My syringe for GC is clogged. I tried to immerse it in chloroform and then in acetone in the ultrasound bath, but without success so far. Any other suggestions?
Most times the needle ist the part of the syringe wich is blocked
I try it in this ways:
Remove the plunger from the blocked syringe, fill the syringebody with Acetone
or chloroform using another syringe, put the plunger back to the blocked syringe and pess down the plunger. Maybe the blokade in the needle will get blow out.
If nothing else helps: Use a ligther to glow out the end of the needle, mostly this ist the point of blokade ( Septaparticles in the needle or solids from the samples)
What type of syringe do you have? Does it have a Teflon plunger? Does it have a fused needle or removable needle? Which part is clogged, the needle or barrel? The cleaning method will depend on how well you can disassemble the syringe.
First suggestion is to dispose of it and use a new syringe (they are inexpensive relative to the time spent trying to clean them and you should always have brand new spare syringes on hand). A contaminated or damaged syringe will only result in contaminating future sample injections and/or result in inaccurate volumes. Why risk it?
Second suggestion is that the Teflon plunger (found on most, but not all GC glass syringes) may by damaged. Replace it if needed. Disassemble and clean all of the parts (needle, glass barrel, plunger) in a warm (50C) solution of Alconox detergent in distilled water for 60 minutes, rinse well in distilled water, than HPLC/GC grade IPA followed by methanol. Replacement of the plunger assembly may be needed.
Third suggestion: What sample types have you been using the needle with? To dissolve out any clogged samples (vs particulate matter) use a wash solution that is known to dissolve the samples. For example: Use the previously noted wash solution or wash the needle in a series of solutions. Start with pure IPA, then switch to Hexane, then back to IPA and finally methanol. The needle may be clogged or partially restricted. If it uses the removable type needle, replace it with a new needle. If it uses a fused needle, then replace the syringe with a new one of the correct type.
Take the plunger out immerse the needle in dichloromethane (DCM) and put few uL of DCM into the hole where plunger is placed. After than put strongly the plunger down. Often the overpressure will allow to push out the impurities.
Regards
GB
I would like to thank all the researchers who answered my question. I solved the problem by using a 50°C solution of Alcojet 1% for 1 hour. It is totally clean.
Glad I was able to help and you were able to get the syringe clean for re-use. Using the warm detergent solution in our ultrasonic bath has worked well to clean up many glassware items for me. *Be sure to flush it out well before use (and consider the purchase of a spare syringe to have on hand in the future).
Sometimes the use of distilled water instead of organic solvent works well also.
I believe you should use a cleaning wire to dislodge any foreign material. Flush with a suitable cleaning concentrate to further dissolve the clog. Once, the clog is removed, rinse the syringe and needle thoroughly with deionized water. Wipe the exterior surfaces of the syringe barrel and needle dry with a lint-free tissue.
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