Lab Water Purification Systems
The Basis for Your Successful Analysis
Our Arium® laboratory-grade water purification systems feature an inspiring, application-oriented design. Perform your workflows faster and more reliably, simplifying your daily lab work while ensuring cost-efficient operation over the long term.
All instruments offer flexible solutions as they can be adapted to your requirements and integrated into your laboratory environment.
Water Purification Systems by Category
Water Purification Promotions
Applications for Water Purification
Select the Water Purification System for Your Application
Feed Application
In the laboratory, there are several instruments and systems that require feed water for regular operations. Because of impurities, standard tap water is not sufficient and needs to be purified to reduce the possibility of calcification for example.
- Feed ultrapure water systems
- Feed distilled systems
- Water for Laboratory devices (Autoclaves | Washing Machines etc.)
General Laboratory
General laboratory and less sensitive and critical applications need consistent pure water with reproducible and reliable quality to ensure that the water does not interfere with the samples or experiments. General laboratory water can also be used for feeding instruments or systems.
- Buffer, media and pH solutions
- Histology
- ELISA (Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay)
- AAS (Atomic Absorption Spectroscopy)
- Solutions for chemical analysis and synthesis
- GF-AAS (Graphite Furnace Atomic Absorption Spectrometry)
- Preparation of reagents, blank samples, etc.
- Photometry
Molecular Biology | Life Science
Life Science and molecular biology applications need high-purity and quality ultrapure water that has been treated to ensure low levels of RNase/DNase, endotoxins and bacteria to ensure no interference or inhibitions of your samples or experiments.
- Electrophoresis
- Northern Blot
- Southern Blot
- Western Blot
- Endotoxin analysis
- Immunocytochemistry
- Production of monoclonal antibodies
- PCR (Polymerase Chain Reaction)
- DNA Sequencing
- Nutrient media for cell culture (Mammalia & plant)
- Chromatography
Analytical Application
The critical and most sensitive analytical applications require ultrapure water with a low level of TOC to ensure the water used for sample preparation or rinsing does not include impurities that might interfere with results (e.g. showing as ghost peaks) or resulting in shorter life time for the columns in your analytical instruments due to clogging.
- SPE (Solid phase extraction)
- Trace metal analysis
- IC (Ion chromatography)
- ICP-MS (Inductively Coupled Plasma Mass Spectrometry)
- GC-MS (Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry)
- HPLC (High-Performance Liquid Chromatography)
- TOC analysis
Arium® Water Purification Systems Feature:
Sartorius Arium® water purification systems offer a wide range of options to meet your laboratory water needs regarding quality (ultrapure, pure or RO water), daily volume usage and flexibility. Combine and add purification technologies to ensure the purified water is optimized for your needs and applications.
The different modules of Arium® let you choose and build the system you need in your laboratory. Implement extra purification steps for sensitive analytical purposes or life science research. Place the system on the bench, save space by placing it under the bench or mounting it on the wall. Combine your system with Bagtanks or remote dispensers (Smart Stations) to increase flexibility and add more points of use across your laboratory.
Arium® water purification systems produce consistently on-demand high-quality laboratory-grade water. Suitable for applications requiring low detection limits, sensitive analysis or other critical or analytical applications.
Sartorius Arium® systems use innovative technologies – including iJust®, Bagtanks and cutting-edge displays - to get an excellent user experience.
The display is easy to use, with or without gloves, with a clear and large screen to make sure the data is always visible.
The iJust® system adjusts the wastewater and product water ratio based on the quality of feed water, making sure to minimize the wastewater portion.
The Sartorius Arium® Bagtank system enables consistent water quality over an extended period, thereby providing for long-term, reproducible results. The Arium® Bag, used together with the Bagtank, is exchangeable, and therefore does not require extensive cleaning procedures with chemicals.
Make sure your system runs perfectly from day one by having Sartorius’ experienced engineers perform the installation. Ask about qualification (IQ/OQ) together with installation to ensure you meet regulatory requirements. Sign service contracts for maintenance as well as preventive maintenance to ensure your Arium® system works as intended and to reduce down-time and malfunctions.
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Frequently Asked Questions
If you do general, critical or life science analysis in your laboratory, impurities can have an impact on your results. For example, ions in your water can cause interference with reagents, or organic material can create ghost peaks in your chromatography diagrams. To ensure reliable and constant results, it is important to use purified water optimized for your applications.
Standards provide direction on what quality is needed for certain applications or industries. It is important to know if you need to follow a specific standard in your application/industry. Some examples of generally used standards are the American Society for Testing and Materials (ASTM), the International Organization for Standardization (ISO), the Clinical and Laboratory Standards Institute – Clinical Laboratory Reagent Water (CLSI-CLRW) and the International Pharmacopeia (including USP, EP and JP).
Lab-grade water quality and purity varies. The type used depends on laboratory application. Tap water is usually too inconsistent with inorganics, organics, particulates, etc. to be reliable for laboratories or experiments. Laboratory water is categorized according to quality and purity. The most common lab water standard is ASTM, which categorizes the water into Type 1 (ultrapure water), Type 2 (pure, DI or general lab water) and Type 3 (primary or RO water). The different types are suited for different applications and should be used accordingly to ensure good and consistent results in research and production.
There are different types of water varying by quality and purity. Water purity is categorized according to general standards (e.g. ASTM, ISO) from highest to lowest as Type 1 (ultrapure water), Type 2 (pure, DI, or general lab water) and Type 3 (primary or RO water). In the Pharmacopeia, water is categorized as Purified Water and Water for Injection (WFI).
Lab Applications can be divided into three categories in terms of laboratory water: analytic and life science applications, general and feed water. For feed water applications, (such as dish washers, autoclaves or Type 1 water purification systems), you can use Type 3 water. For general applications that are a bit more critical (such as sample, media and buffer preparation) and for less sensitive analytical methods, Type 2 water should be used. Type 2 water can also be used as feed water for autoclaves, washing or feeding Type 1 water systems. For the most critical applications, Type 1 water should be used. For critical life science applications, a Type 1 ultrapure water system - together with an ultrafilter - should be used. If it is analytical work (more sensitive analytical methods such as HPLC, ICP), the ultrapure water system should have an UV-light implemented.
Depending on which water quality is required, various technologies can be used and combined. For Type 3, reverse osmosis (RO) purification is typically used. For Type 2, it can be a combination of RO and ion exchange technology. Type 1 is mainly based on ion exchange on already pretreated water (either Type 3 or 2). These processes can be further optimized with additional components like activated carbon, ultrafiltration, UV-lamps, etc. Add-on steps depend on the applications for which the water is used. Generally, Type 3 or Type 2 water is used for feeding instruments or preparing non-critical solutions, whereas Type 1 water is used for all critical applications, like analytic or life science.
To ensure high water quality and purity - as well as system and consumables quality - regular check-ups are recommended. For this purpose, it is recommended to agree on a service contract with the manufacturer when possible. The system can be maintained by customers to some degree. However, to avoid risk of losing high-quality water or damaging the system - and to reduce downtime and ensure error free operation - it is recommended that maintenance is done by qualified service technicians. Consumables can usually be changed by the customer.
Depending on feed water quality and consumption per day, the intervals to replace consumables may vary. Consumable and system materials will also show sign of fatigue after time and lose their properties. As a result, this might affect the quality of your laboratory water. Therefore, it is recommended to regularly perform maintenance check-ups on the system and change consumables according to recommended intervals to ensure water has a high quality and purity.
For some industries it is important to be able to confirm dispensed water quality, and there are different options when saving quality data. If you need to save water quality data, make sure your system has this capability. Depending on the system, it can either be saved electronically (via USB or SD-card) or printed as a hard copy. Using a printer ensures data cannot be manipulated or falsified.
Every laboratory requires water for sampling, dilution, blanks, buffer preparation and media preparation as well as feed water for different instruments (such as dishwasher or autoclaves). The water is either store-bought or sourced from a water purification system. A purification system in the laboratory means fresh water on-demand. Therefore, there is no risk of storage contamination – you know your water is always of good quality. The amount and type of water needed might determine if a water purification system is required. If your daily water consumption is very low (<5 L/day), it might not be worth it, but it always depends on your specific application and situation. In general, the continuous expenditure of bottled water is a higher total cost over time than the total cost of investing in a purification system.
There are several aspects to consider when buying a water purification system. First, consider the application you need water for, which will determine the type of water you need. You also need to consider how much water is needed per day, and even per hour. Daily consumption can help determine the size of the system you need. In addition, you should also consider your laboratory space - do you want the purification system on the bench, on the wall or under the bench? Do you need one or several additional points-of-use? Your feed water source is also important to consider, as it determines what kind of configuration you need. Cost and budget are also important, not just of the water system, but also the ongoing maintenance and running costs. If monitoring and traceability are important, you may need a system that records quality parameters or usage data.
Using a centralized system means you are feeding water to a whole building. However, with a centralized system it is difficult to control the values and quality of Type 1 water. Therefore, it is recommended to have a Type 1 water purification system at the point-of-use. With a decentralized system, it is possible to qualify the water, giving you control over your lab water’s reliability.
Yes. As each installation is slightly different, our application and service teams will be able to help you plan and accomplish the integration of your water systems into your lab furniture.
Yes, but to minimize the risk of contamination by particles, etc., the system should be separated from the dispense device when possible. The producing unit should be kept in a separate room and connected with a dispensing unit placed in the clean room. The installation should, however, be done with a service technician, as everything needs to be adjusted to local conditions.
With the help of service, you can be sure that your water purification system works as intended from day one! Qualified service engineers are always recommended for the installation to avoid risks of installation errors as well as to save your own engineer’s time. It is usually also possible alongside installation to get the system qualified (IQ|OQ). This will ensure and prove that the system is running according to the system specifications and is compliant with regulatory requirements as well as GMP conformity. Moving forward it is recommended to do regular maintenance as well as preventive maintenance checks to ensure a smooth operation with reliable and reproducible water quality. One way to do this is to sign a service contract, which helps you keep regular checks and, again, saves time as well as minimizes unplanned downtimes.
Electrodeionization, also called EDI, is a technology typically based on a combination of ion exchange and electrodialysis. Thereby ions are not only separated by ion exchange resin but also with the help of an electric current. Compared to a classical in-exchange process, the electrodeionization supports the automatic regeneration of the used ion exchange resin.
Typically, this is used as a last protection step. The final filter removes any remaining particles > 0,22 µm and filters out bacteria. Furthermore, most final filters are assembled with a safety bell to protect the product water outlet from contamination, e.g. getting in contact with uncovered skin etc.
The Arium®️ water systems can be selected based on the application. For analytical applications, we offer systems that include ion exchange cartridges and a UV lamp to reduce the TOC. For cell culture applications, the Arium®️ Pro UF system is recommended. This does not have a UV lamp, but it includes an integrated ultrafilter to reduce endotoxins for mammalian cell cultures or removes RNase/DNase for life science applications. This targeted selection reduces the total cost of ownership in the long term.
This depends on the system type and consumables which are used. The lifetime of the used filter materials and the amount of material inside the cartridges can influence these intervals. The quality of the feed water impacts the life of the consumables; however, even if there are just small variations in the feed water, it could significantly impact the used consumables, depending on the composition of the impurities.
Yes, it is a global challenge. That is why standards and regulations have been established. They are designed to reduce this risk and to guide users to minimize variation and improve the situation.
Certainly, we have conducted tests on our other Arium® devices such as Arium® Pro VF and Arium® Mini Plus to assess their potential to leach out PFAS. The results indicate that the PFAS content in the reagent water is below the limit of detection.
You can find the certificates here:
- PFAS — Analysis Arium® Comfort II with Arium® Smart Station PDF | 245.1 KB
- PFAS — Analysis Arium® Arium Pro PDF | 229.5 KB
- PFAS — Analysis Arium®️ Mini Plus PDF | 244.7 KB
- PFAS — Analysis Arium®️ Mini Essential PDF | 244.7 KB
- PFAS — Analysis Arium®️ Comfort I PDF | 244.7 KB
- PFAS — Analysis Arium® Comfort II PDF | 244.7 KB
As highlighted by Claros and demonstrated in the study, RO modules can effectively decrease the concentration of PFAS in the incoming water. Numerous studies have explored the role of RO modules in reducing PFAS levels in water. Tang and colleagues, for instance, demonstrated in their study that RO membranes have the potential to reduce PFOA and PFOS content by up to 99%.
It is possible to detect down to ppq but it requires a huge amount of preparation work to clean the lab, including consumables and the general environment. Because of the work done at Claros Technologies for PFAS destruction, it is difficult for this lab to achieve that level of cleaning without major changes. Therefore, the study shown in the webinar is only detected to sub-ppt levels.
If you asked this question 40-50 years ago, there would be only a few things to list. Now PFAS can be found in everything. You can find it in the air, water and soil. It is also found in many consumer products such as non-stick cookware/food containers, guitars, blankets, carpets, etc.
Absolutely. It is very common to see matrix effect for PFAS analysis when it comes to aqueous samples that are more complicated. It is inevitable. There are numerous interferences such as dissolved/suspended solids, metals, salts, basically anything other than what you are looking for that is in your sample can be a potential cause of interference.
EPA methods 533 and 537.1 are both drinking water only methods. EPA draft method 1633 is currently the only EPA method that is designed for non-potable water. Knowing that Arium® is more for laboratory use, 1633 was chosen.
AOF: Adsorbable Organic Fluorine utilizes an activated carbon slug and approximately 100 ml of sample is passed over 2 slugs in series, these carbon slugs are then burned one at a time and added together.
EOF: Extractable Organic Fluorine is slightly confusing; it can be for solids or liquids. EOF for liquids uses an SPE, Solid Phase Extraction, cartridge where your analytes of interest interact with the SPE and are then eluted and captured. This is a method that you would run on LCMS. EOF on a solid, you would extract the solid with organic solvent, often just methanol, and run the methanol to look for what was extracted directly from the solid sample. The extracts from either a liquid EOF or a solid EOF can be run by both targeted and non-targeted methods of LCMS or CIC.
TOF: Total Organic Fluorine does not use a concentration technique of a carbon or SPE cartridge. The sample is directly combusted, the gas phase ions are captured, condensed, and analyzed by IC. Sample preparation is greatly reduced, so loss of analytes is mitigated.
As regulations become stricter, it is creating a huge sample load on commercial laboratories. There needs to be a threshold that when a sample is non-detected for non-targeted PFAS it does not need to go onto targeted testing. The term TOF encompasses the entire class of PFAS compounds, so as the analysis of PFAS compounds becomes more popular and regulated, the TOF number associated and highly correlated to PFAS compounds has also been used more often.
Not always. It really depends on the samples. There are cases where TOF and LCMS results match up well. There are cases where the targeted analysis using LCMS, MS missed over 90% of the total PFAS.
It can also depend on what method for targeted analysis you are using versus what is in your samples. If you are using a targeted method that only looks at 16 analytes versus a method that looks at 40 analytes, you can see that the TOF from these two methods would be vastly different.
The equation for TOF is TF - IF = TOF. From the solid you can analyze and get the TF (Total Fluorine) number. To obtain IF (Inorganic Fluorine), you can subject the solid to an extraction for inorganic fluorine and use free fluoride as the surrogate for inorganic fluorine, determine the free fluoride of the extract solution by ion chromatography and subtract it from the TF number. Alternatively, you can subject the solid to an extraction for organic compounds, while technically this would be an extractable organic fluorine, or EOF, number, if you can determine your extraction is efficient, it could be shown to be a situation where this EOF = TOF.
There has been some recent research that shows you can remove the IF background in given aqueous samples. Novem Scientific specializes in this procedure and has a service available for removal of IF in high background IF samples.
In the past and due to technology limitations, other methods that analyze for organic fluorine have been referred to as total organic fluorine methods, such as adsorbable organic fluorine, AOF, and extractable organic fluorine, EOF. These methods are technically exactly what they are called and are not technically total organic fluorine methods. This is because of the sample preparation that is required for each method.
In AOF, the sample is concentrated 100-fold and passed over an activated carbon slug. The activated carbon adsorbs the longer chain organic (and other) molecules. Some shorter chain compounds are not adsorbed. So you can see the downfall of the method. It does not capture all compounds.
EOF is a similar problem, where you concentrate your sample over an SPE cartridge, and again the molecules interact with the SPE cartridge and you elute them, but some of them may not interact well or at all, so you may miss important analytes in this method as well. With real TOF analysis, which is now available, there is no or limited sample prep, and it does not involve concentrating the sample over a carbon or SPE cartridge. Losses of important analytes are minimized.
Determine if you are being asked for a targeted or non-targeted approach, and then if it is non-targeted it is straight forward, you should seek out a combustion CIC method for AOF or TOF. If it is targeted, figure out which analytes you specifically need to target and you may have to research the different methods, or work with a laboratory who specializes in PFAS to determine which method is best for you. Knowing your desired detection limit and what is your targeted PFAS analytes list, is key. It is always worth to talk to the labs directly to figure out what is the method that suit your needs best.
