Nine New Analytical Platforms Available for Biodiesel and Bioethanol Laboratories

PerkinElmer, Inc. (USA) announced a major expansion of its EcoAnalytix(TM) biofuels analytical solutions portfolio. The Company has expanded its biodiesel and bioethanol portfolio to include nine analysers and systems, crossing six technologies: ICP-optical emission spectroscopy (ICP-OES), gas chromatography (GC), liquid chromatography (LC), infrared (IR), differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), and liquid scintillation counters (LSC).

"PerkinElmer is committed to improving the quality of our environment. Our expanded biofuels portfolio will help to increase the development and use of alternative fuels and renewable energy, such as solar, that can have a direct and positive impact on the overall health of the environment," said Sandra Rasmussen, vice president, Applied Analytix, Perkinelmer.

Rasmussen commented, "Global government mandates require the use of alternative fuels in gasoline to increase from 3% today to 10% by 2020. We are dedicated to providing laboratories with the instrumentation, consumables, software, applications and standard operating procedures they need to help meet these mandates and advance their research and development of biofuels."

Biodiesel, a clean-burning fuel made from natural renewable sources, such as sunflower, soybean, rapeseed, jatropha, or used vegetable oil, must meet either ASTM or EN standards before entering the marketplace. PerkinElmer’s biodiesel and bioethanol portfolio has been expanded to include the FAME (Fatty Acid Methyl Esters) system based on the Clarus(R) GC for determining fuel composition, the oxidation stability system based on the DSC 8500 for determining the oxidation status of biofuel, and the ¹⁴C LSC system for determining the fuel blend. This range represents a full suite of methods and technologies for biodiesel development and testing needs.

A full suite of systems for testing bioethanol, a sugar-based fuel made from such crops as sugar-cane, corn or wheat, is also available. This line consists of an EcoAnalytix Trace Metals Analyzer based on the Optima^(TM) 7000 ICP-OES for testing Group I and Group II metals and phosphorus, Alcohol system for determining the right blend of ethanol in gasoline by GC, and Bioethanol Fermentation HPLC system for monitoring fermentation broth. The ¹⁴C Determination by LSC system available for biodiesel can also be used in qualifying bioethanol.

Both the biodiesel and bioethanol platforms also include PerkinElmer’s LABWORKS^(TM) greenLIMS(TM), a pre-configured software application specifically for the biodiesel industry, as well as consumables, application notes, methods, standard operating procedures (SOPS) and onsite training.

These new systems are additional solutions to the Company’s biodiesel platforms which were launched as a part of the Company’s EcoAnalytix initiative in 2008. These biodiesel offerings include: an EcoAnalytix Glycerin & Methanol Analyser for the analysis of free and total glycerin and residual alcohol in biodiesel; the EcoAnalytix Trace Metals Biodiesel Analyser based on the Optima 7000 ICP-OES for testing Group I and Group II metals and phosphorus; and the EcoAnalytix FAME Blend Biodiesel Analyser (for ASTM only) based on the Spectrum^(TM) 100 FT-IR System for analysing the properties of biodiesel fuel that are determined by the structure of its fatty acid methyl esters.