INDUSTRIAL POSITRON-BASED IMAGING - PRINCIPLES AND APPLICATIONS

Positron Emission Tomography (PET) has great potential as a non-invasive flow imaging technique in engineering, since 511 keV gamma-rays can penetrate a considerable thickness of (e.g.) steel. The RAL/Birmingham multiwire positron camera was constructed in 1984, with the initial goal of observing the lubricant distribution in operating aero-engines, automotive engines and gearboxes, and has since been used in a variety of indutrial fields. The major limitation of the camera for conventional tomographic PET studies is its restricted logging rate, which limits the frequency with which images can be acquired. Tracking a single small positron-emitting tracer particle provides a more powerful means of observing high speed motion using such a camera. Following a brief review of the use of conventional PET in engineering, and the capabilities of the Birmingham camera, this paper describes recent developments in the Positron Emission Particle Tracking (PEPT) technique, and compares the results obtainable by PET and PEPT using, as an example, a study of axial diffusion of particles in a rolling cylinder.