A cold trap is aimed at absorbing the harmful or toxic chemicals during the laboratory evaporation. The purpose is carried out before the vapors enter the vacuum pump. Most of the vacuum pumps contain oil but the solvent vapors need to be collected to prevent the oil from getting into the oil itself. The pump oil is important but if any corrosive or harmful material gets into it, the vacuum pump will become damaged. This prevents the pump from getting fixed.
If the vacuum pump does not need oil, the vapors will make it into the evaporation system itself through the closed system. This is further helpful for preventing the vacuum pumps from getting inflicted with vapor and then eventually into the environment.
How do cold traps work?
The cold trap, as the name suggests, is one of the most important parts of the evaporation system. The vapor eventually makes it way to the coldest system where the air freezes and gets into the condenser. Since vapors naturally mitigate, cold traps can prove to enhance the evaporation rate. The vapors are collected in its frozen solid form for extra advantages. The condensation of the vacuum within the tube will eventually slow down the evaporation process.
How to choose it?
As suggested the cold traps are one of the most essential parts of the evaporation system. It needs to be taken care of properly. When choosing cold traps it is necessary to take care of the temperature. The cold traps are usually available in three temperature firms: -50°C, -85°C and -105°C.
The best cold trap is also dependent on the capacity of moisture trapping. You need to consider the sample’s freezing point before finding the perfect temperature for a cold trap. Experts suggest it is better to test the freezing point of the cold trap and trapping thereby enhancing the overall impact.
The solvents usually have a freezing point if -96 to -105°C. Hence, based on that, the -105°C cold trap will be the perfect choice. The water sample also needs to be taken into consideration.
Often your solvent may be a mixture of two different components. In such a case, experts recommend choosing a cold trap that measures to the lowest freezing point.
LeDab Canada has a wide range of cold traps of varying temperature. Thus, make sure to do your own research before finding out the best solution. The cold traps can make your work pretty easy.
