An in situ microtomography apparatus with a laboratory x-ray source for elevated temperatures of up to 1000 °C

Abstract

An elevated-temperature in situ microtomography apparatus that can measure internal damage parameters under tensile loads at high temperatures up to 1000 °C is developed using a laboratory x-ray source. The maximum resolution of the apparatus can reach 3 µm by a reasonable design. A high-temperature environment is accomplished by means of a heating chamber based on a radiation technique using four halogen lamps with ellipsoidal reflectors. To obtain high resolution, the chamber is much smaller in the direction of the x-ray beam than in the other two directions. Two thin aluminum windows are chosen as the chamber walls perpendicular to and intersecting the x-ray beam. A material testing machine equipped with two synchronous rotating motors is specially designed for mechanical loading and 360° rotation of the specimen, and customized grips are developed to conduct tensile tests. A microfocus x-ray source and a high-resolution detector are used to produce and detect X rays, and the distances among the x-ray source, specimen, and high-resolution detector can be adjusted to obtain different resolutions. To show the main functions and usability of the apparatus, carbon-fiber-reinforced silicon-carbide matrix specimens are subjected to in situ x-ray microtomography tensile tests at 800 °C and 1000 °C, and the crack propagation behavior under thermomechanical coupling loads is studied.

Investigation on Flaw Evolution of Additively Manufactured Al2O3 Ceramic by In Situ X-ray Computed Tomography

“…In situ compression tests were conducted on additively manufactured Al 2 O 3 ceramics using an in situ X-ray computed tomography apparatus assembled in our laboratory, as shown in Figure 2 [ 21 ]. This apparatus has a 300 W microfocus X-ray source producing X-rays with tube voltages from 30 to 225 kV.…”

Influence of Manufacturing Defects on Mechanical Behavior of the Laser Powder Bed Fused Invar 36 Alloy: In-Situ X-ray Computed Tomography Studies

“…In-situ tensile tests were conducted on Invar 36 alloy specimens using an in-situ X-ray computed tomography apparatus assembled in our laboratory [30]. This apparatus consists of a microfocus X-ray source that produces X-rays, a CCD detector that receives X-rays, as well as a material testing machine with two synchronous rotating motors for mechanical loading and 360-degree rotation of the specimen.…”

Environmental control for X-ray nanotomography

“…Environmental setups that facilitate in situ and operando studies of materials in response to changes in atmosphere, temperature and/or pressure are a hallmark of X-ray microtomography (Zhu et al, 2021;Maire et al, 2001;Marone et al, 2020;Meirer & Weckhuysen, 2018;Wood, 2018). However, equivalents for similar studies at nanometric 3D resolution are rare (Weber et al, 2022;Watanabe et al, 2007;Murata et al, 2015) because of the more stringent requirements concerning sample stability, positioning accuracy and angular sampling, especially in scanning-based imaging modalities (Pfeiffer, 2018;Mokso et al, 2007).…”