Biotage ELSD-A120 - General Problems and Solutions

Biotage
®
ELSD-A120 User Manual 47
Troubleshooting and Diagnostics
6
General Problems
General Problems
Baseline Noise
Baseline Spikes
Probable cause Suggested actions
1 Poor nebulization Increase the temperature of the
nebulizer by 10 °C until the baseline
noise decreases
2 Insufficient evaporation • Increase the temperature of the
evaporator by 10 °C until the
baseline noise decreases
• Increase the gas flow rate
• Decrease the nebulization
temperature
3 Non-volatile additive in the mobile
phase
Use a volatile mobile phase
4 Pressure difference created inside
the nebulizer chamber
• Ensure that the end of the liquid
waste tube is not immersed in
liquid
• Ensure that the exhaust tube at
the rear of the detector is not
blocked, or extraction is too
strong
5 Pulsations, especially in
microbore applications where low
flow rates are used
• Use a pulsation free nitrogen
supply
Probable cause Suggested actions
1 Particulate matter in the gas
supply
Filter the incoming gas, or change
the supply
2 Poor nebulization
Check that the inlet gas flow is
> 60 psi (4.1 bar) and stable
3 Insufficient evaporation Increase the temperature of the
evaporator by 10 °C until the
baseline noise decreases
4 Non-volatile additive in the mobile
phase
Replace the additive in the mobile
phase with a volatile buffer