XRF scanners: why are they so useful again?
drew on Jun 26th, 2009Earlier I touched upon exactly what XRF is and talked about how it works. Since it’s turned out to be one of our most popular blog posts, I figured we could spend more time on the topic.
Last time, we talked about how every element in the universe sends back different energy X-rays when scanned by a spectrometer. To explain it even more simply – it’s like every element has its own fingerprint. Just as we are able to identify people by looking at their unique prints and determining who they belong to, we can essentially do the same thing to elements (though some are harder to determine than others). So we use XRF analyzers to collect the “prints” from all the elements making up specific electronic components, pipes, children’s toys, circuit boards, or whatever else we’re investigating. Then, we compare the intensity of these “prints” (or X-rays) with what we already know about each element so we can easily detect how much of each is in the substance or product we’re evaluating.
When you think of it that way, it’s easy to envision how useful this is for manufacturers and distributors who need to keep tabs on what’s in the products and components they sell.
