Our LevMixer™ is a compact single-use mixing system.
At the core of the system is a mixing biocontainer with a bottom-mounted levitating impeller, designed for powder-liquid and liquid-liquid mixing applications. The frictionless impeller generates no particles.
Powder-liquid mixing is a common requirement in biopharmaceutical processing. In this experiment, we use a LevMixer system to prepare 70 L of a buffer solution typically encountered in bioprocess facilities.
Experimental materials and methods
We filled a 100 L LevMixer mixing biocontainer, fitted with a 16.13 cm diameter, centrally mounted impeller, with 70 L of water, and set the mixing speed to 214 rpm. Once a vortex had formed, we added 2.5 kg of sodium hydroxide (NaOH) pellets to the mixing biocontainer, resulting in an approximately 35 g/L solution.
Results
Dissolution was observed visually. After 5 min, all of the NaOH pellets were seen to have dissolved. The temperature of the water increased from an initial 30ºC to a final 38ºC during this experiment.
Conclusions
Our LevMixer system is well suited for preparation of your buffer solutions such as sodium hydroxide. A powder-liquid mixing biocontainer, which includes a centrally-mounted, large, levitated impeller, makes it a good choice for these applications.
In view of the temperature increase observed, we recommend you start the impeller prior to adding the NaOH; reducing the chance of local hotspots that could damage the biocontainer material. You could also consider using a jacketed tank and chiller too if rapid cooling is desirable.
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