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January 2012
We’re pleased to announce that we have confirmed the speakers for our free one-day event, “Emerging Technologies in Freeze Drying”.
The event focuses on the cutting edge of freeze drying technology and practice with speakers from both…
Read MoreJanuary 2012
Laboratory work can be time-consuming, detailed and repetitive. The best laboratory equipment uses innovative approaches to make your work faster, simpler and more repeatable.
Cryopreservation is a process where cells or…
January 2012
Laboratory work can be time-consuming, detailed and repetitive. The best laboratory equipment uses innovative approaches to make your work faster, simpler and more repeatable.
Cryopreservation is a process where cells or whole tissues are cooled to very low sub-zero temperatures for the purposes of preservation, but the process of freezing can be extremely risky for cells. A slow, controlled rate of freezing is important to avoid lethal intracellular freezing.
Unlike many other controlled-rate freezers, the benchtop BioCool does not use liquid nitrogen as a refrigerant. Instead samples are immersed into a well-circulated, cold liquid bath kept agitated by magnetic stirrer and vortex breaker. Any suitable heat transfer medium can be used, typically methanol or ethanol. The circulating liquid allows more efficient heat transfer to the samples and maintains a more consistent temperature profile at all locations, ensuring isothermal conditions. Programmable microprocessor control allows greater control of the cooling process for a smooth and safe temperature ramp. Eliminating the use of liquid nitrogen not only improves laboratory safety but also reduces cost and the refrigerants used are not expended after each use.
>>BioCool Controlled Rate Freezer
High pressure homogenization is a process that enables droplets and particles to be broken down to sizes below one micron as well as provide forces for efficient cell lysis. The highest intensity processes can enable particles to be broken down to nanometers. However the process forces must be precisely controlled to ensure uniformity and repeatability. Many high pressure homogenizers use a fixed length orifice and fixed distance between the orifice exit and the impacted surface. If the energy supplied is varying, the flow velocity and temperature can be adversely affected. Cavitation and backpressure within the fixed interaction zone can also impair particle size reduction.
The DeBee homogenizing cell is designed to be quickly configurable to optimise operating conditions and achieve process objectives. Length, diameter and other parameters can be individually adjusted in order to maintain a straight-line relationship between particle size and pressure. By adjusting the homogenizing energy through a configured absorbtion cell, processing goals can be quickly achieved by controlling pressure, flow cavitation, impact, shear and process duration. The DeBee homogenizing cell features in systems across their range from R&D to production, enabling simple scale-up to production.
Concentration can be a tedious laboratory procedure, so the miVac features several innovations designed to speed up concentration times.
In concentration, the solvent must be removed from the vicinity of the sample as quickly as possible. Where non-hazardous solvents are used vacuum alone can be used. miVac’s vacuum pumps are high displacement systems to ensure maximum moisture removal, but the flow rate of the pump will always limit the speed of concentration. Cold traps are commonly used to improve the performance of any concentrator.
The miVac SpeedTrap is radically different from traditional cold traps. The cold condenser coils are suspended directly in the vapour path, enabling the condensed solvent to run off into the jug without freezing and causing a decline in the condensing power of the coils. This method is highly efficient, providing more than twice the condensing power of similar systems, and much easier to use.
The other driving force behind concentration is temperature. Even products which do not require heat to start the evaporation process may need heat input as the evaporation causes the product to cool. miVac’s JetRotors are made of solid aluminium to conduct heat quickly and uniformly for optimal heat transfer. To increase the effect of air as a heat transfer medium, Concentration Methods introduce air into the chamber in a controlled manner.
Whether it’s floor or bench, laboratory space is always a premium. But standards don’t shrink just because space is limited, especially when high value products are being developed or manufactured. Parenteral products demand the highest standards of quality and their containers require uncompromising levels of cleanliness.
Innovative engineering, best use of modern materials and revolutionary design have made the PennTech “RW” series the smallest, most efficient vial washers in the industry without letting standards drop – all RW rotary vial washers are intrinsically designed to obtain at least a 3-log reduction in bacterial endotoxin.
The space-saving design is partly achieved by fitting all piping, instrumentation and electronics underneath or on the frame. Non-penetrating spray nozzles are quick to change and the few dedicated change parts optimise WFI use for each vial type and size. The design of RW vial washers keeps the number of moving parts to a minimum and features minimal moving parts within the wash bowl of the machine: no gears, no belts, no chains to generate particulates and compromise vial cleanliness, and with stationery spray pipes there is no chance of nozzle bending or vial breakage.
The simplicity of the design offers lower lifetime costs, faster build and near maintenance free operation.
Tags: biocool, concentrator, controlled rate freezer, debee, homogeniser, lab equipment, laboratory, mivac