Articles
Why The Need For Preventive Maintenance And Recalibration Of Spectroscopic Analytical Instruments?
November 21, 2007
•White Paper: Why The Need For Preventive Maintenance And Recalibration Of Spectroscopic Analytical Instruments?
By Dr. Jorge J. Macho, Ocean Optics, Inc.
Spectroscopic analytical instruments are complex optoelectronic devices that require careful mechanical, electronic and optical design to assure their long-term service reliability and performance.
All of these instruments are constantly experiencing changes in temperature and pressure; undergoing mechanical stress and optical decay, resulting in the gradual degradation of the designed critical performance parameters.
Miniature spectrometers are sturdier than their bench-top or larger counterparts thanks to their overall dimensions and lack of moving or adjustable parts. These smaller spectrometers also experience the aforementioned thermal cycles and mechanical stress. What's more, they have a higher probability of internal damage or at least performance changes caused by extreme mechanical shock due to their portability and flexibility of use.
Preventive maintenance resolves all possible major performance changes. In addition, it also offers cleaning, as well as electronic and firmware updates required for the optimum performance of the instrument.
Calibration is required to detect and control the gradual degradation mentioned above. This relentless change in performance is defined as "drift". If drift is not managed through periodic and systematic calibration, the measurements and test results obtained by the device become unreliable and degrade the quality of the research or products.
Calibration is nothing more than the comparison of the instrument or tool performance to a known standard of accuracy. The known value should be of a similar nature and of better quality than the instrument to be calibrated.
It is a well-known fact that measuring and recording devices must be maintained and calibrated on a regular basis to ensure reliable and accurate results. This requirement is not only emphasized by regulations and norms such as ISO, ASTM, ANSI, but is also necessary for Good Manufacturing Practices and basic ethical research results needed for peer-reviewed scientific publications.
In summary, proper preventive maintenance and calibration practices ensure that the measurements and results obtained by one instrument will be comparable (if not the same) as those obtained by any other person or entity using similar equipment that has been maintained and calibrated with the same parameters and reference.
The following famous quote by Albert Einstein better summarizes the importance of preventive maintenance and calibration:
- Albert Einstein
•White Paper: Why The Need For Preventive Maintenance And Recalibration Of Spectroscopic Analytical Instruments?
