What is the difference between the 200 Series and 500 Series GC?
Both the 200 Series and 500 Series are full-featured gas chromatographs. The right choice depends on what you need to analyse, how quickly, and where you are working.
The 200 Series: compact, versatile, and straightforward
The 200 Series was originally designed for education. It is small (41 x 34 x 16 cm, 7.5 kg), easy to use, and covers a wide range of analytical applications. It supports capillary and packed columns, five-ramp temperature programming, and a broad selection of detectors including FID, TCD, FPD, ECD, and TEA.
It is a single-channel instrument, meaning it runs one detector at a time. Its heat exchanger technology keeps energy consumption low for an oven-based instrument.
The 200 Series suits education and teaching labs, quality control applications, field or remote use where space and weight matter, and labs looking for a capable instrument at a lower entry cost.
The 500 Series: conventional and ultra-fast in one instrument
The 500 Series runs in conventional mode like any standard GC, but also supports ultra-fast chromatography using resistive heating. An electrical current passes directly through a metal column rather than heating an entire oven. This allows temperature ramp rates a conventional oven cannot match. In ultra-fast mode, sample throughput can increase five to ten times compared to conventional GC.
The 500 Series suits high-throughput labs, applications where run time is a bottleneck, and labs needing rapid turnaround without investing in multiple instruments.
Key differences at a glance
Size: The 200 Series is smaller and lighter (7.5 kg vs 18 kg), making it better suited to space-limited or portable use.
Detector options: The 200 Series supports FID, TCD, FPD, ECD, and TEA. The 500 Series supports FID, ECD, and TEA
Speed: The 500 Series can complete ultra-fast analyses in as little as 5 minutes. The 200 Series operates in conventional mode only.
Injector: The 500 Series injector ramps to 600°C at up to 720°C/min. The 200 Series injector has a maximum of 280°C.
Power: The 500 Series draws 1200 W. The 200 Series draws 800 VA.
Not sure which is right for your application? Get in touch and we can talk through your requirements.