Monitoring crack growth in pressure vessel steels by the acoustic emission technique and the method of potential difference

The work was performed on pressure vessel steels and has shown that the correlation between acoustic emission (AE) techniques, the method of potential difference and microfractographic observation reveals the different stages of the crack propagation. Based on these correlations, it may be possible to predict the remaining service life of a vessel from the results of short-term acoustic emission monitoring of crack propagation.This study is a comprehensive review of acoustic emission produced during plastic deformation by dislocation motion, inclusion fracture and decohesion, as well as unstable crack propagation.