MS points to authenticity of Shroud of Turin

The Shroud of Turin, thought by many to be the burial cloth of Jesus, has been through a number of analytical procedures. In 1988, ¹⁴C tests set the age at 1260–1390 AD, meaning that it could not have been authentic. However, new evidence shows that the sample used to date the Shroud in 1988 was taken from an expertly rewoven patch. “Pyrolysis mass spectrometry results from the sample area coupled with microscopic and microchemical observations prove that the radiocarbon sample was not part of the original cloth…” according to Raymond Rogers of the Los Alamos National Laboratory in NM, USA. His results have been published in Thermochimica Acta: http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.tca.2004.09.029

Process spectroscopy market

According to a report (RG-228R The Process Spectroscopy Market) from Business Communications Company, the worldwide market for process spectroscopy instrumentation is expected to grow from $178 million in 2004 to $232 million in 2009, an average growth rate of 5.4%.

NIR is expected to constitute the largest part of the market in 2009, with sales of $71 million due to the impact of the PAT initiative. The highest growth rate is expected among Raman spectrometers, with an average of 8% over the period. Raman is expected to be validated as a PAT technique, helping its growth.

Several trends are seen to influence the market. There is an increasing tendency for UV and visible systems manufacturers to develop cheaper, more portable versions of their high-end systems in response to competition from miniature spectrometers. Development of low-cost Raman devices is seen as well. NIR and FT instruments do not see significant competition from portable devices, and high-end systems, particularly in the NIR, continue to dominate many process markets.

New technologies, however, have the potential to change that situation. Micro-electro-mechanical-systems (MEMS) technology offers the potential to make a “spectrometer on a chip” and are expected to become a viable option for process monitoring, if not during the forecast period, then shortly after. Acousto-optic tunable filters (AOTFs) are being produced commercially and used in NIR systems selling in the $45,000 range. Both of these are seen as indicators that the process spectroscopy market 10 years from now may be significantly different from today’s market, with cheaper and more portable systems operating in many manufacturing applications. www.bccresearch.com

20th anniversary for ISIS

ISIS is the world’s brightest pulsed neutron and muon source; it is located at the UK Rutherford Appleton Laboratory near Oxford. ISIS first produced neutrons on 16 December 1984, and last December was the 20th anniversary of this event. www.isis.rl.ac.uk/isis20