A low-cost, open-source digital stripchart recorder for chromatographic detectors using a Raspberry Pi

Area of Science:

• Analytical Chemistry
• Instrumentation

Background:

• Effective data acquisition and processing are crucial in chromatographic analysis.
• Existing solutions often involve expensive software licenses or proprietary hardware.
• Obsolete or in-house software control necessitates alternative data acquisition methods.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop an accessible and affordable open-source digital stripchart recorder for chromatographic data acquisition.
• To provide a cost-effective alternative to commercial chromatography data systems.
• To enable data acquisition for systems with obsolete or custom software control.

Main Methods:

• Development of a digital stripchart recorder system utilizing a Raspberry Pi single-board computer.
• Integration of a custom printed circuit board with integrated circuits for data acquisition.
• Implementation of an open-source software (Processing) for user interface and data processing.
• Comparative analysis against a commercial chromatography data software package.

Main Results:

• The developed system successfully acquires, filters, and processes chromatographic data.
• Performance metrics (peak area, retention time, plate count) were calculated.
• The system demonstrated comparable performance to commercial platforms, with values within 3% difference.

Conclusions:

• The open-source digital stripchart recorder provides a viable and affordable solution for chromatographic data acquisition.
• This system enhances accessibility, particularly for laboratories with budget constraints or outdated instrumentation.
• The developed platform offers comparable accuracy to expensive commercial alternatives.