Soils and sediments

ICP-OES

ICP-OES technology enables the determination of metals across widely varying concentrations and in multiple matrices.

It is frequently used for environmental monitoring and to verify the compliance of raw materials and finished products with regulations or reference specifications, making it today the most versatile and widely used technique for this purpose.

Instrumentation suited for:

  • qualitative and quantitative analysis of metals in water (drinking, natural, wastewater)
  • analysis of soils, sediments, rocks and minerals to determine their composition.
  • heavy metal analysis.
  • characterisation of materials such as alloys, glass, ceramics, bricks. 

ICP-MS

ICP-MS technology enables the measurement of trace and ultra-trace element concentrations, down to picograms per litre, and allows highly accurate isotopic analysis.

Its advantages include sensitivity and precision, speed and simultaneous multi-element analysis capability, along with the versatility to analyse a wide range of organic and inorganic matrices; it can also be combined with various separation or mineralisation techniques, or with laser ablation systems for solid sample analysis. 

Instrumentation suited for:

  • monitoring heavy metals in water (drinking, natural, wastewater)
  • analysis of soils, rocks and minerals to determine their composition.
  • analysis of toxic elements (such as arsenic and lead).
  • isotopic analysis.
  • characterisation of materials such as alloys, glass, ceramics, bricks. 

XRD, HT-XRD and Low-Angle Analysis

X-ray diffraction (XRD) is a non-destructive technique for the qualitative and quantitative analysis of crystalline materials, used to identify crystal structure, identify and quantify crystalline phases present, and analyse defects and crystallite size.

It is widely used in industry, geology and mineralogy, as well as in the study of advanced materials, coatings, pharmaceuticals and restoration products.

Instrumentation suited for:

  • determining which crystalline compounds are present in a powder or solid sample, and in what percentage.
  • with a grazing-incidence accessory: it is possible to characterise thin films and coatings with thicknesses on the order of nanometres.
  • with a high-temperature chamber accessory (HT-XRD): it is possible to study the thermal stability and phase transformations of materials (e.g. ceramics, metals, catalysts) at high operating temperatures, to optimise their efficiency and durability.

XRF

X-ray fluorescence spectroscopy (XRF) is a technique used for the elemental analysis of solids or liquids with minimal sample preparation. The sample is irradiated with an X-ray beam, exciting its atoms, which then emit X-rays as they relax. The wavelengths of the emitted X-rays are characteristic of the atomic species present.

Its applications are broad, including analysis of building materials, cultural heritage conservation (identifying pigments and alloys), geology (studying rocks and minerals), environmental monitoring, and quality control across various industrial sectors (e.g. ceramics, glass, metals, oil).

Instrumentation suited for:

  • Qualitative identification of chemical elements (from F to U) present in the sample, at percentage fractions up to 100%.
  • Quantitative determination of chemical elements (from F to U) present in the sample.

Laser Granulometry (Dry-Wet)

A technique based on light diffraction to determine the size distribution of particles in the micrometric and submicrometric range.

Applications:

  • Ceramic powder analysis
  • Colloidal suspensions
  • Quality control of raw materials and finished products

Sieve Granulometry

Traditional method for determining the particle size distribution of coarse powders using calibrated mesh sieves.

Applications:

  • Sands
  • Ceramic raw materials
  • Refractory materials