Analytical equipment and methods
Information on our analytical equipment and methods, including support facilities.
Methods are established for the following analytes:
- Trace-level Dissolved Organic Carbon (DOC) and Nitrogen (TDN) with Shimadzu TOC-V Analyser
- Contaminant hydrocarbons, including Total Petroleum Hydrocarbons (TPH), Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons (PAH) and Diesel Range Organics (DRO) (GC, GC-MS)
- Lipid biomarkers (GC, GC-MS)
- Amino acids (HPLC or GC-MS)
- D/L amino acid ratios (HPLC)
- Total carbohydrates (colourimetric)
- Carbohydrate monomers (GC, GC-MS)
- Lignin phenols (GC, GC-MS)
- Dissolved gases (GC-TCD)
We have a range of equipment available to carry out analyses.
Our equipment includes:
- Shimadzu TOC-V (High Temperature Catalytic Oxidation) analyser with TNM module for chemiluminescence detection of Nitrogen
- Two Agilent 5890 GC systems with autoinjector, split/splitless or on-column injection with Flame Ionisation Detectors (FID)
- One gradient Agilent 1100 series HPLC system with autoinjector and fluorescence detector.
- An Agilent 5890 GC system with Thermal Conductivity Detector (TCD).
- A GC-MS system (Agilent 6890 GC, 5973 MSD) with autoinjector, split/splitless or on-column injection, Electron Impact (EI) or Chemical Ionisation ( PCI or NCI ) capability and spectral libraries.
- Data processing with Agilent Chemstation for MSD.
In addition to the main instruments in the facility we have supporting equipment available.
- Fume cupboards
- Microbalance
- Freeze drier
- Autoclave
- Muffle furnace
- Low-temperature freezer
- Refrigerated centrifuges
- Organic-clean ultrapure water
- Soxhlet and ultrasonic equipment for lipid and hydrocarbon extractions
- Column chromatography for lipid class separation
- Centrifugal and rotary evaporation systems
- Networked chromatographic data processing software