Classifications

• • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
  • B01—PHYSICAL OR CHEMICAL PROCESSES OR APPARATUS IN GENERAL
  • B01L—CHEMICAL OR PHYSICAL LABORATORY APPARATUS FOR GENERAL USE
  • B01L3/00—Containers or dishes for laboratory use, e.g. laboratory glassware; Droppers
  • B01L3/50—Containers for the purpose of retaining a material to be analysed, e.g. test tubes
  • B01L3/508—Containers for the purpose of retaining a material to be analysed, e.g. test tubes rigid containers not provided for above
  • B01L3/5082—Test tubes per se
  • B01L3/50825—Closing or opening means, corks, bungs
• • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
  • B01—PHYSICAL OR CHEMICAL PROCESSES OR APPARATUS IN GENERAL
  • B01L—CHEMICAL OR PHYSICAL LABORATORY APPARATUS FOR GENERAL USE
  • B01L3/00—Containers or dishes for laboratory use, e.g. laboratory glassware; Droppers
  • B01L3/08—Flasks
• • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
  • B65—CONVEYING; PACKING; STORING; HANDLING THIN OR FILAMENTARY MATERIAL
  • B65D—CONTAINERS FOR STORAGE OR TRANSPORT OF ARTICLES OR MATERIALS, e.g. BAGS, BARRELS, BOTTLES, BOXES, CANS, CARTONS, CRATES, DRUMS, JARS, TANKS, HOPPERS, FORWARDING CONTAINERS; ACCESSORIES, CLOSURES, OR FITTINGS THEREFOR; PACKAGING ELEMENTS; PACKAGES
  • B65D51/00—Closures not otherwise provided for
  • B65D51/16—Closures not otherwise provided for with means for venting air or gas
  • B65D51/1605—Closures not otherwise provided for with means for venting air or gas whereby the interior of the container is maintained in permanent gaseous communication with the exterior
  • B65D51/1611—Closures not otherwise provided for with means for venting air or gas whereby the interior of the container is maintained in permanent gaseous communication with the exterior by means of an orifice, capillary or labyrinth passage
• • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
  • B65—CONVEYING; PACKING; STORING; HANDLING THIN OR FILAMENTARY MATERIAL
  • B65D—CONTAINERS FOR STORAGE OR TRANSPORT OF ARTICLES OR MATERIALS, e.g. BAGS, BARRELS, BOTTLES, BOXES, CANS, CARTONS, CRATES, DRUMS, JARS, TANKS, HOPPERS, FORWARDING CONTAINERS; ACCESSORIES, CLOSURES, OR FITTINGS THEREFOR; PACKAGING ELEMENTS; PACKAGES
  • B65D51/00—Closures not otherwise provided for
  • B65D51/24—Closures not otherwise provided for combined or co-operating with auxiliary devices for non-closing purposes
• • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
  • B65—CONVEYING; PACKING; STORING; HANDLING THIN OR FILAMENTARY MATERIAL
  • B65D—CONTAINERS FOR STORAGE OR TRANSPORT OF ARTICLES OR MATERIALS, e.g. BAGS, BARRELS, BOTTLES, BOXES, CANS, CARTONS, CRATES, DRUMS, JARS, TANKS, HOPPERS, FORWARDING CONTAINERS; ACCESSORIES, CLOSURES, OR FITTINGS THEREFOR; PACKAGING ELEMENTS; PACKAGES
  • B65D51/00—Closures not otherwise provided for
  • B65D51/24—Closures not otherwise provided for combined or co-operating with auxiliary devices for non-closing purposes
  • B65D51/244—Closures not otherwise provided for combined or co-operating with auxiliary devices for non-closing purposes provided with oxygen absorbers
• • A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
  • A61—MEDICAL OR VETERINARY SCIENCE; HYGIENE
  • A61J—CONTAINERS SPECIALLY ADAPTED FOR MEDICAL OR PHARMACEUTICAL PURPOSES; DEVICES OR METHODS SPECIALLY ADAPTED FOR BRINGING PHARMACEUTICAL PRODUCTS INTO PARTICULAR PHYSICAL OR ADMINISTERING FORMS; DEVICES FOR ADMINISTERING FOOD OR MEDICINES ORALLY; BABY COMFORTERS; DEVICES FOR RECEIVING SPITTLE
  • A61J1/00—Containers specially adapted for medical or pharmaceutical purposes
  • A61J1/14—Details; Accessories therefor
• • Y—GENERAL TAGGING OF NEW TECHNOLOGICAL DEVELOPMENTS; GENERAL TAGGING OF CROSS-SECTIONAL TECHNOLOGIES SPANNING OVER SEVERAL SECTIONS OF THE IPC; TECHNICAL SUBJECTS COVERED BY FORMER USPC CROSS-REFERENCE ART COLLECTIONS [XRACs] AND DIGESTS
  • Y02—TECHNOLOGIES OR APPLICATIONS FOR MITIGATION OR ADAPTATION AGAINST CLIMATE CHANGE
  • Y02C—CAPTURE, STORAGE, SEQUESTRATION OR DISPOSAL OF GREENHOUSE GASES [GHG]
  • Y02C20/00—Capture or disposal of greenhouse gases
  • Y02C20/40—Capture or disposal of greenhouse gases of CO2

Definitions

• the present invention falls in the field of storing liquids, in particular reagent liquids, as are customary in the field of diagnostics.
• the invention relates to attachments for vessels for reducing the evaporation of a liquid from the vessel and / or the introduction of gases, in particular carbon dioxide, into a liquid which is located in the vessel.
• the attachment has a recess through which a pipette or the like can be inserted into the interior of the vessel.
• the attachment contains a material that releases moisture and / or absorbs gas.
• the invention further relates to systems with such attachments.
• a number of measures are known in the prior art to reduce evaporation from vessels and the introduction of carbon dioxide.
• a known procedure is, for example, to open vessels for the removal of liquid and to close them immediately after the removal close.
• opening and closing as described, for example, in WO 96/09504, causes considerable expenditure on the device.
• software is required that coordinates the opening and closing processes as well as removal processes.
• the object of the present invention was to propose a simple device with which evaporation from vessels or the absorption of gases in a liquid in a vessel can be effectively suppressed.
• a device according to the invention should in particular be inexpensive and, if possible, make no hardware or software changes on the part of an analysis device necessary.
• an attachment for vessels or systems which has a recess through which a pipette can be inserted into the interior of the vessel and the attachment releases moisture and / or absorbs gas.
• Essays according to the invention can be used a vessel can be combined in order to generate a system for storing liquids or to be attached to a system, in particular an analysis system.
• Such an analysis system has a storage room for receiving at least one vessel.
• An attachment according to the invention with at least one recess is attached to the storage space and flows through it when the interior of the storage space is exchanged with the outside. It is important here that a gas exchange of the storage space with the outside space is essentially limited to an exchange via this recess, so that evaporation or gas entry is prevented by other means.
• the system has a corresponding transport device for vessels.
• a rotor can preferably be located within the storage space, on which vessels are arranged and with which the vessels can be moved sequentially into suitable removal positions.
• Essays according to the present invention are intended to be attached to a vessel opening or the opening of a storage space for receiving at least one vessel such that the interior communicates with the exterior only via the recess in the attachment.
• Gas entering or exiting the vessel by diffusion or convection thus traverses the area of the recess.
• the gas can be enriched with moisture or components such as carbon dioxide in particular can be removed from it.
• the attachment has a positive effect by releasing moisture into the neighboring air, which in turn diffuses with the interior of the vessel.
• the recess in the attachment has the shape of a channel connecting the interior of the vessel to the exterior.
• the interaction of the attachment with the gas space takes place primarily via the wall of this channel, but can alternatively or additionally on the underside of the attachment facing the inside of the vessel.
• the channel should have a length of more than 4 mm.
• the channel preferably has a length of 0.8-2.5 cm. If the channel is very narrow ( ⁇ 0.4 cm), an exchange distance shorter than 4 mm may be sufficient.
• the cross section of the channel should on the one hand be as small as possible to prevent convection currents and on the other hand it must be so large that a pipette for the removal of liquid can pass through it. Channel diameters between 0.4 and 1.3 cm have proven to be advantageous.
• the material In the attachment there is a material that emits moisture and / or absorbs gas or that is suitable for absorbing liquids that fulfill these purposes.
• the material In the first case, the material is said to be active; on the other hand, if a liquid has to be added by a user, it is said to be activatable.
• Suitable materials are porous materials such as foams, cardboard boxes, cellulose, minerals (diatomaceous earth) and the like.
• Aqueous gels are also suitable.
• the material In order to avoid an untargeted consumption of the capacity of the active material, the material should be surrounded by an insulation material in such a way that an escape of moisture into the outside space or an absorption of gases is restricted to the area of the recess which leads to a humidification of the interior of the vessel or serves to withdraw gas. This is usually the channel formed by the recess. Accordingly, the insulation material should form the shape of a housing around the material that only leaves the surface of the channel and / or the surface of the attachment facing the interior of the vessel free.
• materials that form a barrier to moisture and / or gases, in particular for carbon dioxide are suitable as insulation materials. Such materials are in particular plastics of sufficient thickness, metals (metal foils), etc.
• the insulation material advantageously forms a housing in which the active material is located.
• the housing can also have devices for attaching the attachment to a vessel opening or the opening of a system, such as a thread, a snap closure and the like.
• An attachment which is in the condition suitable for the application, already releases moisture to the environment or absorbs gases from the environment if it has not yet been attached to a vessel or a system as intended. Accordingly, it is advantageous to provide measures which prevent the capacity of the attachment from being used up before it is used as intended.
• the attachment can be kept in a closed container or transport bag (for example made of aluminum laminate) when it is delivered.
• the recess is sealed off from the outside space with pierceable foils.
• the attachment can be activated by piercing the film. A puncture can be carried out, for example, by the user manually or in a analyzing device by a puncturing device. A sufficiently strong pipetting needle can also serve as such a piercing device.
• the above-mentioned problem of an unwanted consumption of the capacity of the attachments can also be avoided by preparing the attachment for the release of moisture and / or the absorption of gas only shortly before it is used.
• the material of the attachment is suitable for absorbing a moisture-emitting or gas-absorbing liquid, but does not yet contain it before activation.
• the user or a device preferably in an analysis device
• the user can, for example, place an attachment in a bowl with an alkaline solution for a short time, so that the liquid penetrates the material through the recess. After removing the attachment and removing liquid residues, the attachment can be used as intended.
• the attachments of the present invention can advantageously also be combined with the chimneys known from the prior art for reducing evaporation.
• a tube can be attached to the underside of the housing in such a way that the interior of the tube forms an extension of the channel in the attachment.
• Figure 1 Cross-sectional view of a vessel with an attachment
• Figure 2 Cross-sectional view of an arrangement of vessels with an attachment with several recesses.
• FIG. 3 System with storage room in cross section
• FIG. 1 shows a system for storing liquids, which has a vessel (10) with a liquid (11) therein.
• An attachment (20) is attached to the vessel opening to reduce evaporation of the liquid (11) from the vessel and to reduce the absorption of carbon dioxide by the liquid (11).
• the vessel opening is in the vessel neck (12), which has an external thread (not shown).
• the attachment (20) has a holding device (21) in the form of a downwardly extending cylinder which carries an internal thread (not shown).
• the attachment also has a housing (22) which seals the active material (23) from the outside in such a way that moisture can escape from the active material (23) or absorb gases only through the area of the recess (24) Essay is possible.
• the recess (24) has in the case shown Form of a channel or a hole through the attachment.
• the channel has a length of 1 cm and a cross section of 5 mm. Gas exchange takes place over the exposed surface of the channel.
• the underside of the housing (22) can also be completely or partially open in order to enable gas exchange of the active material (23) with the interior of the vessel. In the case shown, however, the underside of the housing is closed except for the opening in the recess in order to prevent the active material (23) from being pressed out when the attachment is applied to the vessel opening.
• 1 can be formed in a very simple manner from two conventional screw caps, by filling a first screw cap with an absorbent material that is usually used for flower arrangements and melting the opening of the first screw cap with the top of a second screw cap or the like is closed. The arrangement formed can now be drilled axially to generate the recess. The attachment is activated by briefly placing it in an aqueous or alkaline solution.
• FIG. 2 shows a system for storing liquids with three vessels.
• racks in which several reagent containers are put together to form a functional unit, are known, for example, from EP B 0 564 970.
• the three vessels (10, 10 ', 10 ") shown in FIG. 2 are located in a rack (30) which serves to hold the vessels.
• the rack has openings on its upper side which correspond to the vessel openings.
• FIG. 2 has three recesses (24, 24', 24 ") , which are arranged so that the contents of the vessels can be accessed via them with a pipette or the like.
• the attachment shown in FIG. 2 also has a housing (22 ') which reduces the unwanted release of moisture from the vessels or the absorption of gases from the outside.
• the attachment of FIG. 2 can be of a continuous design, so that no individual delimited attachments are necessary for the individual vessels.
• the attachment is attached to the rack in such a way that gas exchange between the rack arm or the rack Vessel interior and exterior space is only possible via the recesses in the attachment.
• the holding devices on the attachment are therefore designed in such a way that gas exchange via the holding area is effectively avoided.
• Fig. 3 shows a storage space (110) in the form of a cylinder which has a recess (111) on its top.
• the recess is closed by an attachment (120) to reduce the emission of moisture and / or absorption of carbon dioxide in such a way that gas exchange between the storage space and the exterior can only take place via a recess (121) in the attachment.
• the attachment (120) has a housing which is connected to the storage space via latching elements (not shown), and preferably in such a way that manual replacement of the attachment is easily possible. Inside the housing (122) there is an absorbent material that is soaked in water or sodium hydroxide solution.
• a rotor plate (112), on which several vessels are arranged, is located within the storage space.
• a vessel (130) can be moved sequentially by rotating it into a removal position (vessel position shown in FIG. 3) below the recess of the device.
• a pipette (140) is inserted through the recess (121) into the interior of the vessel.

Landscapes

• Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
• Mechanical Engineering (AREA)
• Health & Medical Sciences (AREA)
• Chemical & Material Sciences (AREA)
• Clinical Laboratory Science (AREA)
• Chemical Kinetics & Catalysis (AREA)
• Hematology (AREA)
• General Health & Medical Sciences (AREA)
• Analytical Chemistry (AREA)
• Sampling And Sample Adjustment (AREA)
• Feeding, Discharge, Calcimining, Fusing, And Gas-Generation Devices (AREA)
• Drying Of Gases (AREA)
• Devices For Use In Laboratory Experiments (AREA)
• Automatic Analysis And Handling Materials Therefor (AREA)
• Closures For Containers (AREA)
• Gas Separation By Absorption (AREA)

Applications Claiming Priority (5)

Publications (1)

Family

ID=26006624

Family Applications (1)

Country Status (4)

Families Citing this family (8)

Family Cites Families (7)

• 2001
  • 2001-07-31 US US10/343,631 patent/US20040052688A1/en not_active Abandoned
  • 2001-07-31 JP JP2002517211A patent/JP2004506182A/ja active Pending
  • 2001-07-31 EP EP01960596A patent/EP1311347A2/de not_active Withdrawn
  • 2001-07-31 WO PCT/EP2001/008832 patent/WO2002011885A2/de not_active Ceased

Non-Patent Citations (1)

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