OrionIR® Mid-IR Spectrometer
Specifications
A 450 g transmission flow cell drawing 600 mW over a single USB-C connection, reading 900–3500 cm⁻¹ every second. The whole table is below — no form in front of it.
The headline numbers
< 1 s
Response time, and the minimum time for one measurement at a single scan per file.
450 g
Lab Version, 5 × 5.5 × 6 cm.
600 mW
Lab Version: at 5 V, over one USB-C cable carrying both power and data.
2,200:1
Signal-to-noise over a 6-second integration time.
Specification
Full specification
Standard version unless stated otherwise. Configuration options are listed where they exist.
Optical
- Wavenumber range 900–3500 cm⁻¹ also 900–1800 and 1800–3500 options
- Wavelength range 2.86–11.11 µm
- Path length, 900–1800 cm⁻¹ 20 µm 100 and 200 µm optional
- Path length, 1800–3500 cm⁻¹ 25 µm 12 µm optional
- Design Chip-based transmission robust: no moving optics, no fibres
Performance
- Response time < 1 s
- Signal-to-noise ≈2,200:1 6 s integration
- Demonstrated detection 0.05 m% analyte-dependent
- Long-term stability >100 days repeatability test, no drift observed
- Warm-up required 1 hour
- Cooling required None
Physical & electrical
- Dimensions 5 × 5.5 × 6 cm Lab Version
- Weight 450 g
- Power 600 mW Lab Version: at 5 V, USB-C
- Data Same USB-C cable
- Hazardous areas Intrinsically safe Plant Version; ATEX-certified series available — ask
Flow path
- Sampling type Flow cell not a probe
- Void volume 0.1 mL
- Tubing 1/8″ or 1/16″ OD
- Fittings 1/4″-28 flat-bottom hand-tight, tool-less
- Tested flow rate Up to 250 mL/min water, non-cavitating
- Back pressure ≤0.3 bar at 250 mL/min water
- Pressure rating 0–5 bar abs 0–50 bar high-pressure version
Sample compatibility
- pH range 2–10 stainless steel wetted parts
- Viscosity <10,000 cP
- Particle size <15 µm inline filter 15 µm recommended
- Solids Not supported
- Sample temperature −15 to 60 °C
- Wetted materials SS316L, FFKM, Si, Ge, Au
- Corrosive service Hastelloy option
Environment & software
- Ambient temperature 0 to 60 °C
- Humidity 0–90 % RH
- Operating system Windows 10 / 11
- Minimum hardware 8 GB RAM Intel i5 10th gen+ or Ryzen 5/7
- Output formats SPC and CSV
- Control protocol OPC UA
- Connectivity Runs locally no internet required; Ethernet connection on the Plant version
Figures are for the standard version and reflect Paeonia's own published answers. Anything configuration-dependent — path length, wetted materials, pressure rating — is set during the feasibility check rather than chosen from a catalogue.
Design decisions behind those numbers
- No interferometer and no moving components, so there is nothing inside to fall out of alignment on a plant floor. The spectral peaks are broader than an FTIR's because the technology is not FTIR.
- No optical fibres, so the instrument is not limited by mid-IR transmission in the fibre and there is no fibre to break at the bend.
- A flow cell rather than a probe: the sample reaches the instrument through a recirculation loop or a representative sampling point, and the 0.1 mL void volume means almost nothing is held up.
- A short optical path — 20 µm as standard — is what makes aqueous and strongly absorbing streams measurable without saturating the detector. Neat ethanol and toluene have been measured at 20 µm without saturation.
- Low power draw (0.6 W) is the basis of the intrinsically safe design.
- Chemometric models convert the spectrum into the concentrations you actually care about — see Services.
Qualification and compliance
What a regulated site needs to know before the instrument reaches the floor.
IQ — Installation Qualification
Verifies components are present, undamaged and connected, that the system powers up and communicates with the software, and that the environment meets the temperature, power and cleanliness requirements. Paeonia provides IQ.
OQ — Operational Qualification
A two-hour warmed-up stability run with temperature logging, a wavenumber accuracy check against a known reference chemical, and the built-in software diagnostics for drift and component health. Run jointly with the customer.
PQ — Performance Qualification
A chemometric model built on gravimetric mixtures or offline reference values (HPLC, UV-VIS), then validated against known mixtures or offline comparison under representative process conditions. Recirculation loops with valves allow standards to be introduced directly.
GMP
The Plant version under development uses EMA ICH Q7 as its GMP reference. Software partner KAX Group supports full GMP compliance with the instrument used as PAT.
Hazardous areas
The standard instrument is intrinsically safe by design at 0.6 W. For classified areas, ask us about the ATEX-certified series.
Self-test
Measurements are stored as immutable historical records. A built-in signal-to-noise self-test reporting instrument health and cell cleanliness is in development and is not part of the current software release.
Questions we are asked most
Is it a probe or a flow cell?
A flow cell. The sample flows through a 0.1 mL cell reached through a recirculation loop or a representative sampling point, using 1/4″-28 flat-bottom fittings on 1/8″ or 1/16″ tubing. It is not a probe you insert into a vessel, and it is not fibre-coupled.
Can it handle slurries?
Yes, within limits: particles <15 µm and viscosity under 10,000 cP. We recommend an inline or syringe filter of 15 µm on the inlet. Higher viscosity slows the flow and means more frequent cleaning. It cannot measure solids.
Can I use it in a hazardous or ATEX area?
The standard instrument uses an intrinsically safe design, made possible by its 0.6 W power draw. For a classified area needing certification, ask us about the ATEX-certified spectrometer series.
Can I connect my own fibre-optic probe?
No. The instrument is a transmission flow cell by design — avoiding fibres is what removes the mid-IR transmission losses and the mechanical fragility that fibre-coupled systems carry. If your measurement genuinely requires a fibre probe, tell us what it has to reach and we will say honestly whether we are the right instrument.
Can I build or import my own calibration model?
Not in Paeonia's own software, which ships with a customisable built-in model rather than a model builder. Two routes exist: we build and integrate the model for you as a service, or our partner KAX Group's VEKTOR DIREKTOR™ builds models and, with their ProaXesS software, integrates them with the instrument for real-time analysis.
Is there a spectral library?
Not a full library. We can supply basic reference spectra for common solvents — ethanol, acetone, IPA, methanol, acetonitrile, toluene — and up to three reference spectra in SPC format can be displayed alongside a live measurement. Beyond that, we build a chemometric model as a service.
Is there a production-scale version?
In development. The Paeonia Spectrometer Plant version targets flow rates up to 30 L/min and integration with process lines up to 1″ pipe size.
How do I clean it?
Flush with 5–10 mL of a solvent that is miscible with your sample and leaves no residue on the sensing element, then air dry — or flush with dry air or nitrogen, or apply vacuum, for at least ten minutes. The self-test confirms the cell is clean.
Datasheet
Prefer the formatted PDF?
The specification above is the same one in the datasheet. If you need the PDF for a design review or a purchase file, an engineer will send it.
Tell us the measurement you cannot make today
Describe the stream and the chemistry. We come back with whether the OrionIR® can see it, and what the configuration would be. Where it makes sense we test on your own process samples first.