CO2 Incubators
CO2 incubators are the heart of cell-based work in many labs. When they stop, work in the lab stops. Yet, these units are often ignored—until disaster strikes.
CO2 incubators are designed to copy a cell’s natural environment with a relative humidity of around 95 percent, a temperature of 37°C and a pH of 7.2 to 7.5. They are most common in biology labs performing tissue or cell culture and are used in any process where cells need to be cultured for a few hours or many weeks or where cells need to be expanded or maintained.
In a 2012 report, Global Industry Analysts in San Jose, California forecast a growing market for carbon dioxide (CO2) incubators. That comes as no surprise given this technology’s laundry list of applicable fields, which includes cell and tissue culture, protein synthesis, and much more.
CO2 incubators are designed to copy a cell’s natural environment with a relative humidity of around 95 percent, a temperature of 37°C and a pH of 7.2 to 7.5. They are most common in biology labs performing tissue or cell culture and are used in any process where cells need to be cultured for a few hours or many weeks or where cells need to be expanded or maintained.
As the heart of the lab and its workflow, CO2 incubators can make or break the facility’s overall productivity. Douglas Wernerspach, business manager of CO2 and constant temperature at Thermo Fisher Scientific (Waltham, MA), says researchers depend on CO2 incubators to be reliable and provide uniform conditions for cells.
Top 6 Signs That You Should Service or Replace Your CO2 Incubator
The evolution of incubators started with the control of heat. Then, scientists wanted humidity control. The desire to control an incubator’s pH spawned CO2 incubators.
Cell culture incubators, or carbon dioxide (CO2) incubators, are designed to mimic a cell’s natural environment with a relative humidity around 95 percent and temperature of 37°C.
Steri-Cycle In-chamber HEPA air filtration system filters the chamber volume every 60 seconds and reaches Class 100 air conditions within 5 minutes following a routine door opening.
Laboratory incubators are used to grow and maintain cell cultures and are available in a variety of sizes and types.
