In this “Equipment Roundup,” the editors of LCGC International feature new instruments from Thermo Fisher and Waters, and news from Knauer regarding the environmental impact of their best-selling HPLC systems, as recently assessed by My Green Lab.
Thermo Fisher Scientific recently announced the launch of the new SurePac Bio 550 SEC MDi column (1) and the DNAPac RP semi-preparative column (2). These new instruments will support research for advanced therapies in cell and gene therapy and mRNA.
The SurePac Bio 550 SEC MDi columns and guards are based on high-purity, spherical, porous (550 Å), 3 μm monodispersed silica particles that are covalently modified with a proprietary diol hydrophilic layer. This design yields shorter diffusion distances and enhanced reproducible mass transfer and narrower peaks. The consistent size of these particles facilitates precise control over media synthesis and column packing, significantly improving column-to-column and lot-to-lot reproducibility. The columns are housed in a hydrophilic bioinert-coated stainless-steel hardware to eliminate secondary interactions, ensuring optimal performance during the initial injection process.
Thermo Fisher’s SurePac Bio 550 SEC MD HPLC Columns. Photo courtesy of Thermo Fisher.
The DNAPac RP semi-preparative column delivers higher performance and resolution alongside more compatible and versatile analysis with flexible distribution. Based on spherical wide-pore 4μm polymer resin, the column is highly stable to extremes of pH (0-14), and temperature (5-110°C), and operates with mobile phases compatible with direct mass spectrometry. The column may be operated in both HPLC and UHPLC instruments, producing high resolution at high throughput for oligonucleotides and resolves both small and very large dsDNA segments.
Thermo Fisher’s DNAPac RP Columns. Photo courtesy of Thermo Fisher.
Waters Launches New Photodiode Array Detector
Waters Corporation has announced a new photodiode array (PDA) detector for the Alliance iS HPLC System, rounding out the extensive capabilities of its next generation intelligent HPLC platform (3). The new PDA configuration supports an expanded range of routine QA/QC analyses and pre-release quality testing of small and large molecule drugs, food & beverages, raw materials, cosmetics, and other personal care products.
Key highlights of the detector include:
Waters now offers customers three Alliance iS HPLC System configuration choices to support a broad range of QA/QC applications.
Waters Corporation's new photodiode array (PDA) detector for the Alliance iS HPLC System. Photo coutesy of Waters.
Testing Environmental Impact of Knauer’s HPLC System
Knauer has recently announced that the environmental impact of their top-selling HPLC systems has now been positively evaluated by My Green Lab with the assignment of its ACT Ecolabel (4). Results indicate that results the environmental impact factors (ACT-EIF) for the systems are the lowest compared to any other product of this category currently (July 2024) in the ACT database, implying its products set a new benchmark for sustainability in the industry.
There are three different labels for each of the evaluated products, depending on the region it is delivered to (US/EU/UK), because the shipping impact is also calculated. The Knauer AZURA 862 bar HPLC system with diode array detection scored an ACT-EIF of 13.3 for the EU labels and the AZURA 862 bar HPLC system with refractive index detection scored even lower at an ACT-EIF of 12.5 only for the same region. The ACT-EIFs for the US labels were 21.8 for the DAD version and 21.0 for the RID version respectively.
ACT certified Knauer AZURA 862 bar HPLC system with diode array detection. Photo courtesy of Knauer.
References
1. SurePac Bio 550 SEC MDi columns. Thermo Fisher website. https://www.thermofisher.com/order/catalog/product/43903-157831
2. DNAPac RP Columns. Thermo Fisher website. https://www.thermofisher.com/order/catalog/product/088923?SID=srch-srp-088923
3.Alliance iS HPLC System. Waters Corporation website.
4. Knauer website. https://www.knauer.net/en/knauers-top-selling-hplc-systems-now-act-ecolabel-certified/n48286
Silvia Radenkovic on Her Research and Passion for Scientific Collaboration
April 3rd 2025Radenkovic is a PhD candidate at KU Leuven and a member of FeMS. Her research focuses on inborn metabolic disorders (IMD), like congenital disorders of glycosylation (CDG), omics techniques such as tracer metabolomics, and different disease models.
Evaluating Natural Preservatives for Meat Products with Gas and Liquid Chromatography
April 1st 2025A study in Food Science & Nutrition evaluated the antioxidant and preservative effects of Epilobium angustifolium extract on beef burgers, finding that the extract influenced physicochemical properties, color stability, and lipid oxidation, with higher concentrations showing a prooxidant effect.