Rigaku Analytical Devices has published a new application report detailing the analysis of hand sanitisers. This describes the analysis of hand sanitiser products by Raman spectroscopy and highlights the performance of the Rigaku portfolio of handheld Raman analysers. The use of hand sanitisers is becoming part of the everyday norm, and global demand has grown significantly. As hand sanitisers in liquid and gel formulations are being produced by manufacturing companies around the world, there is a global focus on hand sanitiser manufacturing and quality control to ensure that they do not contain hazardous chemicals or fail to provide adequate protection. In response to increased consumer demand, regulatory agencies have also put processes in place to monitor import/export activity, as well as to directly test suspicious shipments.
The two main active ingredients in most commercially available alcohol-based hand sanitisers are ethyl alcohol (ethanol) and isopropyl alcohol (isopropanol). These chemicals, as well as many potentially dangerous contaminants commonly found in handheld sanitiser formulations, are reactive to Raman spectroscopy. 1064 nm Raman analysers are also favourable because of their ability to analyse finished products through coloured packaging, such as blue and green-tinted plastic or glass, as well as identify the chemicals used during manufacturing.
