Our facilities include extensive equipment for the characterization and test of any type of material, specifically:
- Phase and microstructure characterization
- Thermal characterization
- Mechanical characterization
- Rheology
- Physical characterization
- Electrical characterization
- Electrochemical and corrosion characterization
- We have also access to…
Phase and microstructure characterization
X-Ray Diffraction
| Instrument: | Philips X’Pert 1710 |
| Conditions: | Cu-Kα radiation λ = 1.5405 Å |
Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy
| Instrument: | Agilent Cary 630 FTIR Instrument ZnSe |
| Conditions: | Attenuated Total Reflectance (ATR) module, diamond crystal 4000 – 650 cm-1 |
Optical microscopes
| Metallographic: | Nikon metallographic microscope Epiphot TME Objectives: 10, 20, 40, 100X VisiCam 10.0 digital image acquisition camera |
| Stereoscopic: | Nikon Stereomicroscope SMZ-U Objective: up to 20X VisiCam 10.0 digital image acquisition camera |
Scanning Electron Microscopy-EDS
| SEM | Zeiss Leo Supra 35 FEG-SEM |
| EDS | Oxford instruments EDS INCA X-sight |
Metallographic sample preparation
| Linear precision saw: | Buehler Isomet 4000 |
| Polishing machine: | Officine Galileo Polimet 200 |
Thermal Characterization
Differential Scanning Calorimetry (DSC)
| Instrument: | Netzsch DSC 214 Polyma |
| Conditions: | From -70 to 600°C, nitrogen or air atmosphere |
Thermogravimetric Analysis (TGA)
| Instrument: | Perkin Elmer Pyris 1 |
| Conditions: | From room temp. to 900°C, nitrogen or air atmosphere, 0.1 to 200°C/min |
Hot Disk measurement
Measurement of thermal transfer properties (thermal conductivity, thermal diffusivity, specific heat) via Transient Plane Source (TPS) technique (ISO 22007-2).
| Instrument: | Hot Disk TPS 500 S |
| Conditions: | Room temperature, on materials with conductivity in the range 0.03 – 200 W/mK. |
Mechanical Characterization
Instron Universal Testing Machine
Measurement of mechanical properties in different stress configurations of metals, ceramics and polymers.
| Instrument: | Instron 5869 |
| Conditions: | 50 kN load cell, extensometer. Tensile, compression, 3-point bending, shear. |
Lloyd Universal Testing Machine
Measurement of mechanical properties of polymeric samples and films in different stress configurations.
| Instrument: | Lloyd LRX single column |
| Conditions: | 50, 100, 500 and 2500 N load cells. Tensile, Compression. |
AML Universal Testing Machine
Measurement of mechanical properties of polymeric samples and films in different stress configurations.
| Instrument: | AML Instruments Z3 tensile tester |
| Conditions: | 1kN load cell. Tensile, Compression |
Impact testing
Measurement of the impact energy of plastics, composites and metals up to 50 J.
| Instrument: | United Test XJJUD-50F |
| Test conditions: | Charpy: 1, 2, 4, 5, 7.5, 15, 25, 50 J Izod:: 1, 2.72, 5.5, 11, 22 J |
Dynamic Mechanical Thermal Analysis (DMA)
Measurement of dynamic mechanical thermal properties of polymeric samples.
| Instrument: | Triton Tritec 2000 DMA |
| Test types: | Temperature scan (single or multifrequency), frequency scan, creep test, relaxation test, thermal expansion coefficient measurement |
| Conditions: | Air furnace, from -190 to +600°C. Frequency 0 – 300 Hz. Tension, compression, single cantilever, double cantilever, 3-point bending, shear. |
Microhardness test
| Instrument: | Future Tech FM-700 |
| Conditions: | Vickers and Knoop indenter, load range 5 – 2000 g |
Microscale abrasion test
Ball crater test: measurement of coating thickness and wear rate of bulk and coated samples.
| Instrument: | Custom, according to BS EN 1071-6: 2007 |
| Conditions: | 50-2000 rpm, steel balls, alumina balls |
Moving sled with stationary plane tribometer
Static and Kinetic Coefficients of Friction of Plastic Film and Sheeting.
| Instrument: | ASTM D1894-14 tribometer fixture compatible with Lloyd LRX universal machine |
| Conditions: | Sliding speed range 1 – 500 mm/min, normal force 25N, substrates with different Ra |
Rheology
Viscosimeter
Viscosity measurement of liquids.
| Instrument: | Brookfield MODELLO |
| Conditions: |
Rheometer
| Instrument: | Malvern Kinexus Lab+ |
| Conditions: | Torque 10 nNm – 200 mNm Frequency 1 µHz – 100 Hz Geometry: cone-plate, plate-plate |
Rubber Process Analyzer (RPA)
Oscillating rheometer (cone-cone) for the characterization of curing behaviour and rheology of elastomers and rubbers.
| Instrument: | Alpha Technologies RPA 2000 |
| Test types: | Curing test, temperature sweep, frequency sweep, strain sweep. |
| Conditions: | Max. temp. 230°C Max. frequency 33 Hz |
Melt Flow Index (MFI)
Measurement of the ease of flow of a thermoplastic polymer melt under a constant weight of 2.16 kg through a standardized nozzle (ASTM D1238)
| Instrument: | Tinius Olsen MP 1200 |
| Conditions: | Max. temp. 450°C Weight 2.16 kg |
Physical Characterization
Density determination kit
Measurement of sample density via buoyancy method.
| Instrument: | Sartorius YDK 03 |
Conductometer
Measurement of conductivity of liquids and solutions.
| Instrument: | MeterLab CDM 230 |
Electrical measurement
Digital Multimeter Keithley
| Instrument: | Keithley 2700 |
| Conditions: |
Van der Pauw
Measurement of electrical sheet resistance (Rs)
| Instrument: | Custom, according to ASTM F76-08 |
| Conditions: |
Vector Network Analyzer
Measurement of magnitude and phase of reflection and transmission for passive devices (e.g. antennas, waveguides, passive filters).
| Instrument: | Anritsu 37247d |
| Frequency range: | 40 MHz to 20 GHz |
Electrochemical and corrosion analysis
Anodic-cathodic polarization
| Instrument: | Solartron Potentiostat 1285 |
| Conditions: |
Electrochemical Impedance Spectroscopy (EIS)
| Instrument: | |
| Conditions: |
We have also access to:
- Scratch test facility, to characterize coatings and surfaces (according to ASTM C1624-05 and UNI EN 1071-05)
- FT-IR (Fourier Transform InfraRed Spectroscopy), Perkin Elmer