Application of ion attachment mass spectrometry to evolved gas analysis for in situ monitoring of porous ceramic processing.

Ion attachment mass spectrometry was applied to evolved gas analysis-mass spectrometry (EGA-MS), generally known as thermogravimetry-mass spectrometry. Characteristic species arising from poly(vinyl alcohol) (PVA) and poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA) resin, used as a binder and a porogen, respectively, in the starting materials for porous ceramics, were detected in the mass spectra. The EGA curves of the characteristic mass peaks from PVA and PMMA, when plotted against the programmed temperature, successfully showed the individual pyrolysis behavior of each polymer during the firing process.

Evolved gas analysis with skimmer interface and ion attachment mass spectrometry for burnout monitoring of organic additives in ceramic processing.

A monitoring of the individual pyrolysis of mixed polymer as a binder for ceramic processing was carried out as an application of evolved gas analysis-mass spectrometry (EGA-MS) with a skimmer interface and ion attachment mass spectrometry (IAMS). It could detect characteristic species evolved by the pyrolysis of the organic additives, according to the instrumental advantages as the transmission of the gaseous species with no transformation by the skimmer interface and complete soft ionization for gaseous species by IAMS technique. Further, the pyrolysis behavior of blended polymers as a binder could be monitored individually as EGA curves of characteristic species evolved by the pyrolyses.