4
GETTING STARTED
Pawkit
4.2
Sample Preparation and Placement
Your Pawkit system comes with 60 disposable plastic sample cups
and one stainless steel sample cup. If you run out, you can purchase
additional cups from METER.
4.2.1
Sample Preparation
Take special care when preparing the sample in order to get the
best readings possible. Always follow the bulleted guidelines when
preparing samples.
•
Make sure that the sample to be measured is homoge-
neous.
Multi-component samples (e.g., muffins with raisins)
or samples that have outside coatings (like deep-fried, breaded
foods) can be measured, but may take longer to equilibrate.
Samples like these may require additional preparation (crush-
ing or grinding) to obtain a representative sample.
•
Completely cover the bottom of the cup with the sam-
ple, if possible.
The Pawkit is able to accurately measure
a sample that leave small spaces of the cup bottom exposed.
For example, raisins only need to be placed in the cup and not
flattened to cover the bottom. A larger sample surface area
increases instrument efficiency by shortening the time needed
to reach vapor equilibrium.
•
Fill the cup no more than half-full of the sample.
The
Pawkit does not require a large sample size to make its reading.
As long as the sample covers the bottom of the cup and the
sample is representative of the product you wish to measure,
you should be able to make accurate readings. If the sample
cup is too full, you risk contaminating the sensor, which can
lead to inaccurate readings.
•
Make sure that the rim and outside of the sample cup
are clean.
Wipe any excess sample material from the rim
of the cup with a clean tissue. Material left on the rim or the
outside of the cup can be transferred to subsequent samples and
may affect the accuracy of your readings. The rim of the cup
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