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Freeze Dryers are highly specialised equipment, used for preserving a wide variety of product types, as diverse as pharmaceutical products, foods, soil samples, flowers and archaeological artefacts. If you are thinking about purchasing a freeze dryer, either for the first time or as an upgrade to your existing freeze dryer, you may find it helpful to consider the following points: Trials Have you carried out freeze drying trials of your product? Trials will help to determine how your product reacts to the freeze-drying process. For example, how long it takes to freeze dry a batch, how much ice your product generates – before investing in capital equipment. Trials can be accomplished either by using a company that offers contract freeze-drying, or by hiring equipment and carrying out your own trials. MechaTech Systems offer benchtop freeze dryers for monthly rental. Budget What can you afford? Freeze Dryers are expensive – fact! Prices do vary according to quality and manufacturer, but a good quality, 5Kg (ice condenser capacity). -55°C benchtop freeze dryer in the UK, including chamber and vacuum pump is likely to start at around £10,000. For pilot and production scale freeze dryers, prices vary from tens to hundreds of thousand pounds, usually determined by the condenser and chamber size, and temperature and control requirements. Temperature What Condenser Temperature do you need? A freeze dryer typically has a condenser temperature of -50°C as a starting point. This is suitable for many product types, but not all. Your product may have a lower freezing point (eutectic point), in which case you will need a lower condenser temperature. MechaTech Systems currently offer freeze dryers with condenser temperatures of either -55 °C or -85°C What Chamber Temperature do you need? Many small lab freeze dryers, such as the LyoDry Compact Benchtop Freeze Dryer, or LyoDry Benchtop Pro are modular: this means that you can choose the drying chamber – often an acrylic chamber, perhaps with a tray accessory – or a manifold or chamber with ports for flask drying. In this instance, pre-freezing in the chamber is not an option, so your product must be pre-frozen either in a suitable freezer, or snap frozen in liquid nitrogen. Heating your product, if appropriate, may speed up the freeze-drying process. For this purpose, the LSAD6H Heated Chamber from MechaTech Systems has a temperature controller and heater mats. Larger, pilot-scale freeze dryers, such as the LyoDry Heritage or the LyoDry Grande do offer integral, temperature-controlled chambers or shelves. You can both pre-freeze and heat the product. MechaTech’s chamber freeze dryers are typically available with chamber temperatures ranging from -60°C or -40°C,  to +60°C. Capacity What Condenser Capacity do you need? This will be determined by how much ice will your product generates before the condenser needs to be defrosted, and then what batch size do you wish to process. This is particularly important if you have a very wet product, which is likely to generate more ice. For example, the LyoDry Compact benchtop freeze dryer has an ice condenser capacity of 5Kg, before defrost is required. The LHS60 LyoDry Heritage has an ice condenser capacity of 60Kg before defrost is required. If you don’t know how much ice your product generates, trials will help you to determine this. What Chamber capacity do you need? i.e. How much space do you need for the product you wish to freeze dry per batch. Smaller, R&D freeze dryers, such as the LyoDry Compact, are often modular, so you can choose which chamber/drying accessory you need. This might be an Acrylic Chamber, for bulk samples, often with a tray accessory, for freeze drying multiple samples. Or a manifold accessory, for attaching flasks. Or a combination of both so that you have different options available, for example the LSDCV 8-port lidded acrylic chamber. See Freeze Dryer Accessories for LyoDry Freeze Dryer accessory options. Pilot scale and production freeze dryers usually have an integral chamber, with a set number of shelves offering a total chamber capacity. For example, the pilot-scale LyoDry Maxi Freeze Dryer is available with either 3, 4 or 5 shelves, each measuring 360mm W x 480mm D, up to a total of 0.86m2 drying space. Solvents What solvents are involved in the process? Usually, the only solvent present in the freeze-drying process is water. In which case, any  chamber is suitable. However, some organic solvents can cause an acrylic chamber to corrode, especially if a high concentration of corrosive solvent is present,. In this instance, a stainless steel chamber is a better option. You may also need to protect the vacuum pump with a chemical trap and sorbent. Control What level of control automation do you need? Entry level, laboratory freeze dryers will usually have a basic digital controller and display, showing temperature, vacuum level and readiness. The operator needs to follow certain steps, such as pressing the ‘Pump On’ button to switch on the vacuum pump, when the freeze dryer display indicates that it has reached the correct pre-cooled temperature. For more closely controlled laboratory freeze drying on a small scale, the LyoDry Benchtop Pro and LyoDry Midi Pro offer touch screen control, data logging, trends, pressure control, USB and ethernet comms. Pilot and production freeze dryers, such as the LyoDry Heritage, Maxi and Grande, have more comprehensive controllers, usually a touch screen PLC, with pre-programmable, freeze drying ‘recipes’. These provide product protection and require only minimal operator intervention. They often include process and product temperatures variables, and real-time systems status and fault indicators. They also have comprehensive alarm management systems, and the option of remote view via an external computer. If you’re freeze drying in vials, some pilot and production freeze dryers, such as the LyoDry Maxi and Grande, also offer automatic stoppering of vials. Space and Logistics Last, but not least, where will your freeze dryer be installed? A benchtop freeze dryer can sit on a lab bench, or a purpose-built trolley on castors so that it can be moved around the lab. MechaTech Systems also manufacture the LyoDry Midi modular freeze dryer, which offers a larger condenser capacity (18Kg) than the benchtop freeze dryer (5Kg), but is specially designed be positioned next to a typical laboratory bench. The LyoDry Maxi has a built-in chamber on top, so needs height, but is specially designed to fit through a standard laboratory doorway. The LyoDry Production Freeze Dryer, however, is a through-the-wall design – so only the chamber doorway and operator control are accessible in the clean room, whilst the mechanical parts such as the vacuum pump and condenser are in a separate room. To summarise: Have you carried out trials? What can you afford? What condenser temperature and chamber temperature do you need? What condenser capacity and chamber capacity do you need? What solvents are you using and what is their level of concentration? What level of control do you need? How much space do you have? MechaTech Systems manufacture LyoDry Freeze Dryers, from our Bristol, UK facility. MechaTech can provide advice, quotations and also practical help in the form of rental benchtop freeze dryers for carrying out trials of your product. For further information, please contact us:  enquiries@mechatechsystems.co.uk / +44 (0) 1454 414723 or visit https://www.mechatechsystems.co.uk/freeze-dryers.

We recently delivered a sixth BioDry Production Scale Vacuum Dryer to our UK microbiology diagnostics customer. The BioDry Vacuum Dryer is a fully automated, production scale Vacuum Dryer for industrial vacuum drying at low temperatures in a controlled and reproducible way. With up to 42 temperature controlled shelves, a total drying area of 16.8m2 is accessed via two outward opening hinged doors for easy loading and unloading of samples. Special features include touch screen control with data analysis and end point determination, eliminating under-drying or wasteful over-drying. A separate plant room makes this an ideal clean room solution. MechaTech Systems Ltd, have a combined experience of over fifty years in the design, manufacture and maintenance of Vacuum Dryers and Vacuum Drying Systems. Read more and/or contact us for further information: https://www.mechatechsystems.co.uk/biodry-vacuum-dryer https://www.mechatechsystems.co.uk/about https://www.mechatechsystems.co.uk/contact

Our esteemed Chinese distributors, BeiJing Michem Instruments Co.,Ltd., will be showcasing our LyoDry Freeze Dryers and Hyscan II Hydrogen in Aluminium Analyser at the 18th Beijing Conference and Exhibition on Instrument Analysis (BCEIA) this month. BCEIA is a highly specialized and well respected international analytical instruments conference and exhibition in China. Beijing Michem Instruments Co Ltd will be taking the opportunity to introduce our latest LyoDry Benchtop Pro Freeze Dryer, which includes all the features of our best selling LyoDry Compact Benchtop Freeze Dryer, with enhanced functionality. LyoDry Benchtop Pro features wide, touch screen, colour control with data logging and pressure control, enabling closely controlled lyophilization on a small, affordable scale. With condenser temperatures of either -55°C or -85°C, a fully stainless steel cabinet and a wide array of drying chamber options, LyoDry Benchtop Pro is ideal for most freeze drying applications, including pharma, food and laboratory samples, for drying in bulk, flasks, vials or ampoules. LyoDry Freeze Dryers are UK designed and manufactured by MechaTech Systems Ltd, and distributed in China by Beijing Michem Instruments Co Ltd. Visit Beijing Michem Instruments Co Ltd on Booth No. 42056 at BCEIA, 23rd – 26th October. More about LyoDry Benchtop Pro: https://www.mechatechsystems.co.uk/benchtop-pro-freeze-dryer More about MechaTech Systems Ltd: https://www.mechatechsystems.co.uk/ More about Beijing Michem Instruments Co Ltd : http://www.bjmichem.com

We are pleased to introduce the latest accessory for S35 Gas Sampling Systems – a Drechsel bottle carrier for transportation of up to 6 x 250ml Drechsel bottles. The purpose-built Drechsel bottle carrier with lid is specially designed to locate and accommodate 6 x 250ml Drechsel bottles with diffusers and associated tubes. It is manufactured in brushed stainless steel with 4 x over centre clamps used to secure the lid to the carrier. Plastic locator discs are fitted to the inside of the carrier to locate the bases of the Drechsel bottles. A silicone seal between the lid and the carrier provides added protection, and a carrying handle adds extra convenience. Find out more about the Drechsel Bottle Carrier and S35 Gas Sampling Systems: https://www.mechatechsystems.co.uk/s35-gas-sampling Or Contact Us for any further information and a quotation: https://www.mechatechsystems.co.uk/contact