X-ray tomography image-based reconstruction of microstructural finite element mesh models for heterogeneous materials

Abstract

This paper presents a method for automatic reconstruction of finite element (FE) mesh models for heterogeneous materials by taking into account their real microstructures. The method is developed by mapping the FE mesh model with the serial images captured by X-ray tomography. The material components are segmented by grayscale thresholds to reflect the microstructures. Improved reconstruction accuracy is achieved by applying the contrast limited adaptive histogram equalization, median filter and pixel interpolation to the serial images. Image trim and pixel merging are proposed to reduce the elements contained in the model. In the reconstruction of Al2O3/(W,Ti)C ceramic composite, it is demonstrated that the reconstructed models accurately reflect the microstructural features. By predicting the macroscopic properties numerically based on homogenization method, the reconstructed models are proved to be valid and applicable to FE analysis.