A wide variety of instruments for measurement and testing of changes in environmental conditions, including water quality, solar power, soil testing, geothermal, air, energy and waste.
These instruments are applicable in industries and facilities where measurements and tests that involve environmental factors like air, water, soil and energy need to be tested, measured and monitored. Public water and sanitation, municipal treatment of water supply, standards agencies, irrigation plants, manufacturing industries and other bodies will want the use of these products.
Air quality monitoring is a continuous measurement of specific air pollutants. Air pollution monitoring data is essential for air pollution assessment, countermeasures and environment pollution policies by local and national authorities, private and public companies and national organizations.
Water is universally used for a tremendous number of applications. Ensuring the quality remains maintained throughout the cycle of use is highly important. There is a range of products available for every application water supply needs to be analyzed, monitored or controlled from agricultural fields to ultrapure water supply system used in research laboratories.
A soil test is important for several reasons: to optimize crop production, to protect the environment from contamination by runoff and leaching of excess fertilizers, to aid in the diagnosis of plant culture problems, to improve the nutritional balance of the growing media and to save money and conserve energy by applying only the amount of fertilizer needed.
Determining the pH and fertility level through a soil test is the first step in planning a sound nutrient management program. Soil samples from soilless mixes are tested differently than samples from field soil. There are three commonly used methods of testing soilless media using water as an extracting solution: 1:2 dilution method, saturated media extract (SME), and leachate Pour Thru.
In this test a paste is made using soil and water and then the liquid portion (the extract) is separated from the solid portion for pH, soluble salt, and nutrient analysis. Special skills and laboratory equipment are required to perform this test.
This method has been used for many years and has good interpretative data to back it up. In this test an air-dried sample of soil and water are mixed together in the volume ratio of 1-part soil to 2-parts water (e.g., using a measuring cup, 1 fl. oz. of soil + 2 fl. oz. of water). The liquid extract is then separated from the solids using laboratory grade filter paper or a common coffee filter. The extract is then ready for analysis. This is a very easy test to master and quite suitable for on-site greenhouse testing of pH and soluble salt using meters available from greenhouse suppliers.
Unlike SME and 1:2 methods, plants do not have to be sacrificed or disturbed for testing because the extract is the leachate collected from the container during routine irrigation. The leachate can be analyzed on-site using the pH and EC pens or it can be sent to a commercial laboratory for a complete nutrient analysis. Leachate pour thru is best used for continuous monitoring and graphical tracking of pH and soluble salts. To make this method work best an irrigation and leachate protocol must be established and carefully followed when sampling takes place.
XRF is a fast, nondestructive technology for elemental analysis of heavy metals and other trace elements in soil. Bruker’s Elemental Analyzer portfolio includes high-throughput lab-based ED-XRF and WD-XRF, point-and-shoot handheld XRF, micro-XRF, and total reflection XRF (TXRF)spectrometers.