How to clean the ACQUITY PDA / TUV Detector flow cell - WKB48267

OBJECTIVE or GOAL

Clean the ACQUITY PDA / TUV Detector flow cell.

ENVIRONMENT

• ACQUITY PDA Detector
• ACQUITY UPLC PDA eλ Detector
• ACQUITY TUV Detector
• 2998

PROCEDURE

Clean the flow cell as per ACQUITY UPLC PDA Operator's Overview and Maintenance Guide (715002209)

Summary:

Cleaning the Acquity Light Guiding flow cell 

Clean the flow cell when it becomes contaminated with the residues from previous runs and after each detector shutdown.

A dirty flow cell can cause baseline noise, decreased sample energy levels, calibration failure and other problems. 

• Always flush the flow cell with mobile phase as your initial attempt to correct these problems. 

• If there is still no improvement, flush the flow cell with 100% pure organic solution, for example 100% acetonitrile. 

• If the problems persist, flush the flow cell with 1% formic acid (aq) for 30 minutes then flush with water until the formic acid is removed. 

• If flushing with the 1% formic acid solution also fails, perform a system acid cleansing flush as follows:

To clean the flow cell 

1. In the detector control panel, click (Lamp Off). 

2. Stop the solvent flow and remove the column. 

3. Replace the column with a union or piece of tubing. 

4. If another instrument is downstream of the flow cell outlet, break the connection at the other instrument and route the outlet tubing to waste while flushing. 

5. Flush the detector with HPLC-grade water. If the mobile phase is not compatible with water, flush with an intermediate solvent first. 

6. Pump an acid wash composition of 1.0% formic in water or 90% water/10% organic mixture. Flush the flow cell for minimum of 4 hours at a low flow of 0.05 to 0.1 ml/min. Do not exceed 1000 psi (69 bar, 6895 kPa). 

7. Flush the detector with HPLC-grade water. If the mobile phase is not compatible with water, flush with an intermediate solvent first. 

Tips: Remove any other active detectors of instruments from the system, a stronger concentration of Phosphoric acid, up to 30% may be used if more aggressive cleaning is needed. If a mass spec is included in the system you may substitute the phosphoric rinse with 25% formic 25% IPA and 50% water.

8. Reattach the column. 

9. Resume pumping mobile phase. If the mobile phase is not miscible in water, first flush with an intermediary solvent. 

 

For more details on how to perform a full system clean, please review the following article How to clean and flush the Alliance HPLC System and ACQUITY UPLC System to remove contamination 

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION