24 Analytical Instrumentation


Atomic Absorption Spectrometers to Address Metals Testing Challenges


Recycling Materials from Punching Waste Non-Ferrous Metals


Non-ferrous metal punching waste materials accumulated during the production of electronic components produces can be recycled. This punching waste is on the one hand garbage, and on the other hand a valuable commodity. This explains the conflict of interest between the releasing company and the recycling partner winning back these valuable metals. The first company wants to achieve the highest price possible for the garbage, whilst the second company wants to earn money by recycling it.


The exact analytical detection of the contents is therefore a prerequisite for both: the commercial evaluation and the direction of the recycling process.


When viewing the task, it quickly becomes clear, that the production of a representative sample is an extreme challenge. The simplest method is the melting down of the corresponding amount of the punching waste. The biggest problem here though, is how to find a suitably sized container for melting down the metals.


This task is solved with the FRITSCH (Germany) cutting mill PULVERISETTE 25. The punching waste is a hard, abrasive material therefore hard metal tungsten carbide cutting tools are used. Equipped with a 4 mm sieve, a chunky sample is obtained. The acquired material can simply be filled into the melting pot and melted down, allowing for an homogenous sample to be easily taken.


PerkinElmer (USA) announces the launch of its PinAAcle™ series atomic absorption spectrometers for determining the concentration of inorganic elements in a wide variety of sample types. As global regulations in the environmental, food and consumer products segments continue to increase in number, the demand for atomic absorption spectrometers continues to drive the need for more compact, high performance flame and graphite furnace systems.


The PinAAcle series is a compact platform based on an innovative optical system that utilises state-of-the-art fiber optics. The PinAAcle series’ configuration allows for compact design without compromising instrument performance in demanding applications that; meet global environmental regulations for drinking water, are suitable for clinical use in customer-validated applications such as screening for lead, and meet increasingly challenging requirements of food safety and nutritional labelling “PerkinElmer has a long history of innovation in atomic absorption, and a large installed base of atomic absorption instrumentation worldwide. Today, we’re taking atomic absorption performance to new levels,” said Dusty Tenney, president, Analytical Science and Laboratory Services, PerkinElmer. “Our PinAAcle series, with the proven longitudinal Zeeman furnace and cutting-edge optical design, helps researchers meet or exceed regulatory requirements and delivers improved accuracy for challenging matrices, making it essential for laboratories across the globe.”


The PinAAcle AA series performance is enhanced when used with the PerkinElmer Lumina™ hollow cathode lamps and patented graphite tubes. The complete portfolio of specialised accessories, supplies and consumables deliver reliable performance, help reduce operating costs and maximise instrument uptime.


Reader Reply Card No 77


Chromatography Problems Solved with Sky™ Inlet Liners


Many chromatographic problems, such as poor response and missing or tailing peaks are caused by activity in the inlet liner. These effects complicate quantification and can be particularly problematic for sensitive analytes. New Sky™ inlet liners from Restek (USA) are extremely inert, assuring complete transfer of analytes to the column, good response, and highly symmetric peaks. The exceptional inertness of these liners is due to a high-tech deactivation process that broadly passivates the liner and packing so that they are inert to a wide variety of reactive analytes. Some deactivations, such as base deactivation, are effective only for particular target compound chemistries. In contrast, the balanced deactivation of Sky™ liners prevents interactions with many chemical classes. Technical comparisons demonstrating the exceptional inertness of Sky™ liners toward complex pesticide probes, as well as to both acidic and basic compounds are available on Restek’s website. The comprehensive deactivation used for Sky™ inlet liners results in improved sensitivity, accuracy, and reproducibility, which allows analysts to quantify challenging compounds at trace levels with confidence, even when using wool.


Reader Reply Card No 79 August / September 2011 • www.petro-online.com Reader Reply Card No 145 Fuel which is “Pure for Sure”


Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited (BPCL) is a Fortune 500 company and one of the largest state-owned oil and gas companies in India. Its product portfolio includes gasoline, diesel, kerosene, liquefied petroleum gas, automotive and industrial lubricants, fuel oils and aviation fuels.


BPCL supplies fuel directly to hundreds of industries, and several international and domestic airlines, and sells petroleum products through a large network of retail outlets.


In keeping with its strong customer-oriented philosophy, in 2002 BPCL introduced “Pure for Sure”, a major initiative dedicated to ensure the pure quality and correct quantity of fuel dispensed to the end-customer.


The purchase and use of pure fuel gives customers value for money, better mileage, lower expenses for vehicle maintenance, and reduces pollution.


The success of “Pure for Sure” depends on a number of stringent measures. Tank lorries now have pilfer-proof locks, dispensing units are sealed and calibrated to prevent tampering, and retail outlets are certified and tested by an independent agency: TÜV Süddeutschland-India. Mystery audits and extensive inspections are carried out at participating retail outlets to ensure they comply with requirements. Those which do comply are allowed to display the “Pure for Sure” logo.


The laboratories required a cost-efficient way of processing the large number of incoming samples. To meet this challenge, new instrumentation was purchased, including 15 new Stabinger Viscometers from Anton Paar (Austria). The Stabinger Viscometer is a bench-top instrument which determines the kinematic viscosity and density of oils and fuels. It also calculates the Viscosity Index automatically.


For Dr. Narasimham it was important that the new instrumentation was fast and easily correlated with the existing methods. At the BPCL laboratories, lab personnel use the Stabinger Viscometers to screen incoming samples. With a throughput of around 30 samples per hour, the laboratory meets the heavy workload without compromising on accuracy.


The small number of problematic samples which are detected during screening are then taken for further authentification using the D445 manual method, the reference method in India. Only using the D445 method for in-depth analysis of suspect fuels increases overall efficiency.


To serve the large Indian market, BPCL has more than 20 testing laboratories around the country. Although each laboratory works independently, it was necessary to ensure standardisation of the methods and equipment used.


This resulted in BPCL ordering 15 Stabinger Viscometers to equip the most important testing laboratories. As Dr. Narasimham explains, “When you want good interlab coordination, it’s better to have the same instrument used everywhere.”


Now results for the “Pure for Sure” campaign from all locations in India are comparable. The Stabinger Viscometer meets the requirements of standard test method ASTM D7042 and delivers measurement results which are equivalent to ISO 3104 and ASTM D445.


Reader Reply Card No 78


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