COMMISSION ON THERMODYNAMICS
(I.2)
Number: 120/18/97
Title: Standards, Calibration
and Guidelines in Microcalorimetry
Coordinator(s): I.Wadsö
and G. Della Gatta
Remarks: ICTAC, AGTAC
Completion Date: 2001
- project completed
Objective:
Microcalorimeters are now employed in a wide variety of fields in
medicine, food and biological studies, in addition to those where
there are more traditional areas. The instruments are now manufactured
commercially by a number of organisations worldwide and used by individuals
and organisations with absolutely no expertise in the field. Since
all microcalorimeters require calibration there is evidently an immediate
need for some common standards and they do not exist at present. For
the most part calibration have been carried out electrically, but
the future will undoubtedly require other calibration systems such
as chemical or biological calibrants. It is proposed to recommend
such standards and procedures that are suitable. Further it is proposed
to seek to define those properties of microcalorimeters that should
be used to characterise performance. This is vital so that the merits
of the instruments produced by different organisations can be compared
in a rational way.
Project:
The project consists of two parts:
Final drafts of these papers have been prepared, and they are now
being reviewed for publication.
Project completed - IUPAC Technical Report published:
- 'Standards in isothermal microcalorimetry (Part 1), Pure
Appl. Chem.
73(10), 1625-1639, 2001.
- 'Standards, calibration, and guidelines in microcalorimetry. Part
2. Calibration standards for differential scanning calorimetry', Pure
Appl. Chem.
78(7), 1455-1476, 2006.
Last Update: 18 July 2006
