Effective Analysis of Polymers Using IR, Raman Spectroscopy, and MALDI-TOF Mass Spectrometry

Thousands of polymeric compounds and materials have been developed over the years to optimize the properties and performance of products spanning nearly every industry. There are a few areas where characterizing these products can be important: first is performing a quick polymer identification for recycling purposes; second is quality control to identify product defects or failures; and third is reverse engineering to facilitate product development in a highly competitive marketplace.

Infrared (IR) and Raman spectroscopy are especially useful for the analysis of polymers in an industrial setting because in most cases it does not require sample preparation or expensive consumables. Examples will be presented demonstrating the effectiveness of IR and Raman analysis in each of these categories.

Mass Spectrometry (MS) has become an indispensable tool for polymer analysis and has been widely used to study polymer structure and composition, end groups and additives, molecular weight distribution, and so on. MS analysis is extremely sensitive, allowing the detection and identification of minor polymer components and synthesis by-products, as well as low-level impurities and products of decomposition. Matrix Assisted Laser Desorption Ionization (MALDI) allows performing rapid MS analysis without lengthy pre-separation and with minimal sample preparation. MALDI MS can provide structural and copolymer composition information, as well as be used for imaging of polymer surfaces, characterization of complex polymer mixtures, and many other analytical tasks.

In this webinar, we will discuss several MS analytical techniques and their applications for polymer analysis using real-life examples from the industry and academia.

Presenter: Sergey V. Shilov, Ph.D. (R&D Product Manager for North America, Bruker Optics)

Dr. Sergey V. Shilov is the R&D Product Manager for North America at Bruker Optics. Sergey joined Bruker in 2001. He is responsible for the support and development of new applications for the Bruker research FTIR systems. He received his Ph.D in 1992 from the Russian Academy of Sciences in Polymer Physics and his M.S. from St. Petersburg State University (Russia) in Physics in 1986. Alexander Von Humboldt foundation (Germany) awarded him research fellowship in 1996. Sergey published 37 papers in peer-reviewed journals. His research interests include time-resolved FTIR spectroscopy, surface science, polymer and life-science applications.

Presenter: Kushal Modi (Business Development Manager, Polymers, and Industrial Chemicals, Bruker Applied Mass Spectrometry)

Kushal Modi has been serving the scientific community for over 10 years. He joined Bruker in 2022 under the Applied Mass Spectrometry division after a legacy with Waters Corporation. He is a leading expert as a Business Development Manager and is currently supporting the polymers and industrial chemical markets nationally.

Presenter: Dr. Rebecca Pool (Editor Microscopy and Analysis, Wiley, Moderator)

Rebecca is news editor of Microscopy&Analysis and a freelance science journalist with a doctorate in Materials Science. She has published in Wiley Analytical Science, Nature Photonics, SPIE Photonics Focus, Physics World, Sci Fi Generation, Engineering and Technology magazine, WorldSteel and more.