Welcome to the Amira-Avizo Software Use Case Gallery

The porous transport layer (PTL) is a vital component of the polymer electrolyte membrane water electrolyser (PEMWE) as it is both a conduit for current distribution and mass transport. This study aims to examine the influence of the microstructure of the PTL on the performance of a PEMWE by the combination of ex-situ and in-situ techniques. Two PTLs with distinctly different mean pore diameter were characterized to determine key properties such as surface morphology, porosity, pore size dist... Read more

Current materials such nickel based superalloys cannot be used anymore and new materials are thus considered. For the hottest parts of jet engines, eutectic ceramics have potentially interesting features. In order to assess the thermo-mechanical properties of this material, numerical multi-scale analyses may be performed. Thus, a 3D finite element model was generated from a CT scan, representative of the microstructure and with a similar volume fraction. Effective elastic properties were calc... Read more

The thermal conductivity values of ordinary concrete can be adjusted to those prescribed in constructions by entraining air bubbles to reduce the density of concrete in order to achieve good thermal insulation. This paper concerns the analysis of air bubble distribution in concrete obtained by micro X-ray µCT (computed tomography) and correlates it with its thermal conductivity (k). (…) The results show that air-entrainment leads to viable use of this material as sealer to achieve good... Read more

The effect of ultrasonic melting processing on three-dimensional architecture of intermetallic phases and pores in two multicomponent cast Al-5.0Cu 0.6Mn-0.5 Fe alloys is characterized using conventional microscopy and synchrotron X-ray microtomography. (…) The results show that ultrasonic melt processing (USP) significantly reduce the volume fraction, grain size, interconnectivity, and equivalent diameter of the intermetallic phases in both alloys. The volume fraction of pores in both ... Read more

The size and shape of the Neandertal thorax has been debated since the first discovery of Neandertal ribs more than 150 years ago, with workers proposing different interpretations ranging from a Neandertal thoracic morphology that is indistinguishable from modern humans, to one that was significantly different from them. Here, we provide a virtual 3D reconstruction of the thorax of the adult male Kebara 2 Neandertal. Our analyses reveal that the Kebara 2 thorax is significantly different but ... Read more

The aim of this study was to see the effect of Er:YAG laser irradiation in dentine and compare this with its effect in enamel. The mechanism of crack propagation in dentine was emphasised and its clinical implications were discussed. A possible mechanism is that laser radiation is transmitted down the dentinal tubules causing micro-cracks to form in the dentinal tubule walls that tend to be limited to this region. Crack might be a source of fracture as it represents a weak point and subsequen... Read more

Sediment plates (a type of lacquer peels) represent a sampling method whereby a thin plate of undisturbed sediments is obtained directly from the outcrop. A low-viscosity, hardening epoxy resin is applied to a freshly exposed cross-section of an unconsolidated deposit and impregnates a surface layer of the cross-section via capillary forces before solidifying. Upon hardening, a solid plate (0.5–5 cm thick and up to 2 m in length) of the sedimentary formation can be recovered and transported... Read more

Here we report the oldest fossil skeleton of a flying squirrel (11.6 Ma) that displays the gliding-related diagnostic features shared by extant forms and allows for a recalibration of the divergence time between tree and flying squirrels. Our phylogenetic analyses combining morphological and molecular data generally support older dates than previous molecular estimates (~23 Ma), being congruent with the inclusion of some of the earliest fossils (~36 Ma) into this clade. They also show that fl... Read more

Open-cell foams as structured catalyst supports are promising candidates for the design of high throughput catalytic processes. In this contribution, we employ a coupled numerical and experimental approach to assess the pressure losses in foams. (…) we explore virtually-generated foam models and their 3D printed replicas for a combined CFD and experimental study of fluid dynamics in foams. In particular, we focus our analysis on the low Reynolds number regime, where deviations between t... Read more

Here we use synchrotron tomography to characterise dental vasculature in the oldest known tooth-bearing sharks, Leonodus carlsi Mader, 1986 and Celtiberina maderi Wang, 1993. Three dimensional reconstruction of the vascular system and microstructure of both taxa revealed a complex and dense network of canals, including horizontal, ascending and secondary bifurcated canals, as well as histological features consistent with an osteodont histotype. However, L. carlsi and C. maderi also exhibit si... Read more

An elaborate system of ducts collects urine from all nephrons, and this structure is known as the urinary collecting system (UCS). This study focused on how the UCS is formed during human embryogenesis. Fifty human embryos between the Carnegie stage (CS) 14 and CS23 were selected from the Kyoto Collection at the Congenital Anomaly Research Center of Kyoto University, Japan. Metanephroses, including the UCS, were segmented on serial digital virtual histological sections. Three-dimensional imag... Read more

Ligaments serve as compliant connectors between hard tissues. In that role, they function under various load regimes and directions. The 3D structure of ligaments is considered to form as a uniform entity that changes due to function. The periodontal ligament (PDL) connects the tooth to the bone and sustains different types of loads in various directions. Using the PDL as a model, employing a fabricated motorized setup in a microCT, we demonstrate that the fibrous network structure with... Read more

A stimulation electrode was placed unilaterally near the terminal adduction branch of the recurrent laryngeal nerve (RLN) adjacent to the right cricothyroid joint. The electrode was connected to an implant located subcutaneously at the neck region. Predesigned training patterns were automatically delivered by a bidirectional radio frequency link using a programming device and were repeated automatically by the implant every other day over 11 weeks in the awake animal. Outcome parameters compr... Read more

Paromomyidae has been thought to represent the longest-lived group of stem primates (plesiadapiforms), extending from the early Paleocene to late Eocene. We analyzed primate material from the late-middle Eocene of southern California that had initially been ascribed to cf. Phenacolemur shifrae. This material falls at the lowest end of the size range for the family. The Californian specimens also exhibit several dental features that are atypical for paromomyids, such as a strong paraconid on t... Read more

This paper reports our simulations of the metal powder fusion additive manufacturing process based on a two-fluid model. In simulations of metal behavior in which heat is applied by high-density energy sources (e.g., laser or electron beam), the aspects that need to be correctly modeled include boiling and evaporation, as well as melting and solidification. The potential of the two-fluid model to clarify numerous physical phenomena—deep penetration, plume generation, spatter generation due ... Read more

Multicomponent Bi-Mo-Fe-Co oxide catalysts prepared via flame spray pyrolysis were tested for selective propylene oxidation, showing high conversion (>70%) and selectivity (>85%) for acrolein and acrylic acid at temperatures of 330 ◦C. During extended time-on-stream tests (5–7 days), the catalysts retained high activity while undergoing diverse structural changes. This was evident on: (a) the atomic scale, using powder X-ray diffraction, Raman spectroscopy, X-ray absorption spectros... Read more

Here, to evaluate the intensity of evolutionary constraints on avian beak shape more appropriately, we selected large billed (Corvus macrorhynchos) and carrion crows (Corvus corone) as study objects. These landbird species seem to experience selection pressures favoring a departure from an allometric trajectory. A landmark based geometric morphometric approach using three dimensional reconstructions of CT scan images revealed that only 45.4% of the total shape variation was explained by allom... Read more

X-ray micro-tomography is used to image the pore-scale configurations of fluid in a rock saturated with three phases – brine, oil and gas – mimicking a subsurface reservoir, at high pressure and temperature. We determine pore occupancy during a displacement sequence that involves waterflooding, gas injection and water re-injection. In the water-wet sample considered, brine occupied the smallest pores, gas the biggest, while oil occupied pores of intermediate size and is displaced ... Read more

Our novel procedure of injecting oil after reactive transport has revealed previously unidentified (ghost) regions of partially-dissolved grains of carbonate rock. X-ray micro-tomography and FIB-SEM techniques were used to identify and resolve these ghost regions in three-dimensions at the nm- to µm-scale. Considering the solid part of the ghost regions as macro (bulk) pore space can result in the overestimation of porosity and permeability predi... Read more

Biological specimens are primary records of organismal ecology and history. As such, museum collections are invaluable repositories for testing ecological and evolutionary hypotheses across the tree of life. Digitizing and broadly sharing the phenotypic data from these collections serves to expand the traditional reach of museums, enabling widespread data sharing, collaboration, and education at an unprecedented scale. In recent years, μCT-scanning has been adopted as one way for efficiently... Read more

The aim of this paper was to develop a model that can characterize the actual micropore structures in coal and gain an in-depth insight into water’s seepage rules in coal pores under different pressure gradients from a microscopic perspective. To achieve this goal, long-flame coals were first scanned by an X-ray 3D microscope; then, through a representative elementary volume (REV) analysis, the optimal side length was determined to be 60 μm; subsequently, by using Avizo software, the coal ... Read more