Karl Fischer Titrator (KF Titrator)

A Karl Fischer titrator, also known as a KF titrator, is used to determine the amount of water in a sample. Because the presence of water can affect many characteristics of a product, including reactivity, stability, and quality, KF titration is important to and is used in many industries. Food, oil, pharmaceutical, and semiconductor industries all use Karl Fischer titrators to maintain the quality of their products. There are two methods that can be used in Karl Fischer titration: volumetry, in which the amount of reagent that has been used determines the amount of water, and coulometry, in which an electrolysis reaction occurs and the amount of electricity used tells us the amount of water in the sample. Volumetry is appropriate to detect water amounts from 1 to 100 milligrams, while coulometry is the better choice for very small amounts of water, from 10 micrograms to 10 milligrams. When choosing the right Karl Fischer titrator, several factors should be considered, including sample size needed, if volumetric or coulometric titration is needed, time the titration will take, and how much of the process is automated and how much needs to be done by hand.