Application Finder

Nitrogen-based compounds are widely distributed in the environment and are essential growth nutrients for photosynthetic organisms. Therefore, it is important to monitor and control the amount of nitrogen compounds which are released into the environment.In this Application Note, a method to determine the nitrogen content in water by Kjeldahl digestion and distillation followed by a photometric or potentiometric titration according to ASTM D3590 is presented. The universality, precision, and reproducibility of the Kjeldahl method have made it the internationally recognized method for e.g. estimating the protein content in many matrices and it is the standard method to which all other methods are judged against.

Lithium salts (e.g., lithium carbonate and lithium hydroxide) are used in myriad applications. Lithium hydroxide is used for the production of lithium stearate, an important engine lubricant. In addition, it is utilized as an air purifier due to its ability to bind carbon dioxide. While the majority of lithium carbonate is used for aluminum production, it is also used for the glass and ceramic industry. It lowers the melting point of these materials, lowering the associated electricity costs and making it cheaper to produce them.For all of these applications, it is important to know the quality of the pure lithium salts used in the various production processes. This Application Note presents an easy method for the assay of lithium hydroxide and lithium carbonate on an automated OMNIS system.

Lithium nitrate is an oxidizing agent used in the manufacture of red-colored fireworks and flares. In addition, the lithium nitrate trihydrate compound absorbs heat well and can be used for thermal energy storage. Since lithium nitrate is a hygroscopic substance, its purity must first be verified before it is used for synthesis or other applications. The purity assay is done by a fully automated precipitation titration between lithium and fluoride in an ethanolic solution. The benefit of titration is that the lithium nitrate does not need to be diluted after dissolving in ethanol as with other techniques such as ICP-MS.

Sodium hypochlorite and sodium chloride can be effectively use as disinfectant for water and surfaces. The World Health Organization (WHO) recommends, depending on the application, concentrations in disinfectants of 1000 mg/L to 5000 mg/L NaOCl and up to 200 g/L NaCl.This Application Note demonstrates a reliable method to determine the hypochlorite and sodium chloride content in disinfectants by two subsequent argentometric titrations in the range recommended by the WHO.

The lithium-ion battery market is continuously growing due to the tremendous demand for battery powered consumer products. So-called «NCMs», a mixture of nickel, cobalt, and manganese oxides, have been gathering interest as cathode materials, replacing traditional compounds like cobalt oxides.Quality analysis of the post-sintered materials or recycled batteries can be performed by titration, as demonstrated in this Application Note. A fully automated analysis of the corresponding metals can be performed with OMNIS and its pipetting equipment.

In order to consistently manufacture high quality baked goods, it is critical to measure the pH value and acidity content in the raw materials and during the production steps. These factors have a major influence on the taste and storage lifetime of the final product. Consistent product quality is only possible with precise measurements during the process.This Application Note describes the measurement of pH value and the total titratable acidity in flour, dough, and bread using the Eco Titrator from Metrohm.

If consumed in excess, sodium may damage the cardiovascular system. It is therefore in the interest of food manufacturers to reduce the salt content and while preserving the flavor of the food.To ensure consistent quality, it is critical to know the exact salt content in the raw materials and the final products. This is only possible by performing precise measurements during the production process.This Application Note explains the determination of sodium chloride in dough and bread quickly according to AOAC 971.27 with the Eco Titrator equipped with an Ag Titrode.

This Application Note shows the automatic pH adjustment of a mixture of acetonitrile, water and amine using a Metrohm titrator.

Traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) remedies are gaining popularity in other cultures. In some TCM, sulfur dioxide (SO2) is used as a preservative, antioxidant, and disinfectant. The products are treated by sulfurization with SO2 gas. However, sulfur dioxide is a very poisonous gas. Global health authorities have set strict limits for the content of SO2 in products. It is therefore of crucial importance to determine the sulfur dioxide content to comply with these limits. In this well-suited method, the SO2 content in different natural TCM products are analyzed reliably and accurately according to ISO 22590 using the Eco Titrator equipped with an Optrode and sodium hydroxide as titrant.

Electroplating processes are used in several different industry sectors to protect the surface quality of various products against corrosion or abrasion and significantly improve their working life. It is essential to check the bath composition on a regular basis to ensure that the process is operating correctly. Typical examples of electroplating baths include alkaline degreasing baths or acidic or alkaline baths containing metals e.g. copper, nickel, or chromium, or components like chloride and cyanide. It is crucial that the chosen analysis technique fulfills high safety standards for these kinds of analyses and produces reliable results. The OMNIS Sample Robot system automatically pipettes and analyzes aggressive electroplating bath samples on different workstations, increasing the safety in the lab. This provides more reliable results in comparison to manual titration and is more time efficient as different parameters can be analyzed in parallel.

Coagulation and flocculation are an essential part of treating both drinking water and wastewater. Aluminum salts such as aluminum sulfate and polyaluminum chloride (PAC) are often used for this purpose. For the precise application and exact dosage of the flocculant, it is important to accurately determine its aluminum content. In this Application Note, the aluminum content is accurately and reliably analyzed based on ABNT NBR 11176 using the 859 Titrotherm equipped with a Thermoprobe HF and sodium fluoride as titrant.

Many of the key factors that influence coffee taste correlate with chemical properties that can be measured. These include pH, titratable acidity, refractive index, and caffeine. Historically, many of these analyses have included long, manual sample preparation processes using the time-consuming, liquid chromatography (LC) technique. This Application Note looks at a faster, simpler, alternative method for analysis of key quality parameters in coffee using a single titration platform: OMNIS.

Boehm titration is a quantitative analysis of functional groups on the surface of carbon materials based on their reactions with basic solutions of NaHCO3 (pKa = 6.4), Na2CO3 (pKa = 10.3), and NaOH (pKa = 15.7). This is a cost-efficient method that gives absolute values with high precision of the accessible, mainly oxygen-containing functional groups on the surface. Originally, Boehm titration was developed for carbon materials like conductive carbon black (CCB), activated carbon, porous carbon, and graphite. Modern carbon-based materials like graphene, graphene oxide (GO), or carbon nanotubes can also be analyzed this way.

Sodium lactate is a salt form of lactic acid used in many regulated industries—therefore an accurate determination of the lactate content is required and is already covered in several norms. One such monograph by the US Pharmacopoeia (USP) results in high accuracies and well-defined titration curves but uses titrants and solvents that are more costly than necessary. In comparison, the presented modified method from Metrohm requires a 1:1 mixture of water and acetone and uses aqueous hydrochloric acid as titrant, resulting in an estimated cost reduction of 40% per titration compared to the USP method (USP–NF 2021, Issue 2). Furthermore, the time needed for each analysis is reduced to just 12% of the USP method (excluding blank determination). This Application Note presents both methods to determine lactate content and shows the results obtained on an OMNIS system.

This Application Note presents a complementary method that allows a consecutive determination after the sample preparation (digestion) of both metal ions in one beaker with an optical sensor and xylenol orange as an indicator.

About 20% of our sugar comes from sugar beet crops, mostly grown in Europe and the U.S. where the climate is temperate, whereas the other 80% is produced from sugar cane in tropical areas. Lime salts and pH are very important factors which are controlled during the sugar manufacturing process. Complexometric titration is often used to determine the concentration of lime salts in such kinds of samples. This Application Note presents a more robust method for determining calcium compounds in sugar beet juice. Subjectivity of color change determination is eliminated by using an ion selective electrode (ISE).

Mannitol content determination is an important aspect of quality control in the pharmaceutical and food industries. Selective oxidative cleavage can be used to quantify the amount of 1,2-diol groups in the analyte. Determining the 1,2-diol content by iodometric titration can be fully automated for the most accurate results using an automated titrator and the dPt Titrode from Metrohm.

Direct titration is a simple and precise way to accurately measure the caffeine content in different nonaqueous products. The OMNIS Titrator equipped with a dSolvotrode reliably determines caffeine through flexible analyses combined with high-end software.

The iodometric back titration is a precise method used to accurately measure the caffeine content in various aqueous samples. Reliable determinations are made easy using the OMNIS Titrator equipped with a dPt Titrode.

Titration is an accurate and precise method that can be used to determine the pyrophosphate content in aqueous products. The OMNIS Titrator equipped with a dUnitrode delivers reliable determinations.

This Application Note compares the OMNIS Titrator and 888 Titrando for determinations of nitric acid, phosphoric acid, and acetic acid in an aluminum etching bath, as well as the determination of tetramethylammonium hydroxide (TMAH). Identical analysis parameters were used, showing that OMNIS delivers results on par or even better than with other established titration systems.

Hydrochloric acid is a strong, inorganic mineral acid with great significance in the chemical industry. The potentiometric titration of hydrochloric acid with sodium hydroxide is one of the most important and also most frequent analyses performed in the laboratory. In this Application Note, an acid-base titration is presented where the concentration of HCl is determined with NaOH using a pH electrode with an integrated Pt1000 temperature senor for the most accurate results

Phosphoric acid is a triprotic inorganic acid used for many purposes: as a raw material for the production of phosphate fertilizers, detergents, as an electrolyte in phosphoric acid fuel cells, rust removers, and for the passivation of iron and zinc to protect against corrosion. This Application Note presents an acid-base titration where the concentration of phosphoric acid is determined over all three of its dissociable protons by titrating it with sodium hydroxide.

Alkalinity defines the acid-binding capacity of natural water. A distinction is made between total alkalinity (m-value) and carbonate alkalinity (p-value). This Application Note presents the determination of pH and alkalinity in water with a titration method conforming to EPA 310.1, Standard Methods 2320 B (Titration Method), ASTM D1067, EN ISO 9963-1, and EN ISO 9963-2.

The amine value is an important parameter and quality indicator to determine in chemical processes and pharmaceuticals. This Application Note presents the nonaqueous perchloric acid titration of triethanolamine.

The total acid number (TAN) is an important parameter for assessing the acidity of oils and fuels. This Application Note determines TAN using conductometric titration.

In the event of a large number of samples, it makes sense to apply automation to the individual steps of COD determination. This article indicates the extent to which automation can be applied for the determination of chemical oxygen demand with the help of a system especially designed for that purpose.

The rapid growth of the Earth's population has led to massive increases in the consumption of energy and resources and in the production of consumer products and chemicals. It is estimated that 17 million chemical compounds are currently on the market, of which 100,000 are produced on a large industrial scale. Many of these enter the environment. This leads to a demand for sensitive analytical procedures and high-performance analytical instruments.pH value, conductivity and oxygen requirement are important characteristics in water and soil analysis. The first two of these can be determined rapidly; for the third, the titration that is used is also the one used in numerous single determinations. This article describes several important standard-compliant determinations in water and soil analysis.

The present article addresses the theory, practical aspects and troubleshooting of potentiometry.

Many refiners look at discounted opportunity crudes as a means to improve their margin spread. The varieties of these cheap crude oils on the market are growing in number, but they have hidden risks for the purchaser caused by factors such as high naphthenic acid and sulfur content. Sulfur compounds and naphthenic acids are among the substances that contribute to the corrosive nature of crude oils and petroleum products. This is why the risk of corrosion is increased when processing crude oils with high naphthenic acid and sulfur content. The refiner must balance the cost benefit versus the risk and the cost of corrosion control when processing these crudes. A reliable acid number determination is a crucial part of corrosion control. Guest authors Bert Thakkar, Bryce McGarvey, and Colette McGarvey of Imperial Oil and Larry Tucker and Lori Carey of Metrohm USA were involved in the development of the new ASTM Method D8045 for acid number determination. Here, they report on the method and how it came to be.

This White Paper explores the critical role of advanced online and inline process analysis in brine chlorine operations, emphasizing their advantages over traditional methods.

Propylene oxide (PO) is a major industrial product used in assorted industrial applications, mainly for the production of polyols (the building blocks for polyurethane plastics). Several production methods exist, with and without co-products. This white paper lays out opportunities to optimize PO production for safer and more efficient processes, higher quality products, and substantial time savings by using online process analysis instead of laboratory measurements.

Titration is one of the most commonly used analytical methods. Manual, semiautomated, and fully automated titrationsare well-known options and are examined in detail in several academic studies. This white paper summarizes the advantages and benefits of automated titration in comparison to manual titration. The increase in accuracy and precision of measurements as well as significant time and cost savings are discussed.

The acid number (AN) is a measure for the quality of oils and their potential to enhance corrosion. When analyzing fresh, unused oils, the AN is used to ensure the specified quality from the manufacturer, whereas for used oils the AN is determined to observe its increase until a critical level is reached. Although it is generally assumed that the AN correlates to the corrosive potential of the oil, this is not exactly correct, as it is the change of the AN value which indicates this issue. Therefore it is necessary to determine the AN on a regular basis.Several standards already exist to determine AN via titration methods, however it is also possible to measure this parameter via spectroscopic (NIRS) methodology. No matter which technique you choose, Metrohm has you covered with high-performance instruments suitable for these published norms.

The FOS/TAC value is an important characteristic to assess the status of the fermenter before costly problems arise. The new Eco Titrator from Metrohm allows the determination of this quotient in a fast, cost-efficient, and precise way.

Agriculture at significant scale without fertilizers is no longer possible in the modern world. To grow a sufficient amount of produce for nearly 8 billion people as well as for domesticated animals and industrial uses, fertilizers of different nutrient compositions are available to cater to the unique needs of various soil types. Information on the fertilizer’s composition (e.g., total nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium) is available to help select the ideal fertilizer for a specific soil. Conventionally these constituents are determined either gravimetrically (e.g., phosphorus, potassium, or sulfate) or with ICP-OES (e.g., phosphorus or potassium). These methods either have the disadvantages of long analysis times combined with laborious sample preparation (gravimetry), or require expensive instrumentation with high running costs (ICP-OES). This White Paper elaborates how thermometric titration is a fast and inexpensive alternative method to provide information on the content of various nutrients in different fertilizers.

This white paper summarizes the steps involved in converting an existing manual titration procedure to semi-automated or automated titration procedures. It discusses topics such as selecting the right electrode and titration mode. For a better understanding, the discussion topics are illustrated with three examples.

The objective of validation of an analytical procedure is to demonstrate that it is suitable for its intended purpose. Recommendations for the validation of analytical methods can be found in ICH Guidance Q2(R1) Validation of Analytical Procedures: Text and Methodology and in USP General Chapter <1225> Validation of Compendial Procedures. The goal of this white paper is to provide some recommendations for the validation of titration methods.

White paper on monitoring corrosion and the benefits of online or inline chemical analysis over manual sampling and offline laboratory methods for corrosion monitoring. Online and inline process application solutions for corrosion prevention with related application notes for further information are presented.

Lithium-ion batteries (LIBs) are the most common rechargeable options available today. Production of LIBs needs to follow stringent quality standards.

The ASTM D8192 standard allows analysts to determine water hardness in different water matrices by complexometry with automated photometric endpoint recognition, increasing the reproducibility and the precision of the results.

This White Paper gives an overview of the energy-intensive nitrification process that converts ammonia into less harmful nitrogen compounds at wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs). It displays the results from a field test at a WWTP, showcasing the positive influence of single-method process analyzers on the efficiency of the nitrification process.