ORLANDO, Fla.–Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc., the world leader in serving science, today debuted the Thermo Scientific Dionex QD, the first commercially available charge detector for ion chromatography (IC). In combination with suppressed conductivity detection, the new Dionex QD provides orthogonal detection for improved peak identification along with retention time, peak purity analysis and quantification. The company will showcase the Dionex QD in Thermo Scientific booth 2665 during Pittcon 2012, being held from March 11-15, in Orlando.

The Dionex QD uses a patent-pending membrane-based desalting technology that detects ions in proportion to their charge and concentration. This produces a signal for triply charged ions, such as phosphate, that is three times greater than singly charged ions, such as chloride. Ions with the same charge and concentration yield similar response, permitting reliable quantification of known and unknown compounds using a single standard.

“When combined with a conductivity detector, the Dionex QD offers an easy-to-use alternative for peak identification, peak purity analysis and quantification,” said Chris Pohl, vice president, chromatography chemistry, Thermo Fisher. “It can also provide more information than traditional conductivity detectors, including quantification of unknowns.”

Compared to suppressed conductivity detection, the Dionex QD typically provides similar sensitivity for both strongly and weakly dissociated ions, higher sensitivity for multiply charged ions and improved linearity for weakly dissociated ions. It also provides enhanced sensitivity and detector linearity for organic acids, amines and silicate compounds not easily detected using conductivity detection. This makes the Dionex QD well-suited for analysis of phosphates in environmental testing laboratories, organic acids in the food and beverage industry and ethanolamines in the chemical industry.

The Dionex QD is designed to provide simplified operation, lower-cost maintenance and long consumables life, and it is sized to fit within the overall Dionex IC system footprint. Thermo Fisher developed the new QD technology in collaboration with Dr. Purnendu Dasgupta, professor of chemistry & biochemistry, at the University of Texas at Arlington.

About Thermo Fisher Scientific

Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc. is the world leader in serving science. Our mission is to enable our customers to make the world healthier, cleaner and safer. With revenues of $12 billion, we have approximately 39,000 employees and serve customers within pharmaceutical and biotech companies, hospitals and clinical diagnostic labs, universities, research institutions and government agencies, as well as in environmental and process control industries. We create value for our key stakeholders through three premier brands, Thermo Scientific, Fisher Scientific and Unity™ Lab Services, which offer a unique combination of innovative technologies, convenient purchasing options and a single solution for laboratory operations management. Our products and services help our customers solve complex analytical challenges, improve patient diagnostics and increase laboratory productivity. Visit http://www.thermofisher.com.

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