Progress towards five dimensional diffraction imaging of functional materials under process conditions

In recent times there has been much progress in the imaging of functional materials under the process conditions typically used in a real industrial process. In this article the progress made in diffraction imaging in terms of both acquisition methodology (i.e. using white beam or monochromatic sources, tomography or imaging) and their application to tackle real problems in the field of industrial heterogeneous catalysis are discussed. The exemplar studies also illustrate the recent developments in sample environment that, when considered alongside the developments in diffraction imaging, allows us to propose that the information extracted from these studies are far more inclusive (conclusive?) in terms of the type (including physicochemical insight) and amount of information they yield. With the current and protracted developments in source, infrastructure, detector and software technologies it is not unreasonable to assume that such approaches will supersede the more traditional 'single point' in situ methods for studying industrial processes. Diffraction imaging methods in their various guises may also eventually replace the established technique of X-ray Absorption mu-CT currently applied intensively across research and diagnostic fields including biomaterials, geology, environmental science, palaeontology, cultural heritage and health. (C) 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.