Feasibility of thermal NDE methods for Naval thermal spray coatings

Thermal spray coatings are widely used to prevent corrosion in metal structures. They are also used to repair and reduce wear in machinery. A feasibility demonstration has shown that infrared-thermal scanning can be applied to nondestructively examine the coating-to-substrate bonds in a variety of thermal spray coatings. Emissivity independent and thermal wave methods must be applied in some cases to eliminate the effects of local differences in surface conditions and coating thickness. Rough-surfaced coatings such as those used in anti-skid applications can have thickness varying from about 0.1 inch (3 mm) at peaks to less than 0.04 inch (1 mm) at valleys. Data showing the feasibility of detecting non-bonds even under such rough coatings is described in this paper. The present work is the first phase of a program to develop a generally applicable emissivity independent thermal NDE scanning system for thermal spray coatings. This work was sponsored by the US Naval Sea Systems Command Materials Research and Development Program. It was directed by the Puget Sound Naval Shipyard which is the lead shipyard for introduction and implementation of industrial thermal spray processes and equipment for Naval applications. High speed, low application cost, high reliability and ease of test interpretationmore » are the prime goals for the final thermal scanning NDE system. The most advanced state-of-the-art methods using thermal wave analysis to make maximum use of the scan information are being incorporated.« less