Air Monitors, a UK-based specialist instrumentation company, is launching a portable air sampler which enhances the ability to measure and control biological contamination.
The Coriolis µ includes a new wet-walled cyclone technology that improves bioaerosol sampling for bacteria, pollen, endotoxins, viruses and fungal spores. Traditional techniques rely on the impact of biological particles on a solid growth medium, but the Coriolis µ collects the particles in a liquid at a high flow rate (300L/m) with validated efficiency. The liquid containing the particles is compatible with many of the latest rapid microbiological analysis methods.
The Tewkesbury, Gloucestershire-based firm says the Coriolis µ offers advantages for sampling air with a high bioaerosol burden (which would saturate traditional solid media) because the liquid can be divided into multiple agar plates. This technology is also suitable for air with a low burden, because the Coriolis µ can collect for an extended period.
Air Monitors’ managing director Jim Mills says: “This is an exciting development and I think that as scientific knowledge in this area grows, it will become a standard method very quickly. In the meantime, I can see a wide variety of research and air quality investigation applications that would greatly benefit from this technology.”