LIQUID PENETRANT TESTING - LPI or PT

Dye Penetrant Testing, or Liquid Penetrant Testing is not only one of the oldest NDT methods, but it is also a very cost-effective method for locating surface breaking anomalies in ferrous, non-ferrous, ceramics, plastics, and non-porous materials. The dye can come in two different forms which includes visible (can come in a number of different colors) and fluorescent.

There are three major components to LPI, including a cleaner, penetrant dye, and a developer. Dyes can be applied via aerosol spray, dipping, or brushing while the cleaner and developer typically comes in aerosol form. Surface breaking flaws draw in the penetrant by a process called capillary action.

This step-by-step process includes: pre-cleaning of the surface, application of penetrant material, dwell time to allow penetrant to fill any potential anomalies, penetrant removal, application of developer, inspection/evaluation, and a post clean of the test object. PT is utilized, in most cases, to detect welding, casting, and forging defects, such as cracks, leaks, and fatigue in test objects.

Certifications and Standards that we are able to test to:

• ANSI/ASNT CP-189
• API 1104
• ASME Standards
• ASNT SNT-TC-1A
• AWS D1.1
• AWS D1.5
• NAS 410
• And Many More