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TECHNICAL DATA / Non-Destructive Testing
CARESTREAM INDUSTREX
Digit al Imaging Plates
February 2011 • TI-2632
CARESTREAM INDUSTREX Flex XL, GP and HR
Digital Imaging Plates (IPs) are designed for computed
radiography in non-destructive testing ap p licat ion s.
These plates employ storage phosphors which
capture and retain a latent image in direct propor tion to
an exposure of ionizing radiation.
This latent image is subsequently read out by
scanning with a red laser, which stimulates the
emission of blue light, in a phenomenon known as
photostimulated luminescence.
The imaging plate can be loaded into a flexible or
rigid cassette and used with metal screens of
appropriate thickness.
They offer the flexibility of film without the need for
wet processing, so you can capture and read images
quickly and easily, both in the field and in the lab.
The images can be optimized, if needed, and can be
stored and shared digitally. These imaging plates work
with CARESTREAM CR Systems including the
INDUSTREX HPX-1, ACR-2000 and ACR-2000i
Digital Systems.
CARESTREAM INDUSTREX Flex XL, GP and HR
Digital Imaging Plates are:
• Flexible—Wrap around most shapes.
• Sharp—Better resolution than high-speed films,
and a suitable replacement for many applications.
• Available in Multiple Sizes—To cover a wide
range of applications.
• Portable—With a CARESTREAM INDUSTREX
Digital System, image capture in remote areas is
easier than ever.
• Versatile—Use in a rigid or flexible cassette.
• Efficient—Phosphor plates can be erased and
reused thousands of times, require less exposure
than film, and provide faster image access.
• Certified—When used with CARESTREAM
INDUSTREX HPX-1, ACR-2000 and ACR-2000i
Digital Systems, all plates meet requirements for
the highest system class according to EN 14784-1
and ASTM E 2446.
Recommended Uses
CARESTREAM INDUSTREX Digital Imaging Plates
are available in many sizes, and are designed for a
wide variety of NDT applications, including:
• Castings
• Erosion and corrosion
• Pipeline inspection
• Welded fabrication
• Ordnance
Storage and Handling
The lifetime of the plates is hundreds or thousands of
exposure/readout/erase cycles, determined primarily
by the care in handling and environmental conditions.
Careless handling and very dirty environments can
shorten the useful lifetime of an imaging plate.
Important
Inspect phosphor plates every week and replace
when wear is evident. Clean every 200 exposures,
every 30 days, or as necessary as directed in the
cleaning sections of this document.
Handling
Handling the IP and operating the HPX-1 or the
ACR-2000/ACR-2000i reader must be done in a
darkened room that is free of light contamination. It is
not necessary to have complete darkness, but the light
source must be a low wattage incandescent bulb.
Fluorescent, sodium vapor, mercury vapor, safelights
and sunlight must not be allowed in the processing
room during handling or scanning of the exposed
imaging plates.
Under normal use conditions, phosphor plates will
eventually show wear. Plate wear can result in artifacts
on radiographs. This may occur from abrasion of the
protective overcoat or inadvertent physical damage to
the surface or edge. Certain chemical agents, such as
non-approved plate cleaners, hand lotions, topical
medications, food, and so forth, may also damage the
plates.
Handle flexible phosphor plates with care. Hold
plates by the edges and by the black side. Avoid
contact with the plate’s white (phosphor) side. Make
sure hands are clean and dry. For best results, wear
nitrile rubber or latex gloves.
© Carestream Health, Inc. 2011
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Cutting
Cutting the plates is not recommended, as this will
compromise the edge seal and make the plates prone
to moisture damage at the edges.
Caution
Read and follow instructions in Material Safety
Data Sheets (MSDS) for KODAK Screen Cleaner.
Temperature Range
The normal temperature oper at ing ran g e is
-5 to 30 °C (23to86°F) , although lower temperatures
for short periods (several hours) will have no
detrimental effect on the performance or physical
integrity of the plates. In very hot environments, care
should be exercised in bending or flexing the plates, as
the phosphor layer could crack if flexed at
temperatures exceeding 65 °C (149 °F). Between
65 and 100 °C (149 and 212 °F), minor distortions of
the polyester support may occur, and ov er 100 °C
(212 ° F), damage to the phosphor layer (blistering/
buckling) can occur.
When radiography of very hot objects (such as hot
welds) is necessary, a thin fire-resistant insulating layer
may be placed between the cassette and the object, if
experimentation shows it does not negatively affect
image quality.
Again, as a practical matter, the upper temperature
limit will be determined by the point at which the
cassette begins to burn or the lead identification letters
begin to melt.
Cleaning Plates
CARESTREAM INDUSTREX Digital Imaging Plates
employ a phosphor that is moisture sensitive. When
exposed to water (either liquid or vapor form), the
phosphor breaks down and liberates iodine. The iodine
can become trapped within the phospho r layer at the
interface between the overcoat and phosphor layer.
The yellow-brown color in the iodine strongly absorbs
the blue light emitted by the phosphor. This results in a
loss in plate speed, which causes image quality
problems.
The plates are over-coated with a highl y
moisture-resistant polymer blend. However, the
overcoat is very thin (less than 0.0254 mm [0.001 in.])
and has limited resistance to mechanical abrasion that
may occur during cleaning. Thus, it is possible to lower
the resistance to water during use or cleaning. This can
result in the degradation of the plate.
New imaging plates should be cleaned before first
use. This will impart the necessary anti-static
properties and prevent the attraction of dust and dirt
which can result in image artifacts.
Note: Plates should be wiped routinely to remove any
dust and loose dirt. It is also a good idea to clean the
interior of flexible cassettes to avoid transfer of dirt or
dust to the plate. Use KODAK Screen Cleaner to
remove other dirt. Other cleaning solutio ns can
contain chemicals that cause visible or hidden
damage to the plate and could result in immediate or
future image artifacts.
Cleaning Methods
For routine cleaning, place the plate with the black
(non-phosphor) side down on a clean, dry,
non-abrasive surface, such as the cassette’s cleaned
Tube Side. Wipe the plate gently to remove dust. For
other dirt, use KODAK Screen Cleaner as follows:
1. Fold a non-abrasive, lint-free wipe or cloth and
dampen with a small amount of the solution.
Important
Do not pour the solution directly onto the plate.
Excessive amounts of the screen cleaner may
damage the plate. Moisture can cause immediate
or future screen damage and image artifacts.
Minimize contact with moisture and always dry
plates immediately.
2. Wipe the plate thoroughly, one section at a time.
Fold the cloth to expose a fresh area for each section
of the plate.
3. If necessary for the removal of persistent dirt,
apply pressure while cleaning.
4. Thoroughly dry the plate with a clean and dry,
non-abrasive, lint-free cloth to remove residual clean er.
Do not leave the plate to air dry.
Important
Never insert a storage phosphor plate into a
cassette unless it is thoroughly dry.
Important
Water, isopropyl alcohol (Isopropanol, rubbing
alcohol), and plate cleaners containing isopropyl
alcohol are not recommended.
2 CARESTREAM INDUSTREX Digital Imaging Plates • TI-2632
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Characteristics
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
90
100
0123456
Spacial Freque ncy (cycle s/mm)
Sharpness (MTF %)
XL Blue
HR & XL
GP
Physical Properties
Thickness
Total
Thickness
(microns
[mils])
XL 428 (16.9) 150 (5.9) 6 (0.24) 18 (0.71)
HR 444 (17.5) 150 (5.9) 6 (0.24) 25.4 (1)
GP 605 (23.8) 300 (11.8) 12 (0.47) 38.1 (1.5)
CARESTREAM INDUSTREX Digital Imaging Plates
are comprised of a layer of barium fluorobromoiodide
doped with divalent Europium (BaFBr/I:Eu2+), coated
on a 10-mil polyester support.
A polymer overcoat provides protect i on ag ainst
normal handling such as fingerprints and moisture.
A black polycarbonate backing layer provides
anti-halation protection and curl control, and also
contains slip agents for optimum transport through the
CR reader hardware.
Flexibility
The plates can be bent around pipes and other
curved surfaces down to a radius of one inch, although
as a practical matter, the bend radius will be much
more limited by the configuration of the cassette and
the lead screens, when used.
Phosphor
layer
(microns
[mils])
Overcoat
(microns
[mils])
Backing
Layer
(microns
[mils])
Signal Retention
The stored energy in the imaging plate ph os ph o rs
will decay over time, resulting in some signal loss. This
effect is known as image fading. This loss is also a
function of temperature, and will be greater at elevated
temperatures.
In most applications this signal decay will be of little
importance, given the very wide latitude of stora ge
phosphor imaging plates.
In critical applications, there are a couple of
measures that can be taken; when the interval between
exposing and readout is more than a couple of hours,
the plates can be exposed with a higher radiation dose
(greater milliamp-seconds) to compensate for signal
decay.
For shorter intervals, simply keeping the time
between exposing and readout constant will eliminate
any decay-induced variability.
The figure below shows the percent signal retention
in the first two hours at ambient temperatures after an
exposure of 80 kV.
Signal Retention
Sharpness
Sharpness is typically characterized by Modulation
Transfer Function, a measure of signal or image
modulation as a function of spatial frequency. The
figure below shows the MTF curves for all imaging
plates, and highlights the improved sharpness of the
HR and XL plates.
Modulation Transfer Function
CARESTREAM INDUSTREX Digital Imaging Plates • TI-2632 3
H192_3008AA
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Absorption
X-ray Absorption vs. X-ray Energy
0.01
0.1
1
0 50 100 150
X-ray Energy (kV)
Relativ e (Pho ton) A bsorp tion
GP
XL & XL Blue
GP, HR, XL & XL Blue Emission
0.0
0.1
0.2
0.3
0.4
0.5
0.6
0.7
0.8
0.9
1.0
300 350 400 450 500 550 600 650 700 750 800
Wavele ngth (nm)
Relative Emission
Imaging plates are quite sensitive to low energy
scatter, as shown by their x-ray energy absorption
curves below.
For this reason, the use of lead screens, especially
at energies greater than 100 kV, is important in
controlling scatter to produce optimum image quality.
The thickness of the screens is determined by
experimentation, however it will generally be two to
three times the thickness of a comparable film
application.
Absorption
Disposal
Due to the presence of barium, this plate may be
considered a hazardous or special waste at the end of
its useful life.
For disposal or recycling information, please contact
local authorities.
To locate the Article Information Sheet (AIS) for each
plate, go to www.carestream.com and navigate to
Support and Education > Environment Health & Safety.
H192_3010AA
Emission
The wavelength of light needed to stimulate
phosphor luminescence is different from the
wavelength of light released by the phosphors. This
enables the stimulating light to be filtered from the
phosphor luminescence.
The emission is typically stimulated with a red laser
diode, while the photostimulated emission of the XL,
GP and HR imaging plates is a narrow band of blue
light near 400 nm.
Emission
4 CARESTREAM INDUSTREX Digital Imaging Plates • TI-2632
H192_3011AA
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CARESTREAM INDUSTREX Digital Imaging Plates
NOTICE:
While the sensitometric data in this publication are typical of production coatings, they do not
represent standards which must be met by Carestream Health, Inc. Varying storage, exposure, and
processing conditions will affect results. The company reserves the right to change and improve
product characteristics at any time.
INDUSTREX is a trademark of Carestream Health, Inc.
The Kodak trademark and trade dress are used under license from Kodak.
Pub No. TI-2632
Revised 2011-02-16 (February 16, 2011)
Printed in the U.S.
Carestream Health, Inc.
150 Verona Street
Rochester, NY 14608
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