CLA-2-90:S:N:N1:114 803345
Ms. Julie Petrzelka
Nippon Express USA, Inc.
184-54 149th Avenue
Springfield Gardens, NY 11413
RE: The tariff classification of Refractometers from Japan
Dear Ms. Petrzelka:
In your letter dated October 19, 1994, on behalf of NSG
Precision Cells, Inc., you requested a tariff classification ruling
on various refractometers.
The hand refractometer is a portable instrument for measuring
the concentration of an aqueous solution. The hand refractometer
contains a lens and a prism. It is used to measure the sugar
concentration of fruits such as oranges, tomatoes, apples,
strawberries, and grapes; the sugar concentration of other types of
food products, for example, carbonated beverages, nectars, tomato
juice, milk, honey, and grape wine; and the salinity of water in
seawater aquariums, in pickle preparation for controlling the
saltwater concentration of the solution, and for seawater checks.
Hand refractometers are also used in other industrial applications
such as determining the concentration of cutting oils and quenching
oils, and in animal and plant research in testing tissue samples.
The hand refractometers are Brix models ATC-1, N1, N2, N3, N4,
N10, and N20; Salinity models S10, S28, and S/Mill; and other Brix,
Honey And Refractive Index models No. 500, Honey, N3000, and R5000.
Each model of refractometer is designed for a specific type of
product or products.
The ABBE Refractometers are table refractometers. These are
designed for use in a laboratory or bench setting. The models are
the ABBE Refractometer 1T, The ABBE Refractometer for High
Temperature 2T, the ABBE Precision Refractometer 3T, and the ABBE
Refractometer for High Refractive Index Measurement 4T.
The Digital Refractometers are the PR-1, 2, 3, the DBX-55 and
the RX-1000 and RX-3000. These measure the critical angle of
optical refraction.
The applicable subheading for the hand refractometers will be
9027.50.8015, Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States
(HTS), which provides for other instruments and apparatus using
optical radiations (ultraviolet, visible, infrared), other chemical
analysis instruments. The rate of duty will be 10 percent ad
valorem.
This ruling is being issued under the provisions of Section
177 of the Customs Regulations (19 C.F.R. 177).
We require additional information in order to issue a
classification ruling on the table refractometers and the digital
refractometers. Electrical refractometers are classified in a
separate classification in the Harmonized Tariff Schedule. The
term electrical means that the instrument or device must operate
using an electrical phenomenon (for example, voltage, resistance,
etc.) which varies according to the factor being ascertained. In
order to classify the table refractometers and the digital
refractometers, we need an explanation of how these instruments
perform their measurements, with particular emphasis on whether any
electrical quantity such as resistance, voltage, etc., varies
depending on the quantity of the substance present in the sample
being measured. Also, please explain the function of the
thermometer in the operation of the table refractometers.
A copy of this ruling letter should be attached to the entry
documents filed at the time this merchandise is imported. If the
documents have been filed without a copy, this ruling should be
brought to the attention of the Customs officer handling the
transaction.
Sincerely,
Jean F. Maguire
Area Director
New York Seaport