X-ray Computed Tomograph system

• Subject Area: Agriculture, Forestry and Veterinary Medicine ; Zoology
• Term: Funded in 2025
• Project identifier: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 563660960

We are applying for an X-ray computed microtomography (µCT) device to advance research in soil physics and animal ecology at the University of Bayreuth (UBT). X-ray µCT creates detailed, non-destructive, three-dimensional images of materials by capturing variations in the density of their constituents, which influence the absorption of X-rays. The opaque nature of soil often necessitates destructive sampling to investigate soil processes, which can compromise both the accuracy and quality of analyses. X-ray imaging in soil physics overcomes these challenges by revealing the internal structure of soil in three dimensions, non-destructively. Together with the current instrumentation of the Chair of Soil Physics (CSP) at UBT, the device will enable analysis of how the content and the spatial distribution of soil minerals, pore spaces, and organic matter affects water storage, water movement, nutrient diffusion, transport and availability. Additionally, the device facilitates 3D image-based simulations of water flow and solute transport using real, intact soil samples, providing detailed insights into the mechanisms driving these processes and the potential to develop better upscaling methods. In biology, X-ray µCT is non-destructive and powerful imaging technique that allows the rapid visualisation of internal features within a whole organism topography and external structures of a sample in three dimensions and with great resolution. X-ray µCT is often used complimentarily with other imaging techniques, such as CLSM or TEM to integrate the visual results of the various methods and thus compile a wider range of information from histology at cell and tissue level to three-dimensional structures. For instance, understanding developmental processes of offspring in response to certain stressors or changing environmental conditions requires a rapid and accurate visualization and parameterisation of three-dimensional embryos or larvae. Further, to analyse e.g. the effects of ocean acidification and global warming on shells or protecting exoskeletons of various aquatic and terrestrial taxa morphological properties such as porosity or structure thickness are of utmost importance. Our proposal is fully supported by UBT, particularly by 13 different professorships, five of which are the primary users of the device, with a total usage rate of up to 90%. Furthermore, the device is backed by the Collaborative Research Centre (CRC) 1357 'Microplastics,' the CRC 1585 'MultiTrans', and the Bayreuth Center of Ecology and Environmental Research (BAYCEER), enabling a broad, campus-wide adoption and application of the method. This support will strengthen interdisciplinary cooperation within the UBT and create new opportunities for international collaboration across fields ranging from environmental to material sciences.

• DFG Programme: Major Research Instrumentation
• Major Instrumentation: Röntgen Computertomograph System
• Instrumentation Group: 4070 Spezielle Röntgengeräte für Materialanalyse, Strukturforschung und Werkstoff-Bestrahlung
• Applicant Institution: Universität Bayreuth
• Leader: Professor Dr. Efstathios Diamantopoulos