Electromagnetic Testing (ET), as a form of nondestructive testing, is the process of inducing electric currents and magnetic fields inside a test object and observing the electromagnetic response. A defect inside a test object creates a measurable response that differs from background noise and allows us to detect and characterize surface and sub-surface flaws in conductive materials.
ET has a wide range of applications for surface and tubing inspections and can detect tight cracks as narrow as 0.003 in. Our facility employs this technique during metallic pressure vessel inspections. Most inspections focus on identifying defects such as cracks in composite overwrapped pressure vessel liners but as part of a NASA-wide team, our personnel have developed proprietary inspection systems capable of identifying interior cracks as shallow as 0.006” with widths as narrow as 0.003” in liners with smooth finishes under laboratory conditions.