Legendary BAM-5 weld sample taken with X-ray camera WidePIX 1×5

We just recently visited BAM in Berlin and performed few X-ray measurements with our new CdTe photon counting cameras. We also took few images of a legendary weld sample called BAM-5. This sample became standard in the field of nondestructive testing of steel welds.  The X-ray image you see shows the hand-welded 8 mm thick steel plates with all types of welding flaws.

The image was done with our WidePIX 1×5 camera (1280 x 256 pixels, 55 um pixel pitch) placed just behind the sample and ordinary X-ray tube (160 kVp, 4 mA, 0.4 mm focal spot) at a distance of 50 cm. The exposure time was 50 seconds.

The section of the same image after high pass filtering:

Even smaller section zooming the previous image, notice the micropores in a small peninsula in the top-left corner:

Comparison with film Fuji IX25, micropores are not visible (courtesy Uwe Evert BAM):

You can find many other X-ray images of the same piece googling images “BAM-5 weld” (e.g. image taken with Vidisco Rayzor X Pro camera). Some of these images can show micro-pores as well but they are taken with a micro-focus X-ray tube using magnification and much longer exposure time (e.g. 2000 seconds).



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