An Infrared Accessory for Studying the Emissivity of Aluminum Surfaces

Abstract

Temperature measurement of aluminum surfaces by remote sensing of infrared radiation is difficult because of the low and varying emissivity of aluminum. The variation in emissivity may be dependent on factors like surface roughness, surface oxides, temperature, or wavelength of the measurement. In order that the factors which affect the emissivity of pure aluminum might be studied, a specialized emission accessory was built to be used in conjunction with a Fourier transform infrared spectrometer. This paper describes the design of the accessory and presents emission spectra and emissivity curves demonstrating the accessory's capabilities.