This application note shows that the compact Revontium™ XRF spectrometer provides excellent performance for the analysis of the TOXEL heavy element standards offered by Malvern Panalytical. This makes it an ideal choice for assessing polyethylene materials used in electronic and electrical equipment for the presence of lead, cadmium, mercury, chromium and bromine, as required by the EU’s RoHS regulation.
To tackle the growing problem of electronic waste, the EU has enacted legislation to promote the collection and recycling of waste electronic and electrical equipment (WEEE). This sits alongside a directive on the Restriction of Hazardous Substances (RoHS), which requires compliance monitoring for lead, cadmium, mercury and hexavalent chromium, in addition to polybrominated biphenyl (PBB) and polybrominated diphenyl ether (PBDE) flame-retardants.
X-ray fluorescence spectrometry (XRF) is a convenient, non-destructive approach to the screening of heavy elements in various substrates, and is therefore widely used to support RoHS compliance monitoring. However, some XRF systems have design limitations that lead to delays in sample preparation, resulting in bottlenecks in the production line. The Revontium™ XRF instrument resolves this issue, by enabling high sample throughput without compromising on data quality, all in a system designed for easy, everyday use.
Moreover, the results must also be dependable, and for analysis of residual heavy metals and bromine in polyethylene, this need is met by the TOXEL set of XRF reference materials from Malvern Panalytical. There are four disc-shaped polyethylene standards (1–4), each of which cover 10 heavy elements (namely As, Ba, Br, Cd, Cr, Cu, Hg, Ni, Pb and Zn). Each standard consists of four replicates, and there is also a blank and a certificate of composition.
In this application note, we demonstrate the use of Revontium for compliance testing of toxic heavy elements in polymers, by describing a straightforward, robust method, assessed by analysis of the TOXEL standards.
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This application note shows that the compact Revontium™ XRF spectrometer provides excellent performance for the analysis of the TOXEL heavy element standards offered by Malvern Panalytical. This makes it an ideal choice for assessing polyethylene materials used in electronic and electrical equipment for the presence of lead, cadmium, mercury, chromium and bromine, as required by the EU’s RoHS regulation.
To tackle the growing problem of electronic waste, the EU has enacted legislation to promote the collection and recycling of waste electronic and electrical equipment (WEEE). This sits alongside a directive on the Restriction of Hazardous Substances (RoHS), which requires compliance monitoring for lead, cadmium, mercury and hexavalent chromium, in addition to polybrominated biphenyl (PBB) and polybrominated diphenyl ether (PBDE) flame-retardants.
X-ray fluorescence spectrometry (XRF) is a convenient, non-destructive approach to the screening of heavy elements in various substrates, and is therefore widely used to support RoHS compliance monitoring. However, some XRF systems have design limitations that lead to delays in sample preparation, resulting in bottlenecks in the production line. The Revontium™ XRF instrument resolves this issue, by enabling high sample throughput without compromising on data quality, all in a system designed for easy, everyday use.
Moreover, the results must also be dependable, and for analysis of residual heavy metals and bromine in polyethylene, this need is met by the TOXEL set of XRF reference materials from Malvern Panalytical. There are four disc-shaped polyethylene standards (1–4), each of which cover 10 heavy elements (namely As, Ba, Br, Cd, Cr, Cu, Hg, Ni, Pb and Zn). Each standard consists of four replicates, and there is also a blank and a certificate of composition.
In this application note, we demonstrate the use of Revontium for compliance testing of toxic heavy elements in polymers, by describing a straightforward, robust method, assessed by analysis of the TOXEL standards.
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