NDT Assessment of Boiler Pipe’s Wall Thinning Using 3D Scanner : Current Technology and Future Trajectory

Abstract

Boiler thinning is required by the Electricity Business Act to inspect the wall thickness by ultrasonic flaw detection. It is a very labor-intensive task to illuminate each of the countless water tubes in a dark boiler to observe the subtle undulations of the thinning parts, and then apply an ultrasonic probe to each of them one by one. The shape, arrangement, and thinning pattern of the water tube are not uniform, and the numerical values by ultrasonic flaw detection vary depending on the operator. There is an increasing demand for inspection technology that does not rely on craftsmanship and does not overlook thinning areas due to fatigue.