DuPont’s magnetic centrifugation separation technology makes it possible to filter or separate small amounts or low concentrations of molecules economically from a high-volume flow. The technology can produce separations (for example, of antibodies) at costs per gram that are a magnitude less than conventional magnetic separation, and at half the cost – and with greater flow rates – than chromatographic separation.
The separation technology can handle production streams as great as 100m3/hour. Expensive magnetic marker beads can be recovered and reused.
The DuPont technology works by centrifuging the process stream in a magnetic field. Magnetically sensitive materials can be separated easily, and other target molecules can be bound to magnetically sensitive particles – an established technique that has been used for years in analytic processes. The DuPont process is applicable to both batch processing and continuous flow.
Benefits Summary
- Operates cost-effectively at process flow rates up to 100m3/hour.
- The technology can separate valuable fractions at costs per gram that are a magnitude less than conventional magnetic separation, and half the cost of chromatographic separation.
- Magnetic marker beads can be recovered and reused, thus reducing costs further.
Development Summary
The DuPont magnetic centrifugation separation technology has been proven in several major tests and installations. MIT has modeled the physics of the process, a pilot machine was built to test the process, and DuPont spent over $15M USD to put the process into practice for a substantial test. All three test stages were successful both in proving the technology and in proving performance calculations. Machines may be available for inspection by serious potential licensees.
IP Summary
This technology is supported by 4 US patents.
