One of my favorite parts of my job is being able to display Organomation's test tube and microplate evaporators at trade shows such as ACS and ANALYTICA. I greatly enjoy the opportunity of demonstrating our sample preparation solutions and talking to chemists about their challenges of removing excess solvent from their samples ahead of processes such as LC-MS and HPLC.
Getting to catch up with established customers and being able to put faces to names of new customers is very rewarding. It is always encouraging to receive positive feedback on the longevity and ease of use of our evaporators. Of course, it is also fun meeting someone new to Organomation who arrives in front of an N-EVAP at our booth and asks, "what on earth is this thing and what does it do?"
I am always struck by how many people are unfamiliar with the sample concentration product category. Many of these chemists remark that when the need arises, they simply hold their sample vial under a stream of compressed air or nitrogen and manually blow down the sample to remove excess solvent. At its core, automating this solvent removal process is what Organomation has specialized in for over 60 years.
Installing a nitrogen evaporator into the laboratory's sample preparation workflow can provide substantial advantages over drying samples with nitrogen by hand. For one, the application of heat can dramatically speed up the evaporation process.
Ultimately, a chief determining factor for whether a nitrogen evaporator is a worthwhile purchase depends on the lab's desired sample throughput. If a lab tech only dries down a couple of samples in an average week, they likely do not need one of our evaporators, regardless of how well built they are. However, for a university laboratory where several students are removing excess solvent from samples held in different sized vials, the N-EVAP could be the perfect fit for them.
If you ever come across the Organomation booth at a show, please stop by and say hi. We would love to introduce ourselves and learn how we can help your laboratory. Likewise, we are equally interested in having this discussion through a phone call, email, or web chat - whichever method you prefer.
Learn how an Organomation Nitrogen Evaporator assists in faster sample processing at Mystic Aquarium, allowing them to significantly increase their output.