Q-Lab's Arizona site is 30 miles from Phoenix in an area away from automotive, industrial or agricultural pollution. Arizona is a benchmark location for outdoor durability tests because of its high-intensity sunlight and high year-around temperatures.

Compared with Florida, the Arizona test site offers about 20% more sunlight, higher annual temperatures, and lower humidity. During the summer, the air temperature may reach 115°F (46°C) and a black body sensor may reach over 160°F (71°C).

Natural exposure testing is an essential part of any weathering and light stability test program. Material scientists often use "Florida Weathering" or "Arizona Weathering" as international benchmarks for material weatherability testing.  For a complete outdoor testing program, many companies test their products in both Florida and Arizona. For natural accelerated outdoor exposures, clients rely on the Q-Trac Natural Sunlight Concentrator, a service exclusively available at Q-Lab Arizona.

This extreme climate has been proven useful for certain types of testing and materials:

• Color and gloss of coatings
• Color stability, heat again, and physical properties of plastics
• Coatings on plastics
• Lightfastness an tensile strength of textiles