X‐ray micro‐CT applied to natural building materials and art objects

In recent years, x-ray micro-CT has become an important tool for investigating all kinds of materials. The technique uses x-ray transmission images of a sample to create a 3D representation of the specimen. Owing to its nondestructive nature, it is especially suited to investigate rare or expensive samples. This article aims to point out the potential x-ray computed tomography (CT) has to offer to the preservation of cultural heritage and the world of art. Research was performed at the UGCT facility of the Ghent University (Belgium), using a ‘state of the art’ x-ray microtomograph. In this article, the results for two applications of x-ray CT are shown and discussed. The first application is the localization of salts in sandstone and limestone, as a contribution to the European Saltcontrol project. As for the second application, several bronze artifacts were scanned and reconstructed. This allows one to look at the interior composition of the sample and detect possible signs of reparation. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.