The sample vial has a big impact. It affects the process and the results of chromatography. If the sample vial is cleaned wrong, it will contaminate it. This contamination may cause: ghost peaks, sample degradation, analyte loss, poor injection repeatability, and peaks caused by solvent and the septum interacting. Improperly handled vials will greatly affect the test results. This will cause deviations in the results and even damage the autosampler.

Thus, cleaning the autosampler vial is very important. The experimenter must master the vial's cleaning method.

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How to

The washing method is different according to the degree of contamination of the vial. This article will recommend many methods for cleaning the vial. They will help you finish the chromatographic test.

Method 1

1. Pour the test solution in the HPLC vial.

2. Immerse the entire vial in 95% alcohol, ultrasonically clean it twice, and then pour it dry (high concentration of alcohol enters the vial and can be miscible with most organic solvents).

3. Pour in clean water and ultrasonically clean it twice.

4. Pour out the washing liquid in the vial and bake at 110 degrees Celsius for 1-2 hours (do not bake at high temperature, which will cause damage to the vial).

5. Cool and store.

Method 2

1.Rinse multiple times with tap water.

2. Immerse it in a beaker of distilled water and use an ultrasonic cleaner for fifteen minutes.

3. Switch out the water and give it another fifteen minutes of ultrasonic cleaning.

4. Submerge the vial in anhydrous ethanol-filled beaker.

5. At the end, remove it and let it to naturally dry by air.

Method 3

1. Soak it in methanol for twenty minutes, then remove the methanol and clean it with ultrasonography.

2. After adding more water to the sample vial, ultrasonic clean it for 20 minutes, and then drain the water.

3. Allow the vial to dry.

Method 4

1. Rinse and dry it with clean water first, then soak it in a strong oxidizing cleaning agent (potassium dichromate sulfate) cleaning solution.

2. Soak in medical alcohol for more than 4 hours, then ultrasonically clean for half an hour, then pour out the medical alcohol, use water ultrasonic cleaning for half an hour, rinse with water and dry.

Method 5

1. Soak in a strong oxidizing cleaning agent for 24 hours.

2. Clean 3 times with deionized water under ultrasonic conditions, and finally clean once with methanol, and dry it for use.

Method 6

Use machine washing. Bottle washing machine can improve the efficiency of cleaning vials and save manpower and time.

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Problems you may encounter

There are many problems with manual cleaning.

1. Low cleaning efficiency, long washing time, time-consuming and effort. In addition, the amount of brushes and detergents is large, difficult to manage, and wastes water resources.

2. Cleaning is prone to dead corners, the cleaning effect is difficult to guarantee, affecting the test results, and increasing manpower and material costs.

3. There are safety hazards in the cleaning process of vial cleaning personnel. Some laboratories will use ultrasonic cleaning machines. This cleaning method improves the cleaning efficiency and cleanliness to a certain extent, but it also has disadvantages.

The ultrasonic cleaning machine is noisy and harsh during the working process, and it is easy to break the vial, and the cleaning time is not easy to grasp. Therefore, we recommend that you wear gloves, goggles, earplugs and other safety protection equipment during the cleaning process.

If the vial is old or damaged, do not reuse it. Depending on how often you do the experiment, replace the sample vial every 1-3 months.

Discarded vials need to be managed uniformly, handled in accordance with laboratory hazardous waste management regulations, and handed over to qualified hazardous waste treatment companies for disposal.

Each cleaning method has corresponding advantages and disadvantages. The best method is to replace a new vial after each test. It's important that you select the right cleaning technique. Based on the type of test sample and the real laboratory conditions, this choice should be made. It is also advisable to consider the expense of the trial. It should be remembered that following each chromatographic test, the septum of the sample vial needs to be replaced.

Wan to know full knowledge about how to clean the chromatography sample vials, please check this article: Efficient ! 5 methods for cleaning chromatography sample vials

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