This document introduces a new automated plant pigment analysis system. The system uses spectrophotometric techniques to analyze plant pigments. It can accurately detect the concentration and composition of plant pigments.
The document details the development of a new automated system to improve the efficiency and accuracy of determining photosynthetic pigments (chlorophylls, carotenoids) in algal blooms. The previous manual method using an Olivetti data system was too slow, taking 2-3 days per batch.
The new hardware/software combination utilizes a double beam scanning Cary 1 spectrophotometer equipped with an SPS-5 Auto Sampler. A custom software program automates the extraction process (using acetone, methanol, or ethanol), acidification, and calculation of pigment concentrations using UNESCO/SCOR equations.
The system allows users to process up to 60 samples in one analysis.
The system automatically adds a volume of hydrochloric acid ranging from 0.1 to 2 mL.
The system considers the acidification time to be less than 3 minutes.