J. G. SAAD (1); (1) Micromeritics Instrument Corp., Norcross, GA, U.S.A.
Poster
Diatomaceous earth is commonly used in many manufacturing and production
processes as a filtering agent. The quality of the diatomaceous earth
greatly affects the effectiveness of the filter. One of the primary
characteristics for determining diatomaceous earth quality is particle
size. Traditional methods, like using sieves, can be tedious and may not
offer enough information to completely characterize the material.
Automated sizing techniques, such as sedimentation analysis or static
light scattering, are limited in scope since diatomaceous earth is not a
uniform material, but a composite of shapes, sizes, densities, and
colors. To completely characterize the particle size of diatomaceous
earth, dynamic image analysis and dynamic light scattering (DLS)
analysis are used to compliment to each other to accomplish this goal.
Dynamic image analysis uses shape factors to collect size data in the
micron range, while DLS is used to determine the size of nanoparticles
that remain suspended in the medium. Testing is performed on two types
of diatomaceous earth commonly used in the beer brewing industry.
Jack G. Saad earned his ACS certified B.S. degree in chemistry from
the University of Georgia. As an undergraduate student, he worked with a
variety of tungsten compounds to induce photo-initiated polymerization
of cyanoacrylate using specific wavelengths of visible light, an
application used in the adhesives industry. He began his career at
Micromeritics Instrument Corp. as a particle size analyst for their
contract laboratory service, where he developed protocols to obtain
particle size distributions using light scattering, x-ray sedimentation,
and electro-zone sensing techniques. Beginning in 2004, he worked in
the pharmaceutical industry at Kiel Laboratories and at Élan
Pharmaceuticals as a laboratory analyst for seven years in raw materials
testing, manufacturing support, research and development, and quality
control. He rejoined Micromeritics in 2011 as an associate scientist. In
this position, he is responsible for application support for particle
size instrumentation and conducting research on potential applications
for instruments and techniques, as well as maintaining an accredited
training program.
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