3 Eddy Current NDE

3.1 Inspection Techniques

3.2 Instrumentation
3.3 Typical Applications
3.4 Special Example
3.1 Inspection Techniques
Coil Configurations
voltmeter
testpiece
oscillator
excitation
coil
sensing coil
~
voltmeter
testpiece
oscillator
coil
Z
o
~
Hall or GMR detector
voltmeter
testpiece
oscillator
excitation
coil
~ ~
differential coils
coaxial rotated parallel
Remote-Field Eddy Current Inspection
Remote Field Remote Field Near Field
exciter coil ferromagnetic pipe sensing coil
ln(H
z
)
z
low frequency operation (10-100 Hz)

Exponentially decaying eddy currents
propagating mainly on the outer surface
cause a diffuse magnetic field that leaks both
on the outside and the inside of the pipe.
0
1
r
f
o =
t o
/
0
z
z z
H H e
o
=
Time
S
i
g
n
a
l

Main Modes of Operation
single-frequency time-multiplexed multiple-frequency
frequency-multiplexed multiple-frequency

pulsed
Time
S
i
g
n
a
l

Time
S
i
g
n
a
l

Time
S
i
g
n
a
l

excited signal (current) detected signal (voltage)
2
D
t ~ o
Nonlinear Harmonic Analysis
single frequency, linear response
nonlinear harmonic analysis
Time
S
i
g
n
a
l

Time
S
i
g
n
a
l

H
B
ferromagnetic phase
(ferrite, martensite, etc.)
3.2 Eddy Current
Instrumentation
Single-Frequency Operation
low-pass
filter
low-pass
filter
oscillator
driver
amplifier
+
_
90 phase
shifter
A/D
converter
display
probe coil(s)
driver
impedances
processor
phase
balance
V-gain
H-gain
V
r
V
m
V
q
m s s r o q o
cos( ), cos( ), sin( ) V V t V V t V V t = e = e = e
| |
m r s s o s o s s
1
cos( ) cos( ) cos( ) cos(2 )
2
V V V t V t V V t = e e = + e
| |
m q s s o s o s s
1
cos( ) sin( ) sin( ) sin(2 )
2
V V V t V t V V t = e e = + e
o o
m r s s m q s s
cos( ), sin( )
2 2
V V
V V V V V V = =
Nonlinear Harmonic Operation
low-pass
filter
low-pass
filter
n divider
driver
amplifier
+
_
90 phase
shifter
A/D
converter
display
probe coil(s)
driver
impedances
processor
phase
balance
V-gain
H-gain
oscillator
V
r
V
m
V
q
m s1 s1 s2 s2 s3 s3
cos( ) cos(2 ) cos(3 ) ... V V t V t V t = e + e + e +
r o
cos( ) V V n t = e
o
m r s s
cos( )
2
n n
V
V V V =
q o
sin( ) V V n t = e
o
m q s s
sin( )
2
n n
V
V V V =
Specialized versus General Purpose
Nortec 2000S system Agilent 4294A system*
frequency range* 0.1 10 MHz 0.1-80 MHz
probe coil three pencil probes single spiral coil
relative accuracy 0.1-0.2% 0.05-0.1%
frequency scanning manual electronic
measurement time 50 minutes for 21 points 3 minutes for 81 points
*high-frequency application
I
1
V
2
u
11
V
1
I
2
u
22
u
12
u
21
,
Probe Considerations
V Z I =
*
wire
Z i L R = e +
sensitivity
thermal stability
eddy current
ferrite-core coil
high coupling
high coupling
eddy current
air-core coil
high coupling
low coupling
eddy current
flat air-core coil
high coupling
flexible, low self-capacitance, reproducible, interchangeable, economic, etc.
I
u
V
1 11 12 1
2 12 22 2
V Z Z I
V Z Z I
( ( (
=
( ( (

*
12 12
Z i L = e
topology
3.3 Eddy Current NDE
Applications
conductivity measurement
permeability measurement
metal thickness measurement
coating thickness measurements
flaw detection
3.3.1 Conductivity
Conductivity versus Probe Impedance
constant frequency
0
0.2
0.4
0.6
0.8
1
0 0.1 0.2 0.3 0.4 0.5
Normalized Resistance
N
o
r
m
a
l
i
z
e
d

R
e
a
c
t
a
n
c
e

Stainless
Steel, 304
Copper
Aluminum, 7075-T6
Titanium, 6Al-4V
Magnesium, A280
Lead
Copper 70%,
Nickel 30%
Inconel
Nickel
Conductivity versus Alloying and Temper
IACS = International Annealed Copper Standard

IACS
= 5.810
7

-1
m
-1
at 20 C

IACS
= 1.724110
-8
m
20
30
40
50
60
C
o
n
d
u
c
t
i
v
i
t
y

[
%

I
A
C
S
]

T3 T4
T6
T0
2014
T4
T6
T0
6061
T6
T73
T76
T0
7075 2024
T3 T4
T6
T72
T8
T0
Various Aluminum Alloys
Apparent Eddy Current Conductivity
high accuracy (s 0.1 %)
controlled penetration depth
specimen
eddy currents
probe coil
magnetic field
0
0.2
0.4
0.6
0.8
1.0
0.1 0 0.2 0.3 0.4 0.5
lift-off
curves
conductivity
curve
(frequency)
Normalized Resistance
N
o
r
m
a
l
i
z
e
d

R
e
a
c
t
a
n
c
e

o,
l
o = o
2
o =
o
1
= 0
l
= s
l
1
2
3
4
Normalized Resistance
N
o
r
m
a
l
i
z
e
d

R
e
a
c
t
a
n
c
e

Lift-Off Curvature
inductive
(low frequency)
capacitive
(high frequency)
Horizontal Component

V
e
r
t
i
c
a
l

C
o
m
p
o
n
e
n
t



lift-off
.

conductivity

2

1

= s = 0
Horizontal Component

V
e
r
t
i
c
a
l

C
o
m
p
o
n
e
n
t



.

conductivity
lift-off

2

1

= s = 0
Inductive Lift-Off Effect
-2.0
-1.5
-1.0
-0.5
0.0
0.5
1.0
1.5
2.0
0.1 1 10 100
Frequency [MHz]
R
e
l
a
t
i
v
e

A
E
C
C

[
%
]




.
-2.0
-1.5
-1.0
-0.5
0.0
0.5
1.0
1.5
2.0
0.1 1 10 100
Frequency [MHz]
R
e
l
a
t
i
v
e

A
E
C
C

[
%
]



.
63.5 m
50.8 m
38.1 m
25.4 m
19.1 m
12.7 m
6.4 m
0.0 m
-10
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
0.1 1 10 100
Frequency [MHz]
A
E
C
L

[

m
]



.
-10
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
0.1 1 10 100
Frequency [MHz]
A
E
C
L

[

m
]



.

.
63.5 m
50.8 m
38.1 m
25.4 m
19.1 m
12.7 m
6.4 m
0.0 m
4 mm diameter 8 mm diameter
1.5 %IACS 1.5 %IACS
Instrument Calibration
-0.5
0.0
0.5
1.0
1.5
2.0
2.5
3.0
0.1 1 10 100
Frequency [MHz]
A
E
C
C

C
h
a
n
g
e

[
%
]


.
12A Nortec
8A Nortec
4A Nortec
12A Agilent
8A Agilent
4A Agilent
12A UniWest
8A UniWest
4A UniWest
12A Stanford
8A Stanford
4A Stanford
Nortec 2000S, Agilent 4294A, Stanford Research SR844, and UniWest US-450
conductivity spectra comparison on IN718 specimens of
different peening intensities.
3.3.2 Permeability
Magnetic Susceptibility
0
0.2
0.4
0.6
0.8
1.0
0.1 0 0.2 0.3 0.4 0.5
lift-off
frequency
(conductivity)
Normalized Resistance
N
o
r
m
a
l
i
z
e
d

R
e
a
c
t
a
n
c
e

permeability
Normalized Resistance
N
o
r
m
a
l
i
z
e
d

R
e
a
c
t
a
n
c
e

0
1
2
3
4
0 0.2 0.4 0.6 0.8 1 1.2
2
3
1

r
= 4
permeability
moderately high susceptibility low susceptibility
paramagnetic materials with small ferromagnetic phase content
increasing magnetic susceptibility decreases the
apparent eddy current conductivity (AECC)
frequency
(conductivity)
Magnetic Susceptibility versus Cold Work
10
-4
10
-3
10
-2
10
-1
10
0
10
1
0 10 20 30 40 50 60
Cold Work [%]
M
a
g
n
e
t
i
c

S
u
s
c
e
p
t
i
b
i
l
i
t
y

SS304L
IN276
IN718
SS305
SS304
SS302
IN625
cold work (plastic deformation at room temperature) causes
martensitic (ferromagnetic) phase transformation
in austenitic stainless steels
3.3.3 Metal Thickness
Thickness versus Normalized Impedance
thickness loss due to corrosion, erosion, etc.
probe coil
scanning
0
0.2
0.4
0.6
0.8
1
0 0.1 0.2 0.3 0.4 0.5 0.6
thick
plate
Normalized Resistance
N
o
r
m
a
l
i
z
e
d

R
e
a
c
t
a
n
c
e

thin
plate
lift-off
thinning
-0.2
0
0.2
0.4
0.6
0.8
1
0 1 2 3
Depth [mm]
R
e

{

F

}

f = 0.05 MHz
f = 0.2 MHz
f = 1 MHz
aluminum ( = 46 %IACS)
/ /
( )
x i x
F x e e
o o
=
Thickness Correction
1.0
1.1
1.2
1.3
1.4
0.1 1 10
Frequency [MHz]
C
o
n
d
u
c
t
i
v
i
t
y

[
%
I
A
C
S
]

1.0 mm
1.5 mm
2.0 mm
2.5 mm
3.0 mm
3.5 mm
4.0 mm
5.0 mm
6.0 mm
thickness
Vic-3D simulation, Inconel plates ( = 1.33 %IACS)
a
o
= 4.5 mm, a
i
= 2.25 mm, h = 2.25 mm
3.3.4 Coating Thickness
Non-conducting Coating
non-conducting
coating
probe coil, a
o
t
d

conducting substrate
a
o
> t, d > , AECL = + t
-10
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
0.1 1 10 100
Frequency [MHz]
A
E
C
L

[

m
]

-10
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
0.1 1 10 100
Frequency [MHz]
A
E
C
L

[

m
]

63.5 m
50.8 m
38.1 m
25.4 m
19.1 m
12.7 m
6.4 m
0 m
a
o
= 4 mm, simulated
lift-off:
a
o
= 4 mm, experimental
Conducting Coating
conducting
coating
probe coil, a
o
t
d

conducting substrate (
s
,
s
)
approximate: large transducer, weak perturbation
equivalent depth:
( )
e
1
AECC( )
2
s s
f
f
| |
~ o o = o |
|
t o
\ .
2
1
( ) AECC
4
s s
z
z
| |
o ~ |
|
t o
\ .
s
e
2
o
o =
analytical: Fourier decomposition (Dodd and Deeds)
numerical: finite element, finite difference, volume integral, etc.
(Vic-3D, Opera 3D, etc.)
z
J
e
z =
e
Simplistic Inversion of AECC Spectra
A
E
C
C

C
h
a
n
g
e

[
%
]
-0.2
0
0.2
0.4
0.6
0.8
1
1.2
0.001 0.1 10 1000
Frequency [MHz]
A
E
C
C

C
h
a
n
g
e

[
%
]
-0.2
0
0.2
0.4
0.6
0.8
1
1.2
0.001 0.1 10 1000
Frequency [MHz]
Depth [mm]
C
o
n
d
u
c
t
i
v
i
t
y

C
h
a
n
g
e

[
%
]
-0.2
0
0.2
0.4
0.6
0.8
1
1.2
0 0.2 0.4 0.6 0.8 1
input profile
inverted from
AECC
uniform
Depth [mm]
C
o
n
d
u
c
t
i
v
i
t
y

C
h
a
n
g
e

[
%
]
-0.2
0
0.2
0.4
0.6
0.8
1
1.2
0 0.2 0.4 0.6 0.8 1
input profile
inverted from
AECC
Gaussian
0.254-mm-thick surface layer of 1% excess conductivity
3.3.5 Flaw Detection
Impedance Diagram
Normalized Resistance
0
0.2
0.4
0.6
0.8
1
0 0.1 0.2 0.3 0.4 0.5
conductivity
(frequency)
crack
depth
flawless
material

1
lift-off
N
o
r
m
a
l
i
z
e
d

R
e
a
c
t
a
n
c
e

2
apparent eddy current conductivity (AECC) decreases
apparent eddy current lift-off (AECL) increases
Crack Contrast and Resolution
probe coil
crack
0
0.2
0.4
0.6
0.8
1
0 1 2 3 4 5
Flaw Length [mm]

N
o
r
m
a
l
i
z
e
d

A
E
C
C

semi-circular crack
-10% threshold
detection
threshold
a
o
= 1 mm, a
i
= 0.75 mm, h = 1.5 mm
austenitic stainless steel, = 2.5 %IACS,
r
= 1
Vic-3D simulation
f = 5 MHz, ~ 0.19 mm
Eddy Current Images of Small Fatigue Cracks
Al2024, 0.025-mil crack
Ti-6Al-4V, 0.026-mil-crack
0.5 0.5, 2 MHz, 0.060-diameter coil
probe coil
crack
Crystallographic Texture
= o J E
1 1 1
2 2 2
3 3 3
0 0
0 0
0 0
J E
J E
J E
o ( ( (
( ( (
= o
( ( (
( ( ( o

generally anisotropic hexagonal (transversely isotropic)
1 1 1
2 2 2
3 2 3
0 0
0 0
0 0
J E
J E
J E
o ( ( (
( ( (
= o
( ( (
( ( ( o

cubic (isotropic)
1 1 1
2 1 2
3 1 3
0 0
0 0
0 0
J E
J E
J E
o ( ( (
( ( (
= o
( ( (
( ( ( o

1
conductivity normal to the basal plane

2
conductivity in the basal plane
polar angle from the normal of the basal plane

m
minimum conductivity in the surface plane

M
maximum conductivity in the surface plane

a
average conductivity in the surface plane
2 2
a 1 2
( ) [ sin (1 cos )] o u = o u + o + u
2 2
n 1 2
( ) cos sin o u = o u + o u
M 2
o = o
1 2
o < o
2 2
m 1 2
( ) sin cos o u = o u + o u
x
1
x
3
x
2
basal plane

surface plane

M
Electric Birefringence Due to Texture

1.00
1.01
1.02
1.03
1.04
1.05
0 30 60 90 120 150 180
Azimuthal Angle [deg]
C
o
n
d
u
c
t
i
v
i
t
y

[
%
I
A
C
S
]

highly textured Ti-6Al-4V plate equiaxed GTD-111
1.30
1.32
1.34
1.36
1.38
1.40
0 30 60 90 120 150 180
Azimuthal Angle [deg]
C
o
n
d
u
c
t
i
v
i
t
y

[
%
I
A
C
S
]

500 kHz, racetrack coil
Grain Noise in Ti-6Al-4V
as-received billet material solution treated and annealed heat-treated, coarse
heat-treated, very coarse heat-treated, large colonies equiaxed beta annealed
1 1, 2 MHz, 0.060-diameter coil
Eddy Current versus Acoustic Microscopy
5 MHz eddy current 40 MHz acoustic
1 1, coarse grained Ti-6Al-4V sample
Inhomogeneity
AECC Images of Waspaloy and IN100 Specimens
homogeneous IN100
2.2 1.1, 6 MHz
conductivity range ~1.33-1.34 %IACS
0.4 % relative variation
inhomogeneous Waspaloy
4.2 2.1, 6 MHz
conductivity range ~1.38-1.47 %IACS
3 % relative variation
Conductivity Material Noise
1.30
1.32
1.34
1.36
1.38
1.40
1.42
1.44
1.46
1.48
1.50
0.1 1 10
Frequency [MHz]
A
E
C
C

[
%
I
A
C
S
]

Spot 1 (1.441 %IACS)
Spot 2 (1.428 %IACS)
Spot 3 (1.395 %IACS)
Spot 4 (1.382% IACS)
as-forged Waspaloy
no (average) frequency dependence
Magnetic Susceptibility Material Noise
1 1, stainless steel 304
f = 0.1 MHz, AECC ~ 6.4 %
f = 5 MHz, AECC ~ 0.8 %
intact
f = 0.1 MHz, AECC ~ 8.6 %
f = 5 MHz, AECC ~ 1.2 %
0.510.260.03 mm
3
edm notch
3.4 Special Example
Residual Stress Assessment
10
6
10
2
intact (no residual stress)
with opposite residual stress
Fatigue Life [cycles]
10
4
10
8
0
500
1000
1500
endurance
limit
service load
life time
natural
life time
increased
A
l
t
e
r
n
a
t
i
n
g

S
t
r
e
s
s

[
M
P
a
]

Residual stresses have numerous origins that are highly variable.
Residual stresses relax at service temperatures.
Surface-Enhancement Techniques
Low-Plasticity Burnishing (LPB) Shot Peening (SP) Laser Shock Peening (LSP)
Depth [mm]
0 0.2 0.4 0.6 1.0 1.2
200
0
- 200
- 400
- 600
- 800
- 1000
R
e
s
i
d
u
a
l

S
t
r
e
s
s

[
M
P
a
]

SP Almen 12A
SP Almen 4A
LSP
LPB
Ti-6Al-4V
0 0.2 0.4 0.6 1.0 1.2
Depth [mm]
C
o
l
d

W
o
r
k

[
%
]

40
30
20
10
0
50
SP Almen 12A
SP Almen 4A
LSP
LPB
Ti-6Al-4V
Piezoresistive Effect
Electroelastic Tensor:
1 0 11 12 12 1
2 0 12 11 12 2
3 0 12 12 11 3
/ /
/ /
/ /
E
E
E
Ao o k k k t ( ( (
( ( (
Ao o = k k k t
( ( (
( ( ( Ao o k k k t

11 12
0
/
/
a
ip
ip
E
Ao o
q = = k + k
t
Isotropic Plane-Stress ( and ) :
1 2 ip
t = t = t
3
0 t =
parallel, normal, circular
F
F
o
Adiabatic Electroelastic Coefficients:
*
11 11 th
k = k + k
*
12 12 th
k = k + k
-40
-20
0
20
40
60
80
Time [1 s/div]
A
x
i
a
l

S
t
r
e
s
s

[
k
s
i
]

Time [1 s/div]
1.397
1.398
1.399
1.4
1.401
1.402
1.403
C
o
n
d
u
c
t
i
v
i
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y

[
%
I
A
C
S
]

IN 718, parallel
Material Types
parallel
-0.004
-0.002
0
0.002
0.004
-0.001 0 0.001 0.002
t
ua
/ E



A
o

/

o
0

normal
Copper
Ti-6Al-4V
parallel
-0.004
-0.002
0
0.002
0.004
-0.002 0 0.002 0.004
t
ua
/ E



A
o

/

o
0

normal
parallel
-0.004
-0.002
0
0.002
0.004
-0.001 0 0.001 0.002
t
ua
/ E



A
o

/

o
0

normal
Al 2024
parallel
-0.004
-0.002
0
0.002
0.004
-0.001 0 0.001 0.002
t
ua
/ E



A
o

/

o
0

normal
Al 7075
Waspaloy
parallel
-0.004
-0.002
0
0.002
0.004
-0.002 0 0.002 0.004
t
ua
/ E



A
o

/

o
0

normal
IN718
parallel
-0.004
-0.002
0
0.002
0.004
-0.002 0 0.002 0.004
t
ua
/ E



A
o

/

o
0

normal
XRD and AECC Measurements
-2000
-1500
-1000
-500
0
500
0 0.2 0.4 0.6 0.8
Depth [mm]
R
e
s
i
d
u
a
l

S
t
r
e
s
s

[
M
P
a
]

Almen 4A
Almen 8A
Almen 12A
Almen 16A
-1
0
1
2
3
0.1 1 10
Frequency [MHz]
C
o
n
d
u
c
t
i
v
i
t
y

C
h
a
n
g
e

[
%
]

Almen 4A
Almen 8A
Almen 12A
Almen 16A
0
10
20
30
40
50
0 0.2 0.4 0.6 0.8
C
o
l
d

W
o
r
k

[
%
]

Almen 4A
Almen 8A
Almen 12A
Almen 16A
Depth [mm]
before (solid circles) and after full relaxation for 24 hrs at 900 C (empty circles)
-2000
-1500
-1000
-500
0
500
0 0.2 0.4 0.6 0.8
Depth [mm]
R
e
s
i
d
u
a
l

S
t
r
e
s
s

[
M
P
a
]

Almen 4A
Almen 8A
Almen 12A
Almen 16A
0
10
20
30
40
50
0 0.2 0.4 0.6 0.8
C
o
l
d

W
o
r
k

[
%
]

Almen 4A
Almen 8A
Almen 12A
Almen 16A
Depth [mm]
-1
0
1
2
3
0.1 1 10
Frequency [MHz]
C
o
n
d
u
c
t
i
v
i
t
y

C
h
a
n
g
e

[
%
]

Almen 4A
Almen 8A
Almen 12A
Almen 16A
Waspaloy
Thermal Stress Relaxation in Waspaloy
Waspaloy, Almen 8A, repeated 24-hour heat treatments at increasing temperatures
0.1 0.16 0.25 0.4 0.63 1 1.6 2.5 4 6.3 10
Frequency [MHz]
0
0.1
0.2
0.3
0.4
0.5
0.6
A
p
p
a
r
e
n
t

C
o
n
d
u
c
t
i
v
i
t
y

C
h
a
n
g
e

[
%

]
intact
300 C
350 C
400 C
450 C
500 C
550 C
600 C
650 C
700 C
750 C
800 C
850 C
900 C
The excess apparent conductivity gradually vanishes during thermal relaxation!
XRD versus Eddy Current
-0.2
0.0
0.2
0.4
0.6
0.8
1.0
1.2
0.01 0.1 1 10
Frequency [MHz]
A
E
C
C

C
h
a
n
g
e

[
%
]

eddy current
0.0 0.5 1.0 1.5
Depth [mm]
C
o
l
d

W
o
r
k

[
%
]


.

0
5
10
15
20
XRD
.

-1400
-1200
-1000
-800
-600
-400
-200
0
200
0.0 0.5 1.0 1.5
Depth [mm]
R
e
s
i
d
u
a
l

S
t
r
e
s
s

[
M
P
a
]



eddy current
XRD
inversion of measured AECC in low-plasticity burnished Waspaloy
0
10
20
30
40
0 0.1 0.2 0.3 0.4 0.5 0.6 0.7
Depth [mm]
C
o
l
d

W
o
r
k

[
%
]


.
Almen 4A (XRD)
Almen 8A (XRD)
Almen 12A (XRD)
-1800
-1600
-1400
-1200
-1000
-800
-600
-400
-200
0
200
0 0.1 0.2 0.3 0.4 0.5 0.6 0.7
Depth [mm]
R
e
s
i
d
u
a
l

S
t
r
e
s
s

[
M
P
a
]



.
Almen 4A (AECC)
Almen 8A (AECC)
Almen 12A (AECC)
Almen 4A (XRD)
Almen 8A (XRD)
Almen 12A (XRD)
~ 50 MHz
XRD versus High-Frequency Eddy Current
shot peened IN100 specimens of Almen 4A, 8A and 12A peening intensity levels