XML Data Repository Project for Rheology

The purpose of this project is to get in the general use the original IUPAC XML data and further developments and XML descendants with the co-operation of IUPAC SC workgroups, rheometer manufacturers, third-party programmers and other rheological data providers. Data storage and exchange by XML files are extensively used in other fields, laboratory instruments, software and even journal publications as an industry standard of fast and efficient data exchange between various solutions.

IUPAC (International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry) started the year 2003 with the project:
Recommendations for data presentation and storage applicable to mechanical and rheological measurements of polymers.

A major bottle neck is found for general information lack of XML possibility for data exchange with the need for public repository file samples as is standard habit in another XML data user fields.

For the company attending and producing standardized XML data, this will surely add the goodwill and their impact factor influencing later on growing sales. The start of project is informed to the IUPAC workgroup leaders of the field and at next IUPAC SC meeting will be discussed principles and procedures of the project.

Background

IUPAC Project chair Dr. Wassner from BASF wrote the year 2008 in RheoML-Documentation.pdf:

“The exchange of data between measurement equipment and spreadsheet programs like Microsoft Excel, Sigmaplot or Origin suffers from a non-standardized file format. The content of the data files differ from manufacturer to manufacturer and sometimes mandatory information is not directly contained in the data files. Since handwork is required, a lot of time is wasted to transfer all necessary data.”

Data exchange problem perverts developments for possible third-party new programs or devices otherwise coming in future available, polymer research and science. This is serious restricted factor for many software packages as it is not possible to import data just one button click. Technically the form of XML files is excellent for all software programs on different operation platforms and the standard user do not need to understand the internal procedures of data exchange.

For some odd reason general XML file has been taken very slowly in the practical use. It is very understandable that rheometer manufacturers are interested in only direct sales to polymerization plants, laboratories and institutes. Anyway the third-party use of data from different sources and devices is already wide and growing rapidly.

As for comparison elsewhere is already version 6 ThermoML-6 published: “Extension of ThermoML: The IUPAC standard for thermodynamic data communications” with several xml sample files. Google exact stop words search by "sample xml file" is found with 1.400.000hits.

We started to push this project forward as most rheometer manufacturers, many polymerization plants and the research labs of the field know us even personally and confidence is essential in our consultancy work and software sales.