A material identification method for waste metals based on multi-energy X-ray transmission

IF 2.8 3区物理与天体物理 Q3 CHEMISTRY, PHYSICAL

Radiation Physics and Chemistry Pub Date : 2025-09-08 DOI:10.1016/j.radphyschem.2025.113297

Dongyang Wang , Xiongjie Zhang , Bin Qiu , Hongze Liu , Wenming Dong , Bao Wang , Ziyan Yu , Qiang Hu , Qi Liu , Renbo Wang , Bin Tang

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引用次数: 0

Abstract

Accurate material identification is critical for non-destructive and high-throughput metal recycling systems. Conventional dual-energy X-ray transmission (DE-XRT) techniques often struggle to distinguish metals with similar atomic numbers or variable thicknesses, limiting their effectiveness in automated sorting applications. In this study, a multi-energy X-ray transmission (ME-XRT) method is proposed, which defines three functional energy regions—normalization, material-specific, and thickness-sensitive—to extract spectral features relevant to both classification and thickness estimation. An experimental system based on a CdTe photon-counting detector was developed to acquire full-spectrum transmission data from stepped aluminum, iron, and copper samples. The method achieved accurate material identification across wide thickness ranges and demonstrated strong linear correlations between spectral features and material thickness. Compared to DE-XRT, the ME-XRT approach provided superior performance, particularly in differentiating compositionally similar metals. These results confirm the potential of ME-XRT as a reliable, non-invasive technique for advanced waste metal detection, offering practical value for intelligent recycling systems and sustainable resource recovery.

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基于多能x射线透射的废金属材料识别方法

准确的材料识别对于非破坏性和高通量金属回收系统至关重要。传统的双能x射线传输（DE-XRT）技术通常难以区分原子序数相似或厚度不同的金属，这限制了它们在自动分选应用中的有效性。本文提出了一种多能x射线透射（ME-XRT）方法，该方法定义了归一化、材料特异性和厚度敏感三个功能能区，以提取与分类和厚度估计相关的光谱特征。研制了一种基于CdTe光子计数探测器的实验系统，用于获取阶梯状铝、铁和铜样品的全光谱传输数据。该方法在较宽的厚度范围内实现了准确的材料识别，并证明了光谱特征与材料厚度之间存在很强的线性相关性。与DE-XRT相比，ME-XRT方法具有更好的性能，特别是在区分成分相似的金属方面。这些结果证实了ME-XRT作为一种可靠的、无创的先进废金属检测技术的潜力，为智能回收系统和可持续资源回收提供了实用价值。

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来源期刊

Radiation Physics and Chemistry 化学-核科学技术

CiteScore

5.60

自引率

17.20%

发文量

574

审稿时长

12 weeks

期刊介绍： Radiation Physics and Chemistry is a multidisciplinary journal that provides a medium for publication of substantial and original papers, reviews, and short communications which focus on research and developments involving ionizing radiation in radiation physics, radiation chemistry and radiation processing. The journal aims to publish papers with significance to an international audience, containing substantial novelty and scientific impact. The Editors reserve the rights to reject, with or without external review, papers that do not meet these criteria. This could include papers that are very similar to previous publications, only with changed target substrates, employed materials, analyzed sites and experimental methods, report results without presenting new insights and/or hypothesis testing, or do not focus on the radiation effects.