NIR Spectral Analysis Report

NIR Spectral Analysis Report — Moisture and Chemical Profiling

The NIR (Near-Infrared) Spectral Analysis Report provides complementary chemical characterization to XRF testing, focusing on molecular bond signatures rather than elemental composition. NIR spectroscopy excels at identifying organic chemical treatments, moisture content, and wood species characteristics that XRF cannot detect.

While XRF identifies metallic elements (arsenic, chromium, copper), NIR detects organic treatment compounds and critically measures moisture content — the key variable in both weight calculations and biocarbon feedstock quality assessment. A load that tests clean on XRF but shows anomalous NIR signatures may indicate non-metallic treatments (creosote, pentachlorophenol) that require different disposal routing.

The report documents: spectral absorption profile across NIR wavelength range, moisture content percentage (critical for sponge effect weight adjustment and biocarbon feedstock specs), chemical treatment signatures detected, wood species identification where possible, comparison against baseline clean wood spectral profiles, and recommendations for further testing if anomalies are detected.

NIR sits as the fourth and final layer in the CCA detection protocol, providing confirmation of XRF findings and catching treatment types that XRF alone may miss. The sensor fusion of XRF (atomic) and NIR (molecular) data creates the most comprehensive wood waste characterization available in the Ontario market.