Ultrasonic Creeping Wave Testing for the Welds of Middle-Bore Austenitic Stainless Steel Pipe

In order to effectively solve the problems faced by traditional shear wave testing on austenitic stainless steel，ultrasonic creeping wave probe and reference block were developed and fabricated. The creeping wave was used to perform a comprehensive testing of the welds of the middle-bore austenitic steel tubes and its effectiveness was verified. It is proved that the weld defects of the middle-bore austenitic steel tubes with wall thickness not more than 18mm can be detected by creeping wave inspection and the method can be used as a feasible method on austenitic weld.