The design of an ERT system for 3D data acquisition and a quantitative evaluation of its performance

Abstract

This paper describes a multi-plane implementation of a current-pulse electrical resistance tomography (ERT) data capture system. This is achieved by extending a single plane system, with 16 electrodes and 16 parallel measurement channels, to a one capable of acquiring data in a specified sequence across multiple planes (up to eight) by inserting multiplexer modules in parallel between the instrument and the electrode array. This approach allows high-speed capture systems to be configured for applications such as dual plane cross-correlation velocity measurements or more complex current injection and measurement sequences yielding 3D data sets. The measurement timing and multiplexer measurement sequences are implemented by an embedded processor. Both the executable code and the measurement sequence tables are downloaded to the instrument at start-up. This allows flexibility in specifying the data acquisition sequences and timing required for specific applications without modification of the hardware or embedded code. The effect of measurement noise on the estimated conductivity is quantified and spatial resolution discussed for the case of a 2D online imaging algorithm. Example reconstructions from recorded data sets are presented which verify the operation of the instrument.

Electrical Tomography: A Review of Configurations, and Application to Fibre Flow Suspensions Characterisation

“…Electrical tomography can be divided in two procedures: Electrical Impedance Tomography, EIT (note that Electrical Resistance Tomography, ERT, can be seen has a particular case of EIT), and Electrical Capacitance Tomography, ECT. They both allow the generation of images that reflect the variation of the conductivity/resistivity or permittivity along the under-observation domain; due to its simplicity of implementation, ERT, which is ideal for pure resistive domains, is the most used [57].…”

Quantitative Evaluations with 2D Electrical Resistance Tomography in the Low Conductivity Solutions Using 3D Printed Phantoms for Crystallization Process Monitoring

“…ERT hardware design and testing is an active field of research. The ERT machines for 3D data acquisition are regularly tested for speed and accuracy [64]. High-speed ERT and ECT systems using parallel computing on multi-GPU in a heterogeneous system [65], FPGA electronics [13,66], with parallel and multiplanar ERT systems [67], and rapid estimation algorithms using artificial neural networks [68] have been designed to evaluate various process tomographic parameters.…”

Gas hold-up distribution and mixing time in gas–liquid stirred tanks

“…This strategy has been preferred to others, as for instance to the diagonal measurement strategy [39], since it was already shown to lead to accurate measurements also for 3D off-line reconstructions [40].…”