Nondestructive evaluation of SCC on the surface of Ni-base alloy by microwaves

Abstract

To detect stress corrosion cracking (SCC) and evaluate its depth on the surface of Ni-base alloys, a microwave microscope was employed. An open-ended coaxial line sensor was used to increase the spatial resolution. The working frequency was 110 GHz and the standoff distance between the sensor and the sample was 60 μm. The shape of SCC was obtained by microwave imaging. By measuring the amplitude of reflection coefficient, detection of SCC was achieved. To evaluate SCC depth, the attenuation constant of microwave in the crack was decided by comparing the measured microwave signal with the depth of a reference SCC obtained by destructive testing. Finally, the distribution of the depth of another SCC was evaluated by the proposed equation with the obtained attenuation constant.