Chemical analysis can be used to determine a chemical’s identity or the identity of its components, such as understanding why a product gives off a strong smell or locating what an organic contaminant is made of. The type of specimen and need defines which type of instrumentation to use, as well as which type of […]
FTIR Spectroscopy Blog Posts
FTIR Analysis Helps Monitor HIV Patients
HIV was once considered a death sentence, but thanks to advances in modern medicine, people with HIV who receive proper medical care can live to their country’s average life expectancy. Although it’s now possible to live a full and healthy life with HIV, HIV positive people must be monitored closely to ensure that they are […]
Guess the Materials Characterization Technique Part II
When unknown contaminants appear on your products due to failures in manufacturing processes, there are techniques that can help you identify the cause of the issue. Materials analysis laboratories use materials characterization to analyze and reverse engineer unknown materials to discover their composition. In our last post, we brought up four issues and asked you […]
Materials Analysis Solves Manufacturing Mysteries
When a manufactured electrical switch unexpectedly experienced a series of shorts, quality assurance personnel noticed several abnormal particles within the switch. Because these particles were the only abnormality apparent on the product, and the QA team could not readily define where they came from, the manufacturer decided to submit the particles for materials analysis. This […]
7 Signs that it’s Time for Materials Testing
As an engineering or manufacturing lead for your business, you have enough to do without trying to troubleshoot a mysterious product failure. From staffing issues to inventory and manufacturing to fulfillment, a product failure due to contamination or unexpected out gassing in transit is the last thing you want to hear about. Luckily there materials […]
3 Ways Failure Analysis Testing Can Benefit Your Manufacturing Company
It’s happened to you. You go to your favorite restaurant for your favorite meal. But once the food comes out, something’s just not right. The fries aren’t as crispy or your burger doesn’t have the same juicy, delicious flavor it usually does. You think: “Maybe the chef is just having an off night—or maybe they […]
FTIR Analysis to Be Used for Early Cancer Detection
UK researchers using Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy, or FTIR analysis, have produced an image of the cross section of a prostate at an incredibly high spatial resolution. According to an online article in Chemistry World, previously, only millimeter sized sections of tissue could be measured to a high enough degree of accuracy to produce a […]
Is the Food in Your ‘Fridge Killing You?
Fourier Transform Infrared spectroscopy, or FTIR analysis, may someday be used at your local grocery store. According to Ashraf Ismail, associate professor in the Canadian Department of Food Science and Agricultural Chemistry, in the future, FTIR analysis could be used in supermarkets to identify bacteria in food before it kills you! Ismail should know; he […]
Using Chemistry to Create Technicolor Body Scans
Did you know the bright colors you see in CT Scans at the doctor’s office or in medical TV shows are actually added in after the scan for artistic effect? Well that’s about to change. Experts are now using FTIR analysis and computed tomography (CT-scans) to create technicolor, 3D images in which the colors identify […]
Bringing FTIR Analysis to the Crime Scene
Developments in FTIR analysis are speeding up criminal investigations. Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, or FTIR analysis, is at the scene of the crime, yielding immediate results. Throughout the United States, law enforcement agencies are using FTIR analysis in order to obtain lab testing results without delay, notes forensic scientist Peter Massey. “The goal is to […]
