Chinese Drywall Update: Drywall bulk testing.
From Lynn Pope Assured Bio Laboratory Manager.
AssuredBio uses advanced infrared imaging analysis to detect contaminated Chinese drywall. The technology is Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy, or FT-IR. By measuring the way the molecules in a drywall sample are excited across a spectrum of light, a fingerprint of the sample is created. Like humans, every fingerprint is unique, but there are distinguishing characteristics that types of drywall have in common. The contaminated drywall samples have a peak that is not present in uncontaminated samples. That peak has been traced to sulfide and disulfide compounds and can be seen in the image below.Â
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This technology is not unique to the Chinese drywall issue. In fact, is has been used in crime labs and court rooms for over 70 years to detect everything from illicit drugs to counterfeit currency. The same technology is used to check the purity of all raw materials imported into the EU that will be used in pharmaceuticals.Â
Many people wonder why this type of analysis is less expensive than other laboratory analyses available. This analysis provides superior results while the time, labor, and materials that go into the analysis are far less than other analysis methods. This allows us to provide a more cost-effective analysis than others on the market with better information.Â
Currently, no analysis that can be conducted in-home to determine if there is contaminated Chinese drywall – only a visual inspection to find marked Chinese drywall. Beware of quick and cheap tests, as they can provide false positives and false negatives.
AssuredBio (http://assuredbio.com) is a premier Indoor Air Quality Lab, specializing in DNA-based mold and bacteria analysis and contaminated Chinese drywall testing. AssuredBio recommends Jacob Mermin Inspections for all mold and Chinese drywall inspections as a reliable, ethical, and valuable inspector.
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