Preface
Thermo Scientific
Accela Pump Hardware Manual
xv
Good Laboratory Practices
To obtain optimal performance from your LC system and to prevent personal injury or injury
to the environment, do the following:
• Keep good records.
• Read the manufacturers’ Material Safety Data Sheets (MSDSs) for the chemicals being
used in your laboratory.
• Remove particulate matter from your samples before you inject them into the liquid
chromatograph.
• Use HPLC-grade solvents.
• Connect the drainage tubes from the pump, autosampler, and detector to an appropriate
waste receptacle. Dispose of solvents as specified by local regulations.
Keep Good Records
To help identify and isolate problems with either your equipment or your methodology, keep
good records of all system conditions (for example, peak shape, resolution between adjacent
peaks, and % RSDs on retention times and peak areas). At a minimum, keep a chromatogram
of a typical sample and standard mixture, well documented with system conditions, for future
reference. Careful comparison of retention times, peak shapes, peak sensitivity, and baseline
noise can provide valuable clues to identifying and solving future problems.
Chemical Toxicity
Although the large volume of toxic and flammable solvents used and stored in laboratories can
be quite dangerous, do not ignore the potential hazards posed by your samples. Take special
care to read and follow all precautions that ensure proper ventilation, storage, handling, and
disposal of both solvents and samples. Become familiar with the toxicity data and potential
hazards associated with all chemicals by referring to the manufacturers’ Material Safety Data
Sheets.
Sample Preparation
Always consider the solubility of your sample in the solvent/mobile phase. Sample
precipitation can plug the column, tubing, or flowcell causing flow restriction. This
obstruction can result in irreparable damage to the system. To avoid damage caused by
particulate matter, filter the samples through 0.45 or 0.2 micron (or less) filters.
