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This case study examines what led a US biotech company to choose METTLER TOLEDO solutions in order to achieve high performance pH and dissolved oxygen (DO) monitoring. In the process development lab of this leading manufacturer of heart medications, technicians produce recombinant proteins using Chinese hamster ovary (CHO) cells in 5 L glass vessels. A pH and a DO sensor are installed in each vessel to monitor conditions over the 11-day fed-batch culture run. Process pH is particularly critical and must be maintained at 7.4 ± 0.2 for this cell line over the complete run. Lab technicians were disappointed with the shortfalls of the sensors they were using. The company decided to initiate a year-long trial of sensors from a number of manufacturers, including METTLER TOLEDO. METTLER TOLEDO confidently put forward the InPro®3253i pH sensor, the InPro 6850i amperometrical DO sensor, and the M700 Foundation Fieldbus-enabled transmitter for the trial.
The InPro 3253i is a pre-pressurized, liquid electrolyte, low-maintenance pH and temperature sensor with sterilization-resistant glass and sanitary design for suitability in cell culture applications.
Built of FDA-compliant materials, the autoclavable and sterilizable InPro 6850i DO sensor has a detection limit of 6 ppb. Its 3-electrode measurement principle delivers high measurement accuracy and stability, and its Quick Disconnect system allows the sensor’s membrane body to be replaced in seconds.
The M700 is a multi-parameter transmitter based on a modular concept. This allows integration of up to three modules – two for measurement parameters and one for communications – in a single unit.
The complete measurement solution of pH sensor, DO sensor and transmitter offers a significant benefit other solutions do not: Intelligent Sensor Management (ISM®). ISM simplifies the handling and maintenance of measurement systems through a number of advanced features, three of which were of particular interest to the biotech company: predictive diagnostics, sensor pre-calibration and automatic sensor data capture.
At the end of the one-year trial, the customer selected the METTLER TOLEDO solutions, not just because of both sensors’ performance during cell culture, but also because of the handling and maintenance benefits that ISM provides. The biotech company has since converted all its pH and DO measurement points (> 100) to ISM systems and is implementing dissolved CO2 monitoring also using METTLER TOLEDO sensors.
