X-RAY Tomography in Material Science

For researchers dealing with structural materials, a key issue is the identification of the mechanisms responsible for the global mechanical behaviour of a material. Experimentally, this identification is quite an arduous task, carried out mainly through surface observations because most structural materials are opaque.The aim of this book is to show that X-ray tomography can be used as a very powerful tool to investigate the microstructure and the deformation mechanisms of structural materials. For the moment, this technique, which has been widely used for years in medicine, is the only one that can provide direct non-destructive images of the interior of a material.A global description of the technique is given, as well as an introduction to the algorithms used for the reconstruction of the 3D numerical images. An overview of new possibilities offered by third generation synchrotron X-ray sources is also presented with an emphasis on the novel phase contrast technique which considerably extends the field of classical X-ray tomography.Finally, various examples illustrate how X-ray tomography can be used quantitatively for investigating the microstructure and the behaviour of micro-heterogeneous structural materials such as Al and Ti based metal matrix composites, aluminium alloys and aluminium foams. The use of both synchrotron and laboratory X-ray sources is illustrated.