Thermo Elemental says its X-series ICP/MS increases the profitability in high throughput laboratories needing to meet stringent worldwide environmental regulatory protocols
The increasing demand for metals analysis at sub ng/ml has led to an increasing acceptance of ICP-MS as a routine analytical technique, providing a single analysis method for a comprehensive suite of metals.
While the analytical capabilities are well understood, there are many misconceptions relating to the cost of ownership and therefore analytical cost per sample analysis. Thermo Elemental says the X Series ICP-MS is the world's smallest and fastest commercially available ICP-MS instrument designed to meet the stringent requirements of high throughout routine environmental and contract laboratories.
This system provides data faster than other similar instruments and this high productivity leads to real operating savings in use of argon and electrical power.
A payback analysis has been calculated using data provided from a series of professional environmental consultant companies.
The costs were calculated based on running US EPA method 200.8, with a sample throughput rate of 2.5 mins per sample and a 20% quality control overhead.
Taking into account all the instrument purchase, set up, staff training and in-house administration and the costs of running a contract analysis laboratory versus the pricing charged, the X Series ICP-MS can comfortably generate funds to cover all its capital and operating costs within eight months, says the company.
The X Series ICP-MS can clearly demonstrate that the technique has the capacity to significantly grow the routine metals analysis business.
