Crystallisation technology provider, Technobis Crystallization Systems, has launched the Crystal16 V3, a multi-reactor crystalliser for medium throughput solubility determination.
The latest version has integrated transmissivity technology and enhanced analytical capabilities, in a streamlined unibody design, to reduce the time and resources consumed in crystallisation experiments and analysis.
Technobis’ customers report that the HPLC method for solubility determination takes up to 112 hours to complete. To analyse 16 samples, scientists will spend eight hours preparing the samples, 32 hours carrying out the multistep processes, and 72 hours completing equilibration. Any errors significantly affect the quality of results, so laboratories often sacrifice more time and resources than is necessary to ensure a reliable result.
“To save time and reduce operating costs, Technobis introduced the scientific community to the original Crystal16 bench top crystallisation system in 2005,” explains Dr Carmen Guguta, global head of business development and marketing at Technobis. “The user-friendly multi-reactor could perform 16 different experiments and had integrated turbidity sensors and flexible software for generating simple phase diagrams and solubility curves, ideal for a wide range of industries.”
“However, as pharmaceutical laboratories, analytical chemists, and formulation scientists are now seeing increased demands to analyse more samples in less time, the efficiency of in situ laboratory equipment in increasing throughput is vital,” Guguta added.
The new Crystal16 V3 expands on the success of previous models using enhanced in-line analytical features and new software capabilities. With integrated transmissivity technology, scientists can easily determine clear and cloud points, resulting in solubility data and metastable zone width at an early stage. Solubility curves for four solvents can be generated in two hours using less than 100 mg of material — an estimated 20 times reduction in the amount of material needed in HPLC and equilibrium methods.
The V3 also has improved particle detection capabilities for crystallisation and nucleation studies. Scientists can control the temperature of all four block reactors to generate accurate temperature-dependent solubility curves in a matter of hours. Experiments can take place between -20 and 150 degrees celsius. Furthermore, chiller cooling is also available with the Crystal16 V3, facilitating temperatures as low as -25 degrees with all four blocks in parallel.
The software package available with the Crystal16 V3 offers improved research and analysis capabilities. The program is automated and predefined temperature profiles for certain compounds can be uploaded for ease and flexibility. All solubility and transmissivity data for all four block reactors can be examined on the same interface, making data analysis simple and more efficient.