How to distinguish the difference between xenon lamp aging test chamber and uv aging test chamber? Natural climate photoaging test methods are usually divided into two kinds, the first is to simulate the aging of ultraviolet light, the second is to simulate the whole sun aging. Domestic and foreign widely used methods, the main reason is that the natural climate aging test results more realistic, the lower the cost and easy to operate. Although we can carry out natural climate aging tests anywhere, the internationally recognized test site is Florida in the United States because of its sunny conditions.
However, the weakness of the natural climate aging test is that the test takes a long time, and the test personnel may not have been waiting for the test results of a product for so many years.
1. UV light irradiation test method
UV light irradiation aging test using fluorescent UV light to simulate the destructive effects of sunlight on durable materials. This is different from the previously mentioned xenon arc lamp, fluorescent UV lamp in electrical principle with ordinary lighting with cold light fluorescent lamp similar, but can generate more ultraviolet light rather than visible light or infrared light.
For different exposure applications, there are different types of lamps with different spectra for selection. The UVA-340 lamp simulates the sunlight well in the main short-wavelength UV spectrum. The spectral energy distribution (SPD) of the UVA lamp is very similar to that of the spectrum at 360 nm from the solar spectrum. UVB lamps are also commonly used to accelerate the artificial weather aging test lamp. It is faster than the UVA type of light on the destruction of the material, but it is shorter than the 360 nm wavelength energy output for many materials will cause deviations from the actual test results.
2. Xenon arc radiation test method
The xenon arc radiation test is considered to be the most able to simulate the whole solar spectrum test, because it can produce ultraviolet light, visible light and infrared light. Because of this, at home and abroad is considered the most widely used method. This method is described in detail in GB / T1865-1997 (equivalent to IS0113411: 1994).
However, this method also has its limitations, that is, the stability of the xenon arc lamp and the resulting complexity of the test system. The xenon arc light source must be filtered to reduce unwanted radiation. There are a variety of filter glass types to choose from for different irradiance distributions. What kind of glass is used depends on the type of material being tested and its end use. Changing the filter glass can change the type of short wavelength ultraviolet light that is transmitted, thereby changing the speed and type of damage to the material. There are three types of filters that are commonly used: daylight, window glazing, and extended UV light type (GB 1: 1, method 1, and method 2, which corresponds to the first two types)