A successful heat treating operation is determined by the ability to satisfy the customer's quality requirements consistently and economically. This chapter reviews the steps that are important to produce quality parts in heat treating with a brief practical explanation of each. The steps include selecting proper material and design of the part being treated; determining whether the process is capable of heat treatment; using statistical process control, control charting, and in-process inspection and testing; and applying statistical quality control and final testing (sampling) to verify the results.

In forgings of both ferrous and nonferrous metals, the flaws that most often occur are caused by conditions that exist in the ingot, by subsequent hot working of the ingot or the billet, and by hot or cold working during forging. The inspection methods most commonly used to detect these flaws include visual, magnetic particle, liquid penetrant, ultrasonic, eddy current, and radiographic inspection. This chapter provides a detailed discussion on the characteristics, process steps, applications, advantages, and limitations of these methods. It also describes the flaws caused by the forging operation and the principal factors that influence the selection of a nondestructive inspection method for forgings.

Weldments made by the various welding processes may contain discontinuities that are characteristic of that process. This chapter discusses the different welding processes as well as the discontinuities typical of each process. It provides a detailed discussion on the methods of nondestructive inspection of weldments including visual inspection, liquid penetrant inspection, magnetic particle inspection, radiographic inspection, ultrasonic inspection, leak testing, and eddy current and electric current perturbation inspection. The chapter also describes the properties of brazing filler metals and the types of flaws exhibited by brazed joints.

Most of the counterfeit parts detected in the electronics industry are either novel or surplus parts or salvaged scrap parts. This article begins by discussing the type of parts used to create counterfeits. It discusses the three most commonly used methods used by counterfeiters to create counterfeits. These include relabeling, refurbishing, and repackaging. The article presents a systematic inspection methodology that can be applied for detecting signs of possible part modifications. The methodology consists of external visual inspection, marking permanency tests, and X-ray inspection followed by material evaluation and characterization. These processes are typically followed by evaluation of the packages to identify defects, degradations, and failure mechanisms that are caused by the processes (e.g., cleaning, solder dipping of leads, reballing) used in creating counterfeit parts.

This chapter concentrates almost exclusively on inspection techniques related to pressure vessels and pipework. The discussion covers the general aspects associated with inspection and the key factors relevant to it. In addition, the chapter addresses processes involved in data collection and management, namely data acquisition, reporting, trending, reviewing, and auditing. Capabilities and limitations of in-service inspection techniques are discussed in the Appendix to this chapter.

As semiconductor feature sizes have shrunk, the technology needed to encapsulate modern integrated circuits has expanded. Due to the various industry changes, package failure analyses are becoming much more challenging; a systematic approach is therefore critical. This article proposes a package failure analysis flow for analyzing open and short failures. The flow begins with a review of data on how the device failed and how it was processed. Next, non-destructive techniques are performed to document the condition of the as-received units. The techniques discussed are external optical inspection, X-ray inspection, scanning acoustic microscopy, infrared (IR) microscopy, and electrical verification. The article discusses various fault isolation techniques to tackle the wide array of failure signatures, namely IR lock-in thermography, magnetic current imaging, time domain reflectometry, and electro-optical terahertz pulse reflectometry. The final step is the step-by-step inspection and deprocessing stage that begins once the defect has been imaged.

Liquid penetrant, magnetic particle, and eddy current inspection are used to detect surface flaws. This chapter is a detailed account of the physical principles, process description, equipment requirements, selection criteria, advantages, limitations, and applications of these surface flaw detection techniques.

Hot isostatic pressing (HIP) is a process refinement available to address internal porosity in castings. The HIP process may be used, in particular, for applications requiring very high quality and performance. This chapter discusses the principles, advantages, and disadvantages of HIP. It describes the effect of HIP on tensile properties and on the fatigue performance of aluminum alloy castings. In addition, the chapter discusses the processes involved in radiographic inspection of HIP-processed castings.

This chapter targets areas that determine if a change occurred and if the change induced the failure: change or what's different analysis. It describes the different sources of changes that induce process deficiencies: design, process, test and inspection, environmental, supplier lot, aging, and supplier changes. The chapter presents an example of a cluster bomb failure to explain how the failure analysis team found and corrected the failure cause.

Organic coatings (paints and plastic or rubber linings), metallic coatings, and nonmetallic inorganic coatings (conversion coatings, cements, ceramics, and glasses) are used in applications requiring corrosion protection. These coatings and linings may protect substrates by three basic mechanisms: barrier protection, chemical inhibition, and galvanic (sacrificial) protection. This chapter begins with a section on organic coating and linings, providing a detailed account of the steps involved in the coating process, namely, design and selection, surface preparation, application, and inspection and quality assurance. The next section discusses the methods by which metals, and in some cases their alloys, can be applied to almost all other metals and alloys: electroplating, electroless plating, hot dipping, thermal spraying, cladding, pack cementation, vapor deposition, ion implantation, and laser processing. The last section focuses on nonmetallic inorganic coatings including ceramic coating materials, conversion coatings, and anodized coatings.

This chapter discusses radiography methods using x-rays, gamma rays, and neutrons. It begins with a discussion on the applications and principles of radiography followed by sections providing information on the sources of radiation, classifications, and characteristics of x-ray tubes. Three primary attenuation processes of electromagnetic radiation, namely photoelectric effect, Compton scattering, and pair production, are covered. The chapter then discusses the principles of shadow formation, the process involved in the conversion of radiation into a form suitable for observation, and the characteristics of x-ray film. It provides information on various exposure factors in film radiography. The chapter provides a description of the characteristics that differentiate neutron radiography from x-ray or gamma ray radiography. The application of neutron radiography is described in terms of its advantages for improved contrast on low atomic number materials, discrimination between isotopes, or inspection of radioactive specimens.

This chapter is largely a compendium of best practices and procedures for minimizing the effects of fatigue. It explains how to make products more resistant to fatigue by choosing the right materials and manufacturing processes, avoiding geometries and features that concentrate strains, preventing or removing surface damage, and by inducing compressive mean stresses that prolong fatigue life. It also discusses the use of property conditioning and restoration treatments, the benefits of interference fits and processes such as coaxing, the effects of assembly damage and operating overload, the importance of surface cleanliness and finish, and the role of inspection, testing, replacement, and repair in safe-life and fail-safe designs. Examples highlighting the benefits and potential pitfalls of proof loading tests are included as well.

The coordinate measuring machine (CMM) is used for three-dimensional inspection of both in-process and finished parts. This chapter provides a detailed account of the operating principles, measurement techniques, capabilities, and applications of CMMs. The types of CMMs are described. Vertical CMMs include cantilever-type, bridge-type, and gantry CMMs; horizontal CMMs, such as the horizontal-arm type, are also covered. The CMM application for geometric measurement, contour measurement, and specialized surface measurement are discussed.

Fabricated powder metallurgy (P/M) parts are evaluated and tested at several stages during manufacturing for part acceptance and process control. The various types of tests included are dimensional evaluation, density measurements, hardness testing, mechanical testing, and nondestructive testing. This chapter is a detailed account of these testing methods. It describes the four most common types of defects in P/M parts, namely ejection cracks, density variations, microlaminations, and poor sintering. The chapter discusses the capabilities and limitations of various nondestructive evaluation methods to flaw detection in P/M parts. The nondestructive evaluation methods covered are mechanical proof testing, metallography, liquid penetrant crack detection, filtered particle crack detection, magnetic particle crack inspection, direct current resistivity testing, x-ray radiography, computed tomography, gamma-ray density determination, and ultrasonic techniques.

This chapter provides an overview of the various inspection methods used with metals and alloys, namely visual inspection, coordinate measuring machines, machine vision, hardness testing, tensile testing, chemical analysis, metallography, and nondestructive testing. The nondestructive testing methods discussed are liquid penetrant inspection, magnetic particle inspection, eddy current inspection, radiographic inspection, and ultrasonic testing.

The management of a failure analysis (FA) laboratory requires a broad range of activities to optimize the efficiency of the operation. The purpose of this article is to stimulate readers to consider the various aspects of FA laboratory operations and their respective business management requirements. The various aspects include: staffing, laboratory organization, lab design and operations, strategic development, financial management, and metrics and measurements. References for further reading and examples of resource materials are also included.

Semiconductor memories are superb drivers for process yield and reliability improvement because of their highly structured architecture and use of aggressive layout rules. This combination provides outstanding failure signature analysis possibilities for the entire design, manufacturing, and test process. This article discusses five key disciplines of the signature analysis process that need to be orchestrated within the organization: design for test practices, test floor data collection methodology, post-test data analysis tools, root cause theorization, and physical failure analysis strategies.

The aim of every extrusion plant is the efficient production of competitive products that meet the appropriate quality requirements. This chapter discusses the processes involved in the selection and introduction of a quality management system, along with its application, advantages, and disadvantages. It describes the process chain for order processing within the quality circle and provides information on product liability legal issues. In addition, the chapter discusses the processes involved in quality control, along with its organization, responsibilities, audits, and testing.

The inspection of castings normally involves checking for shape and dimensions, coupled with aided and unaided visual inspection for external discontinuities and surface quality. This chapter discusses methods for determining surface quality, internal discontinuities, and dimensional inspection. Casting defects including porosity, oxide films, inclusions, hot tears, metal penetration, and surface defects are reviewed. Liquid penetrant inspection, magnetic particle inspection, eddy current inspection, radiographic inspection, ultrasonic inspection, and leak testing for castings are discussed. The chapter provides information on the procedures involved in the inspection of castings that are limited to visual and dimensional inspections, weight testing, and hardness testing. It also discusses the use of computer equipment in foundry inspection operations.

This chapter discusses the methods and procedures used for inspecting induction-hardened parts. It provides information on hardness and case depth measurements, nondestructive testing and surface analysis, the effect of various hardening errors, and relevant test standards.