetres or inchesRange of wall thickness to be measured 1.5 -100 mmTypical precision of measurements 0.05mmAllowed gap between the EMAT and metal(pipe material is to be ferromagnetic)Up to 4 mm, depends on pipe surface, geometryand physical properties of the materialType of transmitted/received ultrasonic wave polarized-share waveNominal range of effective working frequency 4 – 7 MHzFrequency of the initial pulses repetition Up to 4kHz

Page 11:11For more information please contact us or send us the descriptionof your technical requirements, in order to define relevantparameters.info@nordinkraft.deWe are sure, we’ll find the best way forquality improvement of your engines!

Page 12:NORDINKRAFT AGRömerstraße 13 D-71296 HeimsheimTelefon: 49 (0) 7033 30 59 70Fax: 49 (0) 7033 30 59 799E-Mail: info@nordinkraft.dewww.nordinkraft.dePlate testing equipment EMATEST-PL / EMASCAN-PLPipe testing equipment EMATEST-PIBar & billet testing equipment EMATEST-BBEMATEST – BB WireTube testing equipment EMATEST-TUPortable EMAT thickness gauge NKD-019E UltrasonicWe are sure, we’ll find the best way forquality improvement of your engines!