In recent years, the growing use of advanced analytical instruments
in the pharmaceutical R&D and the continuous developments
particularly in the field of LC/MS technology, have brought forth a
significant increase in laboratory gas demands. With cost-cutting and
process improvement being the main focus in this competitive global
market, many pharmaceutical labs are making the switch from traditional
gas supplies to laboratory gas generators.
Pam Barnacle interviews Chris Pugh, Engineering Director at Peak
Scientific Instruments, Ltd. about the latest developments in on site
gas generation technology and the numerous benefits gas generators can
offer for the modern R&D lab.
Question: What are the most common issues Pharmaceutical labs run into with their traditional instrument gas supplies?
Answer: The rising cost of gas supplies is definitely the number one
concern for labs nowadays. Especially when labs are investing in the
newest, most sophisticated LCMS equipment they'll often have to cope
with big increases in gas consumption rates.
Weekly or monthly supply contracts for nitrogen gas cylinders and
Liquid nitrogen Dewars can therefore become extremely expensive when
adding up all the charges for the gas, the tank rental fees, the
delivery fees, etcetera.
The inconvenience of continuously having to exchange empty bottles
and tanks is another common complaint. It's a laborious process and can
take up a lot of time. During the exchange, you'll have to interrupt the
research you're doing on your instrument and wait for the new tank or
bottle to be put in place, before you can start again.
Furthermore, we often see labs that are already coping with space
restrictions and on top of that they have to manage a considerable
number of bulky liquid nitrogen tanks within that limited space.
Needless to say, that's not conducive to a practical and safe work
environment.
Then there are logistical issues with bottled gas supply chain
management; constantly having to stay on top of your stock control and
purchasing procedures and when you do need to order more tanks than
initially anticipated, will you be able to get them in time?
Health & Safety issues also come into play, particularly with
liquid nitrogen Dewars. You can get severe frostbite if you're not
wearing the correct protective gear when handling cryogenic tanks and
you always have to consider the risk of leaks and spills as well as the
fact that an average Dewar vents about 2.3% of its contents on a daily
basis. When a large volume of nitrogen is suddenly released to the
atmosphere it can disperse oxygen and cause asphyxiation.
Question: In what way can nitrogen generators offer a solution for these issues?
Answer: A nitrogen generator enables the lab to simply 'make' its own
nitrogen on demand. There's no longer a need to store big bulky
cylinders and tanks in the lab anymore; a single compact nitrogen
generator can continuously supply your lab's total demand for nitrogen
gas without ever running out of gas.
For most labs a quick cost comparison with their existing gas supply
demonstrates that a nitrogen generator can offer them a return on
investment in less than a year.
When you consider that cylinders may need to be changed once or even
twice a day, this is valuable time that could be better spent more
productively. Gas generators are designed for 24/7 operation with
minimal operator involvement. Simply plug & play and the generator
will automatically supply the volume of nitrogen required for your
analytical instrument(s). Switching to an on-site gas generation
solution will therefore also result in an increase in laboratory
productivity as researchers can carry out their work without
interruption
Another major advantage of gas generators is that they provide a
consistent high purity of nitrogen, therewith eliminating any concerns
about potential contaminants entering the gas stream and affecting the
results of your analysis.
Purity specification of cylinders and tanks can vary depending on the
source and hydrocarbon contamination is still quite common. Laboratory
gas generators are specifically designed for operation with analytical
instruments such as LC/MS and therefore contain high quality filtration
technology which consistently removes all contaminants that are known to
affect LC/MS operation, leaving clean, dry, phthalate-free nitrogen.
Question: How do nitrogen generators work?
Answer: 78% of the ambient air we breathe is made up of nitrogen and
essentially what a nitrogen generator does is to temporarily filter out
the nitrogen molecules from compressed ambient air, and once the flow of
gas is used for its intended purpose, the separated nitrogen simply
disperses back into the ambient air maintaining the ambient balance.
The nitrogen generator uses either an external oil-free compressed
air supply, or its own built-in air compressors to feed a pressurized
flow of ambient air through a so called hollow fiber nitrogen separation
membrane. The membrane works on the principle of selective permeation
of different molecules through the membrane wall. Water vapor and oxygen
molecules permeate faster and are vented back to atmosphere, while the
larger nitrogen molecules are much slower and travel through the whole
length of the membrane, effectively separating them from the other
ambient air components. The separated flow of nitrogen is then collected
in a small internal receiver tank to allow precise control of gas
supply pressure and flow rate for the consuming instrument.
Nitrogen generators for LC/MS will generate the required gas flows on
demand only, meaning that they'll automatically go into stand-by mode
when the instrument is not consuming any gas. This ensures minimum
running costs and labs will actually be able to significantly reduce
their energy consumption rates by switching from liquid tanks to on-site
nitrogen generators.
Question: How do the continuous innovations in LC/MS technology affect the development of new laboratory gas generators?
Answer: The past few years we have seen quite a number of innovations in
LC/MS/MS technology that have had a direct impact on instrument gas
requirements. In some cases, the volume of nitrogen required has more
than doubled, in other cases a higher nitrogen supply pressure is
needed, or multiple different gas flows for a single instrument for
example.
Peak Scientific quickly realized that the existing gas generator
products on the market were no longer able to match the ever increasing
gas demands from the newest instruments and as a result new product
developments were needed.
As a designer and manufacturer of gas generators, we always need to
be on track with the latest developments in the market. For that reason
we work closely with instrument manufacturers to ensure that our range
of gas generators is up to date and able to meet the wide variety of
different gas requirements in the laboratory market.
LC/MS manufacturers are launching new products every year and most of
them have come to realize how crucial it is to be able to offer their
customers a made-to-measure gas generator solution along with their
instrument. Operational cost of new equipment is an important factor to
consider at point of purchase and generators play a big part in
minimizing those costs.
With the increasingly wide variety of different gas requirements out
there, new generator products are often custom designed for specific
instruments.
Quite regularly, instrument manufacturers approach Peak Scientific
directly to develop a bespoke gas generator for a new instrument or
technology that is in the pipeline. As a company we always welcome these
challenges to design the most cost-effective and convenient gas supply
solution, over and above our clients' expectations.
But it's not just the instrument's requirements that are taken into
account when it comes to developing new products. Our customer's wishes
and suggestions are also taken on board and we always consider the
changing operational requirements of modern labs, in order to
continuously improve our products' performance and ease of use.
Question: Can you name a few examples of such improvements?
Answer: Our newest product ranges are much more compact in comparison with
previous generator models. Space is money as they say; especially in
laboratories. For that reason we made sure our generators do not take up
any more space than absolutely necessary. The majority of our nitrogen
generators for LC/MS can either be wall-mounted or they can fit under
any standard lab-bench.
Another major improvement was the reduction of noise levels on our
generator models with built-in air compressors. At less than <54
decibels there are now barely audible in a normal lab environment.
A reduction of maintenance intervals and enhancement of our built-in
compressor and filtration technology also make the generators much
better equipped for continuous operation. More and more labs are running
samples 24/7, and our generators need to be able to keep up with those
operational conditions.
We even developed a specific range of fail-safe generators with
internal air supply, designed for situations where unplanned down-time
simply isn't an option and confidence in the generator is essential.
Furthermore, we now have a range of self-contained generator models
which are capable of supplying gases to multiple instruments at the same
time. This is especially useful for labs where house air supplies are
not readily available.
Question: How do the changes in the laboratory gas generator market benefit pharmaceutical labs nowadays?
Answer: With instrument manufacturers becoming more involved with gas
supply solutions nowadays, laboratories often have the option to
purchase a complete instrument package from their instrument vendor,
which already includes a dedicated gas generator. This enables
simplified purchasing from a single source, whilst at the same time
offering the peace of mind that this generator will meet the
instruments' exact gas demands with regards to flow-rate, purity and
pressure.
Another benefit the current gas generator market has to offer is the
vast amount of different generator options you can choose from now. Each
lab situation is different and has its own unique requirements for gas
supplies depending on the type and quantity of instruments they are
operating. There is always a suitable solution available and Peak
Scientific's dedicated specialists are more than happy to assist labs
with determining the right solution for them.
Question: What do you predict for future developments in the gas generator market?
Answer: Peak Scientific will be bringing a number of custom-design
products to the LC/MS market this summer and we are also planning to
launch a few entirely new product ranges later this year.
As average lab sizes increase and moving to larger premises, we're
also seeing a growth market in high purity/ high flow nitrogen
generators that are able to supply multiple labs, or an entire
laboratory building from a single source.
We have dedicated a specific section of our business towards the
development of quick and efficient solutions for large scale laboratory
nitrogen projects. Labs can rest assured that bulk nitrogen tanks are no
longer the only option.
This is definitely not the time to be complacent, as any new
developments in analytical instrument technology or in the laboratory
market overall, may well call for the development of another new
generator product very soon.
For us, as well as for our customers; the opportunities are endless.
About the Author
Peak Scientific Instruments Ltd are a manufacturer of
laboratory Gas Generators including nitrogen, hydrogen and zero air
suitable to operate most laboratory analytical applications such as LCMS
(liquid chromatography mass spectroscopy) and GC (Gas chromatography).
With varying flow rates, purities & pressures of gas generators,
available with or without internal air compressors, Peak are confident
to offer the complete solution to your total Gas requirements. Our Gas
Generators provide a safe & economical alternative to combustible
bottled Gas cylinders offering a constant purity resulting in accurate
analysis.
Our Service & Support is world class. Without fail our expert
engineers fix problems at the first visit and you can find them all
around the world- not that you will need them very often. Even though
our Laboratory Gas Generators take the strain in the lab, they deliver
all your gas requirements smoothly- and reliably.