SFS has been used for the characterization of organic materials in water, but the NTX2000 is the first instrument to use the technology to detect chemicals. SFS produces a 3-D plot showing the fluorescence both as a function of excitation and emission wavelengths, and concentration. The analysis is reported (by the developer) to be capable of detecting multiple components, so separation is not necessary. Chemical identification is based on this spectral (3-D) pattern recognition against a library of these patterns.
Advantages: Small size, easy to train and operate. Limitations: Only detect materials >5% composition, new technology with limited library.