Moderator: Peter Verschueren, MSc PhD, Materialise, Belgium

(1) Due to the flight problems in Europe, Mr. Suzuki will not be able to attend our Conference and speak for us. Mr. Koen Engelborghs, Department Manager BME at Materialise, will present the research and the  results of this interesting project.

Abstracts

Aidan Chopra & John Bacus, Google Inc, US
If a picture's worth a thousand words, what's a model worth

Abstract will be added soon. 

Mr. Keisuke Suzuki, Aisin AW CO, Japan
High accuracy vibration analysis based on CT and optical scanning with Scan2FEA approach

It was quite difficult to use meshes that generated from CT scan data for Vibration Analysis. Because it was too time-consuming to create FEM while the quality of the results was not good enough. So we had a joint project with the Materialise service team to develop the methods to create NV simulation models with faster and easier ways to keep the accuracy of analysis.

The basic methodologies we discussed prior to starting this service were as follows. There were three approaches:

• Direct remesh without feature lines 
• Automatic creation of feature lines using curvature analysis 
• Automatic creation of feature lines by transfer of CAD feature lines to CT-based STL data

Concerning the results, all these approaches satisfied us not only with regards to time reduction but also accuracy of analysis. Eventually this led to a higher accuracy analysis than the CAD2FEA approach due to the precise representation of the actual shape on the physical parts. I will explain these points in this session.

Peter Verschueren, MSc, PhD, Materialise, Belgium
Mimics Innovation Suite: Micro- & tech-CT 3D applications

Since 1992 Materialise has been active on creating 3D models from medical CT data via its Mimics software technology. Also since the early 90’s the technology of micro- & tech-CT was getting up to speed and Mimics has been used since those days to generate 3D models of this type of high resolution data.
In 2010 micro- & tech-CT are still among the advanced types of research, but nonetheless all major research institutions have access to this type of non-destructive geometrical analysis data. And new techniques such as micro-MRI and fused ion beam bring us new possibilities in temporal and spatial resolution for sliced imaging.
This presentation shows The Mimics Innovation Suite capabilities in any type of sliced data handling, advanced analysis and engineering. The provided application give you an insight on how to take your micro-sliced data to 3D models, statistical measurements, FEA or CFD, additive manufacturing, geometrical analysis, reverse engineering and design optimization.

Tom Ceulemans, Phd, SkyScan, Belgium
MicroCT scanning: State of technology and applications

After the introduction of the first commercial desktop micro computer tomography (microCT) systems in the mid 90's the technology has gradually improved in image quality. Also the number of applications has been growing substantially. Still today new applications in the field of Material Science and Life Science appear.
In the meantime nanoCT scanners are available offering a resolution of several hundreds of nanometers. Thanks to the developments in X-ray sources and camera's, and the growing expertise of building micro- and nanoCT systems the resolution limit will continue to go down. Manufacturers will continue to be challenged to visualize the smallest internal details in a non-destructive way.
Besides improving the resolution, better contrast and reduction of reconstruction artefacts in the images are factors that keep on being under investigation. Both hardware and software tools are contributing to this goal.
Besides the image acquisition, the reconstruction algorithms are a crucial element influencing the image quality and scanning speed. Speed is important in environments where sample throughput or radiation dose are important.
The newest developments in the field of microCT are the use of X-ray fluorescence and phase contrast. Combining CT scanning with X-ray fluorescence allows to visualize the internal 3D chemical composition of an object besides the structural information. Phase contrast will allow to image the borders between different materials in an object which cannot be distinguished with absorption contrast.
One thing is sure, the development path of X-ray micro- and nanoCT systems will still continue for quite some time.
The presentation will give an overview on the state of the art of the micro and nanoCT scanning technology and the expected evolution in the coming years.

Jelle Vlassenbroeck, Dr. Ir., inCT, Belgium
Quantification of fluid-flow properties of sandstone using micro-CT

High resolution X-ray tomography has been applied for the non-destructive investigation of geomaterials since several years, but it is only recently that X-ray CT scanners have been developed which are able to capture a 3D image at a micrometer scale. Since processes such as geological fluid flow occur at this scale, the latest generation of high resolution X-ray CT scanners now allows scientists to obtain a better insight in the fluid-flow properties of several types of rock. These insights can for example be used for the study of extraction of fossil fuels from porous rock formations. It is only because of the combination of state-of-the-art CT scanners and advanced modeling and simulation software algorithms that this type of in-depth studies can be performed.

In this presentation, we illustrate the potential of the combination of state-of-the-art high resolution X-ray CT scanners and modeling software in the simulation of fluid flow through a Belgian sandstone (Bray).

• First, we give a brief overview of the various applications of high resolution X-ray tomography in the field of geosciences, illustrating the versatility of the scan equipment of inCT.
• Next, we discuss the various steps in the quantification of the fluid-flow properties of a piece of Belgian sandstone (Bray). These steps include capturing high quality CT images, resulting in a complete 3D volume of 1500³ voxels with an isotropic voxel size of 6 µm. The 3D volume is processed by Materialise’s image processing and mesh optimization software package (Materialise’s Mimics Innovation Suite), resulting in a mesh used for simulation in OpenFOAM by TotalSim.
• We present the obtained results and give an outlook on how these results can help geologists in understanding the physics of fluid flow through porous rocks.

Ryan Renshaw, CEng, E2V, UK
Multiphysics modelling of microwave assisted mineral extraction using micro-CT scan data

Globally, approximately 5% of all electrical energy is used in the comminution or size reduction of ore ahead of the mineral separation process. Grinding is the most energy intensive stage in comminution, and is only 1% efficient in terms of creation of new surfaces.

Microwave energy can be used to selectively heat up the minerals of interest. Hence the targeted thermal energy causes temperature differences between the minerals and the bulk material. The resultant thermal stress induces fracture at the mineral grain boundaries, which has been shown to dramatically improve mineral liberation during grinding.

At a time when valuable mineral content in ore is diminishing and demand is rising, this process is an attractive way to significantly reduce global energy consumption.

A multiphysics model of the microwave assisted mineral liberation process has been built to facilitate microwave applicator design, and process optimisation. The model consists of system level geometry with a detailed micro-environment. A layer of averaged rock properties are used to produce results on a system level, this provides the correct dielectric loading for the microwave applicator. A micro-CT scan of a rock sample is used to generate the geometry of the micro-environment. Stresses can be assessed in the mineral boundaries using the micro-environment.

This study shows how micro-CT scan data can be included as a micro-environment on a large, system level multiphysics model. This allows quick and easy changes such as power input and exposure time to be made on a system level, in order to compute stress levels at the mineral boundaries of the micro-environment.

Mark Brennan, Huntsman, USA
Microscale modelling of polyurethane foams with Mimics and 3-matic

The versatility of polyurethane foam allows it to be used in a wide range of applications. These include thermal insulation in buildings, comfort foam in seating and lightweight acoustic absorbers in cars [1]. They can be manufactured in a wide range of grades from closed cell rigid to open cell flexible systems. The bulk material properties of polyurethane foam are determined by the material properties of the solid part of the foam and the foam cell morphology.

This work focuses on how Mimics and 3-matic are used in our research to help understand and construct microstructures of polyurethane foams. Using Mimics, it is possible to reconstruct the 3D foam cell morphology from X-ray tomography images. This provides insight into how these structures are formed and how they influence bulk properties.

Furthermore, because the surfaces describing polyurethane foam cell morphology are complex, having no convenient mathematical form, it is difficult to describe their geometry with traditional CAD entities. Using Digital CAD techniques, such as 3-matic, provides a fast method of preparing foam microstructure models for CFD and FEA analysis.

The key elements of both processes and how they are applied to aid understanding of the material properties of foams will be presented.

Dr. Ing. Greet Kerckhofs, K.U.Leuven, Belgium
The use of Mimics for the validated quantification of bone formation in bone tissue engineering scaffolds

In bone tissue engineering (TE) a lot of in vivo studies use X-ray microfocus computed tomography (micro-CT) as a complementary or replacing analysis tool for histomorphometry (‘golden standard’) to quantify newly formed bone in scaffolds of different material classes. This is however mostly done without prior validation and investigation of the constraints of micro-CT imaging. In this study, it was shown that quantitative validation of micro-CT is mandatory prior to bone formation analysis. Also, the visualization and binarization errors present in the micro-CT images are highly influenced by the scaffold material. Correcting for these material-induced errors resulted in significantly different osteogenic outcomes between the different scaffold materials, which was not the case with histomorphometry. We have used Mimcs [Materialise NV, Haasrode, Belgium] for the image analysis of the micro-CT images, which resulted in a more reliable, 3D global quantification of the newly formed bone volume with regard to the limiting 2D character of histomorphometry and the large standard deviation of the histomorphometric data. Locally however, micro-CT could not provide reliable quantification of the spatial bone distribution for high X-ray attenuating scaffold materials. Thus, micro CT combined with image analysis (using Mimics) can, when corrected for the material-dependent visualization and binarization errors, be reliably applied to quantify the osteogenic capacity of explanted scaffolds in function of their material and structural properties.

 Registrations are closed