Product Description

The innovative TriLux range of digital, in-situ, multi-wavelength, fluorimeters provides the user with increased functionality when compared to other fluorimeters. CTG has used expertise gained within its Life Science Group to employ manufacturing techniques that have resulted in a significant reduction in production costs, providing the marine, fresh water, surveying markets with a low cost, high performance sensor.

The TriLux operates in a different fashion to a single wavelength fluorimeter, providing information about the proportion of different light harvesting pigments in the algal sample being interrogated. The TriLux operates on the principle that energy absorbed by the light harvesting pigments is rapidly transferred to Chlorophyll-a, where it is used to initiate a cycle of photosynthesis. A proportion of the energy absorbed, however, is re-emitted as Chlorophyll-a fluorescence with a peak at 682nm.  All versions of TriLux come with a Chlorophyll-a channel as standard, two other channels can then be selected between turbidity and phycoerythrin and phycocyanin - pigments that are prevalent in many cyanobacteria based algae. The TriLux allows the user to assess the relative contribution to Chlorophyll-a fluorescence emission from the different light harvesting pigments absorbing light at each of the chosen excitation wavelengths. This information can then be used to make an assessment of the different classes of phytoplankton present in the sample.  It should be noted that different combinations of pigments will be excited at each of the excitation wavelengths offered.

Two signals can be obtained from the standard TriLux: the first is a digital RS232 output in engineering units, the second a 0V to 5V volt calibrated analogue output derived from the digital signal. A single RS422 output is also available as an option. This flexibility makes the TriLux suitable for integrating into many different systems and platforms. A Windows based Graphical User Interface (GUI) is provided that allows the user to both plot and record time stamped data when operating the TriLux directly from a PC and gives control over many instrument parameters, including: sampling rate, calibration factors and dynamic range. Although small and low cost, the TriLux fluorimeter maintains the performance standards and build quality previously maintained by the CTG’s range of in-situ fluorimeters.

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