University College London Phoenix System Case Study
The University College London originally acquired the Phoenix system for a 16 column separation process that was the basis for a PhD student’s thesis. The Thesis subject was the investigation of Simulated Moving Bed Chromatography for purification of protein mixtures. SMB (Simulated Moving Bed) Chromatography is a technique that separates mixtures of substances into two fractions using chromatography columns. This Thesis produced detailed insight on process design and the optimization of protein separation using SMB chromatography. Since the publication of this thesis in 2009 multicolumn chromatography has been an industry standard for difficult protein separations.
For more information this thesis paper: https://discovery.ucl.ac.uk/id/eprint/10072569/1/Wayne_thesis.pdf
The Story
The Phoenix system consists of a chromatography platform and up to 8 pumps. The Chromatography platform’s design allows for the use of 1 to 8 columns but it can be connected to a second chromatography platform to run up to 16 columns. This 16 column configuration is relatively fast and simple, only a few fittings and additional tubing are needed to connect the two systems.
Today the next generation of Biochemical Engineers are utilizing the Phoenix system to translate single column separation to a multicolumn system. The Process utilizes adsorption and desorption where the desired molecule attaches to the chromatography resin while non desirables exit the column. Then the columns are washed with a different solution to collect the desired molecule.
Initially the process was run on a single Phoenix system and used 8 chromatography columns. The current process utilizes both systems with all 16 columns and 8 pumps. Operating the process with 16 columns allows for more customization to achieve higher purity and recovery.
Phoenix allows for the use of any chromatography columns which has allowed UCL to increase their production rate. The other benefit of using larger columns is the data produced can translate directly to a commercial Chromatography system.
What They Had To Say
“My overall experience with the Phoenix System has been great. We’ve successfully completed over 300 hours of separation runs with the system and I think that’s enough of a sample size. In my specific use case, it’s not really a matter of how much time we saved using the Octave but a matter of "we couldn't have done it without the system". Our main goal was to use projections from single-column data and confirm its projections using the multi-column system. This simply could not be done without Phoenix. It was easy to understand the setup of the equipment just by reading the manuals and looking through some of the other information available. Having both valve blocks in one simplifies the setup so much compared to if we had to have an individual pump setup for all 16 columns. I wouldn't even know where to begin with making pumps index between columns.”
- Statement from: Jibril Saifullah, Bio-Engineering Researcher for Manufacturing Futures Lab, University College London.
Benefits From Using the Phoenix System
- Automated system
- Run up to 16 columns
- Easy to use software
- Great service
- Can run 24/7
- Pumps and solenoids work in unison
- Run 8 pumps in unison
- Internal fluid path minimizes void volume
Phoenix is a versatile system that is capable of 1-16 columns of size and a multitude of different chromatography and separation processes. Both systems can work in unison or independently to run two different projects at once. Phoenix is an excellent tool for universities to pursue various methods of liquid purification. There is no unnecessary instrumentation included but the system can always be upgraded with almost any detector or increase the number of columns. ProSep and Phoenix were a great help in ensuring our process development was successful and we are continuing to use the system for further optimization.
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