More and more laboratories are reportedly turning to this comfortable automated system, in which the oil sees only the disposable sample beaker and everything takes place fully automatically
The determination of the total acid number (TAN) or total base number (TBN) is indispensable in the oil industry.
Nevertheless, until now it was not especially well liked by its users.
Not least because of the solvents used and the oil-smeared titration beakers, more and more laboratories are turning to the comfortable automated system, in which the oil sees only the disposable sample beaker and everything takes place fully automatically - from the addition of the solvent mixture up to the saving of the results in a professional database.
Whenever, as in the TAN/TBN determination, aggressive solvent mixtures are used, it is not only the lab personnel who have to be protected from its dangerous effects but also the analytical instruments.
This is why specially resistant materials have been used for this robotic analyser.
If a beaker should accidentally overflow with solvent this does not affect the polypropylene rack at all, and the heart of the package, the robotic Titrosampler, is protected against an accidental solvent bath by the drip tray.
Anybody who still uses the three-electrode technique for TAN/TBN determinations is behind the times, says Metrohm.
This time-proven but clumsy indication setup has been reduced by us to a single electrode - the Solvotrode.
Be sparing with the amount of sample and solvent, as here only one electrode has to be accommodated - users not only save space but are working in an environment-friendly manner.
The practical drip tray and the PP sample rack protect equipment.
The Robotic TAN/TBN analyser includes a drip tray that protects both the robotic Titrosampler and the furniture against the oil/solvent mixtures.
It is mounted beneath the rack used in this application.
Any spills are safely led into the waste container via tubing.
Depending on the application the Solvotrode can be filled with various electrolytes.
This electrode, which has been specially developed for the determination of TAN and TBN according to ASTM, is characterised by its rapid response, excellent shielding against electrostatic effects as well as the resulting stable measurements in organic solvents.
The separable ground-joint diaphragm allows the Solvotrode to be thoroughly cleaned.
