Use of infrared imagery in characterization of chemical vapor deposition reactors

Infrared imagery was obtained of the exterior surfaces of a horizontal chemical vapor deposition reactor. These data revealed significant differences in flow pattern between hydrogen and nitrogen gases. The infrared pixel data were transformed into reactor coordinates and then merged with a three-dimensional data file of the reactor's external topology to create three-dimensional thermal maps of the exterior reactor surface. Such maps can prove useful both in helping to specify boundary conditions for modeling purposes and in revealing gross patterns in the flow.