Measurement of annular air-gap using active infrared thermography

• A new technique for measuring annular air-gap is developed using infrared thermography (IRT).
• Active thermography is used to map the thermal decay from the specimen.
• A lumped system model is used for the analysis of temperature decay.
• Temperature decay constant is found to have a direct correlation to the air gap.
• This technique is suitable for detection of misalignment of fuel-to-clad gap etc.

The paper discusses an infrared thermography (IRT) based procedure for quantification of annular air-gap in cylindrical geometries. Different annular air-gaps are simulated using aluminum hollow cylinders and solid stainless steel inserts of varying diameters. The specimens are externally heated using a hot air-gun and the temperature of the specimens are monitored during cooling using an infrared camera. The temperature decay during the cooling cycle follows an exponential profile in all the cases where the decay constant is air-gap dependent. The rate of temperature decay is fastest for the empty cases (without inserts) and lower for smaller air-gaps. The system is analyzed using a lumped system model by measuring the temperature over a time scale significantly higher than the transition time of the lumped system. It is observed that the Biot number of the system is less than unity, allowing analysis of the system in terms of a single time constant, neglecting internal temperature transients. It is observed that the time constant of temperature decay increases with decreasing annular air-gap. An empirical relation between the inverse of time constant of temperature decay and annular air-gaps is established. Using this calibration curve, unknown air-gaps up to 20 μm could be measured with good accuracy. Applications of this newly developed technique include detection of misalignment of concentric machineries and determination of fuel-to-clad gap of nuclear reactor fuels.