Inspection and Test of Welds

§ 192.241 Inspection and Test of Welds#

(a)Visual inspection of welding must be conducted by an individual qualified by appropriate training and experience to ensure that:#

(1)The welding is performed in accordance with the welding procedure, and#

(2)The weld is acceptable under paragraph#

(c)of this section.#

(b)The welds on a pipeline to be operated at a pressure that produces a hoop stress of 20 percent or more of SMYS must be nondestructively tested in accordance with § 192.243, except that welds that are visually inspected and approved by a qualified welding inspector need not be nondestructively tested if:#

(1)The pipe has a nominal diameter of less than 6 inches (152 millimeters); or#

(2)The pipeline is to be operated at a pressure that produces a hoop stress of less than 40 percent of SMYS and the welds are so limited in number that nondestructive testing is impractical.#

(c)The acceptability of a weld that is nondestructively tested or visually inspected is determined according to the standards in Section 9 or Appendix A of API Std 1104 (incorporated by reference, see § 192.7). Appendix A of API Std 1104 may not be used to accept cracks.#

(d)Each operator must designate in writing a welding inspector to perform visual inspections of welds under this paragraph.#