Box to bench & setup: Thermo Scientific™ Orion™ Aquamate™ UV-Vis Spectrophotometers

Turn on the Orion Aquamate spectrophotometer and review the two available models: the AQ7100 with Tungsten halogen lamp (requires 30 minutes warm-up) and the AQ8100 with Xenon flash lamp (longer life, no warm-up needed). Understand the key differences to select the appropriate model for your laboratory's usage frequency.

Explore the Aquamate's key features including 260+ pre-programmed water analysis methods, data storage capacity, magnetic sample holder retention system with spill containment wells, and compatibility with multiple cuvette holders (round 12-25mm, square 10mm, and rectangular 20-100mm cells). Note the glove-compatible touchscreen interface and integrated printer.

Navigate to the Orion Water Analysis menu using the touchscreen and search for the desired method by entering the reagent name or catalog number. For this demonstration, select method AC4P72 for total chlorine analysis using Orion Aquafast reagent, which operates at 510 nanometers wavelength and is EPA-approved for drinking water and wastewater.

Place 10 milliliters of sample blank in a vial and insert it into the magnetic sample holder with the arrow aligned forward. Close the lid and select the blank function to establish the baseline measurement, which takes a couple of seconds to complete.

Remove the blank vial and insert the first prepared sample into the holder. Enter an optional sample number or allow the meter to assign sequential numbering, then select measure to obtain the chlorine concentration reading.

Exchange the current sample vial with the next sample and press measure again to quickly analyze additional samples. The instrument processes each sample rapidly without requiring a new blank between measurements.

Allow the instrument to automatically save all results upon completion of measurements. Export data using USB memory media, direct network connection, or the integrated printer for documentation and further analysis.