Designation: E1331 − 09

Standard Test Method for

Reflectance Factor and Color by Spectrophotometry Using
Hemispherical Geometry1
This standard is issued under the fixed designation E1331; the number immediately following the designation indicates the year of
original adoption or, in the case of revision, the year of last revision. A number in parentheses indicates the year of last reapproval. A
superscript epsilon (´) indicates an editorial change since the last revision or reapproval.

1. Scope E805 Practice for Identification of Instrumental Methods of

1.1 This test method describes the instrumental measure- Color or Color-Difference Measurement of Materials
ment of the reflection properties and color of object-color E991 Practice for Color Measurement of Fluorescent Speci-
specimens by the use of a spectrophotometer or spectrocolo- mens Using the One-Monochromator Method
rimeter with a hemispherical optical measuring system, such as E1164 Practice for Obtaining Spectrometric Data for Object-
an integrating sphere. Color Evaluation
E1345 Practice for Reducing the Effect of Variability of
1.2 The test method is suitable for use with most object- Color Measurement by Use of Multiple Measurements
color specimens. However, it should not be used for retrore-
flective specimens or for fluorescent specimens when highest 3. Terminology
accuracy is desired. Specimens having intermediate-gloss sur- 3.1 Definitions:
faces should preferably not be measured by use of this 3.1.1 The definitions in Guide E179, Terminology E284,
geometry. and Practice E1164 are applicable to this test method.
1.3 The values stated in SI units are to be regarded as
4. Summary of Test Method
standard. No other units of measurement are included in this
standard. 4.1 This test method provides a procedure for measuring the
1.4 This standard does not purport to address all of the reflectance factors of reflecting object-color specimens by
safety concerns, if any, associated with its use. It is the using a spectrophotometer or spectrocolorimeter equipped with
responsibility of the user of this standard to establish appro- a hemispherical optical measuring system such as an integrat-
priate safety and health practices and determine the applica- ing sphere.
bility of regulatory limitations prior to use. 4.2 This test method includes procedures for calibrating the
instrument and for selecting specimens suitable for precision
2. Referenced Documents measurement.
2.1 ASTM Standards:2 4.3 Most modern spectrophotometers have the capacity to
D2244 Practice for Calculation of Color Tolerances and compute the color coordinates of the specimen immediately
Color Differences from Instrumentally Measured Color following the measurement. When this is the case, the user
Coordinates must select the color system, observer, and illuminant (see
E179 Guide for Selection of Geometric Conditions for Practice E308, Procedure).
Measurement of Reflection and Transmission Properties
of Materials 5. Significance and Use
E284 Terminology of Appearance 5.1 The most direct and accessible methods for obtaining
E308 Practice for Computing the Colors of Objects by Using the color coordinates of object colors are by instrumental
the CIE System measurement using spectrophotometers or colorimeters with
either hemispherical or bidirectional optical measuring sys-
1
This test method is under the jurisdiction of ASTM Committee E12 on Color tems. This test method provides procedures for such measure-
and Appearance and is the direct responsibility of Subcommittee E12.02 on ment by reflectance spectrophotometry using a hemispherical
Spectrophotometry and Colorimetry. optical measuring system.
Current edition approved Dec. 1, 2009. Published December 2009. Originally
approved in 1990. Last previous edition approved in 2004 as E1331 – 04. DOI: 5.2 This test method is especially suitable for measurement
10.1520/E1331-09.
2
of the following types of specimens for the indicated uses
For referenced ASTM standards, visit the ASTM website, www.astm.org, or
contact ASTM Customer Service at [email protected]. For Annual Book of ASTM
(Guide E179 and Practice E805):
Standards volume information, refer to the standard’s Document Summary page on 5.2.1 All types of object-color specimens to obtain data for
the ASTM website. use in computer colorant formulation.

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 E1331 − 09
5.2.2 Object-color specimens for color assessment. 7. Specimen Selection
5.2.2.1 For the measurement of plane-surface high-gloss 7.1 For highest precision and accuracy, select specimens
specimens, the specular component should generally be ex- with the following properties:
cluded during the measurement. 7.1.1 High material uniformity and freedom from blemishes
5.2.2.2 For the measurement of plane-surface intermediate- in the area to be measured,
gloss specimens and of textured-surface specimens, including 7.1.2 Opaque specimens that have at least one plane surface,
textiles, where the first-surface reflection component may be and
distributed over a wide range of angles, measurement may be 7.1.3 Translucent specimens that have two essentially plane
made with the specular component included, but the resulting and parallel surfaces and that have a standard thickness, when
color coordinates may not correlate best with visual judgments one is specified (Practice E1164, Test Specimens).
of the color. The use of bidirectional geometry, such as 45/0 or
0/45, may lead to better correlations. 8. Calibration and Verification
5.2.2.3 For the measurement of plane-surface, low-gloss
(matte) specimens, the specular component may either be 8.1 Set the instrument for inclusion or exclusion of the
excluded or included, as no significant difference in the results specular component of reflection; set the same as will be used
should be apparent. in 8.4 (if carried out) or 9.1.
5.2.3 Specimens with bare metal surfaces for color assess- 8.2 Calibrate or verify the calibration of the following
ment. For this application, the specular component should (Practice E1164, Standardization and Material Standards):
generally be included during the measurement. 8.2.1 Zero setting of the reflectance scale (mandatory),
8.2.2 Wavelength scale (recommended), and
5.3 This test method is not recommended for measurement
of the following types of specimens, for which the use of 8.2.3 Stray-light level (optional).
bidirectional measurement geometry (0/45 or 45/0) is prefer- 8.3 Calibrate the full-scale value of the reflectance scale of
able (Guide E179): the instrument by use of the white reflectance standard (man-
5.3.1 Object-color specimens of intermediate gloss, datory). Follow the instrument manufacturer’s instructions.
5.3.2 Retroreflective specimens, and 8.4 Verify the accuracy of the instrumental data by measure-
5.3.3 Fluorescent specimens (Practice E991). ment of a series of verification standards (recommended)
5.3.3.1 When there is doubt as to whether the specular (Practice E1164, Standardization and Material Standards).
component of reflection should be included or excluded, both Select the appropriate color scales, observer, and illuminant for
measurements should be made, and the results correlated with the computation of color coordinates before measurement.
visual judgments. Thereafter, the method with higher visual NOTE 1—If the verification standards require a different selection of
correlation should be utilized. including or excluding the specular component than does 9.1, select the
5.3.3.2 When measurements of two specimens whose gloss, appropriate condition for measurement of the verification standards in 8.1,
or texture, are substantially different from each other, are to be complete 8.4; select the correct setting for specimen measurement (9.1),
repeat 8.3, and proceed to 9.2.
utilized in a color-difference comparison, generally the specu-
lar component should be included in each measurement. This
9. Procedure
has the effect of including in both measurements all the first
surface reflections whether diffuse or specular. These first 9.1 Select inclusion or exclusion of the specular component
surface reflections are subtracted from each other in the of reflection (5.2).
color-difference equation, and differences in the body color 9.2 When required, select the color scales, observer, and
remain, which is what is usually sought. illuminant for the computation of color coordinates (see
Practice E308, Procedure).
6. Apparatus
9.3 Select other options, such as wavelength range and
6.1 Spectrophotometer or spectrocolorimeter, designed for interval, when required. Follow instrument manufacturer’s
the measurement of color coordinates of reflecting specimens instructions or specified procedures.
by use of integrating-sphere geometry.
9.4 If the specimen is translucent, select specified black or
6.2 Calibration standards, either supplied by the instrument white backing material. See Practice E1164, Test Specimens,
manufacturer or obtained separately, as follows (Practice for further instructions on measuring translucent specimens.
E1164, Standardization and Material Standards):
9.5 Handle the specimen carefully; avoid touching the area
6.2.1 White standard, of hemispherical reflectance factor
to be measured. When necessary, clean the specimen by using
(mandatory). (A standard of bidirectional reflectance factor is
an agreed procedure.
not satisfactory and should not be used.)
6.2.2 Calibration standards, for (1) setting or verifying zero 9.6 Place the specimen, with backing material if required,
on the photometric scale; (2) verifying the wavelength scale; against the reflectance measurement port of the integrating
and (3) evaluating stray light (optional). sphere.
6.2.3 Verification standards, (recommended) (Practice 9.7 Measure the specimen, following the instrument manu-
E1164, Standardization and Material Standards). facturer’s instructions.

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 E1331 − 09
9.8 Transcribe the data required for the report, when not under repeatability conditions should be considered suspect to
printed by the instrument. a 95 % repeatability limit if their values differ by more than
0.08 unit, ∆E*ab.
10. Calculations 12.1.3 Reproducibility Samples—The Collaborative Testing
10.1 Perform any desired calculations of color coordinates Service’s Color and Color-Difference Collaborative Reference
that are not made automatically by the instrument (Practice Program has surveyed the precision of color and color-
D2244 and Practice E308). difference measurements by sending out pairs of painted chips
exhibiting small color differences on a quarterly basis since
1971. The specimens of these surveys consist of opaque matte
TABLE 1 Specimens, Colorimetric Values, and 95 %
Reproducibility Limits paint coated on white sealed paper stock and are distributed to
Sample # Mean L* Mean a* Mean b* 95 % Reproducibility
the respondents from the same lot of homogeneous material.
Limits in units of ∆E*ab The specimens are specifically designed to be insensitive to the
A01 41.90 4.89 -13.97 0.35 specular conditions present in the instrument, and no attempt is
C01 70.00 23.36 -10.20 0.75
A11 63.62 18.84 6.78 0.54
made to report the possible geometric conditions under which
C11 85.38 1.40 50.42 0.76 the measurements are made. Table 1 reports results from four
specimens from these survey over the two-year period from
2000 to 2002. Approximately 250 instruments are reported in
11. Report each survey. The instrument population of one of these four
surveys consisted of 55 different models from nine different
11.1 Report the following information: commercial instrument manufacturers. The most frequently
11.1.1 Specimen description (Practice E1164, Report), reported instrument model accounted for 24 % of the popula-
11.1.2 Date of measurement, tion of instruments. The top four instruments accounted for
11.1.3 Instrument parameters selected in 9.1-9.4, and 47 % of the population, and there were 25 instruments that
11.1.4 Measurement results, in the form of tables of reflec- represented a singular entry of that model in this population.
tance factor versus wavelength or color-scale values. 12.1.4 Reproducibility—Reproducibility conditions are de-
fined as measurements made in different laboratories using
12. Precision and Bias
different equipment using the same test method, each by a
12.1 Precision—The interlaboratory study leading to the different operator using specimens taken from one lot of
results expressed in this precision and bias statement was homogeneous material. Two test results made under reproduc-
conducted by a Task Group in Subcommittee E12.93 on ibility conditions should be considered suspect to a 95 %
Precision and Bias during the period July to September 2003. reproducibility limit if their values differ by more than the
The results in 12.1.2 and 12.1.4 were obtained by bootstrap values given in Table 1 under the column headed “95 %
procedures. The statistical confidence intervals computed using Reproducibility Limits.”
these procedures were obtained from standard deviations
12.2 Bias—It is not possible to determine the bias, if any, of
obtained by resampling the variance distribution rather than by
this test method because no accepted reference values are
directly calculating the standard deviation of the measurements
available for the specimens tested.
by conventional means.
12.1.1 Repeatability Samples— The specimens tested con- 12.3 The precision statistics for this test method must not be
sisted of twelve neutral and colored, high gloss ceramic tiles, treated as exact mathematical quantities that are applicable to
BCRA/Ceram Series II. The instrument population consisted all instruments, uses, and materials. There will be times when
of six different instruments in one laboratory. Each specimen differences occur that are greater than those which would be
was measured ten times on each instrument with the specular predicted by the interlaboratory study leading to these results.
component included. Color difference comparisons were made Sometimes these instances occur with greater or smaller
only between measurements of each tile made on the same frequency than the 95 % probability limit would imply. If more
instrument. The underlying data are known as the 2003 SCAI precise information is required in specific circumstances, those
data from the Munsell Color Science Laboratory.3 laboratories directly involved in a material comparison must
12.1.2 Repeatability—Repeatability conditions are defined conduct interlaboratory studies aimed at the material of inter-
as measurements made in the same laboratory using the same est.
test method by the same operator using the same equipment in 12.4 The user is also referred to Practice E1345 for infor-
the shortest possible period of time using specimens taken from mation on one potential method of increasing the precision of
one lot of homogeneous material. Two test results obtained one’s measurements.
13. Keywords
3
Proceedings 2003 ISCC-FSCT Symposium on Color and Appearance Instru-
mentation (SCAI), Chicago, IL, April 14-15, 2003, available from Inter-Society 13.1 color; hemispherical geometry; reflectance; reflectance
Color Council, 11491 Sunset Hills Rd., Reston, VA, 21190, http://www.iscc.org. factor; spectrophotometry

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