Near-Infrared Reflectance Analysis by Gauss-Jordan Linear Algebra

Near-infrared reflectance analysis is an analytical technique that uses the near-infrared diffuse reflectance of a sample at several discrete wavelengths to predict the concentration of one or more of the chemical species in that sample. However, because near-infrared bands from solid samples are both abundant and broad, the reflectance at a given wavelength usually contains contributions from several sample components, requiring extensive calculations on overlapped bands. In the present study, these calculations have been performed using an approach similar to that employed in multi-component spectrophotometry, but with Gauss-Jordan linear algebra serving as the computational vehicle. Using this approach, correlations for percent protein in wheat flour and percent benzene in hydrocarbons have been obtained and are evaluated. The advantages of a linear-algebra approach over the common one employing stepwise regression are explored.