Q400

Instrument must be compatible with TA Instruments TA 5000 Controller, and Thermal Advantage TA 5000, 5100, and 5200 Software Suites

Instrument Performance

The Thermomechanical Analyzer (TMA) shall have the following performance:

  • Temperature range: -150 to 1000°C
  • Temperature precision: +/- 1°C
  • Heating rate range 0.1 to 100°C/min.
  • Isothermal temperature control of +/- 0.1°C
  • Furnace cool-down time: < 10 minutes from 600°C to 50°C
  • Measurement Precision: +/- 0.1%
  • Sensitivity: 15nm
  • Resolution (digital): 0.15 nm
  • Dynamic baseline drift: <1 μm (-100 to 500°C)
  • Force range: 0.001 to 1 N (2N using additional weights)
  • Force Resolution: 0.001 N
  • Frequency range: 0.01 to 2 Hz (Q400EM only)
  • Atmosphere: Inert, oxidizing, or reactive
  • Maximum sample size(solid): 26 mm(L); 10 mm(D)
  • Maximum sample size (film/fiber): 26 mm(L); 0.5 mm (T); 4.5 mm(W)

TMA must have the following features:

  • Automated furnace movement
  • Automated probe movement
  • Automated probe zeroing
  • Automated sample length measurement
  • Automated force loading
  • Ability to automatically open furnace at end of run, raise probe off the sample and use compressed air/nitrogen cooling. Cooling from 1000°C to 50°C in 10 minutes or less.
  • Ability to enter up to five points for temperature calibration
  • Local control at the module including start/stop, furnace position, probe movement, zeroing, sample length and real-time display of sample temperature and experiment status
  • Ability to store calibration constants in module memory
  • Ability to automatically terminate a run upon reaching a predetermined value ( e.g., a CTE)
  • Ability to generate high quality data in the compression, tension, and 3-point bending modes of deformation.
  • Ability to generate temperature steps / ramps at constant strain, and constant force, plus force steps and ramps at constant temperature (Q400).
  • Ability in enter sample geometry factors to compute rheological signals (Q400EM).
  • Ability to generate temperature steps / ramps at constant strain, and constant stress, plus stress ramps at constant temperature (Q400EM).
  • Ability to perform stress and strain steps / ramps at constant temperature (Q400EM).
  • Ability to generate tangent or secant moduls plots versus stress, strain, time or temperatrure (Q44EM).
  • Ability to perform creep and stress relaxation measurements, with capability to compute creep and stress relaxation data in rheological units (%strain, creep compliance, recoverable compliance, relaxation modulus; Q400EM)
  • Ability to perform dynamic TMA tests and generate material viscoelastic properties (storage modulus, loss modulus, tan delta; Q400EM)
  • Ability to perform Modulated TMA™ (Q400EM)

TMA must offer the following probe and fixture configurations:

  • Standard expansion probe
  • Macro expansion probe
  • Penetration probe
  • Dilatometer accessory for cubical coefficients of expansion
  • Tension accessory kit for films and fibers
  • Parallel plate accessory kit
  • 3-point bending kit