Mastersizer 2000 Dynamic Data Weighting

The use of the weighted fit space

An important application of a particle size analyser is the detection of the

presence of small quantities of coarse material in a fine distribution and small
quantities of fines in a coarse distribution.

At the same time, when an instrument has a broad dynamic size range, it is
important to be able to discriminate between real data and “noise”. The
broader the dynamic range, the more difficult it becomes to determine that the
baseline is flat, with the danger of small modes being either created or being
undetected.

This is a problem which besets all manufacturers of laser diffraction-based

particle size analysers. Some manufacturers avoid the problem altogether by
restricting the dynamic ranges of their instruments while other manufacturers
“solve” the problem by simply raising the noise threshold so that signals below
a certain level are ignored. The problem with this second approach is that,
although it is simple, real data is often rejected.

Malvern has addressed this problem in the Mastersizer 2000 by the

introduction of a dynamic weighting scheme that intelligently scans the
measured data before choosing an appropriate weighting scheme for the final
analysis. The data is first weighted according to the scattering model used in
the analysis. In this way the analysis can decide on the importance of any
small signals on the outer detectors. The data is then weighted on the basis of
its significance within the overall data range – a process known as “auto-
ranging”. This ensures that the significant data is always included but that
empty parts of the dynamic range are excluded. This reduces the destabilising
influence of noise.

Does this mean that the instrument removes significant data?

No it doesn’t!

Figure 1 shows the raw unweighted data obtained for a 48 micron glass
beads sample in the presence of some nanometre-sized silica particles.
 Scattering from
large glass beads

Scattering from
nanometre-sized
material

Figure 1 – Unweighted data for the glass beads / silica mixture.

From the data you would hardly believe that the nanometre material existed!
Many simple weighting algorithms would background out this data,
considering it to be part of the baseline noise. The dynamic weighting function
used in the Mastersizer 2000 recognises the small amount of scattering on
the outer rings for what it is – scattering from small particles. It therefore
increases the “importance” of these channels when the data fit is carried out.
The result of this process is shown in figure 2.

Figure 2 - Weighted data for the glass beads / silica mixture (Red Curve). The green
curve represents the fit, which gives the result in figure 3.

The magnitude of the scattering on the outer channels is much greater in

weighted data view, showing the importance of this data. In this way, both the
glass beads and the nanometre mode are fully resolved, as can be seen in
figure 3.
 Figure 3. Calculated result for the mixture of silica and glass bead particles.

What is the “weighted fit” view and why has this been provided?

Because we have become used to looking at the data fit as an indication of a

good measurement, it is important that we look at the actual data which was
used in the calculation of the results. We must therefore look at the data fit
after the application of the auto-ranging utility and the intelligent removal of
any noise. The reason for using this for the purposes of examining the fit is
that if the unweighted data is used, the presence of noise can give rise to very
high residuals despite the fact that the measurement is a good one. Access to
the unweighted fit space is provided so that the experienced user can
examine the data critically for the purposes of diagnosis of the instrument’s
performance.