ÄKTA™ avant 150 chromatography system 2016

The ÄKTA™ avant 150 is a fully automated, preparative-scale chromatography system from Cytiva (formerly GE Healthcare Life Sciences), purpose-built for fast, secure development of scalable protein purification processes and early-stage process development in biopharmaceutical, academic, and biotech research laboratories. Designed to bridge the gap between analytical method scouting and pilot-scale manufacturing, the ÄKTA avant 150 delivers flow rates from 0.01 to 150 mL/min in normal operation and up to 300 mL/min in column-packing mode, with a maximum operating pressure of 5 MPa (50 bar / 725 psi), making it ideally suited for screening resins and optimizing purification protocols on HiScale™, Tricorn™, and AxiChrom™ columns up to 50 mm ID. The system features dual high-precision, dual-piston, biocompatible pumps (PEEK- and Titanium-wetted surfaces) for both mobile phase gradient formation and sample loading, minimizing metal-ion leaching and preserving biomolecule bioactivity. An integrated sample pump allows direct aspiration from bottles or vials, complementing conventional loop-injection modes. The fluidic pathway includes a five-position column selection valve with individual column-in and column-out pressure transducers for real-time ΔP monitoring, air sensors on buffer and sample lines to protect the column bed, and programmable Cleaning-In-Place (CIP) protocols supporting 1 M NaOH and up to 2 M NaCl for thorough system sanitization. On-line detection is provided by a U9-M multi-wavelength UV/Vis monitor (190–700 nm, simultaneous triple-wavelength tracking, ±0.08 mAU noise at 280 nm, 2 mm standard flow cell), a conductivity monitor (0.01–999.99 mS/cm, ±0.01 mS/cm accuracy), and an in-line pH electrode (pH 0–14, ±0.1 pH in the 2–12 range). Standard mixers of 1.4 mL, 5 mL, and 15 mL are included to optimize gradient shape across varying flow regimes. The integrated refrigerated fraction collector (typically 6–20 °C) accommodates 3/5/8/15/50 mL tubes, 250 mL bottles, and 24/48/96-well deep-well plates, with collection triggered by time, volume, or peak criteria. The system is operated via UNICORN™ 6.x or 7.x workstation software, which offers intuitive drag-and-drop method building, real-time multi-trace chromatogram display, 3D overlay comparison, Design of Experiments (DoE) integration for high-throughput condition screening, BufferPro™ on-line buffer formulation, column-usage logging, and full audit trails with 21 CFR Part 11 compliance readiness for data integrity in regulated R&D environments. Optional capabilities include intelligent column packing routines, multi-step purification automation, and direct export of calibration data to GoSilico™ mechanistic modeling software. Methods developed on the ÄKTA avant 150—using linear velocity, residence time, and gradient slope as scale-independent parameters—can be linearly transferred with minimal re-optimization to larger ÄKTA ready™ or ÄKTA process™ systems, ensuring smooth technology transfer from process development to manufacturing. The ÄKTA avant 150 is not intended for GMP-compliant production but excels at non-GMP preparative purification for preclinical studies, resin screening, robustness testing, and scale-down model verification.