Does your industry utilize water in the manufacturing process? Have you ever thought about measurement of discharged organics in your water samples?
You ask, “How?” and more importantly, “Why?”
First let’s discuss the “Why?” Let’s think about this. Water, we drink it and it’s used in pharmaceuticals, semiconductor manufacturing, food industry, agriculture, to heat, to cool, to rinse, and where does all this water end up; in runoffs and waste streams. As we become “green” and recycle this water, detecting the organics could improve industrial processes, protect the environment and in turn, protect public health.
And now let’s talk about the “How?”
Cerium Labs, can provide Total Organic Carbon (TOC) content as a sum of all carbon atoms covalently bonded in organic molecules of a given water sample. A typical TOC analysis measures both Total Carbon (TC) and Total Inorganic Carbon (TIC). The difference between the two yields Total Organic Carbon (TOC). TOC is typically measured in parts per million (ppm) levels.
By using TOC measurements, the number of carbon-containing compounds in a water source can be determined. Most ultra-pure processing facilities monitor pre and post treatment plants, as a means of detecting organic discharge. Measurement of Total Organic Carbon is extensively employed throughout the water and wastewater industry because it provides a speedy and convenient way of determining the degree of organic contamination.
There is a drawback; TOC does not identify specific organic contaminants. It does, however, detect any carbon-bearing molecules, regardless of molecular make-up. Interested in the specificity of molecules that make-up your water sample? Cerium Labs provides what is known as GC-MS (Gas Chromatography Mass Spectrometry). I’ll discuss this in my next blog, please join me.