Edward Ho, Pfeiffer Vacuum Inc.

Process monitoring is key in maintaining efficiency in many facilities such as power, steel degassing, and glass coating system.  In particular, constant monitoring of gas species and their amounts in process can have direct impact on end product quality.  Quadrupole mass spectrometry is a power technique which allows for very fast in-situ analysis of masses from 1-300amu.  Pfeiffer Vacuum Inc. has developed various turnkey solutions for implementation from vacuum (RGA) to atmospheric pressure operation.  The standard software package can monitor partial pressure trends for statistical process control (SPC) as well as leak checking.  While a dedicated helium leak detector is a valuable troubleshooting tool, a RGA system can analyze other gas species and offer additional system insight.