Active thermography is an advanced nondestructive testing procedure, which uses a thermography measurement of a tested material thermal response after its external excitation. This principle can be used also for non-contact infrared non-destructive testing (IRNDT) of materials.
The IRNDT method is based on an excitation of a tested material by an external source, which brings some energy to the material. Halogen lamps, flash-lamps, ultrasonic horn or other sources can be used as the excitation source for the IRNDT. The excitation causes a tested material thermal response, which is measured by an infrared camera. It is possible to obtain information about the tested material surface and sub-surface defects or material inhomogeneities by using a suitable combination of excitation source, excitation procedure, infrared camera and evaluation method.
Modern thermographic systems with high-speed and high-sensitivity IR cameras extend the possibilities of the inspection method. Modularity of the systems allows their usage for research and development applications as well as in modern industrial production lines.
Thermovision nondestructive testing of components can be carried out on a wide range of various materials. Thermographic inspection of material can be regarded as a method of infrared defectoscopy, that is capable of revealing material imperfections such as cracks, defects, voids, cavities and other inhomogeneities. The thermographic testing can be provided on individual components in a laboratory or directly on technology facilities that are in duty.
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