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When you think of x-ray most people would assume you are referring to the health industry. Not many people know just how important x-ray testing is to determine structural integrity on many everyday materials. Non destructive testing can be defined as applying test methods used to examine an object, material or system without impairing its function or usefulness. This terminology can apply to the human body, natural materials or any type of man-made product. Fluoroscopy testing, a form of x-ray, is highly recognized in the medical field, but most people don't know just how beneficial this type of testing is in the industrial non destructive testing field.

Fluoroscopy examination, often called "real-time x-ray" is applied the same way in the industrial setting as it is in the medical. An x-ray beam is passed through an object and the image is captured on an image intensifier, which is then read by a closed circuit camera. From the camera, an image is transmitted and projected on a screen just like a television or computer screen.

It is most often used to look for internal flaws in parts and components. An example of a defect you can determine by using fluoroscopy testing is finding voids in castings. Another cost-effective application is to look inside assembled systems to determine if there are missing pieces, out of place components or even unwanted extra parts, such as washers or fasteners. Examples include: missing bearings in a pump assembly; missing needles in needle bearing for automotive lifters; shock absorbers for missing internal seal retainers; and, even mixed nuts and face cleanser for chards of metal or plastic from the processing and packaging equipment.

Generally, inspections are driven by the cost of replacement, human safety, or critical application. In high volume manufacturing such as the automotive industry, inspections can help determine the costs to scrap an entire production lot versus segregating the bad components or assemblies. In the high volume, just-in-time manufacturing environment, scrapping production lots may cause a shut down up stream and eventually a high cost for lost time and productivity.

Some of the more interesting fluoroscopy testing performed by Non-Destructive Testing Services is in the food industry. Some of these jobs include testing holiday jars of mixed nuts, salad dressings and frozen breadsticks for foreign non-eatable objects. In all three of these cases, the production company had reason to believe some of the batches were contaminated with parts that came up missing from machinery during product processing and packaging. These companies had three options: they could toss out the entire batch and incur the expenses; they could take the chance of selling the product as normal, risking human injury, potential lawsuits and unethical behavior; or, they could x-ray the products to determine what batches were contaminated and handle it accordingly.

The end result in all three cases was that Fluoroscopy (real-time x-ray) was used, which saved the companies money and eliminated the risk of human injury.

For more information, call TÜVRheinland® Non-Destructive Testing Services toll-free at 1-800-748-0208 or visit www.nondestructivetesting.com.