Neutron tomography as a reverse engineering method applied to the IS-60 Rover gas turbine

Abstract

Probably the most common method of reverse engineering in mechanical engineering involves measuring the physical geometry of a component using a coordinate measuring machine (CMM). Neutron tomography, in contrast, is used primarily as a non-destructive testing technique. This paper, however, explores the use of this technique in its tomographic application (neutron CAT scanning mode) as a reverse engineering tool, particularly for complex internal geometries, as it has the added advantage of being a non-destructive and non-invasive method. Several components from an IS-60 Rover gas turbine were scanned using neutron tomography and through the analyses it was demonstrated that the technique may be promising for reverse engineering purposes.