Wyatt Technology Corporation Launches the ViscoStar III Online Viscometer for Polymer and Protein Characterization

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Wyatt Technology Corporation Launches the
ViscoStar III Online Viscometer for Polymer and
Protein Characterization
1888 Press Release - The Next Generation of
Viscometers is launched with ViscoStar III by
Wyatt Technology for unmatched sensitivity,
stability, and broadest range of solvents for
macromolecular characterization. Houston, TX -
Wyatt Technology, the world leader in
instrumentation for absolute macromolecular
characterization, announces the launch of the
third generation of intrinsic viscosity
detectors the ViscoStar III. Used in
conjunction with gel permeation chromatography
(GPC) systems and multi-angle light scattering
(MALS) detectors, such as the company's DAWN and
miniDAWN, the ViscoStar III can determine the
molar mass, size and conformation of all types of
macromolecules, including polymers and proteins.
The ViscoStar III's sensitivity, dynamic range,
resolution and stability surpass other GPC
viscometers by at least an order of magnitude-all
while retaining robustness, ease-of-use and
serviceability. Advanced Technology All
contemporary online viscometers utilize a
capillary bridge for highly sensitive measurement
of differential pressures arising from the
differences in viscosity of solutions passing
through the capillaries. The four arms of the
bridge must be perfectly balanced in order to
make the most sensitive measurements however,
even a well-balanced bridge is inherently
susceptible to systematic noise due to dynamic
pressure pulses generated by the chromatography
pump. At the heart of the ViscoStar III are two
key advances for overcoming these issues thermal
bridge tuning and complete impedance matching.
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Thermal bridge tuning performs rapid,
non-mechanical balancing of the capillary
resistances to ensure perfect bridge balance on
every GPC run, even after material has
accumulated on the capillary walls and skewed the
original bridge symmetry. Complete impedance
matching goes beyond simple resistive bridge
balancing. It symmetrizes the dynamic properties
of the capillary bridge and suppresses pump
pulses by 100x. And the ViscoStar III does it
without introducing the artificial band
broadening that is used by other online
viscometers to smear out pump pulses at the cost
of reduced chromatographic resolution. An
additional, proprietary software filter
eliminates residual pump pulse levels without any
loss of resolution. The bridge-balancing,
impedance matching and software filtering
features were developed entirely in-house by
Wyatt's outstanding RD staff. "The ViscoStar
III is a welcome addition to my macromolecular
characterization lab" says Stepan Podzimek of the
University of Pardubice in the Czech Republic.
Prof. Podzimek, one of the premier authorities on
polymer characterization, added "It far exceeds
the sensitivity, resolution and chemical
compatibility of all other GPC viscometers I have
tried, and sets a new standard for such
instruments. It even works well with older GPC
systems that I would normally consider
incompatible with online viscometry due to their
excessive pump pulsations. In combination with a
HELEOS or TREOS, the ViscoStar III represents a
powerful tool for the thorough investigation of
polymer conformation and branching and brings new
capabilities to all laboratories involved in the
characterization of synthetic and natural
polymers." More innovation from Wyatt
Technology Yet other "firsts" in the ViscoStar
III include The only viscometer with a "dual"
Peltier thermal control, which reduces signal
drift by 50x relative to competing instruments
while allowing for both heating and
cooling pressure transducers with all-316L
stainless steel wetted surfaces for reduced
corrosion and highest compatibility with the
widest range of chromatographic solvents
a system pressure sensor to detect capillary
clogs and prevent transducer damage a
replaceable solvent filter that protects
sensitive downstream components ready access
to service all fluidic components.
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Protein applications "The ViscoStar III is a
sensitive, stable and robust instrument. When
combined with a DAWN or miniDAWN MALS detector
and size exclusion chromatography (SEC), we find
it provides a more precise measurement of the
hydrodynamic radius of proteins especially at low
concentrations, than the more commonly used
online dynamic light scattering (DLS)" stated Dr.
Michelle Chen, Head of Analytical Services at
Wyatt Technology. "With sensitivity down to as
little as 0.1 µg of 100 kDa polystyrene, or
approximately 1 µg of BSA, and a dynamic range of
over 135,0001, the ViscoStar III will add to our
protein and peptide characterization
capabilities-in addition to enhancing our polymer
analysis." A webinar describing the
technological innovations, capabilities and
applications of the ViscoStar III will be
broadcast on October 19, 2016. Visit
http//www.wyatt.com/events/live-webinars.html
for details and to register, or view on-demand at
http//www.wyatt.com/webinars/polymers beginning
October 28, 2016. Additional information on the
ViscoStar III may be found at www.wyatt.com/ViscoS
tar.