Does anyone have experience using centrifugal filters - of the kind used to concentrate proteins - to concentrate and wash small mineral particles suspended in solution? The colloids in my experimental solutions are between 0.1-0.5 um in diameter.
Here's an example of the kind of filters I'm referring to: https://www.sigmaaldrich.com/US/en/product/mm/ufc8010
Thank you in advance!
It's a good idea, why not? We used centrifugal concentrators for purification and concentration of viruses:
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Just one suggestion. There is a slightly weird parameter - MWCO (molecular weight cut off) in such membrane vials. Of course, they cannot detect molecular mass, it's just a kind of sieve, and this parameter is just calculated for a globular protein: D = 0.132*M^1/3, when D - minimal diameter of molecule (in nm), M - molecular mass (in Da). Thus, MWCO 10 kDa means pore size about 3 nm, too small, isn't it? Typically, the highest available MWCO is 1000 kDa = about 13 nm pore size. We found it the best for virus purification, perhaps it will be working for your samples too.
Good luck!