TECHNOLOGY | ODOURS AND EMISSIONS
include standard and customised colors as well as functional and combination packages containing lubricants and UV or heat stabiliers. Typical applica- tions include automotive interior and exterior parts, conveying and gear components, and parts for use in small and large appliances.
Instrumented analysis Alongside the increasing use of recycled plastics comes a need for fast, reliable and safe means to control emissions and odours, according to Alpha MOS, which manufactures analytical instruments for sensory analysis. “In addition, because off- odours are usually caused by trace-level com- pounds, the analytical technique should show enough sensitivity to be able to detect these molecules at low concentrations,” says Marion Bonnefille, Marketing and Communications Manager at the company. “Analytical times are also an issue. Methods
Below: An Alpha MOS Heracles
testing system set up with automated sampler and data station
relying on human panel testing are often time- consuming, with long sample preparation phases. In times of Covid, it is even more challenging to gather human panellists together for test sessions. Plastics manufacturers are increasingly turning to analytical techniques that allow assessment of materials without long preparation times to achieve faster results,” she says. “Polymer producers regularly contact us about the need to control the odour quality of the resins and plastic pellets they manufacture. Ensuring that the plastic raw materials are free of any unpleasant odour remains the major concern for the industry, particularly for those involved in the production of food grade packaging,” Bonnefille says. To improve the performance of its solutions, Alpha MOS relies on expertise in data processing and artificial intelligence. “An accurate, sensitive and reproducible measurement of odorous
The Heracles ‘electronic nose’ from Alpha MOS uses fast GC to automate volatiles analysis
compounds coupled with powerful data process- ing, allows reliable control of odours in plastics,” says Bonnefille. “We have been developing a new and patented data processing method for quality control applications, still based on multivariate statistics, that considers the whole chromatography profile instead of the major peaks separately. In simple terms, this model achieves better tracking of chemical and sensory defects that can occur during plastic pellets production. It is designed for industry users who need to make fast PASS/FAIL decisions.”
Electronic nose Alpha MOS says that its Heracles “electronic nose” — which is based on fast gas chromatography technology — detects and analyses volatile com- pounds emitted by polymers and packaging materials without needing any sample preparation. A small amount of material is weighed in a vial, which is then sealed and heated in the autosampler oven to generate the headspace providing volatile compounds emanating from the product. A fraction of this headspace is collected through a syringe by the autosampler and injected into the two chromatography columns of the electronic nose after pre-concentration in an embedded trap. The chromatographic data can be processed as a comprehensive odour fingerprint to compare several samples or assess the overall odour conformity against accepted quality standards. Additionally, the chromatograms allow the investi- gation of the nature of the volatile compounds involved, to explain off-odours or defects, or explain differences.
� 56 COMPOUNDING WORLD | March 2021
www.compoundingworld.com
IMAGE: ALPHA MOS
IMAGE: ALPHA MOS
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