Agilent Technologies has announced the launch of the Agilent Innovation Hub, a new research facility created in partnership with the University of Melbourne through the Australian Laboratory for Emerging Contaminants (ALEC). The hub will advance environmental health and safety research by combining Agilent’s analytical technology portfolio with ALEC’s scientific expertise to address Australia’s growing need for data on pollutants and population health.
“This collaboration with Agilent shows what’s possible when academia and industry work hand in hand,” said Brad Clarke, associate professor in environmental science and analytical chemistry at the University of Melbourne. “It allows us to move beyond measuring known contaminants toward discovering the thousands of unregulated chemicals that may be circulating in our environment and bodies. That knowledge is essential for protecting communities and informing smart regulation.”
Advanced tools for contaminant detection and biomonitoring
The new hub integrates Agilent’s Infinity III Liquid Chromatography (LC) systems, 6495C Triple Quadrupole LC, and LDIR infrared spectroscopy platforms to enable ultra-trace detection of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), microplastics, and flame retardants—some of the most persistent and complex pollutants confronting environmental scientists today.
“Leveraging our 6495C Triple Quad LC and LDIR systems, we’ve pioneered ultra-trace detection, achieving world-class breakthroughs in parts per quadrillion (PPQ)-level quantitation of PFAS and microplastics in drinking water,” said Bharat Bhardwaj, vice president of APAC sales at Agilent. “This partnership further strengthens Agilent’s leadership in innovation and supports our strategic expansion across Asia.”
The partnership also advances biomonitoring initiatives to improve public-health outcomes in Australia. The hub’s technical refresh program, led by Clarke, will continue to expand research into emerging pollutants and data-driven environmental solutions developed “in Australia, for Australia.”
Building research capacity across Asia
At the heart of the new facility is a suite of InfinityLab technologies—including Assist Technology, Level Sensing, Sample ID Reader, and Revident Quadrupole Time-of-Flight LC/MS—that improve laboratory automation, precision, and reproducibility. These systems are designed to help scientists identify previously undetected compounds with greater accuracy, enabling faster discovery pipelines and better quality assurance.
The Melbourne hub joins Agilent’s growing network of Centers of Excellence established across Asia, including sites in South Korea, Singapore, and Malaysia. Since 2017, Agilent has partnered with Clarke’s team on a series of studies and application notes, culminating in the 2020 founding of ALEC. The new hub marks the next phase of that collaboration, deepening Australia’s role in global efforts to track, assess, and mitigate environmental contaminants.
Strengthening collaboration on emerging contaminants
For laboratory leaders, this partnership highlights how industry-academia collaborations can accelerate method development, instrumentation adoption, and workforce training in analytical sciences. As PFAS and other emerging contaminants draw heightened regulatory scrutiny, labs equipped with high-resolution LC/MS and infrared systems will be better positioned to deliver accurate data, support public-health policy, and meet evolving compliance standards.
This article was created with the assistance of Generative AI and has undergone editorial review before publishing.
