Particle Size Distribution

[dogtop]

All,

I have a product which requires a Particle Size Distribution determination. I currently use Laser Diffraction to get this information. I am looking for another different analytical technique to double-check the results from the Laser Diffraction. Can anyone make any suggestions about alternative analytical techniques to measure a PSD?

Thanks in advance,

Regards.

 

[Latexman]

Is this a solid or a slurry/solution application?

Good luck,
Latexman

Technically, the glass is always full - 1/2 air and 1/2 water.

 

[dogtop]

Latexman,

Slurry

Thanks

 

[EmmanuelTop]

Is anyone of these applicable?

https://www.horiba.com/fileadmin/uploads/Scientific/eMag/PSA/Guidebook/pdf/PSA_Guidebook.pdf

I've heard of X-ray centrifuge but I don't know if it is applicable to your case.

Dejan IVANOVIC
Process Engineer, MSChE

 

[Latexman]

We use light scattering (laser) in our plant labs, just like you. It's best for unimodal PSDs, but we cheat sometimes and use it for bimodal and wide PSDs too because it is already in place. IIRC, it's a Microtrac. Our central analytical lab uses a unit that couples a centrifuge with light scattering. It handles mono- and polymodal PSDs very accurately. It's complicated and cumbersome to calibrate compared to the Microtrac, so we only have the one. I forget it's name, but if you are interested, let me know and I'll get it.

Good luck,
Latexman

Technically, the glass is always full - 1/2 air and 1/2 water.

 

[Compositepro]

Each technique has different sensitivities and will yield different results. Laser diffraction is simple to operate and gives good reproducibility because it is not sensitive to outlier particles. It reports a single number that fits in a text box or report very nicely. In my opinion, the best reality check in particle sizing is microscopic analysis and keeping photographs as records so they can be compared over time. It is also possible to do vision analysis on the photographs to get a quantitative number. Just keep in mind that it is not possible to accurately compare particle distributions of particles with differing shapes using any single number.