For metal producers, processors, recyclers, contractors and others, continuous quality control plays a key role in establishing the identity and composition of various metals and alloys from initial melt to finished product or end use.

X-Ray Fluorescence analysis plays an important role in protecting consumers by detecting possible toxic heavy metals in electronics, automobiles and medical devices before they make it to market.

X-ray fluorescence is an elemental analysis tool that has been a mainstay of test labs for decades. A versatile NDT method that demands only minimal sample prep and can be run by novice operators, it is perhaps most valued for delivering accurate results quickly. Today, evolving XRF capabilities are moving this quality assurance workhorse into critical new roles in a widening spectrum of industries.

Timothy He was previously principal scientist with Tribogenics Inc.

Hitachi High-Tech Analytical Science has launched LAB-X5000, the fastest, easiest to use and most versatile model in the 45-year history of the LAB-X.  LAB-X5000 is a compact benchtop EDXRF (energy dispersive X-ray fluorescence) analyser with a streamlined user interface and the shortest measurement start sequence on the market, designed to deliver high sample throughput with quality results achieved by any operator.

Before selecting an X-ray fluorescence (XRF) analyzer, consider what you want to achieve. For example, if you are looking to confirm alloy grades for incoming goods QC, you will want to know what the important element in those grades should be.

The first choice for use in an increasing range of applications, such as medicine, mineralogy, agriculture, manufacturing, construction, geology, and archeology, X-ray fluorescence (XRF) spectrometry and analysis has undergone significant advancement over the past century. 

This x-ray fluorescence (XRF) instrument expands the MicroConnex metrology capability set to include best-in-class thickness and composition measurements of very thin metal coatings, conductive traces, and small components and structures.

It’s an exciting time to work in nondestructive testing (NDT) for aerospace, particularly now that significant strides in NDT techniques have transformed how the industry approaches aircraft maintainability and safety.

The history of X-rays goes back to 1895, when Wilhelm Conrad Roentgen discovered and identified X-rays. Then, in 1909, Charles Glover Barkla discovered a connection between X-rays radiating from a sample and the atomic weight of the sample.