Analysis of field uniformity and quantitative evaluation of subsurface pitting corrosion in conductors via GPEC

Structures of nonmagnetic materials are broadly used in engineering fields such as aerospace, energy, etc. Due to corrosive and hostile environments, they are vulnerable to the Subsurface Pitting Corrosion (SPC) leading to structural failure. Therefore, it is imperative to conduct periodical inspection and comprehensive evaluation of SPC using reliable nondestructive evaluation techniques. Extended from the conventional Pulsed eddy current method (PEC), Gradient-field Pulsed Eddy Current technique (GPEC) has been proposed and found to be advantageous over PEC in terms of enhanced inspection sensitivity and accuracy in evaluation and imaging of subsurface defects in nonmagnetic conductors. In this paper two GPEC probes for uniform field excitation are intensively analyzed and compared. Their capabilities in SPC evaluation and imaging are explored through simulations and experiments. The optimal position for deployment of the magnetic field sensor is determined by scrutinizing the field uniformity and inspection sensitivity to SPC based on finite element simulations. After the optimal probe structure is chosen, quantitative evaluation and imaging of SPC are investigated. Signal/image processing algorithms for SPC evaluation are proposed. Through simulations and experiments, it has been found that the T-shaped probe together with the proposed processing algorithms is advantageous and preferable for profile recognition and depth evaluation of SPC.