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NY 803345




November 18, 1994

CLA-2-90:S:N:N1:114 803345

CATEGORY: CLASSIFICATION

TARIFF NO.: 9027.50.8015

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

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