Copper based preservatives diluted in water dominate the wood preservative industry around the world. Periodically measurements and adjustments of the concentration of treating solutions must be performed as a part of the quality control at the treatment plant to achieve desired quality of the preservative treated wood. Many analytical methods are time consuming and must be performed under laboratory conditions, while others that are rapid and easy to apply at industry sites can be sensitive to impact from impurities, etc. The aim of this study was to evaluate handheld X-ray fluorescence (XRF) spectrometry as a tool for measuring copper concentration in CuHDO treating solutions. The material used in the study comprised samples of Wolmanit CX-8 (CuHDO) diluted in distilled water and samples from Wolmanit CX-8 treating solutions from Norwegian impregnation plants. All the preservative solution samples were analysed with a handheld Niton XL5 Plus XRF Analyzer. Atomic absorption spectrophotometry (AAS) was used as a reference method. The major advantages of portable handheld XRF spectrometry include: on-site immediate availability of analytical results, non-destructive analysis, a multielement capability, speed of operation and access to valuable/unique samples that otherwise would be unavailable or had to be transported to a laboratory for chemical analysis. The results from this study show that there is a good linear correlation with the XRF data and the corresponding laboratory results and that it is possible to use data measured with a handheld energy dispersive XRF-analyser for accurate calibrations and predictions of the copper concentration of treating solutions of Wolmanit CX-8.

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