Understanding Refraction

This pencil appears to bend when it enters
the water because of the change in the light
ray speed as the medium changes.

Refraction is the directional change of wave propagation caused by a change in the light beams transmission medium.

Light rays travel through space in a straight line at approximately 300,000 km/s. As light passes through a transparent medium, such as water or glass, its speed is decreased.

For glass, its reduced to 200,000 kilometers per second, and for water the speed is 225,000 kilometers per second.

If the light enters into a medium perpendicular to the surface, it passes straight through but at a slower speed. However if the light beam arrives at the medium surface at an angle, not only will it speed be reduced, but it will bend due to a process called refraction.

As a beam of light reaches the surface of a medium the lower portion enters first and is slow down. However, the upper portion is still traveling at the speed of light until it arrives at the surface and enters. This speed difference at the top and bottom aspects of the light path causes it to pivot, bending toward what is referred to as the normal. This is an imaginary line drawn perpendicularly to the surface of the material.
 
Transparent materials have what is called a refractive index. This is the speed at which light travels in a medium compared to like traveling in a vacuum.
   
For example, typical glass has a refractive index of 1.33. This is calculated by dividing the speed of light in a vacuum (300,000 km/s) by the speed of light in glass (225,000 km/s).
   
The refractive index of air is 1.0003. Anytime a light beam travels from a medium with a low index of refraction, like air, to a medium with a higher index of refraction, like glass, the beam of light will bend toward the normal.
   
Likewise when the beam of light exits a highly refractive medium into a medium with the low index of refraction, the process is reversed.
   
The bottom portion of the beam of light exits first, and resumes at the speed of light, with the top portion still at the speed determined by the medium. This causes the beam to pivot away from the normal line.

Instruments used to measure the refractive index are called refractometers. Refractometers used in industrial automated systems are referred to as inline refractometers.

Jogler Industrial Level Measurement Products Catalog

Jogler is a manufacturer of process control instrumentation specializing in level control devices: site flow indicators, sight glass level indicators, magnetic level gauges, magnetostrictive transmitters, laser level transmitters and specific gravity analyzers. Jogler, LLC is a certified ASME boiler code facility and carries the U, UM and S stamps that are required via ASME boiler code section B31.1 and B31.3.

Jogler products include:

• Magnetic Level Gauges and Accessories
• Magnetostrictive Level Transmitters
• Laser Level Transmitters
• Direct-Reading Liquid Level Indicators

Download a copy of the Jogler Industrial Level Measurement Products Catalog here, or view in the embedded document below.

https://alliancets.com
630-321-9646

Jogler Industrial Level Measurement Products Catalog from Alliance Technical Sales, Inc.

The Preparation of Pharmaceutical Waters

While the public considers municipal water to be “pure”, the pharmaceutical market considers municipal water (feedwater) just the starting point in producing pure water. Water is the most widely used excipient in pharmaceutical manufacturing, and pharmaceutical water is a multi-functional resource, crossing all disciplines in the pharmaceutical industry. Water is used as a raw material, solvent, ingredient, reagent, and clean-ing agent, and is produced in a variety of “pure” forms.

Purified Water (PW), Highly Purified Water (HPW), and Water for Injection (WFI) used in pharmaceutical processes are produced on site from the local potable water, which has been produced by the treatment of the feedwater.

This best practice guide, titled "Pharmaceutical Waters Guide for Regulatory Compliance, Analysis and Real-Time Release" and produced by Mettler Toledo Thornton, provides insight on the following topics:

DOWNLOAD THE FULL GUIDE HERE.

Pharma Waters Overview

• The Preparation of Pharmaceutical Waters
• Pharmacopeia Overview
• Industry Trends for Pharmaceutical Waters

Process Analytical Technology (PAT) and Intelligent Sensor Management (ISM)

• Ensuring Pharmaceutical Water Compliance in a PAT Environment

Total Organic Carbon

• Total Organic Carbon Measurement is a Key Control Point for Pharmaceutical Water Systems
• Improving Water System Performance Continuous Real-Time TOC Measurements
• Case Study: Real-Time TOC Analysis Safeguards Water Purity
• Case Study: In-line TOC Monitoring: Reduces Production Downtime
• Case Study: Leading Water Treatment Solution Provider Chooses METTLER TOLEDO Thornton
• The Value of Measuring TOC in CIP and Cleaning Validation Applications

Conductivity/Resistivity

• Ensuring the Absence of Ionic Impurities with Conductivity/Resistivity Measurements
• Calibration Solutions for Pharmaceutical Waters
• Case Study: Clean in Place Systems Manufacturer Relies on METTLER TOLEDO

Ozone

• Reliable, Cost-effective Sanitization the Power of Ozone
• Application and Control of Ozone Sanitization for Pharmaceutical Waters
• Case Study: Critical Ozone Measurement in Purified Water Systems

DOWNLOAD THE FULL GUIDE HERE.

Surface Heating for Analytical and Scientific Instrumentation

Electric surface heating for
analytical and scientific
applications. (BriskHeat) 

In many research & development and laboratory applications, surface heat is required to successfully conduct experiments and tests. The heat may be required for a number of reasons:

• Temperature Compensation - Varying results due to temperature fluctuation are eliminated when the temperature is constant over several repetitions or tests.
• Vacuum Bake-out - Heat helps release moisture and impurities/particulates in a closed system to allow the test results to be more accurate and consistent.
• Temperature Elevation - A higher temperature may be required to generate the desired results.

The document below, courtesy of BriskHeat, provides electric heating solutions for various laboratory applications where analytical and scientific apparatus require heat. You can also  download a PDF of "Surface Heating for Analytical and Scientific Instrumentation" here.

https://alliancetes.com
630-321-9646

Surface Heating for Analytical and Scientific Instrumentation from Alliance Technical Sales, Inc.

UniCond Sensor Measures Conductivity of Water with Varying Purity Levels & Temperatures

UniCond Sensor

As the video below will show you, Mettler Toledo Thornton's UniCond sensors provide three significant advantages over other conductivity sensors:

1) Unmatched Accuracy - a self-contained measuring circuit which produces a robust output digital signal that is reliable over very long cable and certified factory calibration and temperature compensation with ASTM traceability stored in the sensor's internal memory to ensure highest installed accuracy out of the box.

2) Widest Rangeability - A single 2-electrode UniCond sensor can measure from ultrapure water all the way up to sea water with high accuracy. This significantly simplifies the specification, installation and spare parts inventory for water treatment systems. 4-electrode UniCond sensors cover the higher conductivity ranges of acid and base ion exchange regeneration chemicals.

3) Maintenance-free Performance - Mettler Toledo Thornton conductivity sensors for pure water provide high accuracy measurements with widely spaced electrodes that do not trap ion exchange resin particles, corrosion particles or bubbles, and yield more reliable, maintenance-free operation than with other sensors.

https://alliancets.com
630-321-9646

Operating Principles of the Jogler Model ILT-6000 Magnetostrictive Level Transmitter

The Jogler ILT-6000 Direct Insertion Magnetostrictive Level Transmitter is a loop powered non-contact level measurement device that can be installed directly into a process vessel. Utilizing the magnetostrictive principle and time-of-flight calculations allow the ILT-6000 to provide a fast and accurate measurement of float position and, ultimately, liquid level in the gauge. The ILT-6000 is installed in an isolation well assembly allowing the transmitter to be removed, serviced, or replaced with no process interruption.

The video below briefly explains how it operates:

ILT-6000 FEATURES

• 2 wire, loop powered (24VDC nominal)
• LCD Display (4-20mA, %, in, and/or cm)
• Generic HART communication
• Quick-Cal function for simple recalibration
• Isolated from process pressure
• Long Measuring Lengths (up to 35ft)
• Isolation Well assembly
• Dual level outputs (total level and interface)
• Epoxy-Coated Aluminum Enclosure
• Class I, Division 1, Groups A, B, C, D
• Class II and Class III, Division 1, Groups E, F, G
• Class I, Division 2, Groups A, B, C, D
• Class II and Class III, Division 2, Groups E, F, G
• Intrinsically Safe Class I / II / III, Division 1, Groups A, B, C, D, E, F, G
• NEMA 4X

Alliance Technical Sales

https://alliancets.com

630-321-9646

Process Refractometers Used in Industry

Technician adjusts process refractometer in plant.
(Electron Machine)

Process refractometers provide the analysis to quickly, reliably, and very accurately identify a sample and determine it's concentration and purity levels. They measure the refractive index and temperature of flowing liquids, and apply mathematical functions to determine the concentration of dissolved solids.

Part physics, part material science and part chemistry, refractometry is the process which measures the composition of known substances by means of calculating their respective refractive indexes (RI).  Light bends and changes velocity as it travels from one media into another through the media interface. When light traveling through air enters liquid, the light rays change direction by an amount determined by the liquid's density. RIs are evaluated via a refractometer, a device which measures the curve, or refraction. The
unitless number given by the refractometer, usually between 1.3000 and 1.7000, is the RI. The composition of substances is then determined when the RI is compared to a standard curve specific to the material of the substance. Standard tables are available that correlate RI to a variety of materials. These same tables also correlate RI to varying concentrations of particular liquid media at a particular temperature. Take corn syrup for example. Different refractive indexes are observed for different corn syrup samples of different concentrations. Therefore, by using a process refractometer to observe the RI of a particular corn syrup sample, a determination of the concentration of that particular sample can be made. By referring to the table or scale that correlates the RI to concentration at a particular fixed temperature, liquid concentration can be determined.

Common industrial refractometer applications are:

Process refractometer with flanged spool adapter.
(Electron Machine)

• Calculating amount of sugar dissolved in juices and beverages.
• In commercial food applications such as juice production or tomato processing, refractometers are used to measure degrees Brix (the Brix scale relates refractive index to sugar concentration, and is a key way to maintain consistency).
• In the pharmaceutical industry, process refractometers are used to monitor and control concentration levels during supersaturation, a critical process in crystallization.
• In pulp and paper production, process refractometers for measuring dissolved solids in black and green liquor during the chemical recovery process.

Equipment manufacturers have developed numerous refractometer configurations tailored to specific each use and application. Each has a set of features making it the advantageous choice for its intended application. Product specialists are invaluable sources of information and assistance to potential refractometer users seeking to match the best equipment to their application or process.

For more information on industrial refractometers, contact Alliance Technical Sales by visiting https://alliancets.com or by calling 630-321-9646.