Supercritical Fluid Technologies

HPR Series lab-scale reactors
The HPR Series lab-scale reactors are said to be ideal for studying catalytic, polymerization, hydrogenation, oxidation, isomerization, and dehydrogenation reactions, in applications ranging from high-pressure chemical syntheses to process development. The stirred reactors have a magnetically coupled impeller for optimal mixing. They range in size from 50 mL to 4 L, and may be operated at conditions up to 10,000 psi and 350°C. All sizes are supplied as ready-to-use instruments requiring only utility connections prior to operation. Three integrated RxTrol processors perform all control functions.

SFT-NPX-10 pilot-scale supercritical extractor
The SFT-NPX-10 pilot-scale supercritical extractor is designed to simplify the extraction of a wide variety of natural products, such as botanicals, herbs and spices, flavors, and neutraceuticals, and to facilitate the transition from laboratory-scale equipment to production-scale processing systems. It performs supercritical-fluid extractions in either single or dual 10-L sample vessels with single or dual separators. It has a Coriolis mass flow meter for precise mass flow measurement, and a pneumatic CO2 pump with an integral waterless prechiller to maximize pumping efficiency.

SFT-10 carbon dioxide pump
The self-contained liquid carbon dioxide SFT-10 pump can pressurize CO2 up to 10,000 psi (69 MPa) at flowrates from 0.01 to 24.0 mL/min. These characteristics make the SFT-10 an ideal pump for use in supercritical fluid extraction, and for a variety of other high-pressure applications, including supercritical fluid reaction chemistry and chromatography. Using advanced Peltier chilling, the temperature of the pump head is maintained low enough to ensure that the CO2 remains liquid. This makes it possible to achieve high pressure without the need for an external cooling bath.

SFT-100XW supercritical fluid extraction (SFE) system
The SFT-100XW supercritical fluid extraction (SFE) system applies supercritical fluid techniques to various analyses and processing challenges, as well as quality control/quality analysis (QC/QA), repetitive laboratory analysis, and process development applications. It uses dual sapphire syringe-pump technology to pressurize the stainless steel vessel, which may contain up to 500 mL of fluid at pressures up to 10,000 psi. These large processing vessels enable the user to extract very low levels of key components from materials, or to process larger amounts of bulk material than would be possible with conventional, analytical-scale SFE equipment. The system features an integrated preheater that maintains the fluid delivered to the extraction vessel at a constant temperature, ensuring efficient, consistent, and repeatable results. An optional co-solvent pump extends the system’s versatility by enabling extraction of moderately polar compounds.

HPR Series stirred reactors
HPR Series stirred reactors are designed for laboratory-scale pressurized chemical reactions, including high-pressure chemical synthesis, process development, etc. They range in size from 50 mL to 4 L and may be operated at pressures up to 10,000 psi and temperatures up to 350°C. Their magnetically coupled impeller provides optimal mixing, and all their high-pressure components are American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME)-rated and protected by a rupture disc for safe operation. They are suitable for tasks where repetitive use makes convenience a necessity, such as in catalytic studies and polymerization, hydrogenation, oxidation, isomerization, and dehydrogenation applications. All sizes are supplied ready-to-use and require only utility connections prior to operation. The reactors are compact instruments that fit easily into a fume hood. Their modular design makes it simple and cost-effective to alter the unit’s basic configuration to adapt to new or evolving needs.

Phase Monitor II
The Phase Monitor II determines the solubility of various compounds and mixtures in subcritical and supercritical fluids, providing direct, visual observation of materials. An option for this instrument, the Data Acquisition Package (DAP) provides real-time image and data capture directly to a PC. The video image and the temperature and pressure data are displayed on the computer monitor, and may be archived directly to the hard drive along with a record of the date and time and an optional user-supplied short text comment. A PXI frame grabber card must be installed on a Windows-based computer (any of the NT, 2000, Me or XP versions are compatible) for the video signal to be captured. This software add-on is based on the LabView program.

SFT-20 liquid carbon dioxide pump
The SFT-20 liquid carbon dioxide pump delivers a flowrate of 200 mL/min without the need for external cooling baths. Instead, it relies on high-capacity Peltier cooling to stabilize pump head temperature, which maintains highly efficient compression even under high-flow conditions. The pump employs dual sapphire syringe-pump technology to rapidly and accurately produce pressures up to 10,000 psi, making it suitable for use in supercritical fluid applications. The SFT-20 is available both as a stand-alone pump and as part of the SFT-2000 supercritical fluid extractor.