Is reversed-phase flash chromatography less expensive than normal-phase?
April 26, 2022 at 2:41 PM / by Bob Bickler posted in Reversed-phase, Cost, Normal Phase
This might actually be a good time to choose a reliable partner
April 27, 2020 at 9:19 AM / by flashadmin posted in Selekt, Cost, Technical Service, Quality of Biotage Products
Sometimes we find ourselves having to make decisions fast, and act even faster - especially in situations like the one we live in today, where there is a high degree of uncertainty. In this kind of situation it is ideal to find a partner that is willing to share the risk with us, so that the long-term consequences of a decision made in times of uncertainty are not going to make us regret our choice when things get back to normal.
Does a longer flash column really provide better purification?
April 17, 2020 at 9:30 PM / by Bob Bickler posted in Chromatography Fundamentals, Sfär, Scale-Up, Cost, Normal Phase
This is an interesting question that I am asked from time to time. There does seem to be two camps in which chemists reside – one believing longer and thinner columns provide better separations and the other preferring shorter and fatter columns to do the same chromatography.
Which is right? That is a question I will try to answer based on my own data.
Pushing flash column chromatography loading limits
December 30, 2019 at 3:39 PM / by Bob Bickler posted in Chromatography Fundamentals, Green, Sfär, Loading Techniques, Cost, Normal Phase, Pillar Page
A question I hear a lot from chemists is “how much can I load”. The answer is always “it depends on your separation quality”. At that point I begin asking about the TLC data and purification goals. Purification goal setting should be your first step and the question to answer is – what do I need this purification to achieve? Is the goal high purity, high yield, or some combination. Remember, you will typically sacrifice purity for high yield and yield for high purity so optimization is an important consideration.
Green Flash Chromatography Webinar
November 26, 2019 at 9:03 PM / by Bob Bickler posted in Green, Sfär, Selekt, Webinar, Cost, Normal Phase
Over the past several decades, the chemical industry has implemented process changes and updated practices in R&D and manufacturing in an effort to reduce liquid and solid lab waste. The pharmaceutical industry in particular has taken steps within their drug discovery labs to reduce solvent use by requiring their chemists to find and implement measures that achieve the corporate environmental goals without curtailing their productivity – quite the challenge.
How many times can I reuse my flash chromatography column?
November 21, 2019 at 3:40 PM / by Bob Bickler posted in Chromatography Fundamentals, Sfär, Cost, Normal Phase
Flash chromatography – a purification tool for both organic chemists and natural product researchers. This tool is essential when you need to remove impurities from your targeted product, or products, in order to get them pure. To reduce the costs associated with flash chromatography, some chemists try reusing the same column over and over, not always with success.
How Much Is My Flash Chromatography System Really Going to Cost?
November 15, 2019 at 3:01 PM / by John Urh posted in Solvents, Green, Cost
This, of course, is always one of the first questions an organic, medicinal, or peptide chemist has when starting the research process for a flash chromatography system. Here at Biotage, we receive this question hundreds and hundreds of times a year, likely within the first couple of minutes of any conversation.
The Step Gradient Explained
November 1, 2019 at 9:37 PM / by Greg Saunders posted in Chromatography Fundamentals, Solvents, Green, Cost, Normal Phase, Isolera
Up to six compounds can be easily separated with an automated step-gradient optimizer embedded in modern flash chromatography systems.
Biotage vs Biotage, and the winner is...
October 23, 2019 at 9:28 AM / by Panagiotis Ioannidis posted in Sfär, Selekt, Cost, Isolera
When Isolera™ was launched, the maximum system pressure that could be reached was 10 bars, but reaching that pressure was a challenge since most of the Flash columns could not withstand the higher pressures. The maximum pressure rating for the Biotage® SNAP columns, for example, is limited to five or seven bars, depending on the size, and columns from most of manufacturers have the same limitation.
California State University Increases Productivity with Selekt
October 22, 2019 at 3:07 PM / by Sarah Moran posted in Sfär, Selekt, Customer case, Cost
On a scenic drive up the I-15 in southern California, I got to take a tour of the undergraduate lab at California State University, San Marcos with Dr. Robert Iafe. His lab is one of the first to have the new Biotage® Selekt Flash Purification System paired with the Sfär columns. We discussed the impact on his undergraduates broadening capabilities to learn about new instruments, and how it has affected his own research in his goals to gain tenure at the university.
Six key factors that impact flash chromatography
October 18, 2019 at 9:54 PM / by Bob Bickler posted in Chromatography Fundamentals, Solvents, Sfär, Media and Resin, Automation, Cost
In this post I will delve into six key factors that impact your purification success in flash column chromatography.
Previously, I have discussed the use of TLC for solvent scouting and method development and optimization. I have have also talked about cartridge size, particle size, and surface area and their impact on flash purification. Here I integrate that information into the six factors below.
Prep HPLC vs. reversed-phase flash chromatography: How to choose?
October 15, 2019 at 5:02 PM / by Bob Bickler posted in Reversed-phase, Selekt, Cost, HPLC
This question is one that is increasing in frequency. Over the past 10 or so years reversed-phase flash chromatography use has increased dramatically. Likewise, reversed-phase preparative HPLC (RP pHPLC) use has also increased. Chemists need to know when to choose between the speed and low solvent use of flash column chromatography and the ultimate purification of RP pHPLC. With this as the backdrop, let me give you my thoughts on how to choose between flash chromatography and when it is best to use RP pHPLC.
Acetone – a lower cost alternative to EtOAc in normal-phase flash column chromatography
October 4, 2019 at 6:22 PM / by Bob Bickler posted in Solvents, Selekt, Cost, Normal Phase
Acetone, as you know, is a terrific solvent. It dissolves many organic molecules, evaporates easily, is both water and organic soluble, and is cheap (relatively). These attributes tell me it should be a good polar modifier for normal-phase flash chromatography.
Using TLC to Scout Flash Chromatography Solvents
September 20, 2019 at 3:06 PM / by Bob Bickler posted in Chromatography Fundamentals, Sfär, Selekt, Cost, Normal Phase
TLC is the tool most used for normal-phase flash chromatography method development. For many chemists, a solvent system of hexane (or heptane) + ethyl acetate is the first, and sometimes only, solvent system evaluated. Though often useful, ethyl acetate may not always provide the optimal purification conditions.
Can reversed-phase flash chromatography purify better than normal-phase?
May 9, 2019 at 4:44 PM / by Bob Bickler posted in Chromatography Fundamentals, Reversed-phase, Solvents, Sfär, Selekt, Media and Resin, Cost, Normal Phase, HPLC
The answer to this question is yes, reversed-phase can sometimes provide a better separation and thus better purification than normal-phase. When is reversed-phase likely to be the better choice is a different, and likely better, question.
In this post I will try to demonstrate when reversed-phase is likely the better purification mode.
How can I reduce flash column purification time and cost?
May 8, 2019 at 2:57 PM / by Bob Bickler posted in Chromatography Fundamentals, Reversed-phase, Solvents, Troubleshooting and Optimization, Green, Sfär, Selekt, Media and Resin, Cost, Normal Phase
This is a question being asked of my colleagues and me more and more frequently, especially in pharma accounts. Why? Well, you are familiar with the adage – Time is Money, right. Well this really applies to them. A new molecular entity (NME) created as a pharmaceutical can take up to a decade and a billion dollars to bring to market. Granted, the biggest costs are in the clinical trials but the synthetic route and the time to discover and make the compound – and purify it – plays a major role within drug discovery and development. This timeline is not helped by the ever increasingly difficult-to-synthesize compounds being investigated as drug candidates today.
With that in mind, this post focuses on ways to speed the purification process without sacrificing purity and yield.