This technical note describes the features and benefits of OMNISEC RESOLVE. It also includes a discussion of the value of OMNISEC as a complete system as opposed to upgrading an existing conventional system to advanced detection.
OMNISEC is the top-of-the-range multi-detector gel-permeation/size-exclusion chromatography (GPC/SEC) system from Malvern. It is a complete solution for the molecular characterization of synthetic polymers, natural polymers and polysaccharides, and proteins.
OMNISEC RESOLVE is the advanced, integrated separations module. It includes a fully integrated degasser, pump, autosampler, and column oven for mobile phase delivery, sample presentation and separation before measurement. When used in conjunction with OMNISEC REVEAL, the pair form a complete GPC/SEC system.
This technical note describes the features and benefits of OMNISEC RESOLVE. It also includes a discussion of the value of OMNISEC as a complete system as opposed to upgrading an existing conventional system to advanced detection.
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OMNISEC RESOLVE is an all-in-one separations module available with OMNISEC REVEAL to form a complete system.
The low pulsation pump delivers solvent to the column and detectors, and has been optimized to improve the separation quality and the baseline stability, providing better separations and higher quality data. It includes automatic back-flushing of the pump seals to reduce the chance of any salt precipitation in buffers containing high-levels of salt. This makes the system ideal for separations in DMF with LiCl or aqueous buffers.
The degasser has an efficient low-volume design, which means that mobile phases can be rapidly exchanged for quick solvent changeover and reduced downtime.
The column oven can hold up to 6 analytical columns or a single GE TricornTM 300/10 column. Temperature control all the way up to 65 °C maintains a stable separation temperature maximizing measurement sensitivity.
The autosampler can inject samples from up to two 48 vial trays or 96-well micro-titer plates. Temperature control of the sample compartment means that polymer samples can be warmed to reduce solvent viscosity for loading or to aid dissolution. Protein samples can be cooled to 4°C to protect them from any aggregation or degradation while awaiting injection. In “microliter pickup mode” sample injections up to 100 µL can be made with no waste of sample, as the injection process minimizes the sample requirement for precious samples such as proteins.
Table 1 gives an overview of the features and benefits of RESOLVE.
| Number | Feature | Benefit |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Temperature controlled autosampler (4-60°C) | Protect fragile samples such as proteins from degradation; reduce polymer solution viscosity for more accurate injection volumes; reduce viscosity of viscous solvents such as DMSO |
| 2 | Zero overhead autosampler | The autosampler is capable of making injections with no sample overhead to minimize the use of precious sample |
| 3 | Low pulsation pump | Maximum baseline stability on detectors, especially, the RI and IV |
| 4 | Low volume degasser | Faster solvent or buffer changeover |
| 5 | Injections from vial or 96-well micro-titer plates | Inject samples from your preferred format |
| 6 | Integrated column oven | Consolidates the entire separation in one unit, improves chromatography and separation |
| 7 | Temperature controlled column oven (20-65°C) | Maintains stable separation temperature, maximizing measurement sensitivity |
The purchase of a complete system affords a number of advantages.
Firstly, it turns the purchase of a new technology into a complete ready-to-use solution. The two modules, OMNISEC RESOLVE and OMNISEC REVEAL, have been designed to work together as closely as possible. For instance, the pump pulse dampening and data collection have been optimized to make the detector baselines as stable as possible. In particular, this is important for the viscometer, whose pressure transducers are extremely sensitive to changes in flow and thus pump pulsation. The combination of the two modules ensures all the detectors will all be working at their optimum, maximizing sensitivity and accuracy.
Secondly, the purchase of a complete system means a single software package for control of the entire system, from data acquisition to analysis. It means no need to worry about correctly synchronizing sample sequences between two systems which can increase your confidence that all measurements will be run correctly.
Having a complete systems means that you only have one point of contact for performance verifications or repairs. There doesn’t need to be any communication and possible confusion between manufacturers, while trying to find the root cause of a problem. If something has gone wrong, then one service call should be all that is required to get back up and running.
Finally, adding advanced detection to an existing system could mean that you need to stop using it for previous applications. If you have a range of different requirements for your samples, or require your GPC/SEC system to be used in different ways, then it may be more efficient to purchase a completely new dedicated system for advanced detection.
While purchasing a complete system may be the ideal solution, in some situations, it may make more sense to simply upgrade an existing system to advanced detection by adding OMNISEC REVEAL.
If budget is a concern, then the OMNISEC REVEAL can be easily connected to any existing GPC/SEC system. This immediately transforms it from a limited conventional chromatography system to an advanced multi-detection system while minimizing cost.
It may be that there is already a dedicated GPC/SEC system where the application has been fully optimized. Rather than redeveloping and re-optimizing the application on a new system, it might be a cleaner solution to just add the detector module and allow all of the rest of the setup to remain in place.
Table 2 summarizes the benefits of each option.
| Complete system | Module only |
|---|---|
| A complete ready-to-use solution from a single supplier built to work together | Save budget by simply upgrading to multi-detection |
| Single software package for acquisition and control | Use the system that is already running for an established application |
| Single supplier means any service issues are covered by them with no risk of arguments about the location of the issue and the responsible party |
OMNISEC is the top-of-the-range integrated multi-detector GPC/SEC system from Malvern. The detection capabilities of OMNISEC REVEAL make it the most advanced GPC/SEC detector module on the market and it is offered alone or in conjunction with OMNISEC RESOLVE, an integrated solvent and sample delivery system.
Alone, OMNISEC REVEAL can be used as an upgrade to an existing GPC/SEC system; however, by adding the OMNISEC RESOLVE to create a complete system, it is possible to realize additional benefits. The system comes as a complete ready-to-use solution for GPC/SEC containing everything that is required to get up and running. Finally, it is controlled by a single software package and supported by a single service organization should support be needed.
