 |
1955 |
Discovery
of the borate fusion; presented for the first time at the
1956 Pittsburgh Conference: accurate XRF analysis was
impossible on currently used solid powders. |
|
|
1971 |
One
of the early fusion machines, the Stirrer (Fluxer I) : fusion
machines became a must after fusion had became widespread. |
|
|
1973. |
The
Fluxer VI, a fusion machine with the more efficient mixing
ever attained: a very popular machine, discontinued in
1987 for stricter security regulations. |
|
|
1984 |
The
Fluxer-Bis! and the Bis! crucible (crucible with a hump in
the bottom to enhance mixing). The first machine to make both
fused beads and solutions: an answer to a new strong competitor
in the market. |
|
|
1988 |
The Fluxy, an instrument with mixing nearly as efficient as
in the Fluxer VI that is still very popular today:
the Fluxer-Bis! was not the instrument for the job, it had
to be replaced by a better instrument. |
|
|
1994 |
The
first successful and easy fusion technique for sulphides:
the more important industrial sulphide ores of iron, copper,
zinc were the only minerals that could not be fused, and laboratories
had to rely on slower chemical methods. |
|
|
1995 |
A novel
method for manufacturing powders of flux at ambient, and a
technique for making ultra-clean tiny glass beads of flux:
to remove all causes of contamination found in other brands
of fluxes. |
|
|
1997 |
Discovery
of selection rules for the optimal flux composition for each
type of samples: many laboratories were rejecting fusion
for unexplainable problems. |
|
|
1999 |
A new
one-step fusion technique for fusing metal powders, including
Ferroalloys: the existing methods were unsafe, very complex,
slow, and applicable to very small samples only. |
|
|
2004 |
The
first book on the "Physics and Chemistry of Borate
Fusion" : after nearly 50 years of fusion, no
research on fusion, except recipes, had been published in
the literature, while fusion users needed basic information
to intelligently overcome the difficulties to make fusion
beads. |
|
|
2004 |
A true
Sherman Fundamental Parameter software, XRF Direct
, particularly useful for the analysis of samples prepared
as Fused Beads: softwares based on constant influence
coefficients have too limited flexibility to suit all fusion
conditions. |
