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Notebook #10
Anode cooling charts permit the calculations of the time necessary for the anode to cool enough for additional
exposures to be made (determines the maximum heat capacity of the anode)& (determines the length of time required
for complete cooling following any level of heat input).
All cooling charts are calculated in Heat Units.

Length of time for anode to cool is calculated by 3 steps:

1. find the total heat units applied on the vertical scale
2. read from the heat units over to the cooling curve and then down to read the corresponding time
3. calculate the time necessary for anode to cool to any desired level and subtract the corresponding time of the
initial exposure

For a High Frequency unit, calculate the length of

time necessary for the anode to cool to 50,000 HU
after 5 exposures of 500 mA for 0.7 seconds at 120
kVp.
120x500x0.7x1.4=58,800 approx. 6 minutes
5 exposures= 58,800x5=294,000 approx. half a
minute
(30 seconds)
It will take about 5 minutes and 30 seconds for the
anode to cool

Tube Rating Chart

When you use the Radiographic Tube Rating Charts for the
X-Ray machine you want to make sure that the kVP setting
and the time of the exposure intersect below the mA
reading.
For example, in the chart to the left if you set the kVp to
100 and the exposure time to 0.2 seconds you will be
below the 500 mA setting but above the 600 mA setting. If
you use the 600 mA setting you could damage the x-ray
tube.
A. Set the kVp to 80 kVp and the exposure time to
0.04 seconds and the mA setting to 700 mA for the
chart on the left. Is the setting safe for the x-ray
tube?
B. Set the kVp to 116 kVp and the exposure time to
.02 seconds and the mA setting to 600 mA for the
chart on the left. Is the setting safe for the x-ray
tube?
(A. No setting not safe for tube, B. Yes safe for the tube)