From R&D to Large Volume Production: Keys for a Smooth Biomagnetic Separation Process Transfer

The great popularity of magnetic separation is due to its simplicity. The first attempts at a small volume usually work fine even with a simple magnet but for the manufacturing of commercial products, it is necessary to work at several liters scale. To do this is important to correctly identify that the key parameter for biomagnetic separation is the magnetic force not the separation time nor the magnetic field. As consequence, using a simple magnet (or an open structure) the magnetic force is not well defined, then we cannot validate the working conditions. By contrast, using biomagnetic separation systems with constant magnetic force the separation speed will be constant, regardless of the working volume. Keeping the magnetic force constant also guarantees no aggregation problems at any volume due to excessive retention force. The resultant separation time would be just proportional to vessel diameter, but the production volume will increase as D3, then it will do the productivity. Moreover, larger consistent batches would reduce labor & QC burden.

The biomagnetic separation process needs to be monitored to determine the separation time for a given volume and, for checking the batch-to-batch consistency. One option is the real-time measurement of absorbance. If the magnetic force is constant, any alteration in the optical curve of the separation process will be caused by changes in the suspension (beads aggregations, changes in the buffers, different kinds of beads, and/or its concentration). 
In consequence, we can conclude that the 3 keys for a smooth scale-up of your biomagnetic separation process are the use of constant magnetic force systems, monitoring the separation process, and to keep the same magnetic force at the different volumes