Radiographic Imaging
CHAPTER 1
The Photoradiographic Process
and Film Sensitivity
Visible light images
The production of film density and the formation of
a visible image is a two step process.
The first step in this photographic process is the exposure
of the film to light, which forms an invisible latent image.
The second step is the chemical process that converts the
latent image into a visible image with a range of densities,
or shades of gray
Photographic negative image
Subject in recording image.
Bright to eye: dark in the recorded image
Dark to the eye: light in the recorded image
Image with reversed tones constitutes a photographic
negative.
2
Images produced by X-
radiation
The production. of an image (radiograph)
requires two steps, as illustrated below.
In the first step:
the film is exposed to radiation
radiation activates the emulsion material but produces
no visible change
The exposure creates a so-called latent image.
In the second step:
the exposed film is processed in a series of
chemical solutions
this converts the invisible latent image into an
image/Radiograph that is visible as different
optical densities or shades of gray
3
As x-ray beam passes through a body some
radiation is absorbed and some is
transmitted
Transmission of beam depends on
penetrating power of the radiation
atomic number
density and thickness
Radiolucent: Material that allow x-ray photons to pass
through easily (air)
Radiopaque: Materials that do not allow x-ray photons
to pass through easily (bone)
Radiolucent part is light on screen and dark on film
Radiopaque parts are dark on screen and light on film
4
Light-sensitive photographic
Materials
Silver halide
A silver halide is one of the chemical compound formed between
silver and one of the halogens.
silver bromide------- AgBr
silver iodide--------- AgI
silver chloride------ AgCl
silver fluoride-------AgF
Often given the pseudo-chemical notation AgX.
In photography, "silver halide" precludes silver fluoride.
Applications---- Light sensitivity
Silver halides are used in photographic film and photographic paper
,
As well as radiographic film and paper
These salts undergo change when exposed to light or x-rays
Silver halides, except for silver fluoride, are extremely insoluble in water
5
Photographic materials
(classification)
Negative materials
Positive materials
ALMOST ALL Negative materials use silver bromide
as the light sensitive salt
Silver iodide is never used alone but in combination
with silver bromide
Certain positive materials use silver chloride (which
has low sensitivity) or silver bromide or a combination
of the two, according to the type of response which is
required.
Several different silver halides have photographic
properties, but the one typically used in medical
imaging films is silver bromide.
6
Photographic Emulsions
Photographic emulsion is a layer of light-sensitive
material coated onto a substrate. In Silver-gelatin
photography, the emulsion consists of silver halide
crystals suspended in gelatin, and the substrate may
be glass, plastic film, paper or fabric.
In proper chemical terminology, photographic
emulsion is a suspension of solid particles in a fluid,
and not an emulsion, which refers to a dispersion of
one liquid in another, but the misnomer, is
established usage in the fields of photography and
photographic science.
The light-exposed crystals are reduced by the
developer to black metallic silver particles that form
the image and the photographic "grain."
7
What emulsion contains
A fine suspension of insoluble light-sensitive
crystals
Gelatin.
Gelatin is a translucent, colorless, brittle, nearly tasteless
solid substance, extracted from the collagen inside animals'
skin and bones.
Gelatin has certain valuable characteristics as a
suspending and binding agent for the silver halide grains:
Suitable medium to form silver halide crystals
Maintain even distribution of silver halides
warm------- solution formed which will flow over the base
cool--------- formation of firm jelly
allows solutions to penetrate the emulsion
some constituents act on the AgX (sensitizers, influence speed)
Change occurs in the silver halide grains on exposure to light, so the
gelatin helps to prevent any possible change reversal.
8
Making a photographic
emulsion
Precipitation is the chemical process by which the
photographic material produced.
Photographic emulsion is made by adding a solution
of silver nitrate into a warm gelatin solution
containing potassium bromide, sodium chloride or
other alkali metal halides at suitable proportions.
AgNO3 + KBr ---> AgBr +KNO3
Due to the very low solubility of silver halides
mixing aqueous solutions of silver ions and halide
ions will result in the precipitation of silver
halide crystals
Ag+ (silver ion in solution) + Br- (bromide ion in
solution) --------> Ag+Br- (silver bromide crystal)
9
Emulsion making usually takes several steps, and most
modern emulsions require the emulsion be "washed" to
remove some of the reaction byproducts (
potassium nitrate and excess salts).
Emulsion making also incorporates steps to increase
sensitivity by using chemical sensitizing agents, as well
as sensitizing dye
light sensitive materials are affected by:
moisture & temperature
presence of impurities
exposure to certain gases
airborne dust
static electricity &mechanical stress
10
Characteristics of Photoradiographic
Materials
Speed: - determines whether the material needs
more or less exposure to light/x-ray in comparison
with other materials in order to produce a similar
picture/image.
Fast emulsions require less light to produce an
acceptable image than slow emulsions.
Speed depends on
Size of silver halide crystals (grains)
Preparation of emulsion
Nature of radiation used for exposure
Development given
11
Contrast: refer to the way in which the material reacts
to a range of exposures by showing on development a
number of different densities.
Range: Maximum density = darkest tone
Minimum density = lightest tone
The visible difference between adjacent
radiographic densities.
The black and white and all shades of gray of the x-
ray film.
Density: The overall blackening of the film.
12
Contrast depends on
distribution of size
sensitivity of grains
development
In any given emulsion, the grains are of various sizes
Grain sizes Feature of the material
On average, large………………… Material is fast(high speed
On average, small………………… Material slow(fine grain)
Range of sizes is narrow…………... Contrast is moderately high, with
narrow exposure latitude.
Range of sizes is wider…………….Contrast is low with wide exposure
latitude.
Only one size of grain is present……Contrast is very high with very
narrow
exposure latitude.
13
Latent Image Formation
Structure of crystals
Silver bromide is a lattice crystal containing millions of
pairs of ions.
The silver bromide is in the form of crystals, or grains,
each containing on the order of 109 atoms.
Silver halide grains are irregularly shaped like grains of
sand.
An average grain in an industrial x-ray film may be about
0.00004 inch in diameter, yet will contain several billions of
ions.
A silver bromide crystal is a rectangular array of silver (Ag +)
and bromide (Br-) ions. See the figure below.
14
15
Crystalline Imperfections
A crystal of silver bromide in a photographic emulsion
is--fortunately--not perfect;
Perfect crystals are insensitive to
photons(light/radiation), so not optimal for image
formation.
Interstitial silver ions/ Point Defects
are silver ions that do not occupy the "lattice position",
but rather are in the spaces between.
The number of the interstitial silver ions is, of course,
small compared to the total number of silver ions in the
crystal.
16
Point Defects
17
Sensitivity specks/Latent Image Sites
shallow electron trap ;which may be a crystalline
defect or a cluster of silver sulfide, gold, other trace
elements
When a silver halide crystal is exposed to light,
a sensitivity speck on the surface of the crystal is
turned into a small speck of metallic silver-----
latent image
If the speck of silver contains approximately four or
more ----- rendered developable
An electron-trap or latent-image site is a region in
the crystal of low energy called SENSETIVITY
SPECK.
18
19
20
Crystalline Imperfections
21
Stages in the development of the
latent image
When a photon of light of energy greater than a certain minimum value
is absorbed in a silver bromide crystal, it releases an electron from a
bromide (Br-) ion.
The ion, having lost its excess negative charge, is changed to a
bromine atom.
The liberated electron is free to wander about the crystal.
As it does, it may encounter a latent image site and be "trapped" there,
giving the latent-image site a negative electrical charge.
The negatively charged trap can then attract an interstitial
silver ion because the silver ion is charged positively.
When such an interstitial ion reaches a negatively charged trap, its
charge is counteracted, an atom of silver is deposited at the trap and
the trap is"reset“.
In other words, this aggregate of silver atoms is the latent image.
The whole cycle can recur several, or many, times at a single trap, each
cycle involving absorption of one photon and addition of one silver atom
to the aggregate.
22
Gurney Mott Hypothesis
23
Gurney Mott Hypothesis……
24
The presence of these few atoms at a single latent-
image site makes the whole grain susceptible to the
reducing action of the developer.
In the most sensitive emulsions, the number of
silver atoms required may be less than ten.
Metallic silver is
finely divided and black in color
accounts for darkened appearance
The latent image is not visible, even under a
microscope so the only way to tell if it is present is to
chemically develop the film to reveal the image.
When the film is developed, the area that was
exposed darkens and forms a visible image.
25
Positive processes
The Negative-positive process
In order to obtain a positive two stages may
be necessary
1. obtaining negative image
2. using this negative to make a positive
In black-and-white photography the positives
used are of two types
positive images on transparent bases are called
transparencies or diapositives
positive images on paper base are known as
reflection positives (paper print)
26
Radiograph is a negative image
If the radiograph is used to print another
image onto a paper base , the result is a
positive print
If it is used to print on to a transparent base,
the result is a positive transparency
The positive print on paper and the positive
transparency are both second-stage results
from the radiographic negative
27
Direct positive materials
gives a positive instead of a negative image
specially prepared emulsion is used
this method consists of special material given
ordinary development
Reversal development
Ordinary photographic emulsion can be used
to obtain a positive result instead of a negative
one if it is given special processing
the technique is called reversal development
this method consists ordinary material given
special development
28