Application of a superconductor to the shield of a remote field eddy current testing probe

Issue title: Special Volume: Proceedings of the eleventh International Symposium on Applied Electromagnetics and Mechanics ISEM-Versailles ISEM 03

Article type: Research Article

Authors: Yusa, Noritaka^{a; *} | Demachi, Kazuyuki^b | Chen, Zhenmao^a

Affiliations: [a] International Institute of Universality, 1-4-6-SB801, Nezu, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo, 113-0031, Japan | [b] Nuclear Engineering Research Laboratory, The University of Tokyo, 2-22 Shirakata-shirane, Tokai-mura, Naka-gun, Ibaraki, 319-1106 Japan

Correspondence: [*] Corresponding author. Tel.: +81 3 5814 5350; Fax: +81 3 3827 0682; E-mail: yusa@iiu.co.jp

Abstract: This paper proposes the application of a superconductor to a remote field eddy current testing probe in order to shorten the probe length and then overcome many of the disadvantages of the remote field eddy current testing, such as the small signal amplitude and the difficulty in handling the probes. Numerical simulations were carried out to confirm that a superconductor located between the exciter and the detector of a remote field eddy current testing probe inhibits the magnetic flux from coming directly from the exciters. Then, a remote field eddy current testing probe equipped with a superconducting shield was designed and fabricated. Experimental results confirmed that a superconducting shield can shorten the probe length and provide clearer signals due to artificial wall thinnings machined on the outside surface of a ferromagnetic tube.

Keywords: remote field eddy current testing, superconductor, magnetic shield, non-destructive testing

DOI: 10.3233/JAE-2004-533

Journal: International Journal of Applied Electromagnetics and Mechanics, vol. 19, no. 1-4, pp. 41-46, 2004