One of the pioneer techniques and most common QC test of polymers is Dilute Solution Viscometry because it measures the solution viscosity of polymers which reveals information on the molecular density, conformation and structure of the polymer. On-line viscometer detectors in GPC instruments provide a fast measurement of polymer intrinsic viscosity (IV). PA can measure temperature controlled IV in the following solvents:
The technique can also be used to determine the molecular weights of polymers. Intrinsic Viscosity, [η], a solution viscosity parameter, relates directly to the molecular mass of macromolecules in solution by the Mark-Houwink-Sakurada (M-H-S) equation: [n] = KMa