Infometrix will be attending the 2018 Gulf Coast Conference in January. See abstracts below for the 2018 presentations at the GCC conference by Infometrix. Join us or contact us for more information.

Abstract # 145 – Paper 1/18/2018 – 11:25 AM – 11:50 AM – Exhibit Hall Classroom (End of 200 Aisle)

A New Approach to Process Spectroscopy
Brian Rohrback
Infometrix, Inc.

Spectroscopy is great for monitoring and controlling process conditions in chemical plants and refineries. After all, the only way you can measure chemistry in a process is to utilize either spectroscopy or chromatography. Other than sampling system issues, the next most time-consuming activity for FTIR, FTNIR, or Raman is to construct and maintain the calibration of those instruments. After studying what we needed to do to build and manage optical calibrations in 20 different settings over the last 5 years, we have hit on a procedure that is independent of both hardware and software and constitutes the best practices for calibration. This leads to a significant reduction of cost, approaching 80%, for both installing and maintaining a process spectrometer.

Abstract # 255 – Paper 1/17/2018 – 1:20 PM – 1:40 PM – Room 381 A

Identifying Authentic and Fraudulent Diesel Fuel by Fast GC Using Chemometrics
Brian Rohrback
Infometrix, Inc.
Joe Perron
Falcon Analytical

Fraudulent use of off-road fuel can take many forms and is becoming a global problem. One way of avoiding road use tax is laundering markers from off-road diesel as just reported. A more subtle one is adulteration of fuel and labeling it as something that is not fuel. For example, biodiesel levels can be used as a diluent or base oils added or even high boiling fatty acids have been detected. Before delivery to retail outlets, product certificates are switched to label the material as diesel. The economic impact is not only tax loss but over time these materials can have a very negative impact on the consumers’ engines. This paper will show how ultrafast GC coupled with chemometric techniques are an effective roadside detection and deterrent system for this criminal activity. The GC, the software and the database functions will be discussed as an economically and technically viable fast roadside solution to end this kind of fraud.

Abstract # 260 – Paper 1/17/2018 – 11:40 AM – 12:00 PM – Room 381 A

True Plug-and-Play Chromatography
Brian Rohrback
Scott Ramos
Infometrix, Inc

In applications like simulated distillation, multiple instruments can run the same method but slight differences in column and flow conditions make chromatograms not match the time axis from instrument to instrument. Normally, this would require separate calibrations or even slightly separate methods for each instrument. With chemometric alignment, these minor variations can be compensated for and identical methods be used, potentially even skipping the calibration step. The idea is very powerful: that a small amount of software can be added to a chromatograph and have that addition open a true Plug-and-Play capability for the instrument/application. Ostensibly, a company could keep a cold spare chromatograph in inventory. When a process or lab unit goes down for any reason, the storage unit would be placed on-line and have its data be completely comparable to all previous runs on its very first injection without ever running a calibration step. Alignment can also apply this procedure to the historical chromatographic data assembly, giving a consistent database ready to be mined. Of course, this conclusion holds for situations where the column and the method conditions are very similar. But if this is the case, it may be possible to think of a chromatograph with the same supply and repair mindset more often reserved for temperature and flow sensors.