Difference between dispersive and Fourier transform IR Spectrophotometer:

Instrument Emergence:

 Dispersive IR instruments are introduced in 1940s whereas Fourier transform IR

spectrometer was introduced in 1960s.
 The Dispersive IR spectrophotometer is old but economical as compared to Fourier
Transform IR spectrophotometer.
 FT-IR is not as time consuming as dispersive IR instrument is.
 Faster data collection takes place in FT-IR spectrophotometer as compared to dispersive IR
spectrophotometer.

Components:

 The components of dispersive IR includes are: radiation source, mirrors, reference cell,
sample cell, attenuator, beam chopper, slit, grating monochromator and detector, on the
contrary in the FT-IR it contain the interferometer, source, beam splitter, fixed mirrors,
moveable mirrors, laser and detector.

Dispersive IR components FT-IR interferometer

 The reference beam attenuator system creates limitation in dispersive IR spectrophotometer

and FT-IR doesn’t have such limitation because of non availability of attenuator.
 Chopper isn’t present in FT-IR spectrophotometer also there is no monochromator present
in FT IR.
 The Michelson interferometer in FT-IR instrument provides difference to FT-IR from
dispersive IR spectrophotometry.

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  The components of dispersive IR have many moving parts and it results in the mechanical
slippage whereas in FTIR only mirror moves. so less the wearing out of components,
greater will be the reliability of spectrometer.
 In an FTIR spectrophotometer few mirror surfaces are present and as a result there are less
reflection losses than in dispersive IR spectrophotometer.
 The FT-IR doesn’t use slit as used by dispersive IR spectrometer. Because of no slit the
energy production is a lot greater than in a dispersive instrument.
 Also because of presence of slit in dispersive IR it limits the frequency reaching the
sample.
 The detector in dispersive IR spectrophotometer can receive only few percent of energy of
light source as compared to FT IR spectrophotometer in which 50% of original light source
is detected.

Spectrum:

 FT IR spectrophotometer differs from the dispersive IR spectrometer. In dispersive IR

spectrophotometer normal spectrum is form whereas in FT IR the interferogram are
formed and then covert to spectrum.

FT-IR Spectrum Dispersive IR Spectrum

Sample:

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  The sample is placed between the source and the monochromator in the dispersive IR
spectrophotometry and in the case of FT-IR spectrophotometer the sample is typically
between the interferometer and the detector.
 The sample compartment in dispersive IR is cluttered whereas in FT-IR it is less messy.
 In FT-IR spectrophotometer the detail in sample spectrum will be easily differentiate as
compared to dispersive IR of the same sample.
 The IR radiation from the sample spectrum can easily detected in dispersive IR detector
whereas it is opposite in FT IR, no emission from sample is detected.

Calibration:

 In dispersive spectrophotometer calibration against reference spectra is required to measure

frequency. whereas in FT-IR spectrophotometer the use of laser help to provide very high
frequency precision from 0.01 to 1 cm-1.
 The external source of wavelength calibration (calibration standard) is required in
dispersive IR spectrophotometer to regulate accuracy as there is not any precise laser
wavelength present in the system however, FT IR employ a He-Ne laser as an internal
wavelength calibration standard.

Resolution:

 In dispersive IR only small infrared beams are allowed to pass from the slit which can
improve the resolution of the instrument. While large IR beam is used in FT-IR which
provide the higher energy throughout.
 The resolution of dispersive IR spectrophotometer is less as compared to FT-IR
spectrophotometer.
 The resolution for dispersive IR Spectrophotometer is 0.5-10 cm-1 whereas for FT-IR it is
very high that is 0.1 -0.005 cm-1.
 The same is the case for accuracy and sensitivity in the dispersive and Fourier transform
IR spectrometer. As due to sensitivity FT IR is at advantage to identify even small
contaminants.

Beam Optics:

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  The double beam instruments are mostly used as compared to single beam instruments in
dispersive spectrophotometer. While in FT-IR spectrophotometer single beam optics are
used.
 The double beam optics provides continuous real-time background subtraction of
dispersive IR spectrophotometer, on the contrary in FT IR the background spectrum is
collected separately in time for sample spectrum, if not collected it result in error.
 The single beam has advantage over double beam as it provides greater energy output
whereas double beam provide better baseline flatness and stability for long term stability.
 The stray light are involved in dispersive IR spectrophotometer which causes false
readings whereas in FT-IR spectrophotometer no such involvement take place because it
cannot affect the detector as all signals are modulated.

Frequency:

 In FT-IR all frequencies are measured simultaneously whereas in dispersive IR

spectrometer all frequencies are measured successively.
 In FT-IR the radiations are not dispersed before and after passing through the sample.
The improved signals are obtained quickly and collected at one time domain as the
frequencies are falling on detector simultaneously. However in dispersive IR
spectrometer the narrow frequency range was able to fall on the detector.
 All the wave numbers of light are detected at one time in FT-IR spectrophotometer
whereas in dispersive IR spectrophotometer, the small range of wave number are
detected at one time.
 The signal to noise ratio SNR measured in FT-IR is higher than the one measured in
dispersive IR this is because of frequency ranges in both instruments.

Scan Speed:

 Scan speed in dispersive IR instrument is very slow for monitoring samples to undergo
rapid changes. Whereas in the FT-IR fast scan speed is present and it permit monitoring
sample to show rapid changes.

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  Due to slow scan speed in dispersive IR spectrophotometer the sample is contacted with
the thermal effect from the source whereas in FT-IR spectrophotometer no such heat or
thermal effect is subjected to sample from the source because of rapid speed scan.
 Only 1 scan of sample measurement is completed in a dispersive instrument
characteristically, however, in the FT-IR many scans can be completed and combined as
compared to those we can see in dispersive IR spectrophotometer.

Usage:

 The design of dispersive IR spectrophotometer helped to widen the application of IR

spectroscopy as a general technique for the characterization of organic compounds and for
FT-IR which is firstly used only for advanced research but later on due to advancement in
technology and reduced cost it is used as a standard for identification of organic
compounds in analytical laboratories.
 FT-IR instrument is applied to different areas which are very difficult to be applied by
dispersive IR spectrophotometer.
 The dispersive IR is also use for polyatomic inorganic molecules and with organometallic
molecules however FT IR spectrophotometer is reliable technique for positive
identification of virtually any sample, more inorganic and organometallic molecule than
dispersive IR.

Applications of Dispersive IR and Fourier Transform IR spectrophotometer:

Dispersive IR spectrophotometer:

 Use in identification of all types of organic, and many types of inorganic compounds.
 Determination of functional groups in organic materials.
 Determination of molecular composition of surfaces.
 Use in identification of chromatographic effluents and quantitative determination of
compounds in mixture.
 Determination of structural isomers and geometric isomers and also in molecular
orientation.

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Fourier Transform IR spectrophotometer:

 FT IR spectrophotometer has made the use of infrared analysis virtually limitless.

 It is use in pharmaceutical applications and also used to identify unknown molecules.
 FT-IR is used as quality controller, quality assurance applications.
 It is use for batch to batch differentiation to quality standards and also for analysis of an
unknown contaminant.
 Kinetic reaction on micro seconds time are also present in FT IR applications.
 Analysis of chromatographic and thermo gravimetric sample fractions.

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References

 file:///C:/Users/ASUS/Downloads/Documents/productPDF_21615.pdf
 https://chem.libretexts.org/Bookshelves/Physical_and_Theoretical_Chemistry_Textboo
k_Maps/Supplemental_Modules_(Physical_and_Theoretical_Chemistry)
 https://sg.inflibnet.ac.in/bitstream/10603/134021/9/09_chapter%203.pdf
 https://www.slideshare.net/bhavanavedantam/dispersive-ftir
 https://www.chem.uci.edu/~dmitryf/manuals/Fundamentals/FTIR%20principles.pdf
 https://sci-hub.st/https://doi.org/10.1016/0022-2860(82)85022-9
 https://sci-hub.st/https://doi.org/10.1016/B978-0-444-42880-6.50023-4
 https://books.google.com.pk/books?principleofinstrumentanalysis
 http://www.authorstream.com/Presentation/vvkvjoshi-1948442-dispersive-ir-
spectrophotometer/