From Fuel to Water: How NDT Supports Industries That Depend on Storage Tanks
- David Barnhouse
- 7 days ago
- 2 min read
Storage tanks are essential in many industries and world-wide applications by holding fuel, chemicals, water, and many other critical items safely. When tanks are new, they usually work perfectly. However, as tanks age, corrosion, cracks, thinning walls, and defects can develop without any visible indication to discover these issues until it’s too late. This is where Non-Destructive Testing (NDT) is an essential process.
Potential Issues - The Hidden Risks
Even the best designed tanks can degrade in a short period of time due to environmental exposure. Corrosion under insulation (CUI), wall thinning, and internal cracking are all problems that may develop that can cause unsuspecting and catastrophic changes in the tank's mechanical properties and structural integrity. A minor manufacturing defect in a tank's internal welded attachment point can lead to leaks, product loss, environmental damage, or worse, catastrophic failures like fires, spills, and even loss of life. Knowing and identifying the tank's material integrity, and condition through appropriate NDT inspections, will allow the safe tank to remain in use until further action or repairs become evident.
How NDT Can Help
NDT offers verifiable inspection methods without opening the tank or shuttering/decommissioning the tank vessel holding tethered products. NDT techniques such as ultrasonic testing, radiographic testing, and magnetic particle inspection offer ways to identify defects at the initial stages of development that may not have been previously detectable.
NDT inspections also provide a full scope of materials condition and help to;
Monitor for corrosion and wall thinning.
Detect weld cracks and/or surface defects.
Check tank bottoms or shells.
Make sure the tank meets proper regulations for operation (API 653, DOT, etc).
NDT in Industry
How does Non-Destructive Testing (NDT) support safety across key industries? Let’s look at how NDT contributes to storage tank safety in sectors ranging from fuel to pharmaceuticals:
Oil and Gas - Helps minimize risks of uncontrolled fuel leaks and potential explosions.
Chemical Plants - Detects corrosion and thermal damage before tank failure occurs.
Water Utilities - Ensures clean, uncontaminated water for public consumption.
Food and Beverage - Prevents contamination during long-term storage of consumable goods.
Pharmaceutical - Maintains purity and sterility by identifying storage risks before contamination happens.
Conclusion
Storage tanks may appear stationary simply permanently standing, they change secretly every day the internal conditions or environment of the tank materials change.
NDT testing of storage tanks is essential as one of a few ways to keep storage tanks as safe, dependable, with proven integrity and compliant.
Need to inspect your storage tanks?
Island CERTS offers certified NDT services to help you stay compliant and worry-free. Contact us to schedule your tank inspection today.
