![]() Once these sensors are in place, users can be certain that their incubator is functioning properly and maintaining the proper physiological pH for their valuable samples. ![]() This intensifies the need for sensors that can accurately report conditions such as temperature, humidity, carbon dioxide, and oxygen gas concentrations. Furthermore, the pH sensors that exist in the market are expensive and difficult, if not impossible, to calibrate reliably. Therefore, in the case of using carbon dioxide to influence pH, for example, the introduction and maintenance of approximately 5% carbon dioxide into the incubator is actually a microbiological technique used to satisfy the need for a pH sensor. This poses a unique challenge to laboratories that use incubator technology because-while many companies have claimed to do so-research has shown that it is extremely difficult to accurately and continuously measure pH with a sensor. Other conditions, such as temperature and humidity, are controlled in the incubator for other biological purposes however, they do have an impact on the pH of the environment and must be monitored and understood as such. This process lowers the oxygen levels, therefore requiring that this condition be monitored closely as well. This concentration is necessary for a chemical reaction that takes place within the incubator and controls the pH of the system. CO 2, for example, is not a metabolic requirement for cell cultures, but must remain at levels of 5-10% concentration. In incubator monitoring, some of the conditions being monitored are simply indicators of a stable pH, specifically carbon dioxide and oxygen gas. Unfortunately, pH is a very difficult condition to control. A key facet of these conditions is the physiological pH of the environment, one that is usually slightly acidic, with a pH between 7.2 and 7.4. It is essential that incubators in the life science industry are able to provide and maintain the conditions required for the cell cultures at hand. Understanding the level of data and visibility that your organization’s incubator provides is crucial to improving lab operations. Whether it be dry contact, digital integration, or 3rd-party sensors, it is crucial that your organization has access to reliable data and that lab staff can respond to deviations in real time. Just like many pieces of lab equipment, incubators come in a few different forms that change the way in which data is received, making it difficult to monitor. One potential issue is relying on the built-in sensors for data outputs, as the internal sensors are often built-to-cost and may not be accurate. Therefore, a crucial element of an incubator’s stability is accurately measuring the relevant conditions inside in real-time. They require the perfect synergy between conditions such as temperature, humidity, and CO 2/O 2 concentrations, each of which can greatly affect the cells if not monitored carefully. Therefore, incubators are no mystery to the life science industry-research design and lab manufacturing often rely on the ability to grow and maintain these valuable scientific assets. An incubator is a device used to provide the ideal environment for microbiological cultures and cells.
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