PAUT
Phased Array Testing
Advanced ultrasonics using multi-element probes to build detailed cross-sectional views of a part.
- Method code
- PAUT
- Materials
- Metals and welded joints
- Product forms
- Welds, complex geometry, skins and spars
- Standards
- EN ISO 13588, ASTM E2700
Phased array steers and focuses the ultrasonic beam electronically, so a joint can be examined from several angles in a single pass and the result read as an image rather than a trace.
How it works
The probe carries many small elements rather than one crystal. Firing them in a programmed sequence, each with its own delay, shapes the wavefront: the beam can be swept through a range of angles, or focused at a chosen depth, without moving the probe. The returning signals are reconstructed into a sectorial or linear scan, and combined with an encoder they build a cross-sectional picture of the joint with position recorded along its length.
What it detects
The same discontinuities as conventional ultrasonic inspection, with better sizing and a far clearer record: cracks, lack of fusion, lack of penetration and inclusions in welds, and wall loss where the method is used for corrosion mapping.
Typical applications
Welds where access is limited to one side, components whose geometry makes a fixed-angle probe impractical, fuselage scribe line inspection, rear spar and skin examination on aircraft structures, and corrosion mapping of larger areas.
Sectors this method is used in
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Where to next
Approvals
The approvals we hold for NDT inspection on all aircraft types, materials and structures.
Find out moreServices
The full range of non-destructive testing methods we carry out, in the laboratory and on site.
Find out moreIndustries
The sectors we test for, from aerospace to petro-chemical and industrial.
Find out moreContact
Speak to the sales team, or reach any of our offices 24 hours a day for AOG support.
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Ready when you are
Talk to our inspection team
Tell us what needs inspecting and we will tell you how we would approach it, what it will cost and how quickly we can be there. No obligation, and you speak to an engineer rather than a call centre.
Aircraft on ground? The AOG line is answered around the clock, every day of the year.
