FTIR System and Method for Compositional Analysis of Matter

The present application is directed to a system and method for analysis of a predefined component (e.g., moisture, acid, or carbonate base content) of matter using a reagent that reacts with the predefined component to produce carbon dioxide gas. FTIR analyses are performed on contents of sealed vessels that hold a number of standard mixtures which include the reagent and a component part similar to the predefined component at different concentrations of the component part in order to derive a calibration equation that relates concentration of the predefined component to absorbance in a predefined spectral band characteristic of carbon dioxide gas concentration. FTIR analysis is performed on the contents of a sealed vessel that holds a mixture derived from a sample and the reagent. Data that characterizes concentration of the predefined component in the sample is calculated based on the absorbance in the predefined spectral band and the calibration equation.