DataPhysics presents new mobile contact angle measuring device PCA 200

The measuring device manufacturer DataPhysics Instruments has expanded its product portfolio with the mobile contact angle measuring device PCA 200. The PCA 200 is a compact, autonomous measuring device that can determine contact angle and surface energy at the touch of a button. "The PCA 200 is a significant addition to our portfolio," says Sebastian Schaubach, Chief Innovation Manager at DataPhysics Instruments. "With the PCA 200, we can now offer a handheld device. Its compact design makes it the perfect companion for quality control of solid surfaces in production and incoming goods inspection." The measurement of surface energy has become established for characterizing the surface chemical properties of a workpiece. The surface energy describes how easily a solid surface can be wetted. In the production and quality control of surfaces, so-called test inks are often used for such wetting tests. With the help of these test inks, however, the wetting properties of solid surfaces can only be assessed subjectively. With the PCA 200 mobile contact angle measuring device, the surface energy can be precisely determined using contact angle measurements with two test liquids. Such a measurement offers significant advantages over test inks: the method is objective, quantitative, reproducible and provides additional information, as the surface energy is divided into polar and disperse components. This allows statements to be made about whether the surface is better wettable with aqueous or oil-based liquids or how well the surface can adhere to another.

In production and quality control, traditional laboratory measuring devices for the precise, quantitative characterization of surfaces reach their limits. Production parts are often too large and too heavy to be analyzed with such a laboratory measuring device. This is another advantage of the PCA 200 mobile contact angle measuring device: thanks to its compact design, it can determine the surface energy on large surfaces non-destructively. This means that production parts such as car windscreens, car body parts, large wafers or composite materials can be returned to production after measurement with the PCA 200 and simple cleaning without being damaged. The PCA 200 is completely autonomous and can be used wirelessly. With a powerful rechargeable battery, it is ideally equipped for a working day. In addition, each filling of the liquid cartridges lasts for over 1,000 measurements. On the integrated touchscreen, the PCA 200 displays a live preview image of the surface to be analyzed before the measurement. This function allows a visual check to ensure that the measurement is taking place in exactly the right place. The PCA 200 doses both test liquids onto the surface at the same time. This allows the surface energy to be determined at the touch of a button, increasing workflow efficiency. After the measurement, the device shows the results on the display in a matter of seconds, enabling immediate evaluation. This allows statements to be made about the quality of a coating or the sample purity directly on site in production. The samples are identified using the integrated barcode/QR code scanner or a number field on the touchscreen. The device can also be easily connected to a PC via a USB-C port. Device settings can be made and measurement results exported via a clear user interface that can be accessed in any standard web browser. DataPhysics Instruments also offers the expert software dpiMAX, a perfect addition for advanced analysis and systematic data management.