MPI Standards
Standard Practice for Magnetic Particle Testing
ASTM International, formerly known as American Society for Testing and Materials, is an international standards organization that develops and publishes voluntary consensus technical standards for a wide range of materials, products, systems, and services. Magnetic Particle Testing (MT), also referred to as Magnetic Particle Inspection (MPI), is widely performed in accordance with ASTM E1444/E1444M.
The magnetic particle testing method is used to detect cracks, laps, seams, inclusions, and other discontinuities on or near the surface of ferromagnetic materials. Magnetic particle testing may be applied to raw material, billets, finished and semi-finished materials, welds, and in-service parts. Magnetic particle testing is not applicable to non-ferromagnetic metals and alloys such as austenitic stainless steels.
Magnetic particle testing consists of magnetizing the area to be examined, applying suitably prepared magnetic particles while the area is magnetized, and subsequently interpreting and evaluating any resulting particle accumulations. Maximum detectability occurs when the discontinuity is positioned on the surface and perpendicular to the magnetic flux.
ASTM E1444/E1444M
This practice establishes the basic parameters for controlling the application of the magnetic particle testing method. This practice is written so that it can be specified on the engineering drawing, specification, or contract. It is not a detailed how-to procedure to be used by the examination personnel and, therefore, must be supplemented by a detailed written procedure that conforms to the requirements of this practice.
Additional information about ASTM E1444/E1444M is available on the ASTM International website.
Related ASTM standards include:
- A275/A275M Practice for Magnetic Particle Examination of Steel Forgings
- A456/A456M Specification for Magnetic Particle Examination of Large Crankshaft Forgings
- E543 Specification for Agencies Performing Nondestructive Testing
- E709 Guide for Magnetic Particle Testing
- E1316 Terminology for Nondestructive Examinations
- E2297 Guide for Use of UV-A and Visible Light Sources and Meters used in the Liquid Penetrant and Magnetic Particle Methods
- E3022 Practice for Measurement of Emission Characteristics and Requirements for LED UV-A Lamps Used in Fluorescent Penetrant and Magnetic Particle Testing
In addition to ASTM International, there are other organizations which have established standards for Magnetic Particle Testing. These include: International Organization for Standardization (ISO), European Committee for Standardization (CEN), Canadian Standards Association (CSA), Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE), as well as by the United States Military.
In addition to ASTM E1444, commonly used standards include:
- MIL-STD-1949
- MIL-STD-271
- MIL-STD-2132
- AMS 2300 Series
Magnetic particle inspection (MPI), also know as Magnaflux, is a highly-sensitive nondestructive test (NDT) that identifies defects on the surface and shallow subsurface of ferromagnetic materials such as iron, nickel, cobalt and some of their alloys.
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