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Measurement and Analysis of Nanomaterials

S2NANO provides measurement protocols and analytical services for the physicochemical characterization of nanoparticles.

Dynamic light scattering (DLS), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), nanoparticle tracking analysis (NTA), and single particle inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (sp-ICP-MS) are currently available. The devices analyze the size, shape, composition, and other physicochemical properties of nanoparticles, often required for regulatory compliance of nanomaterials and products.

Comparison of Measurement Techniques Available on the S2NANO

TEM DLS NTA sp-ICP-MS Zeta Potential
Mateiral Type Various Nanoparticle
Protein		 Nanoparticle
Protein		 Inorganic
Nanomaterial		 Nanoparticle
Protein
Size O O O O X
Size Range Inorganic ≥ 1 nm (a),(b) 2 – 3,000 nm (c) 10 – 1,000 nm (e) 10 – 2,000 nm (g),(h) 3.8 – 100,000 nm
Organic 30 – 1,000 nm(e) X
Size Distribution Number-based Scattered Light
Intensity-based		 Number-based Number-based X
Shape O X X X X
Aspect Ratio O X X X X
Aggregation/Agglomeration O O O O △
Composition X (O with EDS) X X O X
Surface Charge X X X X O
Concentration Range NA 9x1011 – 4x1014
particles/mL (d)		 106 – 109
particles/mL (f)		 103 – 106
particles/mL (i)		 <4x1015
particles/mL (d)
Non-destructive △ O O X O
Minimum Required Sample Volume ~10µL ~1mL †
~0.75mL †† 		~1mL ~5mL (i) ~0.75mL ††
  • (a) Tiede et al. 2008.
  • (b) Natural organic matter to Wilkinson et al. 1999.
  • (c) Brar et al. 2011.
  • (d) Numerically calculated for 60nm polystyrene with reference to the Malvern Panalytical Zetasizer nano user manual (2009).
  • (e) Nanosight, Nanosight NTA 2.3 analytical software operating manual (2012)
  • (f) For gold sample, lower detection limit of 10nm to 20nm (ISO 19430, 2016).
  • (g) Gold sample reference to Cornelis et al. 2014.
  • (h) Zirconia bead reference to Goodall et al. 1993.
  • (i) Inorganic materials (ISO/TS 19590, 2017).
  • † Disposable cuvette
  • †† Folded capillary cell