Unrepresentative nature of acoustic emission in hydraulic testing of vessels and pipelines

The unreliability of AE signal generation within the wall of a steel object in any Lamb wave mode and the unrepresentative nature of its properties are demonstrated. Results are presented for experiments on whose basis it is concluded that under hydraulic testing conditions for objects absence of AE signals at a receiving point does not mean absence of their emission by developing defects, and for a number of reasons it is impossible to provide reliable calibration of AE equipment within an object filled with water.