Jeol ups the ante with new 'entry level' NMR machine

The new ECS-400 NMR spectrometer has been designed with routine compound characterisation and industrial quality control applications in mind and will be officially unveiled later this month at the American Chemical Society (ACS) in Boston, Massachusetts, US. The spectrometer features the new Jastec 400 MHz Super Self-Shielded superconducting magnet which keeps the stray magnetic field to almost entirely within the magnets cryoshield, removing the need for operators to remove wallets and watches before approaching the instrument. The system can be equipped with a range of auto-sampler options, from a small 8 tube carousel to a high throughput carousel that can hold 100 samples. According to Dr Douglas Meinhart, director of Analytical Instruments at Jeol USA, the instrument is fully automated and "cyber-enabled", allowing multiple users to collect and receive data from any authorised PC connected to the network. Data acquisition and processing are carried out with Jeol's Delta software package, which comes with a site license so users can work with their data wherever they are most comfortable. "The system can also be supplied with a 21 CFR extension software package for those needing to comply with electronic record keeping regulations,"​ said Dr Meinhart. In addition, the system is equipped with a new pulsed field gradient auto tune NMR probe optimised to achieve the highest room temperature sensitivity for 1H and 13C observation to reduce measurement times for 13C experiments by up to 20 per cent and 1H experiments by up to 50 per cent. The auto tune probe can also tune to a variety of other nuclei such as 31​P and 15​N and can be used in a temperature range between -80oC and +150oC to allow users to study reaction kinetics and other temperature dependant prcesses. The ECS-400 uses the same RF electronics as the research grade systems granting users access to experiment protocols that can measure 1D, 2D and even 3D experiments. The system also comes equipped with a full DOSY (diffusion ordered spectroscopy) package to allow users to separate the NMR signals of different species according to their diffusion coefficient. The improvements in heat insulation incorporated in the magnet mean that the instrument only needs to be refilled with liquid nitrogen every two weeks, and refilled with helium every 200 days. The customer can also choose to specify a magnet that comes with a larger helium tank that only needs refilling once a year. The compact design of the magnet significantly reduces the instrument footprint and greatly conserves laboratory space. "What's driving the magnet market are technological advances such as the stray-field shielding technologies that give customers greater flexibility in the magnet positioning and let you put four NMR systems in the space that one system would have taken 10 years ago,"​ said Dr Meinhart.