2000 Spotlight on Graduate and Undergraduate Research at ESF
Paper Science Engineering Abstracts

Contents

CHARACTERIZATION OF THE SPATIAL VARIABLITY OF PAPER FORMATION USING A CONTINUOUS WAVELET TRANSFORM. Joel J. Pawlak, D. Steven Keller, and Philip Luner, Faculty of Paper Science and Engineering, 401 Walters Hall, Sate University of New York College of Environmental Science and Forestry, Syracuse, New York 13210

CHARACTERIZATION OF THE SPATIAL VARIABLITY OF PAPER FORMATION USING A CONTINUOUS WAVELET TRANSFORM. Joel J. Pawlak, D. Steven Keller, and Philip Luner, Faculty of Paper Science and Engineering, 401 Walters Hall, Sate University of New York College of Environmental Science and Forestry, Syracuse, New York 13210

In this investigation a wavelet transform was used to decompose beta-radiographic formation images into spectral and spatial components. Conventional formation analysis may use spectral analysis, based on Fourier transformation or variance vs. zone size, to describe the grammage distribution of features such as flocs, streaks and mean fiber orientation. However, these methods have limited utility for the analysis of statistically stationary data sets where variance is not uniform with position, e.g. paper machine CD profiles (especially those that contain streaks). A continuous wavelet transform was used to analyze formation data arrays obtained from radiographic imaging of handsheets and cross machine paper samples. The response of the analytical method to grammage, floc size distribution, mean fiber orientation and sensitivity to feature localization were assessed. From wavelet analysis, the changes in scale of grammage variation as a function of position was used to demonstrate regular and isolated differences in the formed structure.