Analyser

An analyser or analyzer (see spelling differences) is a person or device that analyses given data. It examines in detail the structure of the given data and tries to find patterns and relationships between parts of the data. An analyser can be a piece of hardware or a computer program running on a computer.The analysis can be done on samples which the operator brings to the analyser or the analyser can be connected to the source of the samples and the sampling be done automatically. The source of samples for automatic sampling is commonly some kind of process such as a chemical process. Analysers which are connected to a process, and conduct automatic sampling, can be called online (or on-line) analysers or sometimes inline (or in-line) analysers. For inline analysis, a sensor can be placed in a process vessel or stream of flowing material to conduct the analysis. Another method of online analysis is allowing a sample stream to flow from the process equipment into an analyser, sometimes conditioning the sample stream in between such as reducing pressure or changing the sample temperature. Such sampling is typically for fluids (either liquids or gases). If the sample stream is not substantially modified by the analyser, it can be returned to the process. Otherwise, the sample stream is not returned; for example, if any reagents have been added for the analysis.