Integration Of Tray Dryers & Nutsche Filter In Containment Isolator System

By Gary Partington

Walker Barrier Systems was tasked with providing a system to contain potent and toxic active pharmaceutical compounds to 0.5μg/m³ exposure level (TWA over operation duration), for an existing Lab space. The unit was designed for product filtration, drying in vacuum heat oven, hand sieving and discharging and final dispensing for further processing, using a Hicoflex system, for an existing Laboratory. The isolator was to be multi-purpose, and therefore, not only is the aspect of containment considered in the design, but also cleanability to prevent cross-contamination. The chamber had to operate in an inert atmosphere using nitrogen, so the isolator was equipped with an oxygen sensing system, which would maintain an atmosphere within the enclosure to £ 2% oxygen using customer supplied nitrogen. All components inside the chamber were to be rated for a Class 1 Div 1 environment and controlled using PLC controls.