Ultrasonic thickness gauges are instruments for the measurement of thickness, corrosion, split ends materials, metal sheets, coated materials, as long as the case of homogeneous material that does not present cracks, air bubbles, defects that prevent the correct propagation of ultrasounds.
These instruments, which can be purchased with decimal, hundredth and thousandth’s resolution, have the particularity to be used without damaging the measured material. It is sufficient to place the probe of the ultrasonic thickness meter on a side of the test piece to read the thickness. When measuring, place a fluid that allows the sensor for proper adhesion to the material (usually the couplant gel for Ultrasounds). Many ultrasonic Thickness gauges have default settings of the sound speed within the memory of the instrument, in order to allow a fast measurement of the material; Ultrasonic thickness gauges have the ability to adjust the sound speed, knowing the propagation speed of the material we are going to measure.
Some Ultrasonic Thickness Gauges have the ability to calibrate the instrument on a homogeneous material that you are going to measure. The calibration can be carried out knowing the thickness of the material under examination, thereafter it will be possible to perform accurate measurements on each type of thickness of the material on which the instrument is calibrated.
The ultrasonic thickness gauges with the coatings exclusion function allow to carry out measurements on painted material only by calculating the thickness of the material under the layer of paint or coatings. Thanks to a wide range of probes, the ultrasonic thickness gauge can measure materials with special angles and curves. There are also special probes for the measurement of high-temperature surfaces, which are coated in ceramic and can reach temperatures of 300°C.
USE: the ultrasonic method allows measurement with only the support of the probe on the material without any feedback on the opposite side. These thickness gauges define the thickness of a material by calculating accurately the time required by ultrasonic pulse, generated by the probe; then, ultrasonic pulse pass through the thickness of the sample and finally it is reflected on the opposite surface and it returns to the probe. The time required for the impulse to go back is divided by two and multiplied by the sound propagation speed of the material.
The deduced relation is:
H = (V x t) / 2
H: thickness of measured material;
V: specific speed of ultrasonic propagation in the material;
T: Time used by the pulse to pass through the material (round trip).
There are many application fields of ultrasonic thickness gauge; here below you can see some examples:
Ultrasonic thickness gauges for glass
Ultrasonic thickness gauges for metal sheets
Ultrasonic thickness gauges for steel
Ultrasonic thickness gauges for plastic
Ultrasonic thickness gauges for PVC
Ultrasonic thickness gauges for alloys
Ultrasonic thickness gauges for cast iron
Ultrasonic thickness gauges for brass
Ultrasonic thickness gauges for zinc
Ultrasonic thickness gauges for copper
Ultrasonic thickness gauges for bronze
Ultrasonic thickness gauges for stainless steel
Ultrasonic thickness gauges for aluminium
Ultrasonic thickness gauges for polyethylene
Ultrasonic thickness gauges for pipes
Ultrasonic thickness gauges for rubber
Ultrasonic thickness gauges for sailing industry (bulkheads, sealed off compartments)
Ultrasonic thickness gauges for pressure containers (fire extinguishers, boilers, tanks).
Furthermore, this instrument allows several applications in the production phase, quality control, incoming control, materials acceptance, and exiting control.
The main users of these tools are steel mills, mechanical manufacturing, foundries, oil industry, plastics industry, bottling industry, glassmakers, automotive and aeronautical industry etc.
Some accessories of ultrasonic thickness gauges:
- 6 steps calibration block
- Couplant gel for ultrasounds
- High penetration probe for thick, attenuated or ultrasonic dispersing materials
- 90° probe
- Probe for very thin pipes or wall pipes with small bending radius
- High-temperature probe
- Miniaturized probe
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