Acoustic Characterization Facility

Facility Description

This facility develops novel noninvasive fluid characterization techniques for detecting and identifying chemicals inside sealed containers. The techniques and instrumentation developed for this activity have numerous applications in industrial process control and monitoring, environmental management, biomedical sensors, and customs (drug interdiction). Our Ultrasonic Interferometric Spectroscopy systems are multipurpose measurement systems that can noninvasively determine fluid physical properties (e.g., sound speed, sound attenuation, density, molecular relaxation time, viscosity, volume fraction in mixtures, and particle size distribution in emulsions) of liquids, mixtures, and gases inside sealed containers of any material and size. The measurements can be made in a frequency range between 100 kHz to 80 MHz and in a temperature range of –30°C to 100°C. The instruments are also capable of characterizing liquid samples smaller than a single drop.

Equipment

• Computer-controlled ultrasonic characterization systems
• Custom-designed ultrasonic interferometry-based characterization systems
• Automated data-acquisition and data-analysis systems

Facility Access

Open

Last Update: 22 May 2003

Technical Contact
Dr. Dipen Sinha
MST-11
Mail Stop: D429
Phone: 505-667-0062
Fax: 505-665-4292
E-mail Address: sinha@lanl.gov