Inline high frequency ultrasonic particle sizer

Fabrice Lefebvre (1) , J. Petit (2, 3) , Georges Nassar (1) , P. Debreyne (3) , Guillaume Delaplace (3) , Bertrand Nongaillard (1)

1 IEMN - Institut d’Électronique, de Microélectronique et de Nanotechnologie - UMR 8520
2 LIBio - Laboratoire d'Ingénierie des Biomolécules
3 PIHM - Processus aux Interfaces et Hygiène des Matériaux

This paper reports the development of a new method of particle sizing in a liquid. This method uses high frequency focused ultrasounds to detect particles crossing the focal zone of an ultrasonic sensor and to determine their size distribution by processing the reflected echoes. The major advantage of this technique compared to optical sizing methods is its ability to measure the size of particles suspended in an opaque liquid without any dedicated sample preparation. Validations of ultrasonic measurements were achieved on suspensions of polymethyl methacrylate beads in a size range extending from a few micrometer to several hundred micrometer with a temporal resolution of 1 s. The inline detection of aggregate formation was also demonstrated. (C) 2013 AIP Publishing LLC.

Mots clés: Sample handling Optical imaging; Electrostatics; Friction; Polymers; Calibration methods; Laser diffraction; Acoustic sensors; Ultrasonics

Domaines: Instrumentations et Détecteurs [physics.ins-det]; Acoustique [physics.class-ph]

Fabrice Lefebvre, J. Petit, Georges Nassar, P. Debreyne, Guillaume Delaplace, et al.. Inline high frequency ultrasonic particle sizer. Review of Scientific Instruments, 2013, 84 (7), pp.075101. ⟨10.1063/1.4811847⟩. ⟨hal-00877657⟩