To fulfill the needs of researchers as they continue to innovate, the field of incubator types has grown and diversified over time. So, let's discuss the laboratory incubators, their types, and incubator accessories.
CO2 Incubators
A gas incubator enables users to regulate the amount and timing of Carbon Dioxide and, in some instances, oxygen used throughout the incubation process. These cell culture incubators aid in simulating bodily circumstances. You can regulate pH levels by adding CO2 to the process.
Maintaining a pH balance and preventing cells from becoming overly alkaline or acidic promotes cell development. Incubators for CO2 use monitors to measure and maintain precise levels using thermal conductivity sensors or infrared sensors. A tri-gas incubator would be suitable when oxygen and nitrogen control are required.
Humidity Incubators
Testing the effects of various temperatures and humidity levels on a sample can be done in a humidity chamber. These laboratory incubators focus more on stressing a product or substance to determine how much it can take. Solar panels, telecommunications equipment, and other components constantly exposed to the elements benefit greatly from test chambers.
Applications in food science and quality assurance research can both benefit from the usage of humidity chambers and testing chambers. A climate test chamber can be as big as a room to accept massive objects or large quantities of a product, or it can be as small as a tabletop unit to have a large capacity.
General Lab Incubators
The dependable general incubator and incubator accessories are the workhorses of a laboratory. The size of this standard heating laboratory tool can vary substantially. Micro or personal incubators are available for small labs and limited demands. Short dry baths also evenly heat the area around a test tube or other vessel. Lab incubators can go up to a high-capacity reach-in incubator designed to accommodate large batches of samples, but stackable oven-sized incubators are more typical.
Although some incubators offer more sophisticated features like programmable start and stop schedules and decontamination procedures, most will include over-temperature protection and straightforward control options. Your primary considerations with a standard lab incubator will be capacity and what's best for your lab.
Refrigerated Incubators
Incubators are typically associated with warmth. But sometimes, a cool atmosphere is needed, hence entering the refrigerated incubator. Refrigerated incubators are typically cooled using one of two techniques: either a compressor or Peltier technology. These options have a temperature range of -50 to 65°C and can heat and chill. Such a broad range aids in covering a variety of applications, including research on bacteria, plants, insects, and tissue, as well as hematological testing, histochemical procedures, tissue culturing, enzyme digestion studies, crystallization studies, dry and staining techniques, shelf-life testing, water pollution testing, and biochemical oxygen demand studies.
Conclusion
As your research develops, a general incubator, while valuable, won't completely meet your needs. Fortunately, several options are available today, and one will work great for you and your company. Reach out to us if there is a specific offering you are looking for; we are happy to assist. All our incubators and incubator accessories get a thorough inspection, and any necessary repairs are made while documenting and validating each process.
