Light-scattering instrumentation analysis

In many industries, particle size measurements have been carried out historically by sieve analysis and light scattering instruments are increasingly replacing this. In order to correlate with historic data banks some manufacturers have software to manipulate the data so as to present the size distribution in terms of sieve diameter. 

Seligson s group (95) has published a similar turbidimetric procedure but used nephelometry to measure continuously the effect of lipase on the light scattering of an olive oil emulsion. The instrumentation and approach is the same as that described above for the nephelometric determination of amylase. The method according to the authors is fast and precise with good specificity and sensitivity. The short time required for analysis makes it suitable for emergency use. The technical simplicity permits this method to be easily automated, and it appears to be the lipase method of choice. 

Branching in the polymer chain affects the relationship between retention and molecular weight.83 Universal calibration has been used with some success in branched polymers, but there are also pitfalls. Viscosimetry84-91 and other instrumental methods have proved to be useful. A computer simulation of the effects of branching on hydrodynamic volume and the detailed effects observable in GPC is available in the literature.92 93 In copolymer analysis, retention may be different for block and random copolymers, so universal calibration may be difficult. However, a UV-VIS detector, followed by a low-angle light-scattering (LALLS) detector and a differential... 

Data from a number of different particle size analysis instrumental methods including light scattering, field flow fractionation, hydrodynamic chromatography and microscopy were obtained for a series of polymethylmethacrylate latexes and were compared to DCP results (2). These and other comparative results have demonstrated the accuracy of the instrument and method. The reproducibility and precision of the instrument also were studied and are reported elsewhere ( 1 ). 

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