What is Thermogravimetry?
Thermogravimetric analysis is a method of thermal analysis in which the mass of a sample is measured over time as the temperature changes. This measurement provides information about physical phenomena, such as phase transitions, absorption and desorption; as well as chemical phenomena including thermal decomposition, and solid-gas reactions (e.g., oxidation or reduction).
Applications
- Mass changes
- Identification
- Compositional analysis
- Decomposition
- Oxidation
- Thermal stability
- Reduction behavior
- Corrosion studies
- Determination of filler content
- Influence of aging
- Determination of plasticizer content and other additives
- Determination of moisture content
- Determination of ash content
- Determination of added carbon black
- Curie temperatures
- Reaction kinetics
- Purity Determination
Technical Specifications
| Temperature range | -180 to 2400°C |
|---|---|
| Heating rate | 0.001 K/min to 200 K/min |
| Max. sample weight/measuring range | 2 g (including crucible) |
| Gas atmospheres | Inert, oxidizing, reducing, measurements under vacuum (for tests such as rubber analysis) |
| Sample Dimensions | Crucible volume up to 350 µl |
Determination of the Glass Fiber Content in PA66
Polyamide 66 is a thermoplastic polymer which is used for a wide variety of technical parts.
The stiffness of the PA66 can be increased by suitable fillers such as glass fibers. TGA allows for determination of not only the decomposition of the polymer, but also the precise glass fiber content (residual mass 20.2% at 989°C).
After switching from nitrogen to synthetic air, the TGA curve also shows the content of pyrolytic soot and added carbon black. The c- DTA® peak exhibits the melting peak of PA66 at 260°C (red curve).
This application note highlights the capability of the BeFlat® correction being a smart solution for the influence of the heating rate and gas flow without a separate baseline measurement.