INFRARED SURFACE STUDIES OF OPAQUE OR SCATTERING MATERIALS USING PHOTOTHERMAL BEAM DEFLECTION SPECTROSCOPY.

Infrared (IR) photothermal beam deflection spectroscopy (PBDS) is briefly described and some of its applications to studies of carbons and highly scattering materials are reviewed. PBDS is especially useful for the study of materials which absorb IR radiation very strongly or act as strong IR scatterers, so that conventional IR techniques fail. Application of PBDS to study the thermal degradation of a phenol-formaldehyde resin, the reaction of NH//3 and H//2O with the surfaces of intermediate-temperature chars, the effect of Fe**3** plus on the charring of cellulose, the dehydration of titanyl sulphate, and TiO//2 pigments, are described.