Can you x-ray through steel

Answer 1

you can x-ray steel as thick as 2.5 inches. Using gamma-ray will increase this limit upto 3.5 inches

Answer 2

Probably, but you would need a really high exposure time and intensity to get through most of it, and it would probably be kind of hard on the x-ray tube. Defiantly stand behind a leaded wall or don't be in the same room when taking the exposure because that would probably produce quite a bit of scatter radiation.

Answer 3

Yes. x-rays can penetrate metal. One use of x-rays is for scanning the insides of shipping containers to detect contraband goods. Those x-rays pass through 2mm steel (1/8 inch) on both sides of the container. This steel is much thicker than a can.

X-rays are also used to check the quality of welding on high pressure piping. Insuch cases metal 10mm (1/3inch) can be penetrated easily.