Versatile Handheld FTIR for QA/QC Applications

A2 Technologies has expanded the sampling capability of its Exoscan handheld FTIR system. A new Spherical ATR Sampling interface enables the Exoscan to quickly and accurately analyse a wide range of materials typically encountered in the QA/QC lab, or at the production line. These materials include powders and granules as well as large samples such as polymer, composite and plastic sheets. The new design makes ATR measurements using the Exoscan easy and minimises the need for pressure devices to achieve high quality reproducible spectra. Two versions of the Spherical ATR are available. Exoscan’s diamond ATR is an ideal universal interface for a broad range of solid materials, while the germanium ATR is well suited to the analysis of carbon black filled rubber or samples for which measurement of thin layers on the surface is critical. The Exoscan adds the spherical ATR capability to its other sampling technologies which include diffuse reflectance for absorbing or scattering samples, specular reflectance for coatings on reflectance surfaces and grazing angle reflectance for the measurement of very thin layers on metal surfaces. These sampling interfaces can be interchanged in seconds, making Exoscan an ideal QA/QC analyser for industries that must analyse measure a wide assortment of materials either in the lab, in the field or at the production line. Graham Miller, President of A2 Technology, commented: "FTIR’s role in QA/QC has been traditionally a lab based effort where sample sets are brought to the instrument. With the development of the Exoscan, FTIR can take a role in quality assurance and quality control of products that are too large to be brought to the lab or otherwise cannot be effectively sampled. The development the spherical ATR enables Exoscan to quickly and reliably provide high quality measurements on a broad array of materials and surfaces."