AVS 60th International Symposium and Exhibition
    Vacuum Technology Tuesday Sessions
       Session VT+EN+TF-TuA

Paper VT+EN+TF-TuA11
HBr Gas Mixture Analysis by FTIR for Non-Destructive Quality Control of Automotive Halogen Capsule Manufacturing

Tuesday, October 29, 2013, 5:20 pm, Room 202 C

Session: Vacuum for Industrial Processing
Presenter: P.F. Somssich, Osram Sylvania
Authors: J.N. Greene, Osram Sylvania
P.F. Somssich, Osram Sylvania
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Controlling the halogen content of an automotive capsule presents many challenges for quality control. It is not enough to identify a problem with a finished product, if the gas mixing at the front end is not properly controlled. With this in mind, the analysis of gas mixtures for the quantitative determination of HBr(g) by Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR) was studied. Automotive halogen capsules had been non-destructively analyzed by FTIR and destructively analyzed by wet chemistry for HBr content at our production plant and analysis laboratory for many years. However, the identification of out of specification end product capsules with respect to halogen content, while useful, does not specifically identify the problem. Analysis of the gas mixtures for HBr content was needed at the front end of the production process. Therefore, the feasibility of using an FTIR equipped with a gas cell for quantitative determination of HBr was investigated with respect to HBr reactivity and handling, instrument calibration via gas mixing manifold and wet chemistry, and quantitative limits. The use of vacuum technology in the transport of corrosive HBr and the evacuation of the systems developed in this study are also discussed. Examples of problems detected and corrected in the manufacturing process will be discussed.