Agilent Technologies, Inc.

Thomas Ortmann

Manfred Berndt

Daniel Thielsch

Sam Wouters

Konstantin Shoykhet

Blasius Nocon

Michael Lang

Tony Ziegler

Armin Steinke

Stephan Buckenmaier

Dwight Stoll

Darijo Zeko

Sascha Lege

Martin Seifried

Irina Spuling

Uwe Effelsberg

Daniela Loraing

Dominik Ruf

Ansgar Waldbaur

Christian Daniel Ruf

Thomas Glauner

Lena Höninger

Andreas Otto

Matthias Wetzel

A valve may be utilized in a high-performance chromatography system for separating components of a sample liquid introduced into a mobile phase. The valve has a first valve element and a second valve element. By a movement of one valve element relative to the other, a first effective surface of the first valve element is brought into connection with a second effective surface of the second valve element, and a flow path may be produced or suppressed. The second valve element has an elastic region to compensate for an axial angle between the first valve element and the second valve element, such that the first effective surface and the second effective surface may be oriented parallel to each other. This may favorably influence a fluidic leak tightness and/or longevity of the valve.

Valve with axial angle compensation

A sample separation device for separating a fluidic sample includes a fluid drive for driving a mobile phase and the fluidic sample when injected in the mobile phase, a sample separation unit for separating the fluidic sample in the mobile phase, and a control unit configured for bracketing the fluidic sample between two mobile phase portions of the mobile phase. At least one of the mobile phase portions is arranged directly next to the fluidic sample and has a higher solvent strength compared to a solvent of the fluidic sample.

Bracketing fluidic sample using strong solvent

A sampling unit includes a needle for aspirating a sample fluid, a housing, and a fitting. The needle includes a needle tip and a needle channel through the needle for guiding the aspirated sample fluid. The needle channel opens at the needle tip. The housing includes a housing cavity and a housing channel opening into the housing cavity. The fitting includes a fitting cavity and a fitting channel. The fitting is configured for sealingly receiving the needle tip into the fitting cavity and for being inserted into the housing cavity, so that the fitting channel on one side fluidically couples to the needle channel and on another side couples to the housing channel.

Sampling with fitting between needle and housing

A sample injector is provided for a chromatography system that includes a mobile phase drive and a separation unit. The mobile phase drive is configured for driving a mobile phase through the separation unit, and the separation unit is configured for chromatographically separating compounds of a sample fluid in the mobile phase. The sample injector is configured for injecting the sample fluid into the mobile phase and comprises a needle and a handling unit configured for positioning the needle. Operating the sample injector includes providing a receptacle that includes a filtration unit configured for filtering a sample fluid comprised within the receptacle, moving the filtration unit within the receptacle in order to filter at least a portion of the sample fluid contained in the receptacle, operating the handling unit to position the needle into the receptacle, and aspirating a volume of the filtered sample fluid.

Sample injector with sample fluid filtering

A sample separation device includes a separation path and a control unit. The separation path is between a fluid drive and a sample separation unit, and is configured to inject a fluidic sample in an injector path into a mobile phase in the separation path driven by the fluid drive to the sample separation unit for chromatographically separating the fluidic sample. The control unit is configured to control blocking the injector path or at least a partial path thereof, generating an overpressure in the blocked injector path or the partial path thereof by a pressure source, and subsequently fluidically coupling the injector path or the partial path thereof to a region of lower pressure than the overpressure to generate an expansion stroke for releasing unwanted components from the injector path.

Operation of an injector of a sample separation device

An injector, for injecting a fluidic sample into a flow path between a fluid drive and a sample separation unit, includes a sample accommodation volume, a sample drive, and a fluidic valve switchable to selectively couple the volume with the flow path or decouple the volume from the flow path. In an injection switching state, the fluid drive, the separation unit and the sample drive are coupled by the valve so that fluid driven by the sample drive and flowing from the volume to the separation unit and further fluid driven by the fluid drive and flowing from the fluid drive to the separation unit are combined at a fluidic connection upstream of the separation unit. A control unit controls an outlet flow rate value according to which a combination of the mobile phase and the fluidic sample is driven through the separation unit.

Sample injection with fluidic connection between fluid drive unit and sample accommodation volume

A fluid processing apparatus includes a first fluid processing unit and a second fluid processing unit. A fluid unit is fluidically coupled to the first fluid processing unit and includes a first buffering unit configured for buffering fluid, and/or a mask flow source configured for providing a mask fluid or a flow thereof. A first coupling point is fluidically coupled between the first fluid processing unit and the fluid unit. A modulation unit is configured, selectively, for withdrawing fluid from the first coupling point, or for transferring withdrawn fluid into the second fluid processing unit. The apparatus may be utilized for chromatography.

Fluid processing with withdraw-transfer modulation

A configurable injector for injecting a fluidic sample in a separation path of a sample separation apparatus includes a sample accommodation volume for accommodating the fluidic sample to be injected into the separation path, a valve arrangement fluidically couplable with the separation path, fluidically coupled with the sample accommodation volume, and being controllable for injecting the fluidic sample into the separation path, an input interface configured for receiving input data indicative of an injection profile of an injector to be emulated by the configurable injector, and a control unit configured for controlling the configurable injector, in particular the valve arrangement, so that the configurable injector is operated in accordance with the injection profile to thereby emulate the injector to be emulated.

Configuring an injector for emulating operation of another injector

A sample management device which comprises a source flow path in which a fluidic sample can flow, a volume flow adjustment unit configured for adjusting a volume flow of the fluidic sample to be branched off from the source flow path at a fluidic coupling point, and a fluidic valve fluidically coupled with the source flow path and with the volume flow adjustment unit, wherein the fluidic valve is switchable into a branch off state in which the fluidic coupling point is established within the source flow path to branch off an adjustable volume of the fluidic sample from the source flow path via the fluidic coupling point while a flow of the fluidic sample in the source flow path continues.

Branching off fluidic sample with low influence on source flow path

An injector, for injecting a fluidic sample in at least one selected one of a first sample separation apparatus and a second sample separation apparatus, includes a valve arrangement fluidically connectable to the first sample separation apparatus and the second sample separation apparatus, a sample accommodation volume for accommodating the fluidic sample, and a control unit configured for controlling the valve arrangement so that fluidic sample in the sample accommodation volume is selectively injectable into the selected first sample separation apparatus and/or second sample separation apparatus.

Injector serving multiple sample separation apparatuses

An injector is configured for injecting a fluidic sample from an injector path into a mobile phase in a separation path between a fluid drive and a sample separation unit of a sample separation device. The injector includes a control unit configured for generating a first overpressure in a blocked first partial path of the injector path by a first pressure source, for generating a second overpressure in a blocked second partial path of the injector path by a second pressure source, for subsequently fluidically coupling the first partial path with the second partial path for generating an expansion stroke for releasing a gas bubble in the injector path, and for rinsing the released gas bubble from the injector path.

A microfluidic component for a sample separation apparatus includes a component body including ceramic and at least one microfluidic structure in the component body. The component body is manufactured by additive manufacturing, in particular by three-dimensional printing.

Manufacture of a microfluidic component by additive manufacturing

A mounting device for mounting a sample separation unit configured for separating, preferably chromatographically separating, compounds in a fluidic sample includes a first fluid connector configured for being mechanically and fluidically coupled with a first fluid interface of the sample separation unit, a second fluid connector configured for being mechanically and fluidically coupled with a second fluid interface of the sample separation unit, and a swivel mechanism configured for swivelling the first fluid connector between a mounting orientation for mounting the first fluid interface of the sample separation unit at the first fluid connector and an alignment orientation for aligning the second fluid interface of the mounted sample separation unit with the second fluid connector for subsequently coupling the second fluid interface with the second fluid connector.

Mounting a sample separation unit by a swivel mechanism

An injector, for injecting a fluidic sample into a flow path between a fluid drive and a sample separation unit, includes a sample accommodation volume, a sample drive, and a fluidic valve switchable to selectively couple the volume with the flow path or decouple the volume from the flow path. In an injection switching state, the fluid drive, the separation unit and the sample drive are coupled by the valve so that fluid driven by the sample drive and flowing from the volume to the separation unit and further fluid driven by the fluid drive and flowing from the fluid drive to the separation unit are combined at a fluidic connection upstream of the separation unit. A control unit controls a pressure of the fluid and/or the further fluid during injecting.

A fluid valve for a sample separation apparatus includes a first valve component and a second valve component, which are adjacent to one another and movable relative to one another. The valve components are configured such that, in at least one switching state, at least one switchable fluid channel is formed between the valve components, and at least one part of a surface of at least one of the first valve component and the second valve component is provided with a coating containing gold and/or platinum.

Growing community of inventors

Straubenhardt/Ottenhausen, Germany

Thomas Ortmann