Unit for hydrolyzing amino-acid containing specimens

Abstract

Amino acid-containing specimens are hydrolyzed with a method and in a hydrolysis unit by which a specimen holder having an upper face side against which a cover can be tightly engaged to seal compartments formed in the holder and define a sample chamber in which the specimens are received and hydrolyzed. The holder and cover are housed in a sealable casing, and a heating device is provided to apply heat to the specimens while same are in contact with a hydrolyzing agent, this being done while the casing is sealed from the ambient atmosphere and the holder compartments in turn sealed from the casing enclosed space. The unit embodies a device to impose vacuum on the casing interior during the hydrolysis cycle, or to fill the casing enclosed space with an inert gas for cooling at the end of hydrolysis. The sealable nature of the holder compartments and casing interior facilitates pre and/or post-hydrolysis cleaning and purging of the holder compartments to insure specimen contamination avoidance during hydrolysis. Structure is provided to cool down the specimen holder on completion of a hydrolysis cycle to shorten the overall hydrolysis procedure and facilitate further handling of the hydrolyzed specimens as well as early reuse of the unit for further hydrolysis operation.