A number of wires with imbedded inclusions which caused faults in the production of one long string of wire were submitted for analysis. The wires were placed in a sample cup and each was positioned to offer the best 'view' of the problem area for analysis. Semi-quantitative analysis was performed on each wire to determine the inclusion or fault composition located at the tip of the wires (Figures 1-3). No sample preparation was done other than an alcohol wipe and positioning the samples on a blank supporting substructure (a plastic pressing cap in this case) to prevent back scatter from the analysis chamber.
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Figure 1: Wire 1 |
Figure 2: Wire 1, alternate view |
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Figure 3: Wire 2 |
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Results for Wires 1 and 2:
Two spot analysis were taken on each sample - one on the shaft and one on the wire tip. See Figures 1-3. Semi-quantitative analysis was then performed using the Rigaku SQX analysis routine.
Some comparison scan examples are shown in Figures 4-8, the results are shown in Tables 1-2.
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Figure 4 Wire 1 Ni |
Figure 5 Wire 1 Cr |
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Figure 6 Wire 1 Al |
Figure 7 Wire 2 Cr (tip -red, shaft - blue) |
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Figure 8 Wire 2 Ni (tip - red, shaft - blue) |
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These results show a definite difference in the material being analyzed. From these results it can be determined where in the manufacturing process the inclusions originated.
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Wire 1 |
Shaft |
Table 1: SQX results
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534316 - Shaft |
534316 - Tip |
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mass% |
mass% |
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C |
ND |
4.41 |
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Cl |
0.13 |
ND |
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Cr |
ND |
0.52 |
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Fe |
0.06 |
0.11 |
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Ni |
0.08 |
1.22 |
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Cu |
99.73 |
93.74 |
Table 2: Wire 2
Tags: XRF, Primus, WDXRF, mapping, micro analysis
