Model 420Cs
Model 425
Model 420
Model 410
Model 360
Product Overview
Sherwood Scientific entered the Flame Photometer market with the Model 410, having acquired the manufacturing rights to the design from Corning. We made some significant updates to the Corning Model 410, now over 30 years old, but retained all of the key features which give the Model 410 it’s respected place in industry. It has long been the best performing, low temperature, single channel Flame Photometer available. The Dual Channel Model 420, developed at Sherwood, has many of the Model 410’s attributes (ease of use, maintenance and stable flame design) enhanced with auto-flame optimisation, internal standard referencing and on-board firmware, to improve sample throughput and precision. The Model 425 has an additional detector and filter for Calcium determination. The Model 360 is the most recent addition and offers the combination of Sherwood’s experience of manufacturing the 410, 420 and 425, with changes in marketplace demands.
Accessories
The Model 806 Continuous Flow DilutorThe Model 865 Autosampler
Bluenotes 410 Software
BlueNotes 420 Software
Regulated BlueNotes 420
Fuel Gas Regulators
Natural Gas Supply
M851 & M855 Compressors
Calibration Concentrates
Solutions
Brochure
Flame-Range-Brochure.pdfFAQs
-
What is BlueNotes?
“BlueNotes” is our dedicated software package that can be used to control our Flame Photometer range from a Windows PC. There are currently three versions, i) BlueNotes 410 for our M410* Flame Photometers, ii) BlueNotes 420 for our M420 series** of Flame Photometers and, iii) Regulated BlueNotes 420 for 420 series instruments being operated in an environment that requires adherence to 21 CFR Part 11 and similar regulation. (* – see FAQ 3 below) (** M420 series of Flame Photometers: M420, M425 and M420Cs)
-
Software requirements and compatibility
BlueNotes 420 and Regulated BlueNotes 420 require Windows 7 or later. BlueNotes 410 operates on Windows XP or later. The PC requires a serial connection to link to the flame photometer and an additional one for the optional autosampler accessory for which a USB to RS-232 adapter can also be used (supplied separately).
-
I already own a Model 410 Flame Photometer; does BlueNotes 410 software require any additional accessories?”
To work with 410 BlueNotes, the Model 410 requires a digital interface to enable output via a serial connection to a PC or printer. The Models 410 Clinical and Industrial are supplied with the interface already installed. The Model 410 Classic requires purchase and installation of the Digital Interface module to enable work with BlueNotes 410 software. A number of “Upgrade & Automate” packages are available: please consult your local supplier or contact Sherwood Scientific directly for more information.
-
“Does Regulated BlueNotes 420 comply with 21 CRF part 11?
Software alone cannot provide compliance to regulations pertaining to GCP (Good Clinical Practice), GLP (Good Laboratory Practice), GMP (Good Manufacturing Practice) or FDA 21 CFR part 11. No instrument or analytical software package can provide full compliance. The software must be operated in conjunction with the standard operating procedures (SOPs) defined by the end user and an organisation’s maintained quality management system. The software does contain features (in other words; provides the tools) that make it possible for the user to operate the connected Flame Photometer in a compliant manner.”
-
How is data integrity ensured in BlueNotes?
“All settings, methods, results files, etc. are stored locally on the host PC in a folder that is hidden, by default, in Windows. These files are stored in a digitally signed XML format and so are tamper evident. To guard against data loss, your IT administrator will be able to automatically back up this folder to a networked location using existing Windows features. In Regulated BlueNotes 420 there is no way to for a user to delete any results or method files through the software user interface once those files have been generated. In standard BlueNotes 420 it is only possible to delete these files via the password protected supervisor mode. Therefore, as long as regular backups of the BlueNotes main data folder are taken and supervisor
-
Can I export BlueNotes data to an external database?
“There is no built-in way to export to specific, external databases. BlueNotes software allows results to be exported as either a PDF report or a CSV* file which can be manipulated by spreadsheet software. While there is no way to automate this process from within the software, third party software such as Microsoft Excel could be used to automatically extract data from the CSV results files once they have been manually exported.”(*CSV Files: only possible for 410 and 420 BlueNotes Software. Regulated BlueNotes 420 does not allow export of CSV files)
-
Why is the display varying?
1 – If the variation consistently in one direction this is Drift. This is caused by the instrument characteristics changing with temperature of the flame system.
Solution to this problem :
- Let the Model 410 warm up with the flame alight and aspirating water for 30 minutes.
- Recalibrate with standard every 30 minutes
- The specification says drift no more than 2% per hour.
2 – If the variation is random (Up and Down ) this is instrument noise.
Solution to this problem:
- Check the nebuliser uptake rate ( Section 7.6 in operator manual)
- Reduce sensitivity by reducing dilution ratio and reducing fine and coarse switch value.
- Do not display more than 2 significant digits
Specification for short term drift is ± 1%
-
Can the Model 410 measure Calcium on biological fluids?
Yes but; The samples must be pretreated to remove phosphate. The method is listed in the applications section Below
Why? – The Model 410 is a low temperature flame photometer and the flame has not enough energy to break the calcium phosphate bond.
-
How long will a cylinder of gas last?
The instrument uses 440 mls gas per minute (propane)
1 mole of propane is equivalent to approx 22.4 litres gas.
Thus 1 mole would last 22.4/0.44 minutes = 51 minutes
I mole propane weighs 44 gms (C4H10)
So 7 kg cylinder lasts 7000/44 x 51 minutes = 135 hours -
Can the Model 410 measure Magnesium?
No.
Magnesium atoms emit light at UV wavelengths after excitation at higher energies than available from the M410 Flame. -
I have replaced the Lithium filter (top) with Calcium filter but can get no response even from 20 ppm Calcium standard solution
The top position is occupied by the Sodium Filter, not Lithium, even though on the Model 410 Li is the top element printed on the front panel. (This is because the optical path used in the flame photometer is opposite the bottom element position. So, for Na to be in the optical path, the filter holder lever must be pushed to the bottom position.)
So to replace Lithium with Ca, the bottom filter should be changed and Ca is measured when the filter holder lever is in the top position.( newer Model 410 Flame Photometers from serial # 15659 are fitted with Calcium as standard.)
-
Why are my results non linear when I measure Clinical samples for sodium even though I dilute the samples 200:1?
Even after dilution Na is outside the its linear range 140 mmo/l is normal serum value for Na = 140 x 22.9 =3206 ppm After 200:1 dilution it is still 16 ppm. Non-linearity starts at 10 ppm Solution is to fit a Lineariser Sherwood Part 47829800 See Non Linearity of sodium