How long should the InfraRan be warmed up before beginning measurements? Warm-up time is somewhat dependent on ambient conditions but typical warm-up times are 30 - 60 minutes.
Back to Top What is the "Zero Gas Filter"? The zero gas filter is an activated carbon respirator canister for organic vapors. It provides a clean air sample at the current ambient humidity by absorbing the sample gas from room air. For SF6, especially, the capacity of the filter is not very great so it is important to sample the air from a location that is not significantly contaminated with SF6.
Back to Top How frequently should the Zero Gas Filter be replaced? The service life of the filter will depend on the concentration of sample gas that it is exposed to. The filter exposure life is 4 hours at 100 ppm of an organic vapor such as cyclohexane. In typical InfraRan experiments, the filter will be exposed to a much lower concentration than this so the life will be longer. A week of actual use would be a reasonable service life. A negative InfraRan reading following zeroing is an indication the filter should be replaced.
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How frequently should the InfraRan be recalibrated? The InfraRan calibration is expected to be very stable. Recalibration intervals are more likely to be dictated by organization policy or the requirements of a standard than by instrument requirements. Annual recalibration would be reasonable. Recalibration will be necessary if repairs have been made to the optical system.
Back to Top Can the InfraRan be recalibrated in the field? The calibration can be checked in the field using an analyzed gas standard. The calibration may be adjusted to match the analyzed value for the standard if the InfraRan reading is within ± 10% of the analyzed value. Complete recalibration requires multiple gas standards (typically at least 5) and some non-linear curve fitting. The curve fitting methods will be provided upon request.
Back to Top How long a data run can be recorded by the InfraRan? The InfraRan can store 2300 lines of data in 1-gas format and 1350 lines of data in 2-gas format, which gives the following run times for various data recording intervals. Data run lengths | Logging Interval | 1-gas Run Length | 2-gas Run Length | | 1 sec | 38 min | 22.5 min | | 5 sec | 3.2 hr | 1.9 hr | | 30 sec | 19.2 hr | 11.3 hr | | 60 sec | 38 hr | 22.5 hr | | 120 sec | 76 hr | 45 hr | Back to TopWhat software is provided for downloading logged data? The data log report can be downloaded using Hyperterminal (Windows XP and earlier); Windows Vista or Windows 7, TeraTerm Pro can be downloaded free from http://www.ayera.com/teraterm/. Commercial terminal programs like TinyTerm http://www.centrurysoftware.com/products.php can also be used for computers running Windows Vista or Windows 7. For computers running Windows XP or earlier, an Excel spreadsheet is provided on the InfraRan CD that can be used to download and format the InfraRan log file directly in Excel. However, this spreadsheet program may run very slowly on older computers. The spreadsheet also allows the importing of a log text file that has been downloaded with a terminal program. It will then produce the formatted Excel workbook.
Back to Top Can the format of the data report be changed? No. The data report format is fixed. However, it can be imported into a spreadsheet program like Excel and reformatted there.
Back to Top Is it possible to record InfraRan data in real time? Yes. The InfraRan sends data over the serial link (RS-232 or USB) every second while in run mode. The data format is given in the manual section "Serial Port Output".
Back to Top How long can the InfraRan run on the battery before needing to be recharged? Run time on a fully charged battery is 6 - 8 hours, depending on the age of the battery.
Back to Top If the battery is discharged, can the InfraRan be run from the battery charger? Yes. The InfraRan can always be run from the battery charger.
Back to Top How does data logging work? There are several menu items that affect data logging. The FILES menu manages an existing file or creates a new one.
From NEW you can enter a name for your file that will be printed in the log report. There can only be one file at a time in the InfraRan memory so if you have already logged data, you must download it and ERASE that file before defining a new file name. However, you can define multiple LOCATIONS which will allow you to divide your file into blocks that apply to different measurement conditions e.g. different rooms that are monitored for air contaminants or different tests performed on a fume hood.
The SETUP menu allows you to set the measurement mode and interval. 
 MODE controls how the InfraRan will behave during a RUN. SINGLE causes the InfraRan to record a single value (the current concentration) when LOG ON is selected during a run.
CONTINUOUS causes logging to begin immediately at the start of a run
OFF causes a run to start without logging. Selecting LOG ON during a run will start logging.
INTERVAL allows setting the logging interval to one of the preset values (1 - 120 sec) using the up and down arrow keys. During a run, logging is controlled by the LOG ON/OFF key. 
A LOCATION name can be entered from the ANALYZE menu. 
If the current location, LOCATION(1) say, already has a name, use the UP arrow key to advance to the next location i.e. LOCATION(2) and enter the name using the keypad. Each time a run is started, a new header is written to the log file. However, the location name will be the same unless you change it in the LOCATION menu. If you have defined several location names, say LOCATION(1) = LOC1
LOCATION(2) = LOC2
LOCATION(3) = HALL
LOCATION(4) = CONFERENCE
LOCATION(5) = You can return to a previously defined location name and that name will be written to the log file header. So, if the current location is HALL, say, using the down arrow key, you could return to LOCATION(1) and the name LOC 1 will be written to the LOCATION field in the next header written to the log file. However, once you have logged data using a location name (even if it is blank) you cannot edit that name until the file has been erased. After the file has been erased, the previously defined location names will remain but now they can be edited.
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Frequent Questions
