As regulatory scrutiny of fluorinated materials intensifies and procurement restrictions on PFAS compounds tighten globally, reliable inline degassing with a compliant flow path has become a non-negotiable requirement for many LC laboratories. Responding to these pressures, Biotech Fluidics has launched the DEGASi® NG platform, a comprehensive upgrade of its inline HPLC degasser range incorporating fifth-generation StabiliX™ vacuum pumps, a new Degasser Vacuum Controller (DVC), and six purpose-built models including a fully fluorinated-material-free option.
What Happens When An HPLC Degasser Fails To Maintain Stable Vacuum?
When an inline HPLC degasser fails to hold stable vacuum, dissolved gases remain in the mobile phase and produce baseline noise, retention time drift, pump cavitation, and detector signal spikes. The root cause is rarely obvious: reader-reported HPLC degasser failures span vacuum pump corrosion from aggressive mobile phase additives to membrane leaks whose retention time variation is indistinguishable from column or gradient problems. In low-pressure mixing systems the problem is compounded further, as solvents that combine before the pump often arrive supersaturated with air and begin forming bubbles before any degassing can take effect.
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Inline vacuum degassers work by drawing each solvent through microporous tubing inside a sealed vacuum chamber, where dissolved gas migrates through the membrane wall while liquid continues to the pump, a process whose effectiveness depends on membrane porosity and polymer selection as well as the long-term stability of the vacuum. Both factors carry growing regulatory weight: the European Chemicals Agency's REACH PFAS restriction proposal covers approximately 10,000 per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, placing Teflon-AF and related fluoropolymer membranes within the scope of active regulatory review. For pharmaceutical and bioanalytical laboratories, that means the material composition of the flow path is now as much a procurement consideration as a performance one.
Biotech Fluidics has addressed both constraints in the DEGASi® NG platform. The DEGASi® LifeSci NG uses a silicone membrane to eliminate all wetted fluorinated materials from the flow path. That capability did not exist in the previous DEGASi® range and positions the model as a direct response to tightening PFAS restrictions in laboratory procurement.
Key technical features of the DEGASi® NG platform include:
- Fifth-Generation StabiliX™ Vacuum Pumps: Approximately 30% longer service life compared to previous generations, with a lower acoustic profile for quieter bench operation
- Closed-Loop Vacuum Control (DVC): Latest Degasser Vacuum Controller technology provides benchmark vacuum stability and advanced leak detection
- Automated Error Control Output: Standardized signal on all NG models alerts host system software if the inline degasser is not functioning correctly
- DEGASi® FlatFilm NG: Incorporates flat film membrane technology for a metal-free, chemically inert, biocompatible flow path alongside the established Teflon-AF single lumen concept
- DEGASi® LifeSci NG: Silicone membrane-based model with a flow path completely free of all wetted fluorinated materials, designed for PFAS-sensitive procurement environments
- Reduced Environmental Footprint: Smaller PCBs, fewer components, and less housing material per unit across the NG range
The DEGASi® NG Degasser Covers Analytical Through Preparative LC In A Single Platform
The DEGASi® NG degasser family spans liquid chromatography, UHPLC, ion chromatography, dissolution testing, automated immunoassay systems, and in vitro diagnostics, with flow rate coverage from 25 µL/min to 1 L/min across six purpose-built models, giving instrument developers and laboratory scientists a single standardized architecture for both analytical-scale gradient work and preparative-scale processing.
For pharmaceutical and biopharma quality laboratories, the combination of closed-loop vacuum regulation and automated error signaling addresses a specific instrumentation gap: the inability of most standalone vacuum degassers to communicate fault states to the host data system without additional integration work. All DEGASi® NG models include a standardized error control output as a core feature, enabling direct integration with system software in GxP environments.
For instrument developers and OEM manufacturers, who represent the core of Biotech Fluidics' customer base, the retention of the slim housing form factor from previous DEGASi® Plus and Integration series ensures that system redesign is minimized during the transition to NG technology. The DEGASi® Plus series has fully merged into the DEGASi® NG family with product numbers retained, enabling a smooth transition to improved degassing functionality.
| Model | Key Feature | Primary Application Fit |
|---|---|---|
| DEGASi® Classic NG | Biocompatible 480 µL flow path, up to 3 mL/min | Reversed phase and ion chromatography, analytical LC |
| DEGASi® FlatFilm NG | Flat film membrane, metal-free, biocompatible | Analytical and semi-preparative, broadest solvent compatibility |
| DEGASi® LifeSci NG | Silicone membrane, zero wetted fluorinated materials | PFAS-restricted environments, biopharma, life science IVD |
| DEGASi® Micro NG | 100 µL flow path, up to 0.5 mL/min | Low-flow LC, microfluidic and capillary systems |
| DEGASi® Nano NG | 25 µL flow path, up to 0.1 mL/min | Nano-flow LC, chip-based and miniaturised analytical systems |
| DEGASi® Prep NG | High-capacity, up to 15 mL/min per channel | Preparative HPLC, flash chromatography, high-throughput processing |
(All specifications above are verified against the DEGASi® NG product page at biotechfluidics.com.)
How The DEGASi® NG Platform Advances Inline HPLC Degassing For Regulatory And Performance Demands
The DEGASi® NG platform advances inline HPLC degassing by combining fifth-generation StabiliX™ pump longevity, closed-loop DVC vacuum control, and standardized error signaling in a product family that now spans nano-flow capillary systems through high-flow preparative LC. The addition of the PFAS-free DEGASi® LifeSci NG addresses a compliance gap that is only likely to widen as ECHA's REACH restriction on fluorinated substances moves toward European Commission decision, making this a technically substantive response to both the performance and procurement demands facing analytical laboratories today.
This article is based on a Biotech Fluidics press release and was produced under Separation Science's AI Editorial Guidelines.
