German particle measuring and analysing systems manufacturer PAMAS has developed a laboratory particle analysing system to measure small volumes of higher viscosity samples such as protein solutions.
The firm, based near Stuttgart, manufactures automatic particle counters for liquids including water, oil, hydraulic fluids or pharmaceutical solutions. In the past, analysing protein solutions had been impossible due to the large sample vessel incorporated in PAMAS laboratory instruments, the firm says. Protein solutions and other pharmaceutical liquids are usually only available in very small sample volumes. As a result, PAMAS has upgraded its SBSS laboratory instrument and equipped it with an optional small pressure vessel container.
The PAMAS SBSS particle analysing system offers full flexibility as virtually all measuring parameters can be pre-set and adapted to the specific application by the user.
The main benefit of the PAMAS SBSS laboratory instrument is its integrated pressure container. This sample vessel is used to create either a high pressure or vacuum atmosphere that is safely enclosed within the locked container. High pressure is applied to transport high viscous liquids through the sensor for measurement, whereas the vacuum mode removes gas bubbles out of the sample.
Until now, the cylindrical pressure container had been manufactured with a sample vessel volume of one litre (height: 20cm, diameter: 8cm). In this vessel, sample volumes of 30–1000ml were analysed. With the newly developed smaller pressure container, sample volumes of 1–5ml can be analysed.
The PAMAS SBSS is equipped with an integrated pre-adjustable sampling mode, which analyses the sample directly out of the sample container, thus removing the need for the sample to be transferred before measurement, which potentially could falsify results due to cross contamination.
Both light extinction sensors and scattered light sensors may be integrated in the PAMAS SBSS system. The particle sensors measure the quantity and size of the contaminants in the sample, with the measuring result including the particle size distribution of the sample. The user defines the number of size channels and their measuring intervals.
Due to the volumetric measuring cell principle of PAMAS sensors, 100% of the sample volume is analysed and every particle passing the sensor cell is detected. This guarantees the highest measuring accuracy and repeatability of the measuring results even in super clean fluids, the firm says. Depending on the required measuring and calibration ranges, the sensors are able to detect particle sizes between 0.5 and 800µm. They are calibrated according ISO 21501.
