The most advanced, transportable and user-friendly LSC on the market
The Hidex 300 SL is a revolutionary instrument which incorporates the most advanced technology available, triple-to-double coincidence ratio (TDCR) counting. TDCR utilizes a unique design with three photomultiplier detectors aligned 120 degrees from each other, which offers superior efficiency and counting results for both advanced research and environmental work.
The 300 SL has a modern and compact design measuring half the size and weight of some of its long standing rivals. It is therefore much easier to fit it into smaller, more space conscious laboratories, such as transporting in research vessels or mobile labs.
Super Low-Level Model
Similar to the standard 300 SL, Super Low-Level scintillation counter is equipped with additional lead shielding, low-level PMT detectors, and an active guard detector for further background reduction.
Ideal for H-3 in water measurements, other low-level environmental monitoring, radiocarbon dating, and biofuel verification.
New Active Guard
The Active Guard is a separate scintillator detector which measures and subtracts real-time background radiation. The guard can be turn off for high energy samples and does not interfere with alpha/beta separation.
TDCR Technology
The 300 SL utilizes a unique design with three photomultiplier detectors aligned 120 degrees from each other, which offers superior efficiency and counting results for both advanced research and environmental work.
In addition, the 300 SL can be used in triple coincidence mode only, which removes interference from chemiluminescence and the need to dark adapt. The counter can also be operated in dual coincidence mode using conventional standards and quench correction methods.
Quench curves can be generated and stored within the MikroWin software, which can be automatically applied or manually fitted to recalculate previous data.
Detector Design
An optimal Lead Shield design features a minimum of 70 mm lead in all directions to provide excellent shielding and minimizes instrument weight. A Lead Shutter reduces cosmic radiation and Copper Shielding eliminates X-rays from lead shield. Highly reflective proprietary paint around the Measurement Chamber maximizes photon detection. Robotic Loading Arm removes the need for a complex elevator mechanism, preventing jams, and is easily serviceable. Three PMT Detectors in coincidence mode provide optimal counting geometry and facilitate TDCR calculations.
No internal or external standard source
The TDCR method allows easy determination of sample counting efficiency without the use of any internal or external standard source of radioactivity, offering many benefits for the modern lab including no hidden disposal costs, no health hazard when servicing, and no transportation restrictions.
Additional Options
- Temperature Control Module
- Alpha/Beta Separation Module
- Low-Level PMT Detectors
- Digital Lead Shield
- External EU-152 Standard
Compatible with Windows
Hidex is the only manufacturer of liquid scintillation counters whose software is fully compatible with Windows 11, Microsoft’s latest major release. Hidex’s MikroWin version 5.62 can be run on any external desktop, whereas other manufacturers use internal computers that are integrated into the liquid scintillation counter itself.
This can present problems if there is a fault with the internal computer, as it prevents the user from operating the instrument as well. Being able to use an external desktop to manage your instruments allows MikroWin software to be easily updated with new releases and is compatible with Microsoft’s latest security features introduced in Windows 11.
MikroWin features an easy-to-use graphical interface and advanced data reduction capabilities. An unlimited number of protocols, easy export to Excel, custom calculations, and quench curves are all included.
Hidex 300 SL existing users
Click the tabs below to learn more about our customers and their applications for the Hidex 300 SL.
Nuclear
Radsol, South Korea
Radiochemical analysis of environmental and nuclear decommissioning samples
Radsol CEO Dr. Jung-Suk Oh's laboratory houses three Hidex 300 SL liquid scintillation counters.
The Hidex 300 SL is being used by Radsol for the radiochemical analysis of environmental and nuclear decommissioning samples in South Korea. The country is the world’s fifth biggest generator of nuclear energy with a total of 26 reactors providing 26 GWe of electricity, approximately a third of all electricity produced. Two reactors – Kori 1 and Wolsong 1 – have been shut down and are currently in the process of being decommissioned.
Radsol specialises in the measurement and analysis of radioisotopes, providing the Korean Research Institute of Standards and Science (KRISS) with a range of radioanalytical services including measuring 3H in seawater, bioassays for radiation workers, and nuclear waste characterisation. The company has three 300 SLs to achieve a high throughput of work.
You can learn more by clicking the button below.
Watts Bar Nuclear Power Plant, USA
Advanced tritium analysis at nuclear power stations
Watts Bar’s three Hidex 300 SLs in their Chemistry Department.
Three Hidex 300 SL liquid scintillation counters have been installed at the Tennessee Valley Authority’s Watts Bar nuclear power plant where it is used by the Chemistry Department to count tritium in various plant samples, including gaseous and liquid effluents. The NPP generates enough electricity for 1,200,000 homes.
We spoke to Radiological Chemist Brooke Underwood. Click the button below to find out what she had to say.
Babcock Marine, UK
The decommissioning of Royal Navy nuclear submarines
Radiochemists at Babcock Marine's Rosyth Radiochemistry Laboratory (RCL) have been using the Hidex 300 SL to determine tritium and carbon-14 in samples as part of the Ministry of Defence’s Submarine Dismantling Project. The RCL is responsible for analyzing environmental samples from both the Rosyth Dockyard itself and the decommissioned submarines berthed there.
Click the button below to find out what Radiochemist Lionel Serafini thinks of the 300 SL.
Environmental
Montana Bureau of Mines and Geology, USA
Counting radon in water
As a mountainous state with large granite batholiths, Montana has relatively high levels of radon. As the radon dissolves into groundwater, it can contaminate wells in rural areas where mains water may not be accessible. While radon in water – 222Rn-H2O – is generally less concerning than radon gas indoors, it can still contribute to overall exposure when it is released into the air during washing and cooking.
The Montana Bureau of Mines and Geology (MBMG) serves as the state’s geological survey. Based at Montana Tech, hydrogeologists have been using a Hidex 300 SL for many years to analyze collected water samples.
Click the button below to find out how the 300 SL's automated functionality helps labs manage unequilibrated samples.
University of Surrey, UK
Quantifying radiolabelled CECs
The ARIEL team at the University of Surrey with Dr. Al Sid Cheikh (second from right) with Product Specialist Luke Brammer (far right).
Hidex instruments are being used by the University of Surrey’s Applied-RadioIsotope and Environmental Laboratory (ARIEL) to research and understand the fate and behaviour of contaminants of emerging concerns (CECs). CECs are pollutants such as domestic chemicals, pharmaceuticals, and agricultural runoff detected in bodies of water.
Lead by Dr. Maya Al Sid Cheikh, the research is specifically concerned with nanoplastics, which are ubiquitous in domestic products and discharged in large quantities from industrial processes and can have devastating impacts on biodiversity, ecosystems, and food chains. Maya and her team at ARIEL are trying to trace these from origin through to dispersion in the environment and living organizms to understand how long they persist by 14C radiolabeling.
You can find out more about ARIEL's research by clicking the button below.
Colorado School of Mines, USA
Radiometric analysis of heavier actinides
The Colorado School of Mines is a public R1 research university focused on applied science and engineering. The Mines Radiochemistry Lab uses radioactive elements to solve complex problems in nuclear energy, the separation and purification of metals, the disposal of nuclear waste, and the environment.
The school’s lab is also one of only two university labs in the world that experiments with rare and highly radioactive heavy actinide elements such as Berkelium, Einsteinium, and Fermium. Research Assistant Professor Jessica Jackson has been using the Hidex 300 SL for a range of radiometric analysis experiments using alpha-beta discrimination. The LSC’s unique topographical 3D separation was a key reason why the school procured the Hidex over another model.
Click the button below to find out more.
Documents
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Hidex-300-SL-and-600-SL-Brochure-US-Version-1.4
Download (3.85 MB)
Catalogues
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Monitoring-and-Analytical-Equipment-EU-Version-1.3
Download (28.21 MB)
