Microlit Lilpets and Rapid Testing Kits

The Diagnostic Kit Manufacturing Industry is growing at a tremendous rate to satisfy the ever-increasing need to detect and diagnose human disease, dairy and poultry diseases, and even plant diseases. For this purpose, Rapid test kits are designed for use where a preliminary screening test result is required and are especially useful in resource-limited settings.

These kits usually require preparation of a specific, accurate volume of the sample to enable the user to execute tests reliably. For sample preparation, users/scientists usually use a pipet – a calibrated glass or plastic tube into which the reagent is drawn, held and then transferred. However, such pipets are not able to deliver accurate volumes of the sample precisely which may significantly affect test results.

On the other hand, though standard micropipettes can deliver the required accuracy, they are too expensive and large in size to be supplied with a test kit. To solve this conundrum, Microlit R&D designed Lilpets which empowers such kits with their advanced blend of mobility and accuracy.

Microlit Lilpet

Microlit Lilpet, a miniature fixed volume micropipette, is a cost-effective high precision liquid handling instrument with an ergonomic and intuitive design that helps in performing sensitive operations with acute reliability in practical laboratory environments.

It has a two-step plunger operation that facilitates reverse pipetting and ensures last drop dispensing, and therefore utmost accuracy and precision.

Shown beside: A Microlit Lilpet, 200 ul

Size and Capacity

Microlit Lilpet has an optimum length of 130 mm, perfect to be supplied as a test kit accessory and also for high user comfort during pipetting. While using, hold it like a pipette and not a syringe. Its tip cone (5 ul, 10 ul, 20 ul) is designed to accept both micro-tips of 200 ul capacity and ultra-micro tips of as low as 20 ul capacity. The use of the latter significantly enhances accuracy and precision.

Applications

Microlit Lilpets have found applications in a variety of test kits supplied worldwide.

UNISENSOR

Shown above: A Unisensor Testing Kit for Milk Testing

Unisensor, a Belgium based biotech company and our client, is focused on improving food safety with screening solutions to detect antibiotics, mycotoxins, food fraud in dairy, cereal, honey, feed, meat and seafood industries. They use Microlit Lilpets in their Drug Residue & Contamination Testing Kits for food diagnostics.

BIOO SCIENTIFIC

Bioo Scientific, now a subsidiary of PerkinElmer and our client, uses Microlit Lilpets to prepare their Next-Gen Sequencing Library Prep Kits that includes instruments that screen antibiotics in milk, blood and other liquids.

Customization

Since Microlit Lilpet is a B2B OEM Product supplied with test kits (as shown above), we offer a lot of customization to suit the needs of the kit manufacturer including colors, logo printing, and various volume ranges (based on sample quantity requirement) from 2ul to 1000ul.

If you’re a kit manufacturer, looking to add precision to your test kit, please visit Miniature Micropipettes.

Meet Microlit at Pittcon 2020 in Chicago

We are glad to announce that this year, Microlit will be showcasing its innovative products at Pittcon 2020, the world’s leading annual conference and exposition on lab science. We will be present at booth number 2136 from 3-5 March 2020 at McCormick Place, Chicago, Illinois (USA), with our calibration partner, SciCal. To schedule a meeting, click here.

Our debut at the global expo will be marked by the launch of two new products, Microlit NERO and Microlit ProTip.

Microlit NERO at a glance

Shown above: A Microlit Nero Single Channel Variable Volume Micropipette

Microlit Nero, developed by our in-house team of product design engineers, is a range of ergonomic micropipettes that will be available in Single Channel Fixed and Variable Volume models.

The range ensures high precision performance in practical lab environments with its all-new Air Piston technology (μAir™). It facilitates minimum dead air space between the piston and the liquid leading to reduced air compression and therefore, maximum accuracy.

To make the range more efficient, we have developed a Unique Calibration mechanism/tool (UniCal™) allowing quick in-lab calibration in a single operation, without disengaging the digits from the plunger mechanism.

Microlit NERO is the future of efficiency, presented to you today.

Microlit ProTip™ at a glance

Microlit ProTip™, available in two types (Standard and Filter Tips), exhibits excellent compatibility with Microlit pipettes. The range assures the highest accuracy and precision and comes with the assurance of ‘manufacturer recommendation’.

The range offers low retention (good hydrophobic levels) than ordinary tips – you can see the difference yourself with the help of a media kit available at Pittcon! Plus, with tips expanding from Micro (up to 1000ul) to Macro (5ml – 10ml), there is a comprehensive range of these to choose from.

Shown beside: A Microlit ProTip, 10 μl

See you at Pittcon!

New & Emerging Industrial Applications of Bottle Top Dispensers

A Bottle Top Dispensers (BTD) are a scientific apparatus, designed to be attached to a bottle and help in dispensing reagents.

A standard Microlit Bottle Top Dispenser is more than just a scientific apparatus. In addition to the conventional ones like pharmaceutical, academic and research institutes, healthcare, etc., BTDs are now the stepping stones to several manufacturing and production geniuses for a lot of other industries. These industries range from Food & Beverages, CBD Products (Wellness) to Soaps & Detergents and everything else in between.

Let’s take a look at how BTDs are being effectively utilised in some of these industries:

1. Cannabis Products/Testing

BTDs are vital in determining the potency of marijuana. Our dispensers are mounted on top of bottles of solvents such as IPA and methanol and used to dispense specific quantities of these solvents accurately which can then be used to extract THCA, hence, helping in determining the extraction efficiency of the solvent.

2. Wineries and Breweries

Before the extraction of wine or beer, BTDs are attached at the head of the fermentation cylinders during the process of racking. While the sediments (yeast and barley) stay put at the bottom of the fermentation cylinder, with the help of Bottle Top Dispenser, the separated products are ready for the next step in brewing.

Bottle Top Dispensers (BTDs) can also be used in sample testing in certain stages during winemaking and brewing. BTDs aid in accurately measuring the liquids involved in the fermentation process which can help in the determination of alcoholic content and the quantity of sediment in the batch.

3. Beauty and Wellness

BTDs are mainly used in the process of splitting where natural fat is split into fatty acid and glycerine. They precisely measure and control the splitting process by determining the accurate quantity of fatty acids which help in the later stages of soap purification. The same is done for the manufacturing of hair care products.

While they are immensely popular in the academic & healthcare circles, Microlit Bottle Top Dispensers are gradually finding customers in industries where they haven’t been the go-to choice before like Chocolate Manufacturing, Paints, Essential Oils, etc. in addition to the ones discussed above.

In the future, their popularity is expected to only go up as more and more industries discover the top-notch quality, high functionality and assured improvement in efficiency that BTDs offer.

To know more about Microlit BTDs and how they can improve your productivity levels, no matter which industry you are a part of, click here.

Industrial Applications of Bottle Top Dispensers

A Bottle Top Dispensers (BTD) are the scientific apparatus, designed to be attached onto the top of a bottle and help in dispensing reagents.

A standard BTD consists of a piston on a plunger. This piston is thrust down against a spring, and as the spring pushes the piston back into its original position, it draws with itself the reagent from the reservoir underneath it. When it is thrust down again, the plunger dispenses the drawn reagent out of the dispenser tip.

A BTD does not require electricity to operate and ensures high accuracy.

Industrial Applications of Bottle Top Dispensers

1. Pollution Testing

Samples of water from different water bodies, industrial sewage, and more are obtained with the help of Bottle Top Dispensers. They make water pollution testing and detection tasks easier, faster, safer and hence relatively more efficient than filling up a flask and then taking samples through a pipette.

2. Soil Testing

For soil to be tested, most of the time, a solution is prepared by mixing a part of the soil to be tested with water, and then sampling that solution for use in different tests, such as NPK analysis, carbon content analysis, oxygen content testing and more. The samples are stored in BTDs since they make it much easier to handle and keep the complete testing calibrated.

3. Environmental Laboratories

The laboratories that test different biomes/biodiversity areas affected by human encroachment and pollution require BTDs since they have to carry out the complete process pollution detection and analysis, right from the stage of sample collection to carrying out the actual tests.

4. Pharmaceutical Laboratories

The pharma industry needs to undergo extensive and stringent test procedures for their new as well as existing formulae for thorough quality assurance. To ensure consistency, the labs in this industry need to keep their reagents as well as a variety of samples handy and easily accessible. This again is where Bottle Top Dispensers come to the rescue and help manage the task at hand effectively.

5. Research and Development (R&D)

When it comes to R&D in any industry related to chemicals, be it petrochemical business, or cleaning and lubricant business, each one needs extensive samplings and hence BTDs for every step of their testing.

6. Qualitative and Quantitative Analysis

Basically, any kind of qualitative or quantitative analysis in a laboratory needs sampling of reagents, and BTDs are especially built for the job.

For qualitative analysis, safety and convenience are of utmost importance and BTDs make the work a lot safer, especially when it comes to handling acids. Plus, since the source is directly attached to the dispenser, it makes the latter such a dispensing instrument that can be used with bigger sources without causing any spillage.

As for quantitative analysis, Bottle Top Dispensers reportedly exhibit an accuracy of about 0.5% – 0.6%. Adding to that, due to a narrow delivery tube, they make dispensing in small containers like test tubes or 1-5 ml beakers accurate, easier and more efficient.

Learn more about Microlit Bottle Top Dispenser models here.

Enhance your Laboratory Experience with the Innovative Microlit Ultimus Bottle Top Dispenser

Microlit is proud to offer a state-of-the-art bottle top dispenser Ultimus which solves critical issues during sample preparation – Re-filling the reagent bottle and rinsing the dispensing instrument WITHOUT the need to DISMOUNT it from the bottle.

Ultimus is the First Ever Bottle Top Dispenser which offers four modes of dispensing: Dilution, Rinsing, Dual Liquid Handling and Re-circulation in a single unit. This is a huge step forward in bottle top dispensing technology. Currently, the standard Bottle-Top Dispensers available globally have a single inlet only from the bottle on which the instrument is mounted. Ultimus has a patented dual inlet. This enables the independent flow of liquid from two separate sources.

This great and innovative design feature has achieved the following international and national recognitions:

G Mark: Good Design Award 2017, Japan
I Mark: India Design Award 2017, India
USA Patent: 9815052
EU Patent: EP15166828.2
India Patent: E-2/549/2015/DEL
CE certification

Modes of Operation

Standard Dispensing: In this mode, the dispenser dispenses the liquid into the receiver from the bottle it is mounted on.
Purging: In this mode, the liquid is recirculated into the same bottle on which the dispenser is mounted. This process removes air from the dispenser without wasting any reagent.
Dilution/Rinsing/Second Liquid Dispensing: In this mode, the liquid from a second source can be dispensed into the receiver. The second liquid can be distilled water, thus allowing the user to rinse the instrument without dismounting it or diluting the reagent within the receiver.
Bottle Refilling: In this mode, the liquid from a second source can be used to refill the bottle without dismounting the dispenser.

Usage Benefits: Standard Dispenser v/s Ultimus

A) Rinsing in a breeze

Ordinary dispenser: For rinsing, the user has to dismount the instrument from the reagent bottle, re-mount it on the distilled water bottle, perform the rinsing and then again mount the instrument back on to the reagent bottle.

Ultimus – Bottle Top Dispenser: The user can perform rinsing by filling distilled water in the secondary container and by adjusting the knob positions appropriately (See Mode 3) to connect the distilled water inlet and disconnecting the primary reagent bottle. No dismounting is needed.

B) Dilution was never this direct

Ordinary dispenser: Till now, dispensers haven’t been used as an instrument for dilution or reagent mixing. If diluting a chemical/ reagent is required, then the user has to first dismount the instrument from the reagent bottle, re-mount it on the distilled water bottle, perform dilution and then again mount the instrument back on to the reagent bottle. Another option is using two dispensers to mix the two reagents.

Ultimus – Bottle Top Dispenser: The user can perform dilution just by dispensing using Mode 1 from the primary reagent bottle and then adjusting the knob positions (Mode 3) to dispense from the secondary reagent container. This does not require dismounting of the instrument or the use of multiple dispensers.

C) Dispensing Concentrated & Fuming Acids turns easy & safe

In order to avoid damage to the instrument due to prolonged exposure to strong acids, all of the dispensers currently available in the market, require the user to dismount them daily. Extremely prolonged exposure of the acids to the dispenser can result in discolouration, functional problems and significantly reduced life of the dispensers.

Ultimus eliminates this problem completely as the vapours/fumes of the reagent do not come in direct contact with the dispenser at all. The reagent is placed in the secondary bottle which is not mounted on the dispenser. This simplifies the life of the user who then does not have to go through the cumbersome & dangerous process of daily cleaning.

D) Refill the main bottle without dismounting

In applications, which might require regular bottle refilling, Ultimus provides the facility to have its second inlet constantly immersed in a bigger container for ease of use, thereby, eliminating the need to remove the bottle from the dispenser every time it’s empty.

Overall, the Microlit Ultimus Bottle Top Dispenser enhances convenience and reduces costs significantly for users in the lab during sample preparation. For more details on ordering information and pricing, please visit Bottle Top Dispensers.