Coating Applications for Medical Diagnostics and In Vitro Devices

Improve Test Consistency, Sensitivity, and Reliability

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Prevent Test Errors Due to Sample Carryover and Contamination 

SilcoTek® chemical vapor deposition technologies create a non-reactive surface that prevent interaction of test samples with the stainless steel, glass and ceramic flow path surfaces.  Our inert coating, Dursan®, improves corrosion resistance and reduces the binding of proteins to the sample flow path, needle, or nozzle surface. 

NSF MARKDursan is officially certified by NSF, the National Sanitation Foundation, and is FDA compliant.

 

The benefits of an inert flow path in medical diagnostic equipment include:  

  • Minimize test errors by preventing non specific protein binding to flow path surfaces.  A combination of Dursan coating and a wash step containing a non-ionic surfactant facilitated 100% removal of tested proteins.

  • Increase component life by improving corrosion resistance.  Comparative tests show significant improvement in component durability when exposed to corrosives like bleach. 

  • Prevent sample carryover and contamination by reducing surface pitting in corrosive environments. 

  • Improved durability during sonication.  Comparison studies showed that sonication degraded the protein resistance of polymer coatings, but had no negative impact on Dursan performance. 

Get all the information about the benefits of SilcoTek coated analytical flow paths.

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Medical diagnostic sampling equipment

Coating Applications for Medical Diagnostics and IVD

SilcoTek coatings are used to prevent interaction of the test analyte with the flow path surface.  Our inert coating, Dursan, prevents adsorption, reactivity, and flow path corrosion.  Applications include:

 
  • Analysis of chelating agents and other metal interactive compounds
  • Phosphate analysis, prevent iron interaction
  • Antifungal agent analysis
  • Protein analysis and removal
  • PEEK replacement in high durability applications
  • Corrosion resistance applications
Needle collage (002)  

Apply Dursan® to flow path surface to assure consistent results.  Apply Dursan to: 

 
  •  Needles & Syringes
  • Nozzles
  •  Pump heads
  •  Metal fritted filters
  •  Stainless steel tubing
  •  Ampoules
  •  HPLC columns
  •  Valves and Fittings
  •  Clinical chemistry and  immunoassay analyzers 
  •  Mandrels, plungers, extrusion tips, dies
  •  Chemical vessels & containers 
  •  Sensor probes
  •  Blood Centrifuges
  •  Cannulas
   

Coating Data

PEEK and other fluoropolymers have been used in medical diagnostic applications for years.  However PEEK has some limitations:

  • Mechanical strength: PEEK begins to flex at 3000 to 5000 PSI, making it unsuitable for UHPLC and other applications where high pressure is required.
  • Work-ability: Machining of PEEK doesn’t produce consistent IDs, which disrupts flows and can shift retention times.
  • Environmental: PEEK has temperature limitations and solvent related swelling issues which limit solvent and temperature options for the user.

Dursan coated stainless steel offers a robust and inert alternative to fluoropolymer tubing and fittings.

To compare the effectiveness of Dursan coated stainless steel and fluoropolymer (Teflon® AF1600) surfaces an Abbott/SilcoTek study published in Applied Surface Science measured the protein retention of sonicated and unsonicated surfaces.  Using QCMD analysis, the study compared the mass of pre and post exposure rinsed samples.  After rinsing, the human plasma proteins were completely removed from the Dursan and AF1600 surface (as shown by a return to baseline frequency).  However sonication did change the surface retention characteristics of AF1600 which resulted in retention of proteins on the surface as seen in the comparative graph below.  

Dursan fluoropolymer comparison 2

This test shows that a Dursan coated stainless steel surface offers improved durability and comparable performance to fluoropolymer flow paths.

 

Comparative studies with Abbott Laboratories demonstrated the non stick feature of Dursan.  Through our collaborative study with Abbott Laboratories, Dursan was shown to prevent non-specific protein binding and minimize protein fouling.  Studies highlighting separations on HPLC peptide standard mixture, ribonuclease, cytochrome C, bovine serum albumin, and proteins show better response and minimum retention of the analyte on the surface, preventing cross contamination.

QCM-D analysis of coated and uncoated stainless steel surfaces show significant increase in protein mass on the stainless steel surface.  The Dursan coated surface does not retain proteins, showing no increase in mass after washing with a non-ionic surfactant.  This demonstrates the non stick feature of the coating.

Protein-Adsorption-Graph

The comparative chromatograph below tells the story.  The resolution quality of tetracycline on a stainless steel column (A) showed poor peak shape and response.  The Dursan® coated column (B) significantly improved the peak shape and response.

 Tetracycline Broken HPLC Data

Ciclopirox is an antifungal agent typically used in topical fingernail and toenail infections.  We compared the performance of 2-pyridinol-1-oxide, the chelating part of this antifungal agent, on various coated and uncoated surfaces.  The chromatograms show significant loss of signal due to metal interactions in the separation.  This highlights the interaction that the column wall has with the analyte and the need for column coating. 

HPLC anti fungal agent comparison

Dursan resists corrosive attack and damage to stainless steel flow paths.  Dursan's inert surface creates a thin but robust barrier, preventing interaction of corrosives with the underlying surface.

HPLC Corrosion summary 1

Resources

If you have a technical question about how our coating technologies will perform in your application, contact our Technical Service Team and ask the experts.

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