Patent attributes
A method for measuring average thickness of a metal or alloy coating on a metal or alloy substrate using an X-ray fluorescence (XRF) spectrometer is used when the coating has an uneven surface at different distances from a measurement window of the XRF spectrometer. The method includes measuring elemental composition of the coating or substrate using the XRF spectrometer and obtaining the average thickness of the coating using a calibration relationship between coating thickness and elemental composition of the coating or substrate. The metal or alloy coating may be a metal or alloy coating of a plurality of outer armor wires wrapped around a cable. The method may be used to analyze coating thickness changes over time or along the length of the cable, or to analyze a corrosive environment in order to choose optimal material for a metal or alloy coating.
