Metrohm has announced its 844 Compact UV-VIS IC can be used for the simple and low-cost analysis of melamine in food products.
Melamine is an organic compound that has a low toxicity, but excessive exposure can cause kidney-related problems, especially in vulnerable groups such as infants.
The European Commission has said that any products from China containing milk products should be tested for melamine.
Since October 2008, any products found to contain more than 2.5mg kg-1 of melamine must be withdrawn from the market and destroyed.
With the Metrohm solution, the content of melamine can be determined in less than 20 minutes once the treated sample is introduced into the IC.
The Metrohm method uses a Metrosep C4 column with a dilute mineral acid eluent.
The minimal detectable limit was found to be 0.01mg l-1 melamine (or a method detection limit of 0.067mg kg-1).
