University Optimises Chemical Analyses Using Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy

The Mettler Toledo FlowIR™ flow chemistry monitoring system is providing a valuable insight into the synthesis projects performed by the Ley Group at the Department of Chemistry, University of Cambridge. FlowIR™ is a dedicated Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR) instrument for real-time continuous flow chemistry monitoring. Fast, real-time information has enabled them to gain a greater reaction understanding and consequently allowed processes to be optimised far more quickly, which has meant fewer experiments and the time savings that result - critical in the highly-competitive academic landscape.

Using the system’s intuitive software, quick calibration curves can be generated from which the team has gained valuable quantitative information about reactions such as conversation rates and concentrations. And, because the FlowIR™ does not require an expert operator, it has become an integral part of each students flow chemistry setup. The very small footprint of the plug-and-play, FlowIR™ has enabled the university team to easily integrate it into multiple flow set-ups where space is often at a premium.

FlowIR™ has allowed the Ley Group to solve the universal and long-standing dispersion problem (caused by the chromatographic effects of resins for example) when performing multi-step flow synthesis. By controlling the flow rate of a third reagent stream, using the live read-out facility, to the dispersion curve mapped by the FlowIR™ a significant simplification of the work-up and purification steps can be achieved along with a greater yield.

The team has also benefitted from its robust sensors, which are suitable for a wide range of chemical species including azides, organometallics and boronic acids. This has offered the researchers a great deal of flexibility when looking at different chemistries and allowed them to investigate chemistries or intermediates that may not have been quite challenging or impossible previously.