EXPOSURE

FACTORS
DR Hussein Ahmed Hassan
 Exposure factors are factors that control
density (blackening) and contrast of
radiographic image.

They are some of the tools that

technologists use to create high-quality
radiographs
Exposure Factors Controlled by
the Operator
kVp

mA times Exposure Time = mAs

Determines the quality and
quantity of the exposure
FFD (SID), Focal Spot and
Filtration are secondary factors
1- EXPOSURE
FACTORS:
KVP. :
It controls the quality of the beam, i.e.
PENETRATION.
It influences :
a: penetration power, i.e. beam
quality;
kVp. penetration power.
b: Radiographic contrast;
kVp. 1/radiographic contrast.

c: Radiation dose to patient.
kVp. 1/radiation dose.
KVP
kVp controls radiographic
contrast.
kVp determines the ability for the
beam to penetrate the tissue.
kVp has more effect than any
other factor on image receptor
exposure because it affects beam
quality.
KVP
To a lesser extent it also
influences the beam quantity.
As we increase kVp, more of the
beam penetrates the tissue with
higher energy so they interact
more by the Compton effect.
This produces more scatter
radiation which increases image
noise and reduces contrast.
KVP
50 kV 79% is photoelectric, 21%
Compton, < 1% no interaction
80 kVp 46% is photoelectric, 52%
Compton 2% no interaction
110 kVp 23% photoelectric, 70%
Compton, 7% no interaction
As no interaction increases, less
exposure is needed to produce the
image so patient exposure is
decreased.
 High kVp. Low kVp.
low radiographic High radiographic
contrast contrast
 MA.:
1 Ampere = 1 C/s = 6.3 x 1018
electrons/ second.
The mA selected for the exposure
determines the number of x-rays
produced.
The number of x-rays are directly
proportional to the mA assuming a
fixed exposure time.
100 mA produced half the x-ray
that 200 mA would produce.
MA
Patient dose is also directly
proportional to the mA with a
fixed exposure time.
A change in mA does not affect
kinetic energy of the electrons
therefore only the quantity is
changed.
MA
Many x-ray machines are
identified by the maximum mA or
mAs available.
A MP 500 has a maximum mAs of
500 mAs.
A Universal 325 has a maximum
mA of 300 and maximum kVp of
125
 MA

More expensive three phase

machines will have a higher
maximum mA.
A General Electric MST 1050 would
have 1000 mA and 150 kVp.
 EXPOSURE TIME
The exposure time is generally
always kept as short as possible.
This is not to reduce patient
exposure but to minimize motion
blur resulting from patient
movement.
This is a much greater problem
with weight bearing radiography.
EXPOSURE TIME
Older machine express time as a
fraction.
Newer machines express exposure
time as milliseconds (ms)
It is easy to identify the type of
high voltage generation by
looking at the shortest exposure
time.
EXPOSURE TIME
Single phase half wave rectified
fasted exposure time is 1/60
second 17 ms.
Single phase full wave rectified
fastest exposure time is 1/120
second or 8 ms
Three phase and high frequency
can provide exposure time down
to 1 ms.
(4) MAS. :
It affect the total number of x-ray
produced by the tube during
exposure, i.e. QUANTITY.
It is the product of two quantities;

mA. the tube current;

s. the exposure time;

MAS
mA and exposure time is usually
combined and used as one factor
expressed as mAs.
mAs controls radiation quantity,
optical density and patient dose.
mAs determine the number of x-
rays in the beam and therefore
radiation quantity.
mAs does not influence radiation
quality.
MAS
Any combination of mA and time
that will give the same mAs
should provide the same optical
density on the film. This is
referred to as the reciprocity law.
As noted earlier for screen film
radiography, 1 ms exposure and
exposure longer than 1 seconds
do not follow this rule.
MAS
On many modern machines, only
mAs can be selected. The machine
automatically gives the operator
the highest mA and shortest
exposure time.
The operator may be able to select
mA by what is referred to as
Power level.
MAS
mAs is one way to measure
electrostatic charge. It determines
the total number of electrons.
Only the quantity of the photons
are affected by changes in the
mAs.
Patient dose is therefore a
function of mAs.
Ampere is 1 coulomb (C) of electrostatic
charge flowing each second.
1A = 1C/s = 6.3 X 1018 electron/s
20 mAs = 0.2 Amperes.

This charge releases this No. of

electrons:

6.3 X 1018 X 0.2 = 1.26 X 1018 electron/s

20 mA. X 1.0 s = 20 mAs
40 mA. X 0.5 s = 20 mAs
80 mA. X 0.25 s = 20 mAs
200 mA. X 0.1 s = 20 mAs
400 mA. X 0.05s = 20 mAs
(5) Focal spot:
Most x-ray tubes offer two focal
spot sizes:

a. Fine focus:

b. Broad focus:
a/ Fine focus: (0.3 0.6 mm2)
It records fine details.
It can not withstand too much heat.
Its usage may require long
exposure time.
Used whenever geometric factors
are more (long subject-film
distance, short FFD ... etc).
a/ Broad focus: (0.6 1.2 mm2)
It can withstand too much heat.
Always used in combination with short
(s) and fast film/screen system.
Used whenever voluntary or
involuntary motion is highly expected.
Used when radiosensitive organ is
within exposed area or 10 cm from
collimation border.
Two focal spot
FOCAL SPOT SIZE
The focal spot size limits the tubes
capacity to produce x-rays. The
electrons and resulting heat are
placed on a smaller portion of the x-
ray tube.
The mA is therefore limited for the
small focal spot. This results in
longer exposure times with greater
chance of patient movement.
FOCAL SPOT SIZE
If
the mA is properly calibrated,
the focal spot will have no impact
on the quantity or quality of the
beam.
(6) F.F.D. :
The intensity of x-ray beam reduces
with increased FFD.
It follows the Inverse Square Law
( I.S.L.) .

I 1/d2.
DISTANCE
Distance affects the intensity of
the x-ray beam at the film but has
no effect on radiation quality.
Distance affects the exposure of
the image receptor according to
the inverse square law.
 INVERSE SQUARE LAW

mAs (second exposure) SID2 2nd

exposure
---------------------------- =
------------------------
mAs (first exposure) SID2 1st
exposure
DISTANCE
The most common source to
image distances are 40 (100 cm)
and 72(182 cm)
Since SID does not impact the
quality of the beam, adjustments
to the technical factors are made
with the mAs.
To go from 40 to 72 increase the
mAs 3.5 time.
DISTANCE
Increasing the distance will impact
the geometric properties of the
beam.
Increased SID reduces
magnification distortion and focal
spot blur.
With the need to increase the mAs
3.5 times for the 72 SID, tube
loading becomes a concern.
DISTANCE
72 SID is used for Chest
radiography and the lateral
cervical spine to reduce
magnification.
72 SID used for the full spine to
get a 36 beam.
(7) FILTERATION:
Thin sheet of Al (aluminum) 1mm or 2mm
thick added to the pathway of radiation
to filter the low energy radiation.
Increasing filtration will increase the
quality and reduce the quantity of the
beam.
It removes low energy radiation:
Reduce skin dose;
Harden the beam;
FILTRATION
All x-ray beams are affected by
the filtration of the tube. The tube
housing provides about 0.5 mm of
filtration.
Additional filtration is added in
the collimator to meet the 2.5 mm
of aluminum minimum filtration
required by law.
2.5 mm is required for 70 kVp.
FILTRATION
3.0 mm is required for at 100 kVp.
3.2 mm is required for operations
at 120 kVp.
Most machines now are capable of
over 100 kVp operation.
We have no control on these
filters.
FILTRATION
3.0 mm is required for at 100
kVp.
3.2 mm is required for
operations at 120 kVp.
Most machines now are capable
of over 100 kVp operation.
We have no control on these
filters.
 FILTRATION

CHIROPRACTIC RADIOGRAPHY IS A
LEADER IN THE USE OF
COMPENSATING FILTERS. WE HAVE
TOTAL CONTROL OVER
COMPENSATING FILTRATION.
IN AREAS OF THE BODY WITH HIGH

SUBJECT CONTRAST OR WIDE

DIFFERENCES IN DENSITY,
COMPENSATING FILMS IMPROVE
IMAGE QUALITY AND REDUCE
PATIENT EXPOSURE.
THE END