SERVICES >> CONVENTIONAL NDT

Ferrite Testing

Fully austenitic stainless steel weld deposits have a tendency to develop small fissures even under conditions of minimal restraint. These small fissures tend to be located transverse to the weld fusion line in weld passes and base metal that were reheated to near the melting point of the material by subsequent weld passes. Cracks are clearly injurious defects and cannot be tolerated. On the other hand, the effect of fissures on weldment performance is less clear, since these micro-fissures are quickly blurted by the very tough austenitic matrix. Fissured weld deposits have performed satisfactorily under very severe conditions.

However, a tendency to form fissures generally goes hand-in-hand with a tendency for larger cracking, so it is often desirable to avoid fissure-sensitive weld metals. We conduct Ferrite testing on welding and piping products with our portable hand held battery operated Fischer Feritscope MP30E-S ferrite testers