Chemical resistance

When analyzing liquids with an XRF spectrometer, it is crucial to ensure that the thin film is resistant to the specific liquid being measured. Certain liquids can degrade the film, causing wrinkles or, worse, leaks into the spectrometer. A wrinkled film can compromise analytical accuracy, while leaks pose a serious risk to the instrument.

Below is a table detailing the chemical resistance of various thin-film types against different substances.

Factors that may influence the resistance of the XRF thin film

Analysis time: the longer the measurement, the more the XRF thin film can be affected
Power of the X-ray tube: the higher the power, the more the XRF thin film will be affected
Heat generation: some samples are filled while heated, be sure the XRF thin film is also resistant to the filling temperature

Procedure to measure unknown liquids:

1. Prepare sample cup

Prepare a sample cup and fill the cup with the unknown liquid sample.

2. Film test

Leave cup on blank piece of paper for the analysis time of the XRF method.

3. Film check

Inspect for wrinkles or leaks. Wrinkles indicate the sample is affecting the foil, requiring attention.

4. Fill a new cup

Throw away the tested sample cup and make a new sample cup to perform the XRF analysis.

Table chemical resistance:


Chemical	Mylar®	Poly-Carbonate	Etnom®	Polypropylene®	Kapton®	Prolene®	Ultra Ployester®	Zythene®
Acid, diluted or weak	Good	Good	Good	Excellent	Do Not Use	Good	Good	Good
Acids, conc.	Good	Good	Good	Excellent	Do Not Use	Excellent	Good	Good
Alcohols, aliphatic	Do Not Use	Good	Good	Excellent	Good	Excellent	Do Not Use	Good
Aldehydes	Unknown	Fair	Fair	Excellent	Excellent	Excellent	Unknown	Fair
Alkalies, conc. (base)	Do Not Use	Do Not Use	Good	Excellent	Excellent	Excellent	Do Not Use	Good
Esters	Do Not Use	Do Not Use	Fair	Good	Good	Good	Do Not Use	Fair
Ethers	Fair	Do Not Use	Fair	Do Not Use	Unknown	NR	Fair	Fair
Aliphatic Hydrocarbons	Good	Do Not Use	Excellent	Good	Excellent	Good	Good	Excellent
Aromatic Hydrocarbons	Do Not Use	Do Not Use	Excellent	Do Not Use	Excellent	NR	Do Not Use	Excellent
Hydrocarbon Halogenated	Fair	Do Not Use	Fair	Do Not Use	Fair	NR	Fair	Fair
Ketones	Do Not Use	Do Not Use	Good	Good	Good	Good	Do Not Use	Good
Oxidizing Agents	Fair	Do Not Use	Fair	Fair	Do Not Use	Fair	Fair	Fair

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