The Tel-X-Ometer 580As some forum members are aware, I am a qualified user of X-Ray generating and imaging equipment. As such I am always on the look-out for X-Ray related equipment such as generators and X-Ray radiation measuring equipment.
This thread details a recent purchase of mine. I was aware of its existence but the ones that I have seen for sale have been crazy expensive. The unit is still in production and may be purchased from the OEM, TEL-Atomic, new for $12K or used for $4K
http://www.telatomic.com/x-ray/The Tel-X-Ometer is really designed for education and experimentation using X-Ray in a controlled and safe environment. The unit is intrinsically safe to permit its use in educational establishments such as schools and universities.
I bought my unit from an IT recycler with whom I often do business. It was an open ebay auction but I was the only bidder. Some people are put off buying such equipment as they see the Radiation Trefoil and do not have the test equipment to ensure that it is not leaking X-Ray. The unit cost me the grand sum of £50 ($75) and that ended up including postage as well
The unit arrived this morning and happily its fragile looking dome survived the journey. From the stickers that were applied to its case I could see that it was Ex. Kingston University and it looks to be in very good condition. Just a broken plastic bracket that holds the moving stage adjusting mechanism. An easy fix.
So what is the Tel-X-Ometer 580 ?
Tel-Atomic say:
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The Tel-X-Ometer is a spectrometer which can easily be adapted to become:
A Broad Beam of X-rays for analysis of the General Properties of X-rays.
A Single Bragg Diffractometer having a scale accuracy of 5 minutes of arc.
A Powder Camera for Debye/Scherrer experiments to an accuracy of 30 minutes of arc.
A fluorescent Radiation Emitter for a study of the Moseley Theory that every element is characterized by its Atomic Number.
An Experimental region for the mounting of innovative studies
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The unit is basically a custom small spot X-Ray tube mounted within a lead glass dome shield and projecting a shaped beam of X-Ray energy across an experimentation platform. On the platform there is a moving stage that provides a mounting point for test samples, crystals and X-Ray detection sensors. The stage uses commonly available 35mm slide mounts which is great as I managed to buy a load very cheaply this week.
The X-Ray beam is shaped such that it is the diameter of the Trefoil when it hits the front metal ID plate. On the rear of the ID plate, 1mm of lead attenuates the X-Ray energy to a very safe level for educational use without the need for personal dosimeters. The confinement of the beam may be increased using push in adapters that mount on the X-Ray Tube's output port. These adapters have either a smaller hole diameter to reduce beam-width , or a thin slot to create a curtain of X-Ray energy. The plastic used for the dome contains high levels of Chlorine and acts as a safety shield from reflected X-Ray energy. There are several safety interlocks to prevent X-Ray generation without all the safety features in place.
A timer is mounted on the front panel that ensures that the unit cannot be accidentally left running for long periods of time. The timer provides operation for up to 1 hour before it switches the unit off. The X-Ray tube current may be both monitored and adjusted using ports on the front panel. The current monitoring just needs a meter capable of displaying up to 100uA. The 580 unit is set at 80uA tube current but the OEM recommends that this is lowered for some experiments to prevent sensor saturation when using very sensitive X-Ray detection equipment.
Power for the X-Ray tube comes from the built in step up power supply. The unit runs on AC Mains and contains an inverter that drives a step up transformer similar to the principle used in CRT Televisions. The HT output of the step up transformer is fed to a voltage multiplier. The resultant EHT is then supplied to the X-Ray tube. There are two voltages available on the unit, 20kVp and 30kVp. These voltages are in the soft to hard X-Ray region and so useful for all manner of experiments and X-Ray imaging.
The X-Ray tube is a custom made item for Tel-Atomic. It costs $2000 for a spare ! The X-Ray tube is of conventional design and this is what Tel-atomic has to say about it:
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TEL 2581 MINIATURE X-RAY TUBE
This is a hard vacuum, hot cathode X-ray tube designed for the Tel-X-Ometer. It has a copper target anode.
A thin concave bubble window of 0.25mm thickness is hand blown into the borosilicate glass envelope to transmit a high proportion of the characteristic radiation without recourse to other more expensive window techniques.
The cathode is a helical filament made of tungsten wire and the cathode/anode geometry provides a very small focal point.
Continuous rating: 30kV, 80 µA
Heater supply: 4V 1A
Dimensions: 100mm long, 32mm diameter
Mounting: B13G type
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The fact that the tube is designed to produce a very small focal point is advantageous as it provides better X-Ray imaging capabilities.
The available accessories for the 580 are detailed here:
http://www.telatomic.com/x-ray/accessories.htmlAll appear to be expensive, but that is lab equipment for education for you.
My unit was understandably sold as untested and for £50 I was not at all concerned with the risk that the power supply or X-Ray tube could be dead. When the unit arrived I gave it a quick inspection and immediately found that it was not in working order. The ‘fault’ was nothing more serious than a wiring failure in the mains plug ! The live wire had been pulled out of the fuse carrier. Re-terminating the mains cable solved this little issue and the unit was ready for a power-on test.
I held my breath as I switched the 580’s power switch to the ON position and adjusted the timer to 5 minutes……… I breathed a sigh of relief when I saw the X-Ray tubes filament glowing happily beneath the Anode. The EHT was set to 20kVp in order to give the tube some conditioning. The X-Ray button was pressed and ………. She fired up without incident. X-Rays were produced and all appears to be well. After some conditioning, I increased the EHT to 30kVp and tested the unit again. All was well with no smells of burning or other nasty surprises from the power supply. She’s a good-un
The user manual for the Tel-X-Ometer is available for free download from several on line sources. Tel-Atomic offers a pretty rough PDF copy that does not contain the schematic diagram of the unit. I found another source that has a better copy and also includes the full schematic diagram ? Sadly the manuals are too large to attach here.
http://www.telatomic.com/x-ray/docs/TEL-X-Ometer_Manual.pdfBetter copy with schematic
http://uwf.edu/awade1/ModernLab/Manuals/Tel-x-ometer/TELETRONX-RAY.pdfI attach some external pictures of the Tel-X-Ometer and will add internal pictures as soon as I have the time to open her up for internal inspection.
What am I going to do with her ? Well I have the Rolls Royce of X-Ray imaging units in my Faxitron MX-20 so I really have little need for another imaging unit….but the Tel-X-Ometer enables me to safely experiment with a 30kVp X-Ray source for investigating and constructing X-Ray detectors, energy measurement sensors and the effects of different materials on X-Ray energy penetration. The unit is designed to have materials samples placed in 35mm slide frames and these are then inserted into the slots of the test stage. The X-Ray measurement sensor is then placed behind the test piece to measure transmission etc. I will also be testing various CCTV camera based X-Ray imaging techniques that use a Scintillator screen in front of a conventional high sensitivity miniature monochrome CCTV camera. The unit is also designed for X-Ray crystallography and XRF activities.
I think I shall learn much more about X-Ray’s whilst experimenting with this fine piece of test and experimentation equipment. It will certainly be a lot safer than running a conventional Dental X-Ray head in an open site scenario for experiments.
Fraser