HIGH-VISCOSITY LIQUIDS CAN NOW BE PIPETTED

Even today, in the pharmaceutical, cosmetic and food industries, high-viscosity liquids such as creams, shampoos, honey, ointments or oils are processed only with spoons and similar tools in the laboratory for analytical purposes. These requirements cause serious delays in analysis and mixing procedures during the development process. For example, to determine the exact liquid volume, many material-sensitive steps are continuously required: initially, in time-consuming stages, high-viscosity liquids are transferred between different tubes, this process is followed by weighing and volume calculation taking into account the specific gravity of the liquid. To handle aqueous liquids precisely, pipettes with different working principles are also used in modern laboratories, each equipped with appropriate tips. Particularly for viscous liquids, these pipettes, which operate on a direct displacement principle similar to the syringe working principle, have become common. However, increasing viscosity causes the flow resistance inside the tip to grow. As a result: the user's hand strength, the materials constituting the working controls, or the motors of electronic pipettes reach their limits. Moreover, processing speed decreases with increasing viscosity, particularly in cases where precision is critical. The limit of dynamic viscosity dependent on the pipetting system's capacity or the operator currently stands consistently around 200 to 300 mPa*s (with 10mL tip), which roughly equals the viscosity value of 86 percent glycerol at 20°C. Eppendorf, which has been developing Liquid Handling products for the past 57 years, has made a new invention aimed at eliminating this limit. The new ViscoTip®, developed for the related Multipette product, has the ability to process demanding liquids with viscosity values up to 14,000 mPa*s with precision and speed. This product was first introduced to the public at the InCosmetics Fair in April 2018.   Dr. Samira Schroeder Global Marketing Manager Manual Liquid Handling Eppendorf AG