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Neutron tomography in archaeology*

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Published/Copyright: March 27, 2015
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Materials Testing
From the journal Materials Testing Volume 57 Issue 4

Abstract

The use of non-invasive and non-destructive measurement techniques is of fundamental importance for the investigation of samples of great historical, cultural and artistic value. Among different techniques, neutron tomography (NT) allows a close analysis of samples of archaeological interest. Here, we present an overview of some works performed at the neutron tomography instrument CONRAD at Helmholtz Centre Berlin (HZB) including applications to organic metallic and mineral finds.

Kurzfassung

Nicht-invasive und zerstörungsfreie Messtechniken sind von entscheidender Bedeutung für die Erforschung von Objekten von großem historischen, kulturellem oder künstlerischem Wert. Neutronentomographie gehört dabei zu den weniger bekannten, aber doch sehr effektiven Verfahren. In diesem Artikel wird eine Übersicht gegeben über einige Untersuchungen von archäologischen Artefakten, organischer, metallischer und mineralischer Zusammensetzung, die am Messinstrument CONRAD des Helmholtz-Zentrums Berlin (HZB) durchgeführt wurden.

§Correspondence Address, Dr. Nikolay Kardjilov, HZB Berlin, Glienicker Str. 100, D-14109 Berlin, Germany, E-mail:

Dr. rer. nat. Nikolay Kardjilov is responsible for the neutron tomography instrument CONRAD at Helmholtz Centre Berlin (HZB) for Materials and Energy, Germany. He studied Physics at Sofia University, Bulgaria, where he received his MSc degree. Thereafter, he successfully completed his PhD work in the field of neutron tomography at the Department of Physical Science at TU Munich, Germany. In 2003, he moved to HZB, where he set up a new neutron tomography instrument. His research topics focus on the development and application of radiographic and tomographic techniques with neutrons.

Dr.-Ing. André Hilger is responsible for the synchrotron and neutron tomography facilities and the 3D data analysis centre at Helmholtz Centre Berlin (HZB), Germany. He studied Technical Physics at the University of Applied Science (TFH) Berlin, Germany. After receiving his Bachelor degree he worked as a technician between 2001 and 2006 at HZB as well as at TFH. In 2006, he obtained his MSc degree at TFH. In 2009, he accomplished his PhD thesis in materials science. Up to now he is working as post-doc at HZB.

Dr. rer. nat. Ingo Manke is Head of the Imaging Group at Helmholtz Centre Berlin for Materials and Energy (HZB), Germany. He studied Physics at the Freie Universität Berlin, Germany and completed his PhD thesis at TU Berlin on the field of scanning nearfield microscopy. Later he worked at Fraunhofer Institute for Reliability and Microintegration. Since 2003 he is working at HZB with research interests in materials science and in the development and application of radiographic and tomographic techniques with neutrons and X-rays.

Dr. Fabrizio Lo Celso is currently a faculty staff member at Physics and Chemistry Department at University of Palermo (Italy). He has finished his PhD in Chemistry at University of Palermo in 1998, and his final work was on a computational approach to study equilibrium properties of molten salt mixtures. During his post-doc periods in Missouri (USA), Palermo and Juelich (Germany), he has focused his attention on various scattering techniques involving both neutrons and X-rays. Among his current research fields are molecular dynamics on ionic liquids and polymers.

Prof. Dr. Roberto Triolo was Full Professor at the University of Palermo for more than 30 years. He has been very active in the field of neutron and X-ray scattering concerning mostly soft matters, polymers and cultural heritage. Among his many published works, the study of dynamical and structural properties of block copolymers in supercritical carbon dioxide lead to the Green Chemistry Presidential Award in 1997. His later activities have been focused on the application of neutron techniques to archaeological artifacts.

*

Revised version of Kardjilov et al., Notiziario Neutroni e Luce di Sincrotrone 13 (2008), p. 6

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Published Online: 2015-03-27
Published in Print: 2015-04-01

© 2015, Carl Hanser Verlag, München

Articles in the same Issue

  1. Inhalt/Contents
  2. Inhalt
  3. Fachbeiträge/Technical Contributions
  4. Influence of the production process on the deformation and fatigue performance of friction drilled internal threads in the aluminum alloy 6060*
  5. Effect of quench and strain aging on the mechanical properties of low carbon microalloyed steels
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  7. Analysis of industrial conditions during multi-stage cooling of C70D high-carbon steel wire rod
  8. Effect of cryogenic treatment on the microstructure and wear behavior of a T-42 tool steel
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  10. The memory effect in polyolefinic products: A tool for confirming the steam sterilization process
  11. Neutron tomography in archaeology*
  12. Ultraschallprüfung von Betonbauteilen – laufzeitgesteuerte Gruppenstrahler mit Punktkontaktprüfköpfen
  13. Acoustic emission testing of surface roughness and wear caused by grinding of ceramic materials
  14. Electrochemical impedance spectroscopy of hardened compacted cemented soils at early curing stage
  15. Microstructure and pore fractal dimensions of recycled thermal insulation concrete
  16. Microstructure and tribological properties of electrolytic plasma nitrided high-speed steel
  17. Exploitation of limestone in brick making
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  19. Kalender/Calendar
  20. Kalender
https://doi.org/10.3139/120.110708

Articles in the same Issue

  1. Inhalt/Contents
  2. Inhalt
  3. Fachbeiträge/Technical Contributions
  4. Influence of the production process on the deformation and fatigue performance of friction drilled internal threads in the aluminum alloy 6060*
  5. Effect of quench and strain aging on the mechanical properties of low carbon microalloyed steels
  6. Effect of temperature on microstructure and mechanical behavior of diffusion bonded Armor 500 and AISI 1040 steels
  7. Analysis of industrial conditions during multi-stage cooling of C70D high-carbon steel wire rod
  8. Effect of cryogenic treatment on the microstructure and wear behavior of a T-42 tool steel
  9. Application of the response surface methodology in the ball burnishing process for the prediction and analysis of surface hardness of the aluminum alloy AA 7075
  10. The memory effect in polyolefinic products: A tool for confirming the steam sterilization process
  11. Neutron tomography in archaeology*
  12. Ultraschallprüfung von Betonbauteilen – laufzeitgesteuerte Gruppenstrahler mit Punktkontaktprüfköpfen
  13. Acoustic emission testing of surface roughness and wear caused by grinding of ceramic materials
  14. Electrochemical impedance spectroscopy of hardened compacted cemented soils at early curing stage
  15. Microstructure and pore fractal dimensions of recycled thermal insulation concrete
  16. Microstructure and tribological properties of electrolytic plasma nitrided high-speed steel
  17. Exploitation of limestone in brick making
  18. Effect of alkaline treatment on physico-mechanical properties of black rice husk ash filled polypropylene biocomposites
  19. Kalender/Calendar
  20. Kalender
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