Specialty Sample Preparation Equipment

Specialty sample preparation equipment includes specialty and proprietary equipment and accessories related to laboratory sample preparation. Sample preparation equipment includes laboratory centrifuges and filters, sample dryers, gas chromatographs, digesters, titration instruments, and other chemical, physical and biological analysis tools.

Specialty sample preparation equipment is used for wet chemical analysis, metallography, spectroscopy and spectrometry, crystallography, laser analysis, and test sample preparation for materials analysis of composites, thermoplastics, elastomers, metals, and other specialty materials. Specialty sample preparation equipment for wet chemical analysis includes dispensing equipment that provides samples for microplate and genomic analytical equipment as well as mixers and dryers for preparing chemical samples. Sample prep for materials testing involves crushing, pulverizing, and milling equipment for fine grinding and mixing of dry, brittle, fibrous, or plastic materials. This type of specialty sample preparation equipment also includes mortars, shakers, and sieves.

Specialty sample preparation equipment for other laboratory analyses includes slicers, polishers, and vacuum evaporators used to prepare cross-sections of specimens for scanning and transmission electron microscopes or for focused ion beam (FIB) systems that analyze semiconductor devices, metals, and ceramics. Equipment used to prepare specimens for electron microscopy also includes sputter coaters, which deposit a fine coating of gold or platinum to improve the surface conductivity of the specimen; points dryers for preparing specimens such as insects or animal tissues; and ion slicers used to create thin-film specimens. Specialty sample preparation equipment for laser applications includes devices that prepare samples for spectrolaser analysis, microdissection, and X-ray fluorescence analysis. A laser preparation sample may be a powdered specimen sample or a biological specimen treated with specific nucleic acids or proteins.

Laboratories that use specialty sample preparation equipment have a variety of facility accreditations and assessments. For example, laboratories that are accredited by the American Society for Testing and Materials (ASTM) participate in one or more of ASTM's Interlaboratory Crosscheck and Proficiency Testing Programs, or are assessed according to applicable ASTM standards or guides such as the E1580-93(2002) Standard Guide for Surveillance of Accredited Laboratories.

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