TABLE OF CONTENTS Some of the techniques of thermal analysis, based on the monitoring of less-obvious properties of a sample and often requiring more specialized equipment, are grouped, for convenience, under the heading of less-common techniques [1]. These techniques include Emanation Thermal Analysis (ETA), Thermoelectrometry and Thermosonimetry. A few interesting techniques that are difficult to classify are described at the end of this Chapter, under Miscellaneous.
[1]V. Balek and M.E. Brown in "Handbook of Thermal Analysis and Calorimetry", Vol.1 (Ed. M.E. Brown), Elsevier, Amsterdam, 1998, Ch. 9.
Emanation thermal analysis (ETA) involves the measurement of the release of inert (and usually radioactive) gas from an initially solid sample, while the temperature of the sample, in a specified atmosphere, is programmed. The rate of release of gas is used as an indication of the changes taking place in the sample. Comparison of ETA results with those from thermogravimetry (TG) and evolved gas analysis (EGA) provides information about the microstructure of the sample.
Most of the solids to be studied do not naturally contain inert gas and the solubility of inert gases in inorganic solids is small. The inert gases are trapped at lattice imperfections and these defects can serve as both traps and diffusion pathways. The migration of inert gases in solids is discussed in reference [3].
There are several...
