Hi all
For a structure like a crane, is it ever a designed fitness-for-purpose / planned Non-Destructive Examination technique to make it entirely from Structural Hollow Section, fully-sealed (eg. ends blanked-off), so that the voids can be pressurised through a valve, with cracks detected by leaks? Immersed in water to see bubbles; watch for pressure fall over time; etc.
I was thinking of this for a structure I was sketching and designing, to prove it has no through-thickness cracks anywhere.
What it lacked in not detecting cracks before they become full-thickness, it would gain from testing the entire structure 100%, not requiring any preparation (surface or otherwise), no sensitivity to testing orientation of flaws / defects which do exist (like dye-pen, but unlike mag-part) - and cheap so you could test often / before any critical use.
???
Rich S