Thermal analysis by variable temperature infrared spectroscopy with a button sample holder and Peltier heating/cooling

An apparatus and methodology for variable temperature infrared spectroscopy measurements of neat samples contained in a button sample holder are described. Sample heating and cooling are achieved by applying voltage to stacked Peltier thermoelectric devices. Between 0 and 150 degrees C, samples can be heated and cooled at 2 degrees C s  1 rates, facilitating temperature step heating/cooling profiles with minimal delay between isothermal infrared spectrum measurements. Examples of correlating temperature-dependent spectral variations with specific sample changes are provided for & alpha;-quartz heating/cooling, ibuprofen melting, and acetylsalicylic acid thermal decom-position. Trends in & alpha;-quartz infrared spectra obtained with a step heating/cooling temperature profile are used to evaluate spectrum measurement reproducibility. Detection of vibration band intensity variations of less than 1% resulting from a 10 degrees C sample temperature increment illustrates the measurement sensitivity. By comparing infrared spectra obtained at different temperatures, reversible and irreversible sample changes are identified. Infrared spectra acquired during linear ramp heating are employed to determine the ibuprofen melting point, which confirms the temperature measurement accuracy of the apparatus. Selective analysis is demonstrated by determining isoconversion effective activation energies for processes involved in the thermal decomposition of the acetylsalicylic acid component of a commercial pharmaceutical tablet.