Effects of magnification and sampling resolution in X-ray computed tomography for the measurement of additively manufactured metal surfaces

Recent studies have shown that X-ray computed tomography (XCT) can be used to measure the surface topography of additively manufactured parts. However, further research is necessary to fully understand XCT measurement performance. Here, we show how magnification of the X-ray projections and resoluti...

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Main Authors: Thompson, Adam, Senin, Nicola, Maskery, Ian, Leach, Richard
Format: Article
Published: Elsevier 2018
Subjects:
Online Access:https://eprints.nottingham.ac.uk/50303/
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author Thompson, Adam
Senin, Nicola
Maskery, Ian
Leach, Richard
author_facet Thompson, Adam
Senin, Nicola
Maskery, Ian
Leach, Richard
author_sort Thompson, Adam
building Nottingham Research Data Repository
collection Online Access
description Recent studies have shown that X-ray computed tomography (XCT) can be used to measure the surface topography of additively manufactured parts. However, further research is necessary to fully understand XCT measurement performance. Here, we show how magnification of the X-ray projections and resolution of the volumetric reconstruction grid influence the determination of surface topography in the XCT data processing pipeline. We also compare XCT results to coherence scanning interferometry (CSI) measurements and find that by increasing the magnification of the X-ray projections, smaller topographic detail can be resolved, approaching the lateral resolution of CSI. Results show that there is an optimum setting for magnification, below and above which XCT measurement performance can degrade. The resolution of the volumetric reconstruction grid has a less pronounced effect, but in general, adopting higher or lower resolutions than the default leads to degraded repeatability in surface determination. The problem of determining sensitivity of XCT surface measurement as a function of setup parameters is complex, and it is not yet possible to provide optimal setup configurations that work regardless of object geometry. However, the methods presented here, as well as the results obtained, represent a useful contribution to good practice for XCT measurement of surfaces.
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spelling nottingham-503032020-05-04T19:47:58Z https://eprints.nottingham.ac.uk/50303/ Effects of magnification and sampling resolution in X-ray computed tomography for the measurement of additively manufactured metal surfaces Thompson, Adam Senin, Nicola Maskery, Ian Leach, Richard Recent studies have shown that X-ray computed tomography (XCT) can be used to measure the surface topography of additively manufactured parts. However, further research is necessary to fully understand XCT measurement performance. Here, we show how magnification of the X-ray projections and resolution of the volumetric reconstruction grid influence the determination of surface topography in the XCT data processing pipeline. We also compare XCT results to coherence scanning interferometry (CSI) measurements and find that by increasing the magnification of the X-ray projections, smaller topographic detail can be resolved, approaching the lateral resolution of CSI. Results show that there is an optimum setting for magnification, below and above which XCT measurement performance can degrade. The resolution of the volumetric reconstruction grid has a less pronounced effect, but in general, adopting higher or lower resolutions than the default leads to degraded repeatability in surface determination. The problem of determining sensitivity of XCT surface measurement as a function of setup parameters is complex, and it is not yet possible to provide optimal setup configurations that work regardless of object geometry. However, the methods presented here, as well as the results obtained, represent a useful contribution to good practice for XCT measurement of surfaces. Elsevier 2018-07-30 Article PeerReviewed Thompson, Adam, Senin, Nicola, Maskery, Ian and Leach, Richard (2018) Effects of magnification and sampling resolution in X-ray computed tomography for the measurement of additively manufactured metal surfaces. Precision Engineering, 53 . pp. 54-64. ISSN 0141-6359 X-ray computed tomography metrology surface texture metal powder bed fusion https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0141635917307195?via%3Dihub doi:10.1016/j.precisioneng.2018.02.014 doi:10.1016/j.precisioneng.2018.02.014
spellingShingle X-ray computed tomography
metrology
surface texture
metal powder bed fusion
Thompson, Adam
Senin, Nicola
Maskery, Ian
Leach, Richard
Effects of magnification and sampling resolution in X-ray computed tomography for the measurement of additively manufactured metal surfaces
title Effects of magnification and sampling resolution in X-ray computed tomography for the measurement of additively manufactured metal surfaces
title_full Effects of magnification and sampling resolution in X-ray computed tomography for the measurement of additively manufactured metal surfaces
title_fullStr Effects of magnification and sampling resolution in X-ray computed tomography for the measurement of additively manufactured metal surfaces
title_full_unstemmed Effects of magnification and sampling resolution in X-ray computed tomography for the measurement of additively manufactured metal surfaces
title_short Effects of magnification and sampling resolution in X-ray computed tomography for the measurement of additively manufactured metal surfaces
title_sort effects of magnification and sampling resolution in x-ray computed tomography for the measurement of additively manufactured metal surfaces
topic X-ray computed tomography
metrology
surface texture
metal powder bed fusion
url https://eprints.nottingham.ac.uk/50303/
https://eprints.nottingham.ac.uk/50303/
https://eprints.nottingham.ac.uk/50303/