TOC-Analyser for waste water: Online measurement of organic carbon

Determination of TOC in complex water, especially with particles and high salt concentrations. The injection system of the custom-made process analyser QuickTOCultra of LAR Process Analysers AG imitates the laboratory operations and handles samples with high particles easily.

Total organic carbon analysis (TOC)
The amount of TOC in a water sample reflects the sample's organic load. Therefore, the TOC is one of the most important sum parameters for the evaluation of the quality of water. It is used in many industries and applications. Due to different sample compositions of the various applications, the requirements are different for the measurement technique. Application-specific, custom-made measuring systems provide benefits such as the QuickTOC_ultra.

A TOC-Analyser for waste water: QuickTOC_ultra.
The QuickTOCultra is equipped with an innovative injection system that imitates the laboratory operation. A robot-guided, horizontally and vertically movable needle transports the sample to the furnace. The robust needle is designed for the transport of samples containing particles. Operators can dispense a sample preparation such as filtration and receive an additional representative TOC measurement result. It is representative because particulate carbon is an important part of the TOC analysis and prior filtration removes relevant carbon components from the sample.

"The sampling is essential for accurate online measurement. It is important to ensure that the sample is supplied to the measuring system in a homogeneous and unfiltered state, so that the test results are not distorted," said Jens-Uwe Schröter, Key-Account-Manager, LAR Process Analysers AG

The furnace is the centerpiece of the QuickTOC_ultra. It uses the patented high-temperature combustion method at 1200°C. The high temperature ensures the complete digestion of all carbon compounds in the sample. Oxidation promoting catalysts, such as those used in other measuring methods, are unnecessary. As a consequence, the operating costs of the TOC analyser are minimised. Through the high temperature of 1200°C, the salts present can easily be discharged. They move through the oven in fluid form and are carried out of the oven by the condensate. Salt residues deposit in a special retaining device from which they can be easily removed. So, LAR's QuickTOC_ultra can measure even saline samples with up to 300 g/l NaCl (30%) without any problems.

The QuickTOC_ultra is designed for the measurement of up to six sample streams in one unit. Each sample stream can have different parameters/combinations such as TOC, TC, TIC, TN_b and/ or COD. Thus, various process streams can be easily monitored in a single device. The QuickTOC_ultra is controlled via a touchscreen display. Access to the measuring system is even available via internet protocol for example from a control room.

The process control of the TOC analyser QuickTOC_ultra is geared to measure salty, fatty and even samples with high load of particles. The custom-made analyser takes care of the specific problems of complex water applications, minimising maintenance and making the optimisation and control of complex processes possible.