PROCESS EQUIPMENT UPDATE
Improvements in lasers, optics, and detectors have made the Raman
technique faster and more accessible for real-time inline measurements
the compositional analysis of reactants going into a chemical reaction.” “T e technology is also very good at telling us what the diff erent forms or purity levels are in inorganic, solid state, or mineral type materials, and can help to identify impurities in those materials,” he adds.
RAMAN REPUTATION For many years, however, Raman equipment has had a reputation for being expensive, cumbersome, and diffi cult to use. Now, advancements in the stability and portability of certain Raman systems and technological improvements in lasers, optics, and detectors have made the technique faster and more accessible for real-time inline measurements as well as laboratory testing. According to Francisco, Chemours had
previous experience with two diff erent Raman systems. He describes one as “a low end, qualitative type system” that did not have great stability in terms of response or signal, nor great stability with respect to the wavelength access or its registration. “[T e low-end system] was useful for rough measurements, but was not a high fi delity, scientifi c instrument,” says Francisco. T e other system that Chemours used was a high-quality R&D level instrument, but it required considerable attention and frequent calibration. Francisco found it diffi cult to keep up with the maintenance
required for the Chemours applications. In addition, the system was quite costly “so we not only had to work more, but also had to pay more,” says Francisco. Over time, Francisco monitored the
development of Raman spectroscopy, and selected easy-to-use commercial technology by Seattle-based MarqMetrix. Founded in 2012 by scientists from the University of Washington, the company specialises in compositional analysis using Raman spectroscopy and has pioneered advancements in Raman for use in process analysis. “When we recently needed to upgrade our Raman analyser technology, I saw that MarqMetrix equipment really fi t our requirements in terms of size, stability, application, and ease of use,” says Francisco. According to Francisco, the Raman equipment provides a useful combination of compactness with stability. As an example, MarqMetrix engineered the All-in-One to produce identical and repeatable results from unit to unit, in a package 80% smaller than some previous Raman instruments. Each device is nearly an exact copy so common mathematical models can be applied across systems to produce consistent results. “T e small package works beautifully, and the computing front end includes everything we need,” says Francisco. T e system works with a wide array of contact probes suitable for compositional
operation and capability to
measure sample
composition. However, the broader adoption of this technique is the result of advancements in the stability and portability of solid-state Raman systems and technological improvements in lasers, optics and detectors that have made the technique faster and more accessible. “Raman spectroscopy is a well-
established technique that complements everything else in the testing lab,” says Francisco. “It is vital for any application related to the compositional analysis of polymers, which is important at
Chemours. We also fi nd that it useful for
www.engineerlive.com 7
The Raman system works with a wide array of contact probes suitable for compositional analysis applications
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