HARRIS WEATHERING PRODUCTS, INC.

Atlas Materials Testing Technology Authorized Sales and Service Representative

Harris Weathering Products, Inc. P.O. Box 383 West Falmouth, MA 02574
Tel: 508-548-5946 Fax: 508-457-1945 email: [email protected] www.harrisweathering.com
pg. 1 of 4
Water Purity for Accelerated Weathering Testing
Industry Specifcations-Water Treatment Methods-Measurement of water Quality for Compliance
Industrial Standards
The quality of the water used in Atlas Xenon Arc type weathering testing equipment for specimen water sprays,
humidity, and cooling the water cooled type xenon lamps is very important. Water containing a high level of min-
erals and other contaminants will shorten the useful life of the weathering testing equipment and coat the samples
and protect them from the light. Many popular industry standards now specify the quality of the water used for this
application. Some of the more well known Industry Standards are listed below.
Test Method Type of Water Treatment Specifed Quality
ASTM G155 Distillation or RO +DI Below 5 micro-Siemens conductivity, less than
1 ppm solids, less than 0.1 ppm Silica (See Note)
ASTM G154 Distilled or RO + DI Below 5 micro-Siemens conductivity, less than
Fluorescent UV- 1 ppm solids, less than 0.1 ppm Silica (See Note)
Condensation with
Water Sprays
ASTM B117 Type IV water 0.2 meg-ohm resistivity or greater
Corrosion Testing
SAE J1885/J2412 RO + DI Water for sprays & humidity or other purposes,
Interior max of 1 ppm solids, max of 0.2 ppm Silica
SAE J1960/2527 RO + DI Water for sprays & humidity or other purposes,
Exterior max of 1 ppm solids, max of 0.2 ppm Silica
AATCC TM 16 Demineralized, Distilled, RO below 17 ppm, less than 8 ppm preferred
Colorfastness to Light
AATCC TM 169 Demineralized, Distilled, RO below 17 ppm, less than 6-8 ppm, preferred
Weathering-Xenon
DIN 53-387 Artifcial Demineralized, Distilled below 5 micro-Siemens conductivity
Weathering of Plastics (0.2 meg-ohms, approx. 2.5 ppm)
ISO 4892-1 Plastics- Distilled, RO + DI Max. of 1ppm solids, max. 0.2 ppm Silica
Methods of exposure to (Recirculation of spray water not recommended)
Lab light sources
ISO 11341 Distilled or Demineralized Conductivity below 2 micro-Siemens/cm, less
Paints &Varnishes than 1 mg/kg(1 ppm) solids
Exposure to fltered xenon-arc

Notes for ASTM G155, G154
5 micro-Siemens conductivity is inconsistent with the requirement for less than 1 ppm total solids (both dis-
solved and un-dissolved solids). Since the 1 ppm requirement is approx. 2 micro-Siemens or approx. 0.5 meg-
ohms, the author recommends using the 1 ppm total solids requirement.
HARRIS WEATHERING PRODUCTS, INC.
Atlas Materials Testing Technology Authorized Sales and Service Representative
Harris Weathering Products, Inc. P.O. Box 383 West Falmouth, MA 02574
Tel: 508-548-5946 Fax: 508-457-1945 email: [email protected] www.harrisweathering.com
pg. 2 of 4
Objectives of this article:
To assist the users of accelerated weathering testing equipment to understand the requirements of the applicable
test methods, and how to relate the required specifcations for pure water in terms of Resistivity in meg-ohms, vs.
Conductivity in micro-Siemens, vs. ppm of solids, that can include both Total Dissolved Solids (TDS) and
undissolved solids.
Resistivity and Conductivity are both electrical measurements that are made between 2 electrodes 1 cm apart that
are immersed into a sample of water. Resistivity is normally expressed in terms of meg-ohms/cm. Conductivity is
the reciprocal of Resistivity (1/meg-ohms) and is expressed in micro-Siemens/cm. In brief, a high resistivity read-
ing means higher purity water. A low conductivity reading means higher purity water.
For example: 1 meg-ohm resistivity equals 1 M-S
5 0.2 M-S
0.2 5.0 M-S
A Resistivity Meter or Conductivity Meter provides a fast reliable in-line reading that is non-destructive to the wa-
ter sample, inexpensive, and an easy means of measuring the ionic content of a water stream. These measurements
are non specifc and cannot distinguish between the types of ions in the water stream. The measurement value is
proportional to the combined effect of all ions present in the water.
Converting the Resistivity or Conductivity value to Total Dissolved Solids (TDS) is an approximate conversion that
will vary with the type of ions in the water. For more information refer to the attached Table of Water Quality.
An accurate TDS can be measured by carefully evaporating a measured sample of water to complete dryness and
carefully weighing the amount of dry solids remaining. While this procedure is the most accurate, it is slow, expen-
sive, and not practical for a fowing stream of water. The use of a Resistivity Meter or Conductivity Meter is much
faster and the accuracy is acceptable for most applications such as measuring/monitoring water quality for acceler-
ated weathering testing.
All Atlas Xenon equipment such as the Ci Series include a built in water purity meter that measures the resistivity
of the water and is easily converted to conductivity or approximate TDS.
TDS is normally expressed as ppm or mg/L.
Complying with ASTM and SAE requirements of less than 1 ppm total solids (dissolved &
undissolved) and less than 0.1 Silica (ASTM) and less than 0.2 ppm Silica (SAE).
1 Use a RO system to pre-treat the feed water prior to the use of DI flters. The RO will remove
very small particles, including colloid silica that can pass through the DI flters.
2 Monitor the fnal RO/DI water quality going into the accelerated weathering testing equipment.
3. Resistivity must be greater than 0.5 meg-ohms. Conductivity must be less than 2.0 micro-Siemens.
4. Monitor the fnal RO/DI for Silica and take steps to control the concentration of Silica to less than 0.1 ppm
(ASTM) or 0.2 ppm (SAE). Refer to the next section on Silica for more information on how to measure and
control.
HARRIS WEATHERING PRODUCTS, INC.
Atlas Materials Testing Technology Authorized Sales and Service Representative
Harris Weathering Products, Inc. P.O. Box 383 West Falmouth, MA 02574
Tel: 508-548-5946 Fax: 508-457-1945 email: [email protected] www.harrisweathering.com
pg. 3 of 4
Silica
The presence of silica in the water used for specimen sprays, humidity, and cooling the xenon arc lamp can result
in coating the specimens, lamp, and interior of the test chamber with glass like deposits that are diffcult to remove.
This coating on the specimens can distort the test results.
ASTM and SAE test methods, listed above, include limits on the amount of silica that is acceptable in the pure wa-
ter used for testing.
Silica is a very sneaky ion. It does not add resistivity or conductivity to the water and while the water pu-
rity meter may show that the water is in the Ultra Pure range it may contain unacceptable levels of silica.
Silica has very complex chemistry which is beyond the scope of this article. To put it as simply as possible, silica in
water exists in two forms. Reactive silica is dissolved in water and is slightly ionized. Unreactive silica or colloidal
silica acts more like a solid than a dissolved ion.
Colloidal silica particles are very small, less than 0.01 microns, and will easily pass through a fne sediment flter
and a DI flter and into the weathering tester.
Dissolved silica is also diffcult to remove by using only a DI flter.
The combination of using an RO system, equipped with Thin Film Composite (TFC) membranes, and the correct
type of DI flter as a Polisher is effective for removing silica down to the level required in ASTM G155 (less than
0.1 ppm). SAE J1960/2527 and J1885/2412 both require less than 0.2 ppm.
ASTM now recommends the use of both RO and DI treatment for meeting the water quality requirements of G155.
The Harris Water Systems Division of Harris Weathering Products has been supplying combination RO/DI water
systems long before ASTM tightened up on the required water quality for accelerated weathering testing and began
recommending the use of a combination of RO + DI treatment.
If an RO/DI system has silica in the feed water, special care has to be taken to replace the DI flter before it is near
exhaustion. When this flter is exhausted, any silica that has been trapped by the DI flter will be released into the
fnal RO/DI water and can contaminate the equipment and specimens under test.
It may also be necessary to switch from a standard mixed bed DI flter to a Nuclear Grade mixed bed resin or to
a Semi-Conductor (SC) Grade mixed bed resin. The SC type is more effective in blocking silica than the Nuclear
Grade.
The following sections of this article contain information on how to measure the level of Silica in the fnal RO/DI
water in order to comply with the test method and to help prove to an ISO auditor that your testing is in compliance.
Measuring the amount of Silica in the fnal RO/DI water
In addition to measuring and monitoring the TDS in the fnal RO/DI water, a sample of the water should also be
periodically measured for silica. A sample can be sent to a water testing laboratory or you can purchase your own
testing apparatus.
HARRIS WEATHERING PRODUCTS, INC.
Atlas Materials Testing Technology Authorized Sales and Service Representative
Harris Weathering Products, Inc. P.O. Box 383 West Falmouth, MA 02574
Tel: 508-548-5946 Fax: 508-457-1945 email: [email protected] www.harrisweathering.com
pg. 4 of 4
Harris Water Systems Division has available a relatively inexpensive Silica Testing Meter that complies with ASTM
D859. Digital range 0.00 to 2.00 mg/L (0.00 to 2.00 ppm), with a resolution of 0.01 mg/L.

The measurement method is an adaptation of ASTM D859 method of heteropoly blue method. The reaction be-
tween silica and reagents causes a blue tint in the sample which is measured by the digital meter.
Special Dual Filter DI Polisher with DI Meter
Harris Water Systems now has available a small dual flter DI Polisher that is mounted external from an RO
water system in the RO/DI water line going into the weathering tester. After the RO permeate product water passes
through the frst 20 mixed bed DI flter it passes through an in-line Conductivity Sensor equipped with an alarm
that will warn the user that the frst DI flter in position 1 is nearing exhaustion. This early warning allows the user
to replace the frst DI flter cartridge before the second cartridge is exhausted, which prevents the DI flters from
releasing the silica stored in the flters.
Exchanging the DI flter cartridges is simple:
Remove and discard the cartridge in position 1
Move the cartridge in position 2 to position 1
Install a fresh new cartridge in position 2.
The two 20 DI cartridges are connected in series which provides a total path of 40 for the Polishing function.
The fltering system is available for 2.5x 20 or 4.5x 20 cartridges.
Prepared by Chet Harris, President, Harris Weathering Products, Inc October 18, 2011
Attachment: Table of Water Quality