Advanced Perkin Elmer instrumentation has been used by the Brawn GP F1 team this season to enhance the performance and reliability of the team's race cars and to improve troubleshooting analysis.
Perkin Elmer supplied equipment to carry out the analysis of debris in engine and gearbox lubricants and detection of degradation of worn seals.
Since 2001, Perkin Elmer has provided scientific expertise and instrumentation for the Brawn GP Formula One team's car performance testing programme.
To accurately measure and monitor engine and gearbox degradation, Brawn GP maintains a Perkin Elmer Materials Testing Laboratory at its headquarters in Brackley, UK, where a range of technologies are employed.
Perkin Elmer has provided Brawn with access to its Seer Green (UK) demonstration laboratory, as well as support by product specialists for troubleshooting as needed.
Perkin Elmer's Spectrum 100 Series FT-IR spectrometer is used by Brawn GP to monitor degradation of worn seals and analyse organic debris from engine and gearbox lubricants.
The universal attenuated total reflectance (ATR) accessory discovers unknown factors that may impact performance.
Lubricants are tested using Perkin Elmer's Optima 5300 inductively coupled plasma (ICP) instrument to accurately detect metal content and help determine engine or gearbox wear.
To help ensure the car's integrity, Perkin Elmer's Jade differential scanning calorimeter (DSC) and dynamic mechanical analyser (DMA) carry out important quality control checks to ensure that adhesives used to bond carbon-fibre components have been cured correctly.
