Inspecting, Cleaning, And Replacing Parts Of The Flow Cell; Flushing The Flow Cell - Waters 2487 Dual A Operator's Manual

4.3 Inspecting, Cleaning, and Replacing Parts of the
Flow Cell
A dirty flow cell can cause baseline noise, decreased sample energy levels, calibration
failure, and other problems with operation of the 2487 Detector.
There are two phases in cleaning the flow cell:
• Flushing
• Removing and cleaning
If flushing is ineffective, remove and clean the flow cell. Replace flow cell components as
required.
Attention:
STOP
other flow cell components.
This section provides information about the following procedures:

• Flushing the flow cell

• Removing and cleaning the flow cell
• Disassembling and reassembling the flow cell
4.3.1 Flushing the Flow Cell
Flush the flow cell after each shutdown, or when dirty. To flush the flow cell:
1. Discontinue the eluent flow, and remove the column.
4
2. Attach tubing from the 2487 Detector to the injector outlet (from which the
column has been removed). Flush the mobile phase from the detector with a
miscible solvent and water (unless the mobile phase is miscible with water).
3. Flush the detector with HPLC-quality water to remove contaminants from the
flow path.
4. Pump 6 M nitric acid through the flow cell to clean the internal pathways.
5. Flush again with HPLC-quality water until the solvent is neutral.
6. Reattach the column to resume flow of the mobile phase. Use an intermediary
solvent if you are using a mobile phase that is not miscible in water.
151 Maintenance Procedures
Always replace the flow cell gaskets when cleaning, rebuilding, or replacing