Products

Particle Size Overview

When Particle Size is Important

The overwhelming majority of natural and manufactured products involve particulate materials either in their final state or at some stage in their production. Particle size and particle size distribution are, therefore, often critically important parameters.

At the simplest level, information on particle size can help maintain a more consistent product, enhancing end-user value and profitability. At a more complex level, careful control of particle size can reduce the need for in-process modifications and reworking, so making products more competitive.

Brookhaven offers a choice of particle sizing techniques to meet the diverse needs in industry or research:

Dynamic Light Scattering (DLS) provides a fast, simple method for submicron particle sizing. In this technique, random intensity fluctuations arising from the Brownian motion of colloidal particles are analyzed by autocorrelation to give either a simple mean size and polydispersity (distribution width) or more complete distribution data even for multimodal distributions.

Choose the 90Plus Particle Size Analyzer for routine measurements of particle size distributions from about 2 nanometers to about 3 microns in any liquid. Options include full zeta potential capability and higher power lasers for very small particle sizes.

Choose the NanoDLS Nanoparticle Sizer for the highest sensitivity, low-volume, flow through measurements of particle size and distribution. Particularly useful for proteins and other very small nanoparticles.

Choose the BioDLS for automated, high-throughput, extreme low volume, microplate particle size and size distribution. It is a cost effective, essential tool for protein aggregation, protein crystallization and chemical formulation studies.

Choose the FOQELS for measurements at high concentrations and for many control applications, even in relatively hostile environments.

Choose systems based around the BI-200SM Goniometer and TurboCorr correlator for research applications requiring the most exacting particle size, molecular weight and complex fluid analyses.

Sedimentation/Centrifugation provides high resolution and accuracy over a wide size range from nanometers to microns. It is based on the fractionation of particles according to Stokes' Law, and particle density is the only special information required. Measurement times are typically in the range of five to thirty minutes, depending upon the breadth of the distribution.

Choose the BI-XDC for inorganic particles including ceramics, clays, refractories, ores and metal powders, in fact any x-ray absorbing material with diameters in the range of 10 nm to about 100 µm. Direct mass response makes optical corrections unnecessary.

Choose the BI-DCP for the highest resolution size analysis on any type of particle from several nanometers to tens of microns in diameter which is, or can be, dispersed in a liquid. Applications include carbon blacks, emulsions, polymer colloids and organic pigments. Exact light scattering corrections are used to ensure accurate results.