A new dimension in high throughput screening

With its digital lab that is one of a kind worldwide, BYK, a leading global manufacturer of speciality chemicals, is launching into a new era of applications technology and so is giving a whole new dimension to its range of tailor-made additive solutions for its customers.

"The fully automated high throughput screening (HTS) system at BYK performs series tests with impressive speed and efficiency. Two hundred and twenty samples can be produced and tested within 24 hours in high throughput. This is equivalent to up to 80,000 samples per year," explained D. Jörg Hinnerwisch, BYK CTO.

A fully digitalised process enables the time required for series testing to be cut from the previous norm of some months to just a few days. The time saving this entails not only generates greater scope for the creation of new differentiating customer solutions, but also doubles BYK’s capacity in application technology.

"The facility operates like a giant filter. With it, we are able to determine with great precision which of a vast number of products tested are the two or three that will be of the greatest use and advantage to the customer,” said Manfred Knospe, Head of HTS at BYK.

The ultra-modern facility is complex. It includes 32 modules with 27 different functionalities all set to check and test BYK additives in paints, plastics and adhesives. The modules are connected to each other via a rail system, with shuttles moving the samples individually from one module to the next.

The examination of liquid samples with respect to pH value, foam, or particle size distribution forms part of this one-of-a-kind HTS facility. In addition, two rheology measuring instruments evaluate the flow behaviour.

Depending on the usage concerned, the samples are then applied by pouring out, drawing down, or spraying and cured using UV radiation, or by means of oven or air drying. Finally, they are then subjected to a fully automated test for property characteristics such as gloss, flow, or colour.

"By making this investment in the future, we are, on the one hand, once again establishing more scope for creativity for our highly qualified researchers, who are working on tomorrow’s additive solutions. On the other hand, the enormous speed of our HTS facility allows us to substantially reduce the time-to-market phase for our customers, thereby also securing an important competitive edge for them,” says BYK Division President Dr Tammo Boinowitz.