Providing the Next Level of Safety with Hydranal™ NEXTGEN Reagents and OMNIS
May 23, 2022
Article
Honeywell Research Chemicals is committed to providing the next level of safety and offers reagents free from carcinogenic, mutagenic, and reprotoxic (CMR) substances. As industry leaders and collaborators in Karl Fischer (KF) titration, Honeywell created a special product line of Hydranal – free of imidazole reagents.
Enabling safety without comprising on results is the highest priority for Hydranal™. There are many different aspects to providing the next level of safety in Karl Fischer (KF) titration – including that of the user, and mitigating quality implications. As some reagents may be toxic, direct contact should be reduced to a minimum or avoided completely to protect users. Additionally, inaccuracy of obtained results poses serious implications for the quality or value of the end products.
Let’s explore how Metrohm’s OMNIS equipment and Hydranal™ NEXTGEN reagents can increase both the safety of the user and ensure accuracy of the results.
Hydranal™ NEXTGEN FI are free from CMR (carcinogenic, mutagenic, and reprotoxic) substances
In 1979, Eugen Scholz and Helga Hoffmann invented Hydranal™ reagents by replacing noxious pyridine, originally used as a base for KF titration, with odorless imidazole. Next in 1998, Hydranal introduced ethanol-based reagents (Hydranal E-types) for those looking to move away from using toxic methanol.
In 2015, the European Commission classified imidazole as a CMR substance and added an H360D statement («may damage the unborn child»). The initial trigger for the evaluation was the usage of imidazole in the food industry and therefore an intended oral intake. HydranalTM reagents are not intended for oral intake. Although KF reagents contain imidazole only in dissolved and diluted form, are always handled in closed systems in small analytical amounts, and direct contact with imidazole is unlikely, professional users of CMR substances must carry out a risk assessment considering the whole work process.
Learn more about risk assessment in the context of industrial manufacturing processes in our related blog post.
Forewarned is Forearmed: Error and risk minimization in process analysis – Part 3
So far, alternatives to imidazole have adversely impacted the performance of KF reagents, and users have had limited options to move away from any potential CMR risk. After dedicated research, the Hydranal Center of Excellence has developed new reagents that are free of imidazole and do not compromise on performance.
Providing the next level of safety
Hydranal™ offers CMR-free reagents for volumetric two-component KF titration, and for coulometric KF titration for standard and for ketone samples. Customers who wish to upgrade to imidazole-free reagents from current Hydranal reagents can do so without changes in the titration methodology. A cross-reference is provided below:
Volumetric two-component titration | |||
Reagent system with imidazole | Reagent system without imidazole | ||
Titrating agent | Medium | Titrating agent | Medium |
34801 HYDRANAL-Titrant 5 34811 HYDRANAL-Titrant 2 |
34800 HYDRANAL-Solvent |
34801 HYDRANAL-Titrant 5 34811 HYDRANAL-Titrant 2 |
34432 HYDRANAL NEXTGEN Solvent FI |
34732 HYDRANAL-Titrant 5 E * 34723 HYDRANAL-Titrant 2 E * |
34730 HYDRANAL-Solvent E |
34801 HYDRANAL-Titrant 5 34811 HYDRANAL-Titrant 2 |
34431 HYDRANAL NEXTGEN Solvent E-FI |