Regular upkeep on mag particle equipment is critical for non-destructive testing to safe guard inspections & reduce downtime.

Just like changing the oil in a car, basic preventive care is a cheap and easy way for NDT professionals to get the most out of your mag particle inspections and make sure your mag particle machine investments last. Will it prevent all failures from occurring, no. But I can guarantee you that if you never pull off the machine’s ventilation panels to check the cooling fans or to blow off the dirt and dust off of the rectifiers, your machine will eventually develop issues, just like a car if it’s oil hasn’t been changed in years.

One of the reasons many NDT professionals don’t pay more attention to mag particle equipment maintenance is they perceive standards like ASTM E1444 as an operating guideline instead of as minimum requirements. While it is important to regularly have your meter calibrated for accuracy, your shot timer checked and to verify output repeatability, this is not enough to keep your mag equipment at peak performance.

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The ZL-400 series penetrants are water-based, water washable fluorescent materials that are an ideal solution when waste water produced during the inspection process is a concern for the operation. They are water based and contain no petroleum distillates allowing them to drain directly into the sewage system (depending on local regulations).

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Magnaflux is excited to announce our latest handheld electromagnetic AC yoke – the Y-2!

Ten years ago, Magnaflux introduced the world to the first ergonomic, lightweight yoke – the Y-1. The Y-1 disrupted an industry dominated by heavy, unwieldy yokes, and brought relief to thousands of inspectors worldwide. The popularity of the Y-1 proved to be enduring – and it remains one of our highest volume products today.

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See how three common magnetic particle testing carriers perform in a standard ASTM E1444 settling volume test

Learn about the function and importance of UV-A pass filters, and why ASTM E3022 requires all LED UV lamps to have them

The quick answer to, “Why should a LED UV black light have a UV-A pass filter?” is because UV-A pass filters reduce glare and increase contrast of fluorescent indications. Which makes fluorescent inspection easier, faster and more reliable.

In this article, we will explain why a UV-A pass filter is needed, and how the pass filter works to create better UV irradiation for nondestructive testing inspection.

Why do LED UV lamps need a filter?

From a technical point of view, ASTM defines UV-A as 320-400 nm, and visible light as 400-760 nm. The emission spectrum of an UV-A LED is a single peak in the 360-370 nm range. But this is not a tight, sharp peak, and at the tail end of the emission spectrum you get measurable emission above 400 nm.

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