A hydraulic press is a machine typically used in industrial and manufacturing applications and uses fluid pressure to generate force with a naturally lower force capacity. They’re used to test the durability and strength of materials and create pellets for sample analysis. Here are the various application of laboratory hydraulic presses you should know about.
Commonly, hydraulic presses create potassium bromide pellets, and general sample pellets for Frontier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) and X-ray fluorescence (XRF), respectively. It’s usually added to potassium bromide in a 1:100 ratio before mixing when studying the molecular structure of a powder sample. Later, the mixture gets compressed using this press in its pellet die chamber. The resulting compressed solid pellet – primarily transparent to infrared light – contains a dilute sample quantity within FTIR’s detection range.
XRF spectroscopy utilizes a similar approach as FTIR but uses X-ray to bombard the sample before measuring the sample radiation.
Laboratory hydraulic presses are also used in power compaction, creating a wide range of composite materials. The process is similar to sample preparation for spectroscopy, although the resulting composite material is lightweight but sturdy and used in studying ferromagnetics and metal matrix composites.
Laboratory hydraulic presses also create test substances for analyzing material performance during manufacturing processes. Hydraulic presses assess blocking resistance by testing print material’s capability to adhere to itself when subjected to pressure.
Hydraulic presses also prototype microfluidic devices, which have become increasingly sought-after for handling tiny liquid amounts. The press, in this case, creates exact prototypes to ensure that the final devices function correctly.
Dissolution testing is used to control the efficacy of pharmaceutical products. A drug is usually placed in a dissolution vessel before being subjected to a mechanical press. The stress causes the medicine to break into tinier pieces and is analyzed for potency and other attributes.
Finding the Right Hydraulic Press for Your Laboratory Application
These apparatuses are available in various sizes and configurations, making getting your pick incredibly challenging. However, you can choose from multiple Specac hydraulic presses to suit your applications.