Dublin Analytical Education
Everything You Need To Know About Oxygen Bomb Caloriemters
In Summary
Do you need to know the total energy content of something? It may be a waste stream you’re responsible for, like recycling, solvents, or even municipal land fill.
Or how about if you are manufacturing Refuse Derived Fuel (RDF) and Solid Recovered Fuel (SRF) – both alternative energy sources created from non-recyclable commercial and domestic waste.
You’ll need to know how much energy is contained is this new fuel. But how? You need a Parr Oxygen bomb calorimeter to determine the calorific value (CV) of this material. Results are typically given in MJ/Kg.
That’s how much energy there is in Mega Joules, per Kg of material. Here’s how they work.
What do bomb calorimeters do and how do they work?
Oxygen bomb calorimeters determine the calorific value of materials by measuring the heat of combustion.
Heats of combustion are determined by a measured substitution procedure in which the heat obtained from the unknown sample is compared with the heat obtained from combustion of a similar amount of benzoic acid or other standardizing material whose calorific value is known.
A calorimeter has two modes of operation.
‘Standardisation’ is the term used for obtaining results with a benzoic acid “standard” for calibrating the instrument.
‘Determination’ is the term used for obtaining calorific values of unknown samples
Do you work with chlorinated materials?
Yes, but let us know if this is what materials you are working with.
Certain materials contain chlorine and other halogenated compounds. Under combustion conditions halogens can react with the standard stainless steel bomb and cause serious corrosion. This will be of particular concern if you work in the waste or recycling industry as plastics, solvents and other common waste materials may contain chlorine and other halogens.
The way to avoid this is to change the material of construction from standard stainless steel bomb to a chlorine / halogen resistant alloy, Hastalloy C276. This can be offered on all Parr calorimeters. A small upgrade, but an important one!
Do Parr Calorimeters also measure the amount of chlorine in samples then?
Kind of, but not directly. Caloriemters offer only one direct piece of information, the Gross Calorific Value (CV), i.e. the energy content. You can, with additional information calculate the Net heat of Combustion (lower heating value) and also you can take the bomb washings left at the end of a combustion and titrate those to give you the chlorine content.
Is Parr the only Calorimeter Manufacturer out there?
No, but they are the original Calorimeter manufacturer and, in our opinion, the best! Many of the current standards such as BS and ASTM in use have been written specifically with Parr Instruments. This is always helpful to know as you will be conforming with your industry standards requirements. Parr are quite simply the Gold Standard of calorimeters.
What about UKAS? Do Parr calorimeters meet their requirements?
Are these instruments easy to operate?
Yes, absolutely. Everyone can be trained, and we offer some useful SOPs (standard operation procedures – see below) for each calorimeter in our range to make sure everyone that uses the calorimeter is doing so safely and in the same manner to obtain consistent results. We also offer extensive onsite training.
You can download our SOPs for Parr Calorimeters here
Parr 1341
Parr 6100
Parr 6200
Parr 6400
We have a high number of samples to test. How many samples can Parr calorimeters handle in a day?
The 1341 teaching instrument can run a couple of samples an hour.
The 6050, 6100 and 6200 can comfortably run 4 and hour, or 5 in the hands of a skilled operator.
The 6400 is designed to be a high through put instrument and can test 6 samples per hour.
So, beyond the throughput and the chlorine content we’ve already talked about, how do I know which calorimeter is the right one for me?
We suggest downloading our guide on how to select the right calorimeter for you. You have a few things to consider in addition to these two questions, like:
- How energetic is your material?
- What astm, bs, iso or other standard are you working to?
- Are you working with corrosive materials?
- Do you have solids like metals in your samples that might not fully combust?
- Are you doing teaching, research, commercial work or a mixture?
- What is the nature of sample in terms of density, water content and is it a solid, a powder, a liquid or something else?
The best thing to do is to get in touch with us and we can talk you through all of these things and make sure you have all the information to make the correct choice. We can also offer a demonstration with some of your sample materials.
What services do I need in my workplace to be able to use and run a calorimeter?
You need a source of water, this can often be simply a sink, a standard 230V socket and a bottle of oxygen, industrial grade is fine with a regular UK fitting.
Dublin Analytical provide everything else including a number of consumables and accessories, such as the combustion crucibles, extra fuse wire, a bottle of benzoic acid tablets, a service kit with replacement o-rings and seals, and support stand, and even the piping and O2 regulator.
What to Do Next?
Whether you’re determining calorific values for research, teaching, or commercial analysis, choosing the right calorimeter is essential. Dublin Analytical’s experts can help you select the most suitable Parr system based on your sample type, testing standards, and throughput requirements.
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