Lödige Process Technology has built the smallest machine in its company history in order to meet the highly specialised demands of the high-containment segment: The Ploughshare® laboratory mixer type L 1 now being supplied supplements the L series and has a drum volume of only one litre.
What led to this new development was an enquiry by an existing customer: This company was looking for a process engineering solution for exceptionally challenging dry mixtures for its development lab. As powdered substances such as these can be highly sensitive, extremely expensive or perhaps even hazardous to health and the environment, the only suitable solution was a contained process in a gas-tight container, also referred to as “glovebox”. That means: the mixer can only be operated and serviced within a glass safety housing using integrated gloves. For this reason, the machine must be designed to meet special requirements – and the mini-mixer meets all of them in full: Thanks to its small drum and an angle drive, it is incredibly compact. At the same time, it is consistently easy to operate. Moreover, all components are easy to remove, meaning that particularly wear parts, which must be inserted into the glovebox through an airlock, are easy to replace and reinstall.
The compact Ploughshare® laboratory mixer is a special addition to the L series, which is Lödige’s lab range for small batches. These machines are designed for development and small batch production and are available in several sizes with drum volumes generally ranging from 5 to 50 litres. The L series laboratory mixers cover a wide range of applications in product and process development: In particular, they permit processing of powdered, grainy and fibrous components, addition of liquids for moistening, granulation and coating, processing of fragile substances without destroying their structure and mixing in of greases, lecithins and similar substances.
