Gel Permeation Chromatography (GPC) for process control and quality control in polyethylene and polypropylene manufacturing plants

GPC-QC by Polymer Char is a compact high-temperature GPC/SEC instrument for quality control and process control in polyolefin manufacturing lines that provides robust and precise Molar Mass Distribution. It delivers the complete Molar Mass Distribution for one sample at-a-time through a simplified workflow, while completely automating the entire process. Both sample preparation and analysis are free of manual solvent handling and completed in 30 minutes, including the dissolution time. The detection used in the instrument can be either Polymer Char’s IR4 or IR5 MCT integrated detectors. These are highly reliable detectors that also deliver chemical composition information, which is key for controlling the production of heterogeneous resins. This is particularly relevant in the case of copolymers, which account for a large proportion of polyolefins produced, such as LLDPE, some HDPE, and the important group of EP copolymers as well.

The information generated by the IR detector can be translated to either co-monomer weight fraction or to density units for a given product range. Moreover, for a truly complete analysis, the instrument can measure intrinsic viscosity by means of a built-in dual capillary viscometer that can be optionally incorporated.