Portable Systems for Energy Dispersive X-Ray Fluorescence Analysis of Works of Art

For non destructive testing of works of art, it would be extremely important to have at disposal portable systems, for carrying out the analysis at the place where the works of art are, rather than to take them where the instruments are. The in situ non destructive study of the work of art is frequently only diagnostic, requiring therefore only qualitative or semiquantitative results. In the case of metal alloys, under some conditions, quantitative results can be obtained. Concerning Energy Dispersive X-ray Fluorescence (EDXRF) analysis, portable systems can be currently designed and assembled. In fact, miniaturised X-ray tubes without any need of cooling and high resolution Peltier cooled semiconductor detectors are now available, allowing the construction of completely transportable systems for EDXRF analysis. An international research group was put together, including industries for the construction of dedicated X-ray tubes and detectors, and research centres of many countries co-operated to this program. Measurements were carried out in Pome and Sassari (Italy), in Mexico City and Puebla (Mexico) and in La Habana (Cuba).