No-Touch Inspections: Challenges in Non-Destructive Evaluation of Subjects That Are Buried and Underwater

摘要

Assessing and maintaining our critical infrastructure is challenging enough when we have physical access to the structures we are evaluating. Nevertheless, there are methods for determining the location and condition of underwater structures. The pipeline industry has maintained many thousands of miles of piping, however for many applications detailed assessment still requires divers and excavation. Lessons learned with underwater cameras will be discussed along with survey techniques including laser scan and sonar. A survey of helpful tools for assessment as built geometry, long-term deflections, and weld quality will be presented including suggestions for areas where future innovation would be helpful.