Environmental modelling, sensing & analysis

How do I, as a public authority, know that the environmental subsidies being provided are bearing fruit? What is the state of the air quality in my municipality? How do I identify and characterise foreign particles that pose a safety risk to my pharmaceutical production processes? What can I do to improve the safety of my industrial site for both my employees and the environment? With the climate objectives for 2020 and the circular economy objectives for 2050, it’s clear that governments, businesses, industries and other organisations are facing a societal challenge which is greater than ever before.

Measuring is knowing

The collection of evidence through measurement and detection is at the core of our high-quality services. Measuring is knowing. Using sampling strategies, analysis methods and sensor systems, we provide solutions for your most complex questions about unknown and harmful substances. Multidisciplinary cooperation and extremely high expertise distinguish us from the consultancy market.

Harmful substances

Through the use of new materials, electronics, insulations and adhesives, all sorts of substances end up in the indoor environment – from homes and offices to aircraft. Through specific sampling and advanced measurement and analysis methods, we’re able to identify these substances at very low detection levels. In the outdoor environment, we examine particulate matter, greenhouse gases, organic compounds, pesticides, asbestos, nanoparticles and microplastics in air, water, groundwater, soil and solid matter. With sensors in both the field and the production process, we’re able to obtain real-time information on these substances. In this way, we help you to react more quickly and precisely to contaminants, calamities and health risks.

Defects in materials and products

As EMSA experts, we also investigate material defects, product failures and product defects: why do things go wrong throughout the entire production process? Think of an installation that fails during use, material that degrades faster than expected, stains on a material or particles that are found in your product but don’t belong there. We use innovative solutions and material research to identify the causes and provide you with advice. We mostly measure non-standard, complex analyses in difficult matrices. We have unique facilities for this purpose, ranging from image analysis techniques to polarised light microscopy.

Plastic upcycling

Recycled plastic is generally of a lower quality than the original product. To convert the loss of economic value (downcycling) into a process that leads to an economically and socially higher-quality product (upcycling), we’re developing knowledge and sensors for solvolysis. In this process, plastic waste products are dissolved, after which you can reassemble the original polymers as brand-new puzzle pieces. A special challenge is the filtering of additives such as plasticisers or flame retardants. However, by working together with industry, we’re confident that we will also be able to bring this technology to fruition.