Introduction

This chapter provides an overview of some of the considerations that go into materials evaluation and nondestructive testing. It includes the concept of materials’ lifetime, whereby the degradation and eventual replacement or failure of materials are considered as normal, and a discussion of factors that can cause failure of materials. In addition to a summary of some of the most basic inspection techniques, it describes the considerations that arise when a material is found to be flawed, particularly whether the material should be replaced or whether continued operation is possible. The chapter forms a foundation for the ideas that are presented in the following chapters of the book.