Specialised instruments for the biotechnology industry

June 2002 Analytical Instrumentation & Environmental Monitoring

Instrumentation specialist Endress+Hauser has identified biotechnology as a growth node for the future and is focusing on the development of products catering specifically for this highly demanding instrumentation market.

Biotechnology has become an exact science that often involves fermentation, which could be described as any process in which a product is obtained through the mass culture of a bio-organism. Fermentation is used in many different applications, from ethanol to growing tissue cell culture for vaccines. Of critical importance in all fermentation processes is the reliable monitoring and control of the temperature value, since in order to achieve optimal yields, fermentation must be carried out at constant temperature.

The first of Endress+Hauser's solutions for batch fermentation processes comes in the form of the TR 44 thermometer, expressly designed for sanitary applications, with stainless steel used for the manufacture of wetted parts, minimal surface roughness and a variety of suitable process connections. TR 44 offers particularly fast response to temperature variations - which, during fermentation, must be quickly detected to prevent over/under chilling - in fact, TR 44 has the probe containing the sensing element in direct contact with the process fluid. High accuracy is guaranteed by the use of Class A sensing elements. A special calibration procedure is available to enhance the accuracy of the loop probe and transmitter.

The TR 45 thermometer adds a thermo well containing an inset to the TR 44 setup. This thermo well can be mounted on the vessel through the process connection or welded, in order to avoid plant shutdown when replacing components. TR 45, just like TR 44, offers very long immersion lengths to reach the inner depths of large tanks.

General-purpose thermometers, such as the TST 10 or TST 40N can be successfully applied to the cooling system in batch fermentation processes. All Endress+Hauser thermometers can be provided with stainless steel heads, are made to withstand high-temperature cleaning processes and are capable of converting sensor signals into the most common types of output.

Grant Joyce, Endress+Hauser

011 262 8000

[email protected]

www.za.endress.com

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