Columbus, OH – METTLER TOLEDO announces a game changing approach to the way reference standards and sample solutions are prepared in analytical laboratories with the introduction of the new Quantos® QL2 auxiliary module for gravimetric dispensing of liquids and solvents. Adding the QL2 to any 0.1mg or 0.01mg XP Excellence Series analytical balance or to the Quantos QB1 model from METTLER TOLEDO improves laboratory efficiency and savings, and significantly helps curtail out-of-specification results.

Until now, the amount of solution to be prepared was determined by volumetric glassware tolerances and minimizing measurement subjectivity, not by the amount needed. Using the Quantos QL2, users can now prepare single-use solutions “on-demand” directly into a target vessel with unprecedented speed and accuracy to achieve exact concentrations in just the amount needed for the analysis, and can eliminate the associated expense of glassware management and wasted stock solutions.

The QL2 can be added to an existing Quantos model having built-in automated powder dispensing functionality, or can be added to compatible XP models. When working with compatible XP balances, efficiency can be improved even more by incorporating the concurrently released Quantos Q2 automated powder dispensing module. With Quantos technology, the amount of compound or substance is weighed and solvent is added automatically by the QL2 to achieve the correct concentration. There is no need to weigh-in the substance to a defined value and the amount of solution prepared can be reduced. Automation makes the solution preparation process error resistant.

Gravimetric Prep and User Convenience

With the traditional method, the glassware and tolerances on the concentration to be achieved define the amount of substance to be weighed and its range of acceptable weight limits. For example preparing a concentration of 1:1000 to within +/-10% requires weighing between 45mg and 55mg into a 50ml volumetric flask. This can be a challenge, especially when the substance is a paste or cream that is hard to dispense. The process is time consuming and error prone, typically requiring manual skills and calculations. Using Quantos technology, the amount of reference or sample substance is now weighed (by the user or automatically dispensed if incorporating the new Q2 powder dispensing module), and the solvent is then automatically added in the exact amount – by weight not volume, to achieve the target concentration. By adding the solvent gravimetrically, volumetric error is eliminated since the amounts of compound and solvent are not determined by the glassware limits but by the minimum weight specification of the balance. Any over/ under weight of the solid is automatically compensated for by adjusting the solvent addition to reach the exact concentration. The user is guided through the steps on a touch screen and all amounts and results are calculated automatically by the balance. A storage bottle fitted with liquid dispensing head can be dedicated to each commonly needed solvent for easy switching, thus avoiding rinsing and line flushing. Data is tracked via RFID chip avoiding potential transcription errors.

Reducing Out-of-Specification Results

Out-Of-Specification (OOS) errors that can arise from weighing and dilution processes can result in the analytical

lab’s expenditure of significant resources to trace and resolve. Often OOS results can be traced to the sample

preparation process: was the correct flask used; was the calculation and transcription done correctly; was the

meniscus aligned with the mark? Automating the solution preparation process using gravimetric dispensing

technology significantly reduces the potential sources of error and thereby reduces the risk of OOS results.

Economic Savings

This new way of preparing reference and sample solutions makes it possible to realize significant savings as the

required amount of solution for today’s analytical methods is very low. For example, typical UHPLC instruments

need 10-20 ?l of solution per injection. Greater than 99% of prepared solutions are typically disposed of without

ever being used. With Quantos technology, the amount of substance is no longer determined by the volumetric

flask but by the minimum weight specification of the balance. In the aforementioned example, savings of

greater than 90% of your substance and solvent can be realized when employing Quantos. Substances and

solvents can be dispensed directly into the target vessel with unprecedented speed and accuracy eliminating the

associated expense of glassware management, wasted solutions, and unnecessary error investigations. Scaledown

is achieved since just the exact amount needed at the exact concentration can be prepared.

The new Quantos QL2 Solvent/Liquid Dispensing Module became available beginning April 1, 2011, along with

the concurrently announced Q2 Powder Dispensing Module for XP Series analytical balances.

About Quantos

With the introduction of the original Quantos model in 2008, METTLER TOLEDO revolutionized the way powder

compounds are weighed and samples prepared in analytical laboratories. Quantos automated powder

dispensing technology has since been adopted across multiple industries, including more than 65% of the

world’s leading pharmaceutical companies, and has been received with wide acclaim. Quantos is the winner of

the 2009 ALA New Product Award and R&D 100 Award.

About METTLER TOLEDO

METTLER TOLEDO is a leading global manufacturer of precision instruments. The Company is the world’s

largest manufacturer and marketer of weighing instruments for use in laboratory, industrial and food retailing

applications. The Company also holds top-three market positions in several related analytical instruments

markets and is a leading provider of automated chemistry systems used in drug and chemical compound

discovery and development.

Additional information about METTLER TOLEDO can be found at www.mt.com.