Combining IR and X‐ray microtomography data sets: Application to Itokawa particles and to Paris meteorite

In the near future, a new generation of sample return missions (Hayabusa2, OSIRIS‐REx, MMX, etc.) will collect samples from small solar system bodies. To maximize the scientific outcome of laboratory studies and minimize the loss of precious extraterrestrial samples, an analytical sequence from less destructive to more destructive techniques needs to be established. In this work, we present a combined X‐ray and IR microtomography applied to five Itokawa particles and one fragment of the primitive carbonaceous chondrite Paris. We show that this analytical approach is able to provide a 3‐D physical and chemical characterization of individual extraterrestrial particles, using the measurement of their 3‐D structure and porosity, and the detection of mineral and organic phases, and their spatial co‐localization in 3‐D. We propose these techniques as an efficient first step in a multitechnique analytical sequence on microscopic samples collected by space missions.     

VSP wavefield separation using the gray-scale Hough transform: synthetic data

The principal objective in Vertical Seismic Profile (VSP) processing is the separation of the downgoing and upgoing wavefields. Several methods have been suggested in this area. This paper presents a new approach based on the gray-scale Hough transform (GSHT) which is an extension of the conventional Hough transform used to detect straight lines and other curves. The technique, we suggest here, directly maps the gray-scale VSP image, including the downgoing and upgoing linear events, in image coordinate space (x,t,g) to the gray Hough parameter counting space (θ,ρ,g), where θ and ρ are the polar parameters and g is the gray-scale value. In this new space, the downgoing events appear in the negative angles θ quadrant and the upgoing in the positive quadrant, owning to their opposite apparent velocities. The inverse GSHT algorithm, we developed in this study, is performed for extracting separately these two wavefields by considering the straight lines that satisfy the corresponding filtering conditions. The experimental results on synthetic VSP datasets are convincing. The wave separation is well performed, even in the presence of loud noise levels, with signal to noise ratio improvement and amplitude preservation, in contrast to median filtering.     

Microstructural study of micron‐sized craters simulating Stardust impacts in aluminum 1100 targets

Abstract— Various microscopic techniques were used to characterize experimental microcraters in aluminum foils to prepare for the comprehensive analysis of the cometary and interstellar particle impacts in aluminum foils to be returned by the Stardust mission. First, scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and energy dispersive X‐ray spectroscopy (EDS) were used to study the morphology of the impact craters and the bulk composition of the residues left by soda‐lime glass impactors. A more detailed structural and compositional study of impactor remnants was then performed using transmission electron microscopy (TEM), EDS, and electron diffraction methods. The TEM samples were prepared by focused ion beam (FIB) methods. This technique proved to be especially valuable in studying impact crater residues and impact crater morphology. Finally, we also showed that infrared microscopy (IR) can be a quick and reliable tool for such investigations. The combination of all of these tools enables a complete microscopic characterization of the craters.     

Filtrage par reconnaissance des formes d’un profil sismique vertical Vertical seismic profile filtering through the use of pattern recognition

To improve the signal to noise ratio of the vertical seismic profile recordings, we used a filtering method based on pattern recognition. It consists in recognizing along the seismic trace, corresponding to the arrivals of various events, the shape of the P wavelet considered as the training signal. This recognition is made of projections which retain only the signals similar in shape to the P wavelet, the others being attenuated according to their degree of resemblance to the training wavelet. The study undertaken on synthetic and real data shows that this method acts as an effective filter. However, it still depends on a training signal that must be well defined and identifiable.     

Comparative Life Cycle Assessment of Two Types of Truck Bumper Produced in the Algerian Auto Industry

Currently, the reduction of weight in automotive is a very important topic to reduce the air pollution. In this context, the purpose of the present paper is to analyze a real case study through a comparison of the environmental impacts between a conventional steel bumper and a polyester prototype. In the first part of this work, a door-to-door life-cycle assessment methodology was used throughout the study of the component manufacturing phase. The SimaPro 7.1 software is used to evaluate the impacts of both bumpers on the environment and health. The second part is devoted to dust analysis from the polyester workshop. The obtained results have allowed us to show the company that its choice of steel substitution by the polyester is advantageous for certain impacts including the impact of climate change, but unfortunately there may be, given the working conditions of the polyester workshop, a transfer of impact, since we will end up with a risk of health (irritations, cancers) for the workers. LCA has proven to be a very useful tool for validating a redesigned automotive component from an environmental point of view; from this case study, several recommendations were made for the company to design environmentally friendly components, and ecodesign should be introduced into the company’s procedures.