Research and Development

Today’s R&D departments at modern polymers and plastic manufacturers are not only busy designing new products and developing innovative materials; they are often asked to help in solving customer complaints and production problems, and are consulted when internal norms and procedures are being established.
Monitoring of Manufacturing Processes

Another task that modern R&D departments are involved in is the central monitoring of the overall manufacturing process. For such an environment often standardless analysis and analyses of elements with low atomic numbers are important. PANalytical's highly sensitive WDXRF (wavelength dispersive XRF) spectrometer Axios is the ideal system for R&D departments.
The Axios Spectrometer from PANalytical

The Axios spectrometer comes with the powerful and flexible SuperQ 4 analysis software. Several program options are available to extend the functionality for dedicated types of analysis. For instance, the IQ+ option offers standardless quantitative analysis of completely unknown samples.
X-Ray Fluorescence Systems in Production Environments

In this part of the plastic and polymer manufacturing, XRF analysis systems are usually "tuned" to the particular process and will be working in a standard configuration. Automatic sample changing often is an additional request from production to simplify control processes. Especially when high sample throughput is important, these applications require flexibility, sensitivity and speed from a reliable and robust XRF system: the ideal environment for Axios.

In production and process control reliability is a must as well as accuracy and precision. Once properly set up, XRF analysis should not be more than a push-button operation. Ease-of-use also for less experienced users and an excellent service is what industry demands. Combining high-power X-ray excitation, the company’s proprietary fourth-generation counting electronics and other proven features, Axios has become the system of choice for fast and reliable XRF analysis.
Software for X-Ray Fluorescence Systems

Parameters and analysis results within production and process control often need to be compatible with and integratable into a LIMS system. PANalytical offers a range of software modules to make its systems perfectly fit into its environment.

SuperQ, the MagiX software, provides a data transmission as standard and offers UAI (Universal Automation Interface) as additional module.
Statistical Process Control

The SPC (Statistical Process Control) software of PANalytical provides valuable information about plant production trends. Moreover, with regular measurement of designated quality samples it also enables long-term spectrometer performance to be monitored, in accordance with Good Laboratory principles.
Quality Control

Quality management involves people, processes and machines. They all strive to meet the users' needs at the right time and at the right price. One of the analysis tools for quality management is XRF spectrometry, not only because XRF is a non-destructive technique, but also because it enables qualitative and quantitative analysis of fluids and solids.
Benchtop Systems

The PANalytical cost-effective spectrometers such as the Venus and the benchtop systems are valuable tools for stand-alone or satellite units. Especially in those conditions where throughput is low (10-15 samples within a day) and an adequate analysis is demanded.

These spectrometers are perfect stand-alone units for the smaller and/or remote plants, since it often is more convenient to measure the samples at the satellite rather than sending them to the main laboratory, which would usually be equipped with larger and more sensitive systems. Furthermore, these benchtop spectrometers are perfect back-ups when main-line systems are in service/maintenance.
The Venus WDXRF Spectrometer from PANalytical

With Venus PANalytical offers a compact easy to use WDXRF spectrometer for cost effective elemental analysis of elements from F to U. Venus as well as the EDXRF bench top systems MiniPal and MiniMate do not require highly qualified personnel to operate them. Small laboratories with no special infrastructure will enjoy all these systems which stand for precise and quick analysis and ease-of-use. Of course, all of the products of the Mini series work with the state-of-the-art analytical software providing utmost flexibility and control possibilities.
Recycling

One of the growing applications within the industry is recycling – a branch which almost daily increases in importance because of the awareness of environmental issues.

Recycling of plastics is a demanding task. First of all, the collected plastics must be fully identified, this is where XRF takes its important role. It is ideal looking for the additives in plastics and checking for certain chemical elements frequently present such as Sb, Br, Cl, Fe, Cu and Ti used as fire retardants or pigments.
Sorting Of Recycled Plastics

MiniPal is an ideal tool for qualitative sorting of different plastics, PVCs or polyethylenes.

Modest costs make the Mini series a practical choice for sample pre-scanning or as back-ups to other mainline systems. If you’re looking for more difficult traces, smaller quantities, pigments or the additives which identify the same plastic but different manufacturer; the Axios is the solution. Of growing importance is the elemental analysis of heavy metals. The Epsilon 5 is optimized for this application.

TOXEL Standards For Analyzing Heavy Elements In Polyethylene

In 2004, PANalytical cooperated with DSM Resolve to launch TOXEL – the first set of standards for analyzing toxic heavy elements in polyethylene.

TOXEL helps manufactures of plastics and polymers to meet the EU’s RoHS and WEEE directives, which require quantitative elemental analysis down to sub-ppm levels.
TOXEL Certified Standards

TOXEL provides certified standards against which to perform this analysis by incorporating five standards (one blank and four multi-element standards) containing the regulated elements: Cr, Cd, Hg, Pb, As, Ni, Cu, Zn, Ba and Br.

A single set of TOXEL calibration standards can be used to calibrate all regulated toxic elements, covering trace levels up to a few hundreds of ppm.
Primary Applications fro TOXEL Standards

TOXEL is primarily for use with XRF analysis – one of the best methods of measuring sub-ppm levels of toxic elements.

Establishing a calibration with TOXEL standards and PANalytical’s Epsilon 5 or Axios spectrometers is simplified because XRF is a multi-element technique.

When applied in combination with PANalytical’s XRF spectrometers, TOXEL helps plastics manufacturers meet the challenges and opportunities of plastics manufacturing in the 21st century.