Differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) thermal analysis provides test data for a wide range of materials. Materials analyzed by DSC include polymers, plastics, composites, laminates, adhesives, food, coatings, pharmaceuticals, organic materials, rubber, petroleum, chemicals, biological samples and more.
Differential scanning calorimetry measures Specific Heat Capacity, Heat of Transition, and the Temperature of Phase Changes and Melting Points. DSC measures the rate of heat flow, and compares differences between the heat flow rate of the test sample and known reference materials. The difference determines variations in material composition, crystallinity and oxidation.
DSC thermal analysis capabilities:
- Thermal Phase Change
- Thermal Glass Transition Temperature (Tg)
- Crystalline Melt Temperature
- Endothermic Effects
- Exothermic Effects
- Thermal Stability
Case Analytical Laboratories has DSC instrumentation equipped to operate over a temperature range of -60C to 500C.
DSC analysis determines:
- Tg Glass Transition Temperature Temperature (°C) at which amorphous polymers or an amorphous part of a crystalline polymer go from a hard brittle state to a soft rubbery state
- Tm Melting point Temperature (°C) at which a crystalline polymer melts
- Δ Hm Energy Absorbed (joules/gram) Amount of energy a sample absorbs when melting
- Tc Crystallization Point Temperature at which a polymer crystallizes upon heating or cooling
Differential scanning calorimetry or DSC is a thermoanalytical technique in which the difference in the amount of heat required to increase the temperature of a sample and reference is measured as a function of temperature.