Abstract: The invention concerns radiographic equipment for forming an image of an interior of an object. The equipment comprises a source of X-ray or gamma-ray radiation having two or more energies and operable to irradiate an object to be scanned and a radiation source producing neutrons operable to irradiate the object. The equipment also comprises a radiation detector array having a plurality of pixels, each sensitive to and arranged with respect to the X-ray or gamma-ray radiation source and the neutron producing radiation source and operable to measure the intensity of each type of radiation transmitted through the object; means to process the intensity of each type of radiation, to determine the attenuation of each type of radiation having passed through the object, and to form an image indicative of the shape and composition of the object's interior.

Abstract: The invention concerns radiographic equipment. The equipment includes a source of substantially mono-energetic fast neutrons produced via the deuterium-tritium or deuterium-deuterium fusion reactions, comprising a sealed-tube or similar generator for producing the neutrons. The equipment further includes a source of X-rays or gamma-rays of sufficient energy to substantially penetrate an object to be imaged and a collimating block surrounding the neutron and gamma-ray sources, apart from the provision of one or more slots emitting substantially fan-shaped radiation beams. Further included is a detector array comprising a multiplicity of individual scintillator pixels to receive radiation energy from the sources and convert the received energy into light pulses, the detector array aligned with the fan-shaped beams emitted from the source collimator and collimated to substantially prevent radiation other than that directly transmitted from the sources reaching the array.

Abstract: Method and housing (2) for reducing particulate build-up on a surface of a device (5) contained in a recess (4) defined by the housing (2) when attached to a conduit. The method includes introducing gas into the recess (4) at a high volume and low velocity so that the gas flows in a laminar manner across the surface of the device (5). The volume lies in a range from 80 to 300 liters/minute and the velocity lies in a range from 0.2 to 3.6 meters/second. The method and housing (2) are particularly useful for preventing the build up of coal dust on the face of an ultrasonic transducer (5) used to measure the mass flow rate of coal being pneumatically transferred in the conduit.

Abstract: In this embodiment the size distribution of particles in a fluid is determined by performing the following steps: (a) passing a plurality of ultrasonic beams through the fluid, wherein the beams have respective frequencies; (b) obtaining a velocity measure of the beams in the fluid; (c) obtaining an ultrasonic velocity spectrum as a function of particle size for the fluid; (d) determining from the attenuation of gamma-rays the density of the fluid; and (3) calculating the particle size distribution for the fluid from the velocity measure, the velocity spectrum, and the suspension density which were respectively obtained in steps (b), (c) and (d).

Abstract: A method and apparatus, suitable for in-line use, provides for determination of pre-reduction degree (PRD) of an iron oxide material, by application of a neutron inelastic scattering technique. The material is exposed to bombardment with neutrons from a source yielding the neutrons at an energy level sufficient to produce prominent gamma-rays from neutron inelastic scattering. The gamma-rays are captured and analysed to obtain an output representative of the relative weight percentages of the elements iron and oxygen, based on at least one characteristic energy level for gamma-rays emitted by those elements. The PRD for the material is determined on the basis of those weight percentages.