Interpretation of Weld Radiographs

Introduction

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&his training 2D has 3een de4eloped to introduce the 3asic re5uirements for successful interpretation of weld radiographs and to pro4ide e#amples of weld defect images as generated 3y 6'ray and gamma radiography* &he 2D consists of se4eral sections7 which may 3e accessed from a menu in any order and at any time allowing the student to mo4e freely around the programme contents* In addition to photographic images7 3oth audio commentary and te#t is used8 audio to introduce sections and descri3e animations and te#t for more detailed descriptions within the sections* &he radiographic techni5ues section pro4ides descriptions and animations to show how the techni5ue used affects the appearance of the weld image on the radiographic film* %ssessment of film 5uality descri3es the chec9s necessary to ensure that the radiograph complies with 4arious re5uirements and is suita3le for assessment of the weld 5uality* Weld 5uality is e#plained 3y means of images and descriptions of 3oth e#ternal and internal weld features7 which can appear on the radiographic image* &here is a tutorial section presented as an interacti4e 5uestion and answer session* :inally the student may underta9e a self'assessment test of ten radiographs which gi4es a percentage success score and then permits re4iew of the correct solution for each radiograph on completion of the test*

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Radiographic &echni5ues Section

%ccess to the weld and the geometry of the component dictate which radiographic techni5ue should 3e used* &his section descri3es the common techni5ues for plate and pipe 3utt welds and animations are used to show how the appearance of the weld image on the film changes with the position of the adiation source* %nimation is a particularly effecti4e method of transferring this 9nowledge as it can show 3oth the mo4ement of the radiographic source and the effect on the radiographic image simultaneously* Single Wall Single Image With the single wall single image (SWSI) techni5ue7 radiation from the source passes through the weld and is recorded on the film* &his techni5ue is in4aria3ly applied for the radiography of plate 3utt welds and for the e#amination of pipe or 4essel 3utt welds where access to inner and outer surfaces is a4aila3le* Panoramic &he panoramic techni5ue is a 4ersion of SWSI where the source of radiation is positioned at the center of a cylindrical component such as a pipe or 4essel with the film wrapped around the outer surface of the weld* In this way the entire length of weld can 3e e#amined with one e#posure* % single piece of film or a series of o4erlapping films may 3e used to co4er the entire weld length*

:igure -* ;anoramic radiographic techni5ue animation Double Wall Double Image &he dou3le wall dou3le image (DWDI) techni5ue used for small diameter pipe welds7 typically less than !, mm outer diameter is descri3ed* &he techni5ue allows a weld to 3e e#amined in two or three e#posures according to source placement*

:igure .* Dou3le wall dou3le image radiographic techni5ue animation &he animation shows how mo4ing the radiation source allows 3oth the upper and lower weld regions to 3e e4aluated* Double Wall Single Image In the dou3le wall single image (DWSI) techni5ue radiation from the source passes through 3oth walls of the component7 3ut only the image of the weld region closest to the film is suita3le for e4aluation since the weld section nearest to the source appears 3lurred and distorted in the image*

:igure /* Dou3le wall single image radiographic techni5ue animation <n larger diameter pipes7 or if the source can 3e mo4ed closer to the pipe surface the upper weld image can 3e mo4ed completely off the film lea4ing the area of interest clear for e4aluation7 as seen in figure / frame /* Imparting this comple# information without the use of animation would 3e 3oth difficult and time consuming* Alignment of Radiation &he detection of planar defects such as crac9s is sensiti4e to the radiation 3eam direction* &his animation shows how alignment of the radiation 3eam changes the appearance of the defect in the image*

:igure

* Inclined crac9 animation

:igure shows an inclined crac9 that appears as a faint 3road shadow in the radiograph* When the radiation is directed parallel to the plane of the crac97 its image 3ecomes dar9er and more sharply

defined* =owe4er7 when the radiation is directed o3li5uely to the plane of the crac9 the image 3ecomes faint and e4entually disappears as the angle of incidence increases*

Re5uirements for $iewing

&here are se4eral re5uirements which must 3e met when carrying out the 4iewing and interpretation of weld radiographs* &hese are descri3ed with the aid of photographs and audio commentary* % pre're5uisite for satisfactory interpretation is that the interpreter must ha4e ade5uate eyesight7 whether corrected or uncorrected7 and 3e a3le to recognise features in the image caused 3y 4arious conditions* &he a3ility to recognise the features on a radiograph comes largely with e#perience* &o assist in the interpretation of a radiograph the interpreter should 3e aware of the radiographic techni5ue used and should ha4e some 9nowledge of the weld configuration and welding procedure used* $iewing radiographs should 3e carried out using a film 4iewer in a dar9ened room* 2are must 3e ta9en to a4oid mar9ing or damaging the film*

:ilm >uality Section

&he interpretation process re5uires that film 5uality 3e of an accepta3le standard so that weld 5uality can properly 3e assessed* In order to satisfy rele4ant codes and standards it is necessary that the stated re5uirements for radiograph identification7 density and image 5uality sensiti4ity 3e achie4ed* &his section discusses the monitoring of these parameters* Radiograph identification &he la3els re5uired for identification of a typical weld radiograph are descri3ed* %s a minimum the interpreter should 3e loo9ing for ?o3 or component identity7 location mar9ers in the form of radiographic images and the date upon which the radiograph was ta9en (figure @)* If all three elements are present the identification is deemed accepta3le for the purpose of this e#ercise*

:igure @* Radiograph identification screen with pop'up te#t annotation Film density &he density or 3lac9ness of a radiograph affects the contrast of the image produced7 contrast increasing with increasing density* :or this reason minimum density re5uirements are specified in codes and standards* &he influence of density on image 5uality is e#amined* &he section includes an interacti4e tas9 where the student is as9ed to simulate the measurement of radiograph density using the mouse 3y pointing and clic9ing at selected points on the image* &he student is e#pected to e4aluate the accepta3ility of the densities displayed against prescri3ed criteria* Radiographic sensiti ity &his section e#amines how contrast and definition influence radiographic sensiti4ity and how the 5uality of the image can 3e e4aluated through the use of image 5uality indicators* It highlights the importance of ensuring accepta3le image 5uality* Different types of image 5uality indicators are descri3ed and an interacti4e presentation shows the effect of contrast and definition on the sensiti4ity of the radiographic image*

:igure A* Static electricity film artefact Film artefacts Radiographs can sometimes 3e misinterpreted due to images appearing on the radiograph that are not associated with the weld* &hese indications7 referred to as BartefactsB7 can 3e due to handling damage or film processing faults* &hose due to film damage may sometimes 3e identified 3y 4iewing under reflected light* &his section presents some of the more commonly encountered artefacts* :igure A shows a radiograph ha4ing an artefact caused 3y the presence of static electricity*

Weld >uality Section

=a4ing esta3lished that film 5uality is accepta3le7 the radiograph can then 3e e#amined for the presence of defects in the weld* Both surface and internal weld features appear in the image and can 3e assessed* Weld Surface Features 2ommon weld surface conditions that can appear in the radiograph are descri3ed and shown as 3oth photographic and radiographic images*

:igure C* "#cessi4e root penetration screen design showing a photograph of the condition and two radiographic e#amples When a condition is selected from the weld surface features list7 a detailed description is presented together with a photograph or diagram and thum3nails of radiographic e#amples (:igure C)* 2lic9ing on a thum3nail image displays the full screen radiograph including detailed information relating to the weld itself (:igure 0)*

:igure 0* "#cessi4e root penetration Weld Defects &his section shows a few of the many possi3le radiographic images produced 3y internal weld defects* "#amples are descri3ed using diagrams7 photographs and radiographic images* %s in the weld surface features section7 selection of an item from the list displays a detailed description (:igure !) and clic9ing on a thum3nail (:igure -,) shows the full screen 4iew of the radiograph (:igure --)*

:igure !* Weld crac9ing screen design -

:igure -,* Weld crac9ing screen design .

:igure --* Weld crac9ing radiograph

&utorial 2hapter
&he tutorial presents a series of interacti4e 5uestions that re5uire the student to demonstrate the e#tent of 9nowledge gained from the 2D* %nswers are re4ealed or solutions pro4ided on completion of each 5uestion* :igure -. shows a graphical multi'choice 5uestion in which the student must select the schematic that most closely applies to the weld radiograph* &he interacti4e nature of the 5uestion and answer session reinforces the information presented earlier in the course and aids memory retention*

:igure -.* &utorial multi'choice 5uestion

%ssessment 2hapter
&he self assessment section consists of ten radiographs each of which contains one or more e#amples of weld defects which ha4e 3een descri3ed elsewhere in the 2D* &he radiographs are presented as shown in :igure -/*

:igure -/* %ssessment menu &he student can select a radiograph to e#amine 3y clic9ing on a thum3nail* &his presents the image together with a list of possi3le weld defect conditions (:igure - )*

:igure - * %ssessment 5uestion &he radiograph can 3e e#amined in more detail 3y clic9ing on the magnify icon which presents a full screen image including details of the weld (:igure -@)*

:igure -@* :ull screen weld radiograph % further magnification stage of a3out dou3le siDe is a4aila3le and 3ecause the image is larger than full screen7 the image can 3e BdraggedB around the screen to allow close up e#amination of any particular area* By selecting the appropriate defects from the defect list (:igure - ) and clic9ing on the Bsu3mitB 3utton7 the ten thum3nails are again displayed* Radiographs already su3mitted appear faint to

indicate that they ha4e 3een answered* It is possi3le to reselect an answered radiograph and change the su3mission* %nother useful feature of the programme allows the student to re4iew any other section of the 2D during the assessment and then return to complete the assessment* <n completion of the ten radiographs the student is presented with a percentage score and success or otherwise for each radiograph is indicated* It is now possi3le to re'e#amine each of the radiographs and to re4iew the correct solutions for each of the images 3y clic9ing on the B4iew correct answersB 3utton that has 3ecome a4aila3le on the defect list screen on completion of the assessment* &he assessment process has 3een designed as a formal e#amination with the correct answers re4ealed to the user only upon completion of all ten 5uestions* &hen the student is prompted to re4iew their performance and then re4isit the areas that re5uire further study* &his automatic feed3ac9 tailored for each student pro4ides a personalised Bto'doB listB that ena3les effecti4e study focused on the topics re5uiring further wor9*

2onclusions
&his training programme is considered suita3le as an introduction to the su3?ect of interpreting weld radiographs and is presented in a form that allows the student to interact with the material and study at their own pace* By presenting the information in an interacti4e form the student gains e#perience of the appearance of welds and weld features as they e#plore the programme in addition to learning the importance of 4iewing procedure and film 5uality