Beruflich Dokumente
Kultur Dokumente
May 2012
Practical Resources for Laboratory Scientists
Micro Raman at Pittcon
2012
Focus on Separation Science
at Pittcon
2012: Advances in
Gas Chromatography
Pittcon
2012: Laboratory
Instrumentation and Equipment
Product Showcase
New Developments in
Supercritical Fluid Chromatography
(SFC) at Pittcon
2012 Roundup of
Spectroscopy and Mass
Spectrometry
Advances in Liquid Phase
Separation at Pittcon
2012
Benchtop Basics: Tips for Buying
pH Meters and Balances
Mass Spectrometers for
Use in Clinical Diagnostics
Volume 44, Number 5
www.americanlaboratory.com
www.labcompare.com
Available on the
AL
americanlaboratory.com/ipad
AL
Faster HPLC on ANY System
Go to sigma-aldrich.com/express
1. Learn about the Fused-Core
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2. Find the phases you want (9 choices)
3. Request application support
Scan to Watch a Video
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COPYRIGHT 2012 OMEGA ENGINEERING, INC. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
omega.com
2012: Advances in
Gas Chromatography
by R.L. Stevenson................................................................................pg 12
This comprehensive review of separation science products introduced at Pittcon
2012 includes a number of GC systems and columns.
Conference Review
New Developments in Supercritical Fluid Chromatography (SFC) at
Pittcon
2012
by R.L. Stevenson...........................................................................pg 38
Instruments for liquid phase separation and an array of LC columns round out
this review.
Benchtop Basics: Tips for Buying pH Meters and Balances
by C. Smith...............................................................pg 51
Mass Spectrometers for Use in Clinical Diagnostics
by T. Keith Brock.......................................................pg 53
3
warranty
years
parts & labor
US & Canada
Controlled Environments for Optimum Cell Growth
Closed Loop HEPA Filtration
Creates an ISO Class 5 cleanroom inside the growth chamber. Air and
gas pass through 99.99% HEPA lters to create Class 100 air. Filters are
kept out of the growth chamber ensuring a contaminate free work zone.
The chamber is maintained at positive pressure to prevent potential
contaminates from entering the growth chamber.
Sensitivity and Accuracy of Gas Control
A microprocessor-based, non-dispersive, digital solid-state infrared [IR]
CO
2
sensor provides a stable drift-free output requiring less calibrations.
Precision of Elecronic Microprocessor Controls
Run by a programmable micro-controller, AutoFlow
samples input
sensors, sets control outputs, and makes necessary corrections to the
chamber environment.
Dual Sterilization Cycles - Self Cleaning System
The chamber heats up to 95C Humidied or 145C Dry for a constant
uniform high temperature on chamber walls, brackets, shelves, and water pan.
Direct Heat & Water Jacket CO2 Incubators
2100 Fernbrook Lane | Plymouth, MN 55447 | U.S.A. | 763.553.1270 | WWW.NUAIRE.COM
Made in the
experience
[ constant contamination control ]
2012
by B. Foster..................................................................................pg 6
Industry News and Events...............................................................pg 55
Advertising Index.......................................................................pg 56
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Achieving Precise and Accurate Sulfur Determination
in Ultra-Low Sulfur Diesels, Biodiesels, and Jet Fuels
Using Direct Injection Technology
by A. Seipel
On-Line Articles
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Polar Series
Cooling/Heating Recirculating Chillers
Up to 500 watts of cooling
ThermoChill Series
Recirculating Chillers
Up to 2000 watts of cooling
ThermoFlex Series
Recirculating Chillers
Up to 24,000 watts of cooling
Editors Page
M
icro Raman was big news at
Pittcon
2012
by Barbara Foster
In Figure 2, for example, a rubys chro-
mium R2 photoluminescence band was
used to reveal internal stress First, the
surface was indented Next, using move-
able plane slices within the volume, spec-
tra were displayed from three different
perspectivesin this case, two planes per-
pendicular to the surface across the cen-
ter of the indent, and a third in a plane
below the indent Data like these help
materials scientists understand deforma-
tion and fracture mechanisms
Micro Raman for the
nonresearch user
Micro Raman is not just for the research
lab, however B&W Tek (wwwbwtekcom)
introduced the new BAC151A Video Mi-
croscope Sampling System (Figure 3) The
new system is compatible with all B&W
Tek Raman probes, featuring XY control
with coarse and fine adjustments as well as
Z-axis to focus the laser on the desired plane
to maximize the Raman signal An optional
dual laser configuration offers input for two
different lasers through a single port The
integrated camera facilitates precise Raman
sampling through BWSpec, permitting
both laser beam tracking and image capture
Enwave (wwwenwaveoptcom) takes a simi-
lar approach with the Sense line, which
uses fiber optics and video to connect Ra-
man to laboratory-based stands
Figure 1 - Nanodiamond in polymer matrix: a) 1 m diamond (center speck) in polymer matrix (yellow circle), b) Raman spectrum without DSF, and c) Raman spectrum
with DSF revealing clean spectrum of diamond without interference of fluorescence background or Raman signal from the matrix.
The NEW SevenCompact
Meters
Convenient CONNECTIVITY and Extensive SECURITY
www.mt.com/SevenCompact
Introducing SevenCompact - the versatile new family of pH/Ion and Conductivity meters from
METTLER TOLEDO, featuring powerful security and connectivity in a compact, easy-to-use meter:
Barcode reader, keyboard, USB stick or PC with LabX software connect your lab
Magnetic stirrer option programmable for stirring before or during measurement
Intelligent Sensor Management (ISM
2012 was
the absence of Agilent (www
agilentcom) and PerkinElmer
(wwwperkinelmercom) This was a con-
sequence of an overall downsizing caused
by the six-year effect where the cycles of
ACHEMA and Analytica coincide Many
firms are reluctant to increase promo-
tional spending, so compromises must
be made The reduction of spending at
Pittcon was evident across the board, but
was particularly strong in GC Twenty
years ago, Pittcon was viewed by spec-
troscopists as the worlds largest meeting
in separation science Slowly at first, the
focus shifted: At Pittcon 2012, spectros-
copy clearly dominated the exhibition
New gas chromatographs
SCION GC/MS systems
Bruker (wwwbdalcom) has a long his-
tory of innovation in mass spectrometry,
so when the company acquired the Varian
GC and quadrupole mass spectrometers,
I expected interesting advances It didnt
take long The new SCION SQ (single
quadrupole) and TQ (triple quadrupole)
GC/MS systemswhich won the Pittcon
Editors Silver Awardutilize unique ion
optics to improve signal-to-noise For ex-
ample, the TQ uses an elliptical ion path
to cancel out noise Plus, active focusing of
the helium molecules reduces dispersion,
which improves peak heights
Focus on Separation Science at Pittcon
2012:
Advances in Gas Chromatography
Conference Review
The mass spectrometers are designed to
enable the nonspecialist to use the power
of MS detection without the hassle of com-
plicated method setup and data analysis
For example, the SCION TQ GC/MS/
MS facilitates multiple reaction monitor-
ing (MRM) The operator enters the name
of the analyte, and the MRMs autofill
from a library of 2500 analytes Support-
ing application notes for food, beverage,
environmental, forensics, sports medi-
cine, and petrochemicals are available
When coupled to either the Bruker 436
or 451 GC, the entire package has a very
small footprint The 451 GC has flame
ionization detection (FID), electrochemi-
cal detection (ECD), thermal conductiv-
ity detection (TCD), thermionic specific
detecton (TSD), and pulsed flame photo-
metric detection (PFPD) options Other
options include purge and trap, program-
mable temperature vaporizer (PTV), and
solid probe inlets
Bruker also upgraded the software to the
CompassCDS 30 Scalable Software So-
lution As the name implies, the software
scales from a single instrument and PC to
multiple chromatographs in a client server
mode Specific applications such as natural
gas, transformer oil PIONA, and simulated
distillation are supported via application-
specific plug-in modules The Compass-
CDS is 21 CFR Part 11-compliant, with
audit trails and encrypted all-in-one
data files
GCMS-QP2010 SE GC/MS
Entry-level quadrupole mass spectrometers
continue to decline in price, reflecting
improved design and higher unit volume,
which justifies more tooling To seize this
advantage, Shimadzu Scientific Instru-
ments (wwwssishimadzucom) introduced
the GCMS-QP2010 SE The design focuses
on economy and simple operation of ba-
sic features Ion optics are optimized with
a high-performance quadrupole mass fil-
ter Fully automated MS tuning provides
consistent results The instrument can
use most common columns, provided the
carrier gas flow is no greater than 4 mL/
min The SE also includes an ecology mode
that reduces function and electrical power
by about 50% when the run sequence has
been completed
Company founders Genzo Shimadzu, Sr
(18391894) and Genzo Shimadzu, Jr
(18691951) were honored as recipients of
the 2012 Pittcon Heritage Award for their
contributions to metrology The senior
Shimadzu founded the firm in 1875 to pro-
vide service to imported instruments and
also manufacture distillation devices and
Atwood machines (accelerometers) The
younger Shimadzu expanded the firm into
balances and spectrographs, including X-ray
TRACE 1300 Series GC
In many labs, each GC is dedicated to a
single application, often operating 24/7
They are optimized at purchase for the
by Robert L. Stevenson
AMERICAN LABORATORY 12 MAY 2012
Key developments in separation science shown at Pittcon
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AMERICAN LABORATORY 17 MAY 2012
Stir bar for the Twister
(wwwgerstelcom) is a
simple, economical technique for extracting
and concentrating analytes from solutions
Extraction efficiency depends on partition-
ing between the sorbent on the stir bar and
the sample matrix This year, the company
introduced the EG-S ethylene glycol-silicone
coated magnetic stir bar, which provides po-
lar (H-bonding) selectivity to complement
the PDMS sorbent PDMS preferentially
sorbs nonpolar analytes Use of both bars
provides an overall analyte profile of volatile
and semivolatile organic compounds After
sorbing the analytes, the Twister bar is load-
ed in a thermal desorption injector to the
GC Since the EG-S bar also sorbs some wa-
ter, the solvent vent mode is recommended
The EG-S phase has a T
max
of 220 C
Sample drying
PowerVap Concentrator
Dryng samples is probably the biggest
time sink in most sample preps for chro-
matography If one is not careful, sam-
ples can be overdried and thus destroyed
With these and other pain points in
mind, Fluid Management Systems in-
troduced the PowerVap Concentrator, a
standalone direct-to-vial concentration
system that processes up to six samples
in parallel but with individual control of
each For example, the evaporation/dry-
ing of material in each of the the six wells
is monitored continuously with optical
sensors When the endpoint is reached,
the flow of drying nitrogen is turned off,
along with the heater The sample is col-
lected in a 500-L or 1-mL autosampler
vial, which is attached to the bottom of
the larger sample tube
MultiPurpose Sampler
A similar sample-drying module was intro-
duced by GERSTEL GmbH & Co. (www
gersteluscom) for the MultiPurpose Sam-
pler (MPS) Samples are concentrated un-
der user-defined temperature and vacuum
Solvent exchange for improved detector
compatibility is a common task that can
be selected by a mouse click in a sequence
footprint, opening up new design possibili-
ties for the lab The clean sweep flow path
quickly flushes residual gas, which can be a
concern after changing cylinders
With good reason, many labs locate the gas
supply outside the laboratory Airgas pre-
sented Analytical Series Point-of-Use Mani-
folds, which are intended for high-purity
gas use (999999 percent pure) These man-
ifolds incorporate a packless diaphragm
inlet valve, compact regulator (above), and
outlet metering valve, providing gas control
at the bench Multiple manifolds can be
mounted onto a single back plate so that
all gases are in the same panel
Injection syringes
Diamond Design
As detection limits in GC/MS get smaller,
chromatographers are discovering design
problems that had not been seen before
Take the common syringeSGE (wwwsge
com) found that the old design occasionally
had problems with carryover traced to the
adhesive that joins the needle hub to the
glass barrel Occasionally, the adhesive was
not filled to the end, leaving an exposed
annulus, or the adhesive could contact and
thus contaminate the sample To eliminate
this, SGE introduced the Diamond De-
sign, in which a PTFE seal isolates the bar-
rel from the metal tip This also increases
syringe lifetime by 10 times
Solid-phase extraction
SPE-Xpress
US EPA Method 1664 for oil and grease
just got easier with the introduction of the
SPE-XPress from Environmental Express
(wwwenvexpcom) Each unit is capable of
processing three 1-L water samples in paral-
lel with a throughput of about 1/hr/station
The SPE-XPress filters a 1-L sample and ex-
tracts the oil and grease from the SPE disk
with n-hexane The hexane solution is col-
lected in a tared aluminum pan, where it is
evaporated to dryness and ready for weigh-
ing User-friendly software controls internal
steps, such as verification of complete sam-
ple processing and conditioning of the SPE
disk, plus makes data available to a LIMS
Thursday, April 19, 2012 11:22:50 AM
Color profile: Disabled
AMERICAN LABORATORY 18 MAY 2012
table The MPS is used in GC, HPLC, and MS GERSTEL also
introduced a shaker module for the MPS, which provides either
shaking or vortexing up to 3000 rpm Up to eight vials can be pro-
cessed at a time Mixing movement is restricted to horizontal mo-
tion, which prevents sample loss on the vial cap
Hydrogen generators for GC
Gas chromatography columns generally run better when hy-
drogen is the carrier gas Plus, FIDs require hydrogen with
very low organic contamination The choice is usually between
hydrogen generators and high-pressure tanks Hydrogen gen-
erators have certainly improved F-DGS SAS (wwwf-dgscom)
exhibited a line of hydrogen generators for GC, including
generators for multiple instruments Hydrogen purity is better
than 6 nines; maximum delivery pressure is 240 psi Residual
water is removed with a desiccant cartridge Control is via a
128 64 touchscreen Water is from a 23-L internal reser-
voir or can be plumbed directly from an external source of 10-
megohm water or higher No acid or base is required
Columns for gas
chromatography
Rtx
-BAC columns
New columns for assay of blood alcohol
from Restek (wwwrestekcom/BACPlus)
provide rapid (<2 min) isothermal, base-
line separation of ethanol, methanol, ac-
etone, tert-butanol, acetaldehyde, isopro-
panol, and n-propanol The two-column
set (BAC-1 and BAC-2) give chromato-
grams with changes in elution order,
for confirmation of peak identification
Each column is individually tested with
a BAC test mix
Secondary columns
for CGC
Secondary columns in GCGC need
to be fast (ie, short) and with broad
selectivity Restek introduced the Rtx
200 series (wwwrestekcom/catalog/
view/32442/15124) as secondary col-
umns with a trifluoropropyl surface
chemistry that provides orthogonal
selectivity to phenyl, cyano, and Carbo-
wax stationary phases The Rtx 200 col-
umns are thermally stable, low bleed,
and compatible with difficult analytes
such as phenols T
max
is 340 C
RT
-Alumina Bond/
MAPD columns
Because of high selectivity, alumi-
na is often preferred for separating
light petroleum factions containing
C2C5, including olefins Restek
RT
)
MXT
-Q-BOND columns
Metal columns are more robust and hence
suitable for portable instruments Restek
metal MXT
II
high-definition digital particle size ana-
lyzer was highlighted This digital particle
size analyzer uses light scattering to detect
particles from 40 nm to 25 mm
The WAVE Series electroacoustic and con-
ductivity pore analyzers from Quantachrome
Instruments (wwwquantachromecom) were
demonstrated at Pittcon These pore charac-
terization systems can measure pore size
range of 10 nm5 m, +01 mV min pore
at less than 51 dBA, remote monitoring
from a computer or smart phone, secu-
rity compliance and tracking, simulation
protocols saving time and sample, and
energy efficiency Available in two models
(XE and XPN), these ultracentrifuges can
reach a maximum of 100,000 rpm and
802,000 g
Laboratory mill
The Ultra Centrifugal Mill ZM 200
(Figure 2) with a new cyclone from
RETSCH (wwwretschcom) is a laborato-
ry rotor mill with a speed range of 6000
18,000 rpm for fine grinding of samples
in various applications, including envi-
ronmental, pharmaceuticals, materials,
and food Featuring a newly redesigned
cyclone, the ZM 20 rotor mill improves its
flexibility for sample preparation of 250-
mL to 5-L volumes
The 6970 EFM Freezer/Mill from SPEX
SamplePrep (wwwspexsampleprepcom)
was showcased with new program functions
This laboratory freezer/mill can maintain
samples at liquid nitrogen temperature
without direct contact to liquid nitrogen
It is also capable of milling samples ranging
from 05 to 100 g for various applications,
such as pharmaceuticals, materials testing,
pathology, and environmental
Laboratory evaporator
The RapidVap Vertex evaporator from
Labconco Corporation (wwwlabconco
com) processes samples using dry heat
and the nitrogen blow-down method
for applications in drug discovery,
environmental, forensic testing, and
clinical analysis With a capacity of up to
50 samples in the same run, the Rapid-
Vap dry evaporator is ETL, ETL-C, and
CE compliant
Laboratory concentrator
Labconco Corporation also featured
the RevElution Bio-Concentrator This
bio-concentrator system features a small
footprint that can concentrate liquid
microbial samples at 100 mL/min with
90% analyte recovery With no risk of
AMERICAN LABORATORY 24 MAY 2012
LABORATORy INSTRUMENTATION AND EqUIPMENT continued
Dual beam microscope
FEI Company (wwwfeicom) showcased the Versa 3D
DualBeam microscope, which provides three-dimensional imag-
ing and analysis for a variety of sample types Capable of running
both a high-vacuum and low-vacuum mode, electron beam and
ion beam resolution will vary This flexible configuration also al-
lows characterization of materials with an additional environmen-
tal scanning electron microscope (ESEM) mode option
Hyperspectral imaging system
The new HI 90 hyperspectral imaging system from Bruker Cor-
poration (wwwbrukercom) is an imaging system based on remote
chemical sensing for the determination and quantification of haz-
ardous gases With scanning speeds 1000 times faster than tradi-
tional systems, the HI 90 system has a range of applications in-
cluding environmental testing, forensics, and homeland security
The imaging is a result of real-time video overlay and hyperspectral
imaging with standard 8501440 cm
1
spectral range
Laboratory instrumentation
Automatic biochemistry analyzer
Newly introduced at the conference, the YSI 2900 biochemistry
analyzer from YSI Inc. (wwwysilifesciencescom) automates the
biochemical analysis of a wide range of analytes, such as glucose,
lactate, ethanol, choline, and sucrose with analysis time of 60 sec
or less Equipped with a proprietary enzyme electrode, this bio-
chemistry analyzer can provide fast and analyte-specific results in
a variety of samples for applications in bioprocessing, food and
beverage, biofuels, and clinical laboratory testing
Flow calorimeter
TTP Labtech (wwwttplabtechcom) introduced the chipCAL, a
microliter flow calorimeter for rapid screening and optimization
of enzyme analysis and characterization The chipCAL nearly auto-
mates the analysis of enzyme activity within 210 min With only
as small as a 15-L sample, this flow calorimeter cuts down on the
zeta potential, and 05% porosity resolution of various sample types
in chromatography, materials, or environmental applications
Malvern Instruments Ltd. (wwwmalverncom) showcased the
new Mastersizer 3000 laser diffraction particle size analyzer with
small benchtop footprint Capable of analyzing both dry and wet
samples, the Mastersizer 3000 particle size analyzer measures par-
ticle size distribution from 001 to 3500 m
The new CAMSIZER XT particle analyzer from RETSCH en-
ables the measurement of particle sizes from 1 m to 3 mm for
finer samples (wet or dry), including shape, quantity, density, and
transparency Improved optical resolution allows the particle size
analyzer to improve product quality for materials, food, and phar-
maceutical applications
Microscopy/imaging
Microscope Digital Camera
The new BLC line of Microscope Digital Cameras with an LCD
tablet was introduced by Carltex Inc. (wwwcarltexcom) These
new microscope tablet cameras provide comparable quality images
to CCD cameras; are easy to install; and provide 2 megapixels,
1600 1200 resolution This high-definition laboratory digital
tablet camera has key applications in laboratory research and aca-
demic learning environments
Scanning electron microscope
The Phenom proX desktop scanning electron microscope (SEM)
from Phenom-World BV (wwwphenom-worldcom) is a three-
dimensional imaging system with magnification of 8045,000
The Phenom proX SEM can perform 30 sec or less sample load-
ing Equipped with an energy-dispersive spectroscopy (EDS) detec-
tor as well, the Phenom proX is also an X-ray analysis system since
the samples elemental composition can also be determined
Figure 3 - CIA Advantage.
Figure 4 - SC 950 vacuum pump. Watch video at http://goo.gl/yAR4v.
AMERICAN LABORATORY 25 MAY 2012
for Karl Fischer and potentiometric titrations These compact titra-
tors come in many different versions for respective applications
Laboratory equipment
Laboratory vacuum pump
KNF Neuberger Inc. (wwwknfcom) introduced the new SC
950 vacuum pump system (Figure 4) This vacuum pump short-
ens the processing time of solvents with a high pumping capac-
ity of 50 L/min and deep end vacuum of 15 Torr The SC 950
laboratory vacuum pump system has a small footprint and is
available with wireless remote With four operating modes,
the laboratory vacuum pump is flexible for a variety of labora-
tory applications
Laboratory diaphragm pump
Vacuubrand (wwwvacuubrandcom) featured the ME1 line of
Compact Oil-Free Diaphragm Pumps These diaphragm pumps al-
low for efficient single or multiple filtrations in a compact design
With 75 Torr (100 mbar) ultimate vacuum and 14 1pm (05 cfm)
free air capacity, the ME1 diaphragm pumps provide quiet and low
vibration operation for a variety of applications, such as chemistry,
microbiology, and environmental testing
Fume Hood
The new UniMax Floor Mounted Fume Hood was announced
by HEMCO Corporation (wwwhemcocorpcom) This line of
laboratory walk-in fume hoods is available in a variety of sizes and
can easily accommodate systems such as distillation apparatus and
reactors The UniMax Fume Hood features a modular design that
is chemical resistant, allowing for customization of designs for an
individual laboratorys requirements
Glassware washer
The System4Lab glassware washer cleaning solution (Figure 5) was
showcased by Miele (wwwmiele-procom) This solution includes
a laboratory glassware washer, lab service, glassware detergents,
amount of precious sample needed to provide low-cost biological
assay analysis With the potential for high-throughput screening,
applications for the chipCAL flow calorimeter include the food,
fermentation, and biopharma industries
Refractometer
The new Pro-Juice refractometer from Bellingham + Stanley
(wwwbs-ltdcom), featured for its application in food and bev-
erage testing, was designed to overcome repeatability issues ex-
perienced when using conventional refractometers The refrac-
tometer prevents irregular measurements through the use of a
peristaltic pump and provides thermal conditioning treatment
for premeasurement of the sample to provide overall consistent
and reliable results
VOC analysis system
Markes International (wwwmarkescom) showcased the CIA
Advantage, an automated volatile organic compound (VOC)
analysis system designed for canister air and gas (Figure 3) This
cryogen-free VOC analyzer is fully US EPA Method TO-14/15
compliant With a detection limit of <01 ppb, the CIA Advantage
can analyze both high- and low-concentration samples, and can
easily add to all major GC and GC/MS systems
pH meter
Senova Systems Inc. (wwwsenovasystemscom) announced at the
show the new pHit pH Sensor, a calibration-free, solid-state pH
meter Replacing traditional glass electrodes, the pHit eliminates
the need for calibration It also eliminates the need for expen-
sive buffers and overall maintenance This new pH sensor has
wet-dry reversible use to provide versatility for typical research or
medical applications
Pipette testing system
BrandTech Scientific Inc. (wwwbrandtechcom) showcased the
new BRAND PLT Pipette Leak Testing Unit This useful pipette
leak tester validates the functionality of pipettes to ensure accurate
performance in the lab without having to send pipettes out for
calibration The easy-to-use PLT can detect air displacement and
leak rate at 1hPa ml/s
Liquid handling robotic system
Metrohm USA (wwwmetrohmusacom) presented the 898 XYZ
Sample Changer, a liquid handling robotic system The sample
changer automates the analysis of many samples with up to
82-sample capacity
Titrator
The Ti-Touch Titrator Series from Metrohm USA was also fea-
tured These new compact titrators for routine analysis are available
AMERICAN LABORATORY 26 MAY 2012
and an application support laball under
a five-year limited warranty
Laboratory counting scale
Adam Equipment (wwwadamequipment
com) unveiled a new line of weighing
scales, the Warrior
wash-down scales A
robust design from
stainless steel pro-
vides stability for
a variety of weigh-
ing applications, in
particular, those for
pharmaceutical and
cleanroom require-
ments In addition
to standard weigh-
ing, the Warrior
scale line also can
provide percentage,
dynamic, animal,
and check weigh-
ing, and parts and check counting These
laboratory scales provide measurement in
grams, kilograms, ounces, pounds, and
Newtons, in various languages including
English, Spanish, French, and German
Water purification system
RephiLe Bioscience Ltd. (wwwrephile
com) introduced both the new, large
Direct-Pure EDI water systems and large
Direct-Pure RO water systems The EDI
water system has a water production rate
of 30120 L/hr, whereas the reverse os-
mosis water system can product 50150
L/hr (depending on the model) Designed
for larger laboratories and applications
in buffer/media preparation, feedwater
for ultrapure water systems, and chemical
analysis, these two high-flow water systems
can process up to 2000 L of water per day
Laboratory consumables
Certified reference
standards
SPEX CertiPrep (wwwspexcertiprep
com) introduced new certified reference
standards for trace metals Primarily for
food testing, in particular the wine indus-
try, these wine standards are offered for
both red and white wine for trace metal
analysis Available in 21 mL, these trace
metal standards also provide additional
sample information, such as alcohol con-
tent, sulfite, and chloride levels
LABORATORy INSTRUMENTATION AND EqUIPMENT continued
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Laboratory software
The ACD/Spectrus Workbooks by
Advanced Chemistry Development, Inc.
(wwwacdlabscom) was launched at the
show This new laboratory software solu-
tion is equipped with techniques specific
for analytical characterization in spec-
troscopy, spectrometry, and separation
science The ACD/Spectrus laboratory
software can capture analytical data and
chemical structure for data processing and
interpretation for these various laboratory
analytical techniques
Conclusion
Pittcon, the premier exhibition for intro-
ducing the latest laboratory instrumenta-
tion and equipment, will be held next year
at the Pennsylvania Convention Center
in Philadelphia, the City of Brotherly
Love The dates are March 1721, 2013
Compare and learn more about these new
products and other laboratory equipment
at wwwlabcomparecom
Jeanely Hunt is Content Editor for American Laboratory/
Labcompare; e-mail: jhunt@americanlaboratory.com.
Contact us for a free trial copy of Quansoft
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T
hirty years ago, supercritical
fluid chromatography (SFC)
was described optimistically as
the mode of the future, uni-
fying and replacing GC and HPLC for
many applications Although this has not
happened yet, Waters (wwwwaterscom)
clearly has the vision now Waters has
enjoyed 20/20 vision in the past, so lets
check back in 2020
ACqUITy UPC
2
, including the
ACQUITY
2012:
20/20 Vision?
Conference Review
During the Q&A following the formal
introduction, Art Caputo, President of
Waters, predicted that UPC
2
will grow
quickly and relegate HPLC and GC to niche
techniques in eight years He pointed out
that ACQUITY technology was introduced
eight years ago, and today the LC business is
dominated by ultrahigh-performance liquid
chromatography (UHPLC) Point made!
Lets look at the advantages first: Waters
believes that UPC
2
is ideal for tough-to-
analyze compounds, including hydro-
phobics and chirals, lipids, fuels, natural
products, surfactants, and thermally labile
analytes As an example, Waters showed an
18-peak chromatogram of mixed analytes
complete in less than 8 min The peaks are
very narrow A side-by-side comparison of an
impurity profile with reversed-phase liquid
chromatography (RPLC) confirms that SFC
can be much more efficient, and also has or-
thogonal selectivity
Now for the limitations: SFC of polar mole-
cules needs to be worked out SFC still works
best for chloroform-soluble analytes Perhaps
someone will develop SFC-HILIC (hydro-
philic interaction chromatography) technol-
ogy for polars Also, SFC has not shown util-
ity for analytes larger than about 10,000 Da
Will it work for membrane proteins? This
is a difficult application segment for HPLC
and UHPLC Then there is the cost of in-
strumentsSFC is a bit more expensive than
UHPLC This difference could be made up
by improved productivity and lower mobile
phase cost But an SFC costs four times as
much as a comparable GC The cost of mo-
bile phase in GC is low, especially if one uses
hydrogen generators, so the economics are
not favorable Historically, the rate of conver-
sion to a superior technology (eg, capillary
columns replacing packed columns) in GC is
only about 3% per year
New preparative SFC
Chiral separations are the most often-
cited advantage of SFC, both on the ana-
lytical and preparative scale JASCO (www
jascoinccom) introduced the Prep-2088
preparative SFC, which features a circular
dichroic (CD) detector, optimized mobile
phase pumps, and backpressure regulator
The CO
2
pump has a cooled pump head
Maximum flow is 120 mL/min with a P
max
of 5000 psi The modifier pump has a maxi-
mum flow of 80 mL/min The new back-
pressure regulator keeps the system stable,
irrespective of the flow Constant pressure is
essential to control solubility
One example in the press conference that
introduced the Prep-2088 showed a chiral
separation of two enantiomers that provided
resolution of about 07, which means that
the valley between the two-peak maxima is
a mixture Using the CD signal as a guide,
the operator collected the leading edge of
the first peak and the trailing edge of the last
peak The middle valley, which is a mixed
fraction, was collected for reinjection This
is not a new concept in prep, but the conve-
nience and performance of the 2088 appears
to qualify as a major advance
SFC columns
In the past, chromatographers chose col-
umns for SFC from the long list of HPLC
columns This worked, but it is now appar-
ent that SFC can be improved with columns
that have been designed, packed, and tested
for SFC
BEH 2-EP, CSH Fluoro-
Phenyl, and HSS C18 SB
In support of the UPC
2
, Waters introduced
three columns and promised one more
Each is specifically optimized for SFC
by Robert L. Stevenson
AMERICAN LABORATORY 28 MAY 2012
Y
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AMERICAN LABORATORY 29 MAY 2012
future, you should consider this as part of column scouting for
method development
Advances in liquid phase separations chromatography from
Pittcon
) (wwwpittconorg/
exhibitors/attendstatsphp) As always,
the conference is an opportunity for tech-
nology vendors to get face time with their
customers, and for researchers to glimpse
the latest and greatest those companies
have to offer This years Pittcon featured
948 exhibitors, from A&D Weighing to
Zoex, promoting products to support a
range of technologies and industries Here,
American Laboratory rounds up some of the
more interesting product launches in spec-
troscopy and mass spectrometry
NMR spectrometer
picoSpin-45L
The picoSpin-45L benchtop NMR spec-
trometer (wwwpicospincom), available
from Cole-Parmer (wwwcoleparmercom),
is a 45-MHz NMR weighing just 105 lb (47
kg) Intended primarily for educational labs,
reaction monitoring, and QA/QC laborato-
ries, the fully integrated, compact device (7
575 115) features a permanent (as op-
posed to superconducting) magnet, mean-
ing it requires no liquid nitrogen or helium,
and uses a standard AC adapter so that it
can be easily moved around and plugged in
where needed An Ethernet port facilitates
data collection
The picoSpin-45L requires no NMR
tubes; samples (20 L) are injected into a
user-replaceable capillary sample loop, and
though it requires relatively concentrated
samples (>1 M for dissolved solids or >1%
v/v liquids), it does not require deuterated
solvents, says Alex Zhang, Marketing Asso-
Pittcon
from
B&W Tek also plans to introduce an app so
that live readings can be monitored remotely
Xantus-2-785/1064
Rigaku Raman Technologies (www
rigakuramancom) also unveiled a hand-
held, Wi-Fi-enabled Raman device, the Xan-
tus-2-785/1064, which the company calls
the worlds first dual wavelength handheld
Raman analyzer
The compact (138 cm 274 cm 98
cm), 81-lb Xantus-2 can excite samples at
both 785 nm (as most handhelds do, using
a CCD detector) and 1064 nm (using an
InGaAs detector) According to Product
Marketing Manager Elizabeth Yarbrough,
this dual-wavelength capability means the
device can obtain a Raman reading even
with samples that fluoresce at 785 nm
In the pharmaceuticals industry, you can
see 30% more material at 1064 nm than at
785 nm, because so much of it fluoresces
at 785 nm, she says The same is true of
explosives; the explosive mixture known
NanoRam
B&W Tek Inc. (wwwbwtekcom) rolled out its
NanoRam handheld Raman spectrometer
The 1-kg NanoRam looks a bit like a Nintendo
handheld game system, but with an iPhone-like
user interface According to Marketing Manag-
er Robert Chimenti, that makes the NanoRam
exceptionally easy to learn At Pittcon, he says,
users could figure out how to use it in seconds,
without documentation Think of it like a
voltmeter, he explainsa tool to facilitate end
users applications rather than as an analytical
research instrument, per se
The NanoRam features a cooled charge-cou-
pled device (CCD) detector for greater stabil-
ity and signal-to-noise ratios, and real-time
Wi-Fi connectivity This means that data can
not only be offloaded to databases or to su-
pervisors for go/no-go decisions, but also that
method, library, and software updates can be
pushed to the instruments as needed That
said, Chimenti notes that each NanoRam can
function as a standalone unit if desired You
can create and manage libraries, develop meth-
ods Its a completely standalone instrument
UV-Protective Eye
and Face Wear
Specially designed to
protect users against
unwanted UV exposure.
UV Transilluminators
Deliver superior irradiance uniformity and UV intensity
for all viewing and photodocumentation needs.
UV Bench and Display Lamps
Lamps with various wattages and UV
wavelengths provide both high intensity
and wide area of light coverage.
UV Crosslinkers
Provide accurate, error-free and super-fast
membrane crosslinking and sample UV dosing.
AccuMAX Digital Meters
Advanced microprocessor-controlled units
with software-driven functions. Ensure max-
imum accuracy and reliability in measurement
of UV and visible light sources.
MiniMAX UV Viewing Station
Space-saving mini-cabinet and UV lamp
combination makes the perfect portable
UV viewing station. Light weight and compact.
Life science and laboratory research professionals depend on high-quality Spectroline
4500
AB SCIEX (wwwabsciexcom) intro-
duced two 4500 series LC/MS/MS
systems, the TripleQuad 4500 and
QTRAP
DP-1000
Winning the Bronze Award at Pittcon 2012 was the LAESI
DP-
1000 ionization source from Protea Biosciences (http://proteabio
com/LAESI) LAESI (laser ablation electrospray ionization) is an
ionization method in which a midinfrared laser (2940 nm) excites
the OH bonds of untreated aqueous (eg, biological) samples under
ambient conditions, ablating the sample, which is then ionized in an
electrospray It can be used to raster across a sample, such as a leaf, in
situ, producing a two-dimensional spatial mapthat is, a mass spec-
tral imageof molecular abundance By ablating repeatedly, users
can also generate 3-D maps as well, for instance to show metabolite
abundance in the various layers of a tissue
The LAESI DP-1000 is compatible with Thermo Fisher Scientific
and Waters (wwwwaterscom) mass spectrometers At Pittcon,
Waters and Protea (wwwproteabiocom) announced a co-marketing
agreement to make the DP-1000 available to new and existing users
SPECTROSCOPy AND MASS SPECTROMETRy continued
Nasco Whirl-Pak Division
American Laboratory
May 2012
AL1205
AL1205
AMERICAN LABORATORY 37 MAY 2012
Conclusion
Naturally, even this extensive list represents just a sampling of the
many technologies launched or showcased at Pittcon 2012 And new
techniques are in development, for instance on the single-molecule
level WE Moerner, Chair of the Department of Chemistry at Stan-
ford University and this years winner of the Pittsburgh Spectroscopy
Award, has spent nearly three decades developing the single-molecule
spectroscopy techniques underlying one of todays hottest life-science
technologies: super-resolution, single-molecule microscopy
Bulk spectroscopic analyses are not going away, Moerner says But
they will be ever more complemented by single-molecule studies, ac-
cording to him, at least in the life sciences, as researchers work to
understand how enzymes, antenna proteins, and other biological
macromolecules-proteins work Given that cells are factories made
of individual machineswe can learn a lot by going to the single
molecule level, he says
Well find out just how much we can learn when Pittcon 2013 con-
venes March 17 in Philadelphia
Jeffrey Perkel, Ph.D., is a Contributing Writer for American Laboratory/
Labcompare; e-mail: jeffrey.perkel@gmail.com.
of Waters SYNAPT G2 and SYNAPT G2-S mass spectrometers run-
ning under MassLynx
control
expression Compact Mass Spectrometer
Advion Inc. (http://advioncom/biosystems /expression) announced
the commercial availability of its expression Compact Mass Spec-
trometer (CMS) Measuring just 106 216, the expression CMS is
a personal single-quadrupole mass spectrometer that is small enough
for chemical fumehoods and laboratories that have limited space
Featuring easily interchangeable electrospray ionization (ESI) and at-
mospheric pressure chemical ionization (APCI) sources for LC/MS,
a mass range of m/z 10 to m/z 1200, and a resolution of <07 m/z
units, the expression CMS was developed for the discovery research
and process development synthetic organic chemistry market, enabling
real-time reaction monitoring and compound identification
BenchTOF-dx
ALMSCO International (wwwalmscocom), the mass spectrometry di-
vision of Markes International Ltd. (wwwmarkescom), showcased the
BenchTOF-dx benchtop time-of-flight mass spectrometer Intended
for GC/MS, the BenchTOF-dx has applications in the food and bever-
age and petroleum industries, environmental analysis, and drug testing
The TOF/MS provides full-range spectra at the sensitivity levels of quad-
rupole instruments running in selected ion monitoring (SIM) mode
MMS-1000
1st Detect Corporation (www1stDetectcom) announced the intro-
duction of the MMS-1000 miniature mass spectrometer, an ion
trap mass spectrometer measuring just 75 125 9 and weigh-
ing less than 17 lb With a sensitivity of 1 ppt and a resolution of un-
der 05 Da FWHM, the MMS-1000 delivers rapid MS/MS detection
of trace levels of volatile compounds in around 5 sec
Microchannel plates
PHOTONIS USA (wwwphotoniscom) announced in February the
availability of a new long-life, low-noise (L3N) option for its micro-
channel plates, which among other things, are components in time-
of-flight detectors Applications in which the background noise of
the particular application is lower than the noise of the detector can
especially benefit from the low noise option
MASS-tastic Voyage 2012 bus tour
Phenomenex and AB SCIEX kicked off a 30-city cross-country bus tour
called the MASS-tastic Voyage 2012, a mobile labmodeled on the semi-
tractor trailers used to haul NASCAR carsshowcasing sample prepara-
tion and chromatography columns from Phenomenex and liquid chro-
matography systems and mass spectrometers from AB SCIEX According
to Phil Koerner, Senior Technical Manager at Phenomenex, the bus
hosted well over 800 visitors at Pittcon, the first stop on a voyage that will
cross the US three times before terminating in Vancouver at ASMS 2012
in May (See wwwmasstasticvoyagecom for a complete schedule)
www.anton-paar.com | Toll Free: (800) 722-7556
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DMA500_92x114mm.indd 1 25.04.12 08:14
E
ight years have passed since Waters (wwwwaterscom)
introduced the ACQUITY UPLC
2012
Conference Review
one case, only 137 peptides were found for a protein digest with
a column temperature of 20 C However, at 65 C, the peak
count increased to 303 Some of the improvement is attributed
to efficiency and some to an increase in recovery Another study
showed that running at 60 C greatly improved consistency of
relative peak heights, enabling quantitative protein profiling
Modular LCs
Analytical Technologies Ltd. (ATL) (wwwais-indiacom) is a
new name to Pittcon in HPLC and other instruments Products
include a range of modular LCs, from several analytical systems
to lab-scale prep and even larger to process-scale instruments
for bioprocessing Dedicated analyzers include ion chromatogra-
phy and amino acid Pump pressure is the most differentiating
feature of HPLC ATL offers a prep pump rated from 1500 to
4000 psi Analytical pumps start at 6000 psi and extend up to
18,000 Pre- and multipump gradient elution systems are also
available Detectors include refractive index, UV-VIS, diode ar-
ray detection (DAD), digital amperometric, fluorescence, and
evaporative light scattering Columns range from analytical to
axial compression preparative columns with diameters from 30
to 1000 mm AnalChrom chromatography workstation soft-
ware supports both preparative and analytical systems The firm
is represented in over 90 countries
Low-pressure LC components
Occasionally, I attend a press conference where the sub-
ject matter is completely different than expected This year,
SFC Fluidics
2
0
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2
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AMERICAN LABORATORY 40 MAY 2012
the membrane The volume increases, but is confined, so the
pressure increases A second impermeable flexible membrane
separates the osmotic section from the delivery fluid, which is
expelled A small controller operates the valves required for
the pumping action
The components have been assembled to make a low-pressure
LC pumping system It appears to be suitable for short columns
using plastic capillary column technology with Superdex 75
column packing (GE Life Sciences, wwwgelifesciencescom) for
separating proteins, including bovine serum albumin (BSA), ov-
albumin, myoglobin, and transferrin SFC components should
also be useful in flow injection analysis
Recycling module
From time-to-time, recycling chromatography reappears
Those who have been around long enough may recall that
Waters promoted recycling intensely to improve resolu-
tion in gel permeation chromatography (GPC) The key is
to make sure that the extracolumn band broadening, mea-
sured in volume, is small compared to the peak width Japan
Analytical Industry Co., Ltd. (JAI) (wwwjaicojp/english) in-
troduced the NEXT recycling module for all of its preparative
LCs With recycling, the effluent from the column is routed
to a detector and then back to the pump inlet for another pass
through the column In the ideal case, the chromatographic
resolution increases by the square root of number of passes
through the column Two passes give an improvement of 14,
and four cycles a twofold increase, etc JAI points out that
recycling conserves solvent use and reduces the investment
in columns
DNA analyzer based on HPCE
Despite the high resolving power, high-performance capillary
electrophoresis (HPCE) is not in the spotlight Indeed, it is
not even on stage, or even in the audience, for that matter
Slab gel electrophoresis is still the most common technol-
ogy for assaying nucleic acids and proteins However, poly-
acrylamide gel electrophoresis (PAGE) and agarose are slow,
tedious, and often insensitive compared to HPCE with gel
capillaries Improved assay technology is needed, particularly
for quantitative PCR of DNA In response, BiOptic, Inc.
(wwwbiopticcomtw) introduced the Qsep100 f luorescence
dna-CE analyzer The analyzer uses a pen-shaped gel cartridge,
which feeds the DNA sample to a laser-induced f luorescence
(LIF) HPCE The system provides 25-min separations with
high detection sensitivity (4 bp resolution at 50500 bp
range) from a 96-well plate Average %RSD in migration time
is less than 075% for a 10-run set from the same well The
unique optical design, which uses ball lenses, enables a price
point that is much lower than currently available LIF-HPCE
instruments The Qsep100 received a Pittcon Editors Award
honorable mention
Field flow fractionation interface
PostNova Analytics (wwwpostnovacom) and Malvern Instruments
Ltd. (wwwmalverncom) announced an agreement that marries the
PostNova AF2000 Series asymmetrical flow field flow fractionation
system and the centrifugal field flow fractionation system with the
Malvern Zetasizer Nano The firms developed a field flow fraction-
ation-dynamic light scattering (FFF-DLS) interface that increases the
detection sensitivity by 34 times Targeted applications include pro-
teins, ie, aggregates, and nano particles of gold, silver, and carbon
HPLC detectors
QD detector for ion chromatography
At Pittcon 2011, a lecture by Dr Kannan Srinivasan of Dionex
described a new detector idea for ions Compared to traditional
suppressed conductivity, it was within about a factor of 10 in de-
tection sensitivity, but for weak acids or bases, it was better All
ions with the same charge produced the same signal, that is, the
detector responded to normality rather than molarity A year
later, Dionex is now part of Thermo Fisher Scientific, and the
detector was introduced as the Thermo Scientific Dionex QD
The QD is the worlds first charge detector for ion chromatog-
raphy It detects all ionizable species It is recommended for de-
tection of phosphates in environmental samples, organic acids
in food and beverages, and amines In some cases the relative
response of the conductivity and QD detector can confirm iden-
tity The detector received a Pittcon Editors Award honorable
mention Also, Prof Sandy Dasgupta (University of Texas at
Arlington), who is named as inventor on the patent that is the
basis of the QD, was honored with the Dal Nogare Award
850 IC Amperometric Detector
Many of the analytes that are most suited for separation by ion
chromatography lack strong chromophores or fluorophores for
detection Carbohydrates, amines, and acids are typical problem
analytes Metrohm (wwwmetrohmcom) introduced the 850 IC
Amperometric Detector as an option to the Model 850 Profes-
sional IC, 881 Compact IC pro, and 882 Compact IC plus The
detector can operate in series or in parallel with other detectors
such as conductivity and UV-VIS absorbance Detection sen-
sitivity is low ng/L for electroactive analytes Metrohm offers
gold, silver, platinum, and glassy carbon working electrodes as
required by the analytes The reference and auxiliary electrodes
are maintenance free A standalone version of the detector is
offered as the Model 896 Professional Detector
quadrupole mass spectrometers for LC/MS/MS
IONICS Mass Spectrometry Group (wwwionicsca) introduced
two new lines of triple quads for LC/MS Both the Series 100
and 200 have two probe options One option can be switched
between ESI and atmospheric pressure chemical ionization
LIqUID PHASE SEPARATION continued
AMERICAN LABORATORY 42 MAY 2012
(APCI) detection in less than 20 msec,
and the other is dedicated to one Mass
range is 51500 m/z Dynamic range is
better than 10
6
Scan rate for the Series
200 is fast, at 27,000 data points per sec
With the Series 100, the data rate in-
creases further to 50,000 pts/sec
Ion mobility detector for
HPLC and HPLC/MS
Ion mobility spectrometry (IMS) is par-
ticularly useful in separating isomers
Excellims Corp. (wwwexcellimscom)
introduced the AIMS2100 ESI high-
performance ion mobility spectrometer as
a detector module for HPLC and HPLC/
MS Adding the AIMS2100 to an LC/MS
provides an orthogonal method for com-
pound identification since IMS resolves
isomers based on ion mobility rather than
mass Typically, the column effluent is
split between the AIMS2100 and other
detectors The orthogonal nature of the
detection reduces the need for LCLC
and SFCLC, even for the most complex
samples Ionization with ESI improves
detection sensitivity to the subnanogram
range, especially of low-volatility analytes
Linear dynamic range is 10
2
to 10
3
Typical
applications include separation of skeletal
peptide isomers, diastereomers, cistrans
isomers, and carbohydrates
The most significant figure of merit for
HPLC detectors is usually the noise level
SCINCO (wwwscincocom/en) intro-
duced the DAD-208 diode array detector
with a noise level of 25 10
6
AU The
diode has 1024 elements covering the
range from 190 to 950 nm Chromatogra-
phers can select up to eight wavelengths
to monitor at 50 Hz Three flow cell op-
tions have a volume of 2155 L The
company is looking for OEM partners
Flow splitter for detectors
Splitting column flow between detec-
tors is a technique that sounds good in
concept but is frustrating in practice
Analytical Scientific Instruments, Inc.
(ASI) (wwwhplc-asicom) introduced the
QuickSplit AS650 to automate flow
splitting The AS650 should open up
many new applications that would bene-
fit from multiple detectors The company
points out that the QuickSplit is the first
fully automated flow splitter for HPLC
It can split the column flow to deliver mi-
croliter flow rates to an optical detector
and nanoliter flows to an MS Inlet and
outlet flows are entered with a keypad
A four-line light-emitting diode (LED)
display provides instantaneous status re-
ports to the operator and to a PC for re-
cording The dynamic control keeps the
split ratio constant during gradient elu-
tion, where viscosity excursions can be
large Volume input ranges in mL/min
are 15, 525, and 2590 Flow ranges
of the side stream (in L/min) are 01
05, 0525, 25125, and 125625
Key applications are expected to include
proteomics and environmental, and even
preparative chromatography, where a side
stream is sent to the analyzer ASI points
out that the AS650 takes the guesswork
out of flow splitting
UHPLC module
Now with UHPLC capable of giving sub-
minute runs, high-throughput labs need
to load and process more samples for
overnight operation To meet this need,
Shimadzu Scientific Instruments (www
ssishimadzucom) introduced the SIL-
30ACMP multiplate autosampler as
an add-on module for the Nexera MP
UHPLC The autosampler triples capacity
to six 384-well plates The specifications are
impressive: Carryover is <00015%; %CV
is <1% for 05-L injections and <02% for
injection volumes greater than 5 L Mini-
mum cycle time is 14 sec
Chromatography simulation
and method development
software
DryLab
phenylhexyl ligands
Bonded to Phenomenex Kinetex
Express
Supelco (wwwsigmaaldrichcom) intro-
duced three surface chemistries to the
Ascentis
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LIqUID PHASE SEPARATION continued
AMERICAN LABORATORY 47 MAY 2012
Dr Andrew Alpert, President and Founder of PolyLC Inc. (www
polylccom), explained that deamidation of asparagine occurs
when the amide side chain of asparagine attacks the adjacent resi-
due on the C-terminal side, forming an asymmetric succinimide
intermediate The ring opens to form aspartic acid or isoaspartic
acid in a 1:2 ratio The presence and ratio of the latter two are
markers of deamidation All three isoforms can be separated by
electrostatic repulsion-hydrophilic interaction chromatography
(ERLIC) (PolyLC) and identified on-line by mass spectrometry
One study showed that much deamidation was artifactual and
could be identified incorrectly as glycosylation sites Dr Alpert
went on to propose an improved digestion protocol that suppress-
es the artifactual deamidation
Ion exchange columns
IonPac columns for
ICS-4000/5000
To take advantage of the extended
pressure and flow rate capability of the
new ICS-4000 and upgraded 5000, Di-
onex introduced new columns packed
with 4-m-diam particles packed into
04-mm-id tubes Prior columns uti-
lized 55- or 9-m-diam particles The
new columns are much more efficient,
and since they are also narrower, they
have greater detection sensitivity for
the same sample load The IonPac
AS18-4m anion exchange column
is the hydroxide-selective column of
choice for compliance monitoring of
inorganic anions in drinking water
and wastewater samples in accordance
with US EPA Methods 3000(A) and
3001 However, the cycle time is re-
duced to 3 min Other applications
run on the IonPac AS18-Fast column
can be easily transferred to the Ion-
Pac AS18-4m column with the ben-
efit of reduced run time with no loss
in resolution The IonPac AS18-4m
column is available in capillary for-
mat, 04 150 mm (wwwdionexcom/
en- us/product s/col umns/i c- r f i c/
hydroxide- selective- packed/ionpac-
as18-4um/lp-111535html)
Similarly, the AS11-HC-4m column
and the CS19-4m capillaries are also
packed with 4-m particles in capil-
lary format The improved efficiency
obtained with smaller particles allows
use of 23 times higher flow rate with
constant resolution, but reducing run time by the reciprocal
factor When operating at the standard flow rate of 0010 mL/
min, an IC system capable of operating up to 3000 psi is suffi-
cient However, to take advantage of the fast runs, using a flow
rate of 0030 mL/min, a high-pressure capillary IC system such
as the ICS-5000 or ICS-4000 is required
MAbPac SCX-10 columns
Screening monoclonal antibodies just got faster by reducing the
diameter of the column particle to 3 or 5 m diam from 10
m MAbPac SCX-10 columns from Dionex are effective for
The new CentriVap
micro IR
The right size vacuum concentrator for
smaller applications. When your sample throughput, bench
space and budgets are small, the new CentriVap micro IR ts just right.
Even better, what it lacks in size it makes up for in features and
accessorieseverything you need to start concentrating is included.
Infrared-emitting (IR) glass lid directs heat to the samples
to speed evaporation
Built-in PTFE-coated diaphragm vacuum pump and chamber
Rotor for 24 microcentrifuge tubes (1.5 ml each)
CentriZap micro IR strobe light to view samples while rotor spins
Learn more at www.labconco.com or call 800.732.0031
Kansas City, MO | 800.732.0031
www.labconco.com
AMERICAN LABORATORY 48 MAY 2012
LIqUID PHASE SEPARATION continued
5-m silica that was useful for a variety of common products,
including formulations This year, Thermo Fisher Scientific
introduced an improved version called the Acclaim Surfactant
Plus The stationary phase is a mixed-mode surface chemistry
with improved bonding to 3- or 5- m-spherical silica Com-
pared to its predecessor, the new columns maintain the same
selectivity with low column bleed, improved stability, and
shorter analysis time
LC column packings
A decade ago, I visited China several times The entrepreneur-
ial column vendors all struggled with the expense of procuring
quality silica for HPLC columns They had to import the column
packings from Western sources They quickly mastered bond-
ing and especially packing I wondered how long it would take
for a firm to start producing chromatographic silica in China
Nanomicro Technology Co. had a booth that featured a wide
range of column packings, including UniSil spherical silica
with a nominal diameter of 2, 3, 4, 550 m) Six pore diam-
eters are available from 50 to 500 Nanomicro also makes
bonded phases including C18, C8, C4, NH2, and HILIC
separating antibody variants differing by only one charge
Unique surface chemistry nearly eliminates nonspecific hydro-
phobic interaction, giving sharp peaks The columns are suit-
able for platform assays for identification and stability assays A
range of column diameters and lengths are offered
Scherzo SW-C18 column
Adenosine mono-, di-, and tri-phosphates are very polar anions
with broad interest due to their involvement in biological energy
processes While separation by RPLC is not successful, Imtakt
USA (wwwimtaktusacom) finds that a mixed-mode anion ex-
change/C18 column is quite effective Run times are less than
10 min with gradient elution
Acclaim Surfactant Plus columns
Surfactant by HPLC seems to be a natural idea until one tries
it by RPLC and the frustration starts C18 can irreversibly sorb
some surfactants such as sodium dodecyl sulfate This was the
basis of soap chromatography mode in the early 1980s A
few years ago, Dionex introduced the Acclaim Surfactant
columns, which had a proprietary surface chemistry on 3- or
Hydraulic Laboratory Presses
and Ac ces so ries
Carver, Inc.
1569 Morris St., P.O. Box 544
Wabash, IN 46992-0544 USA
Tel: 260-563-7577
Fax: 260-563-7625
Free New
Catalog
Standard models
with 12 to 100 ton
ca pac i ty. Manual
and au to mat ic.
Ded i cat ed
ap pli ca tions.
Detailed spec i fi -
ca tions in clud ed.
Custom de sign
avail able.
100th ANNIVERSARY
1912-2012
ISO 9001:2008 Certified
www.carverpress.com
AMERICAN LABORATORY 49 MAY 2012
Nanomicro UniPS beads are made of
polystyrene/divinylbenzene copolymer
Particle diameters start at 2 m and ex-
tend to 60 m Photomicrographs sup-
port the claim of monodisperse particle
distribution The company also offers
polyacrylic particles in three size cuts
from 20 to 60 m A huge selection of
pore diameters is available, including
nonporous Ionogens have been added
to the polymeric beads to make the cor-
responding ion exchange resins with the
trade name Uni-IEC
Solid-phase extraction
phases
SiliaPrepX
SiliCycle (wwwsilicyclecom) is known
for producing a wide range of prod-
ucts, sorbents, scavengers, and catalyst
supports, based on silica Thus, I was
surprised with the introduction of the
SiliaPrepX line of polymer-filled tubes
for solid-phase extraction (SPE) A
range of stationary phase chemistries
is offered, including cation and anion
exchange and two neutral sorbents The
polystyrene/divinylbenzene phase re-
tains nonpolar analytes The HLB phase
presents a wettable copolymer with a
balanced hydrophilic and hydrophobic
surface that retains acids, bases, and
neutrals The columns are available in
plastic tubes with volumes of 1, 3, to 6
mL and 96-well plates
Fritless SOLA SPE
cartridges
Early cartridges and multitip plates for
SPE used screens or frits to hold the sor-
bent in place While the frits were usu-
ally selected to be inert under anticipated
use conditions, they were often suspected
when the mass balance was short Chro-
matographers at Thermo Fisher Scientif-
ic worked to blend the frit with the plas-
tic of the tube wall (polyethylene) and
column packing The result is the SOLA
series of cartridges and plates Separation
modes include reversed phase, cation,
and anion exchange in 1- or 2-mL tubes
(wwwthermoscientificcom/ecomm/
ser vl et /newsdet ai l ? storeId=11152&
contentId=54068&ca=sola-spe)
LC fittings
EXP