Agilent 1200 HPLC vs Agilent 1100 Series vs Agilent 81623B
This page provides a technical comparison of three distinct instruments: the Agilent 1200 HPLC system, the Agilent 1100 Series HPLC system, and the Agilent 81623B optical power head. While the 1200 HPLC and 1100 Series represent successive generations of modular high-performance liquid chromatography systems designed for analytical chemistry and pharmaceutical QA/QC, the 81623B is an optical measurement device designed for fiber and open-beam optical power monitoring. This comparison details their differences in architecture, specifications, and applications.
- 1200 HPLC Max Pressure
- 400 bar (Standard) / 600 bar (RRLC)
- 1100 Series Max Pressure
- 400 bar (5880 psi)
- 81623B Wavelength Range
- 750 to 1800 nm
- HPLC Flow Rate Range
- 0.001 to 10.0 mL/min
- 81623B Detector Options
- Germanium (standard) or Silicon (optional)
Specifications
| Specification | Agilent1200 HPLC | Agilent1100 Series | Agilent81623B |
|---|---|---|---|
| General | |||
| Interfaces | CAN, LAN, GPIB, RS-232, APG Remote (configuration dependent) | CAN, GPIB, RS-232C, APG Remote, optional LAN (via interface card) | Connects to 816x mainframes via 81618A (single-channel) or 81619A (dual-channel) interface modules |
| Display | None (controlled via software or optional G1323B Control Module) | Optional Handheld Control Module (G1323B) or via PC software | — |
| Physical | |||
| Power Supply | 100 - 240 VAC, 50/60 Hz (per module) | 100 - 240 VAC, 50/60 Hz (per module) | — |
| Operating Temperature(°C) | 4 to 55 °C | 4 to 55 | — |
| Wetted Materials (Standard) | — | Stainless steel, titanium, gold, sapphire, ruby, ceramic, PTFE, PEEK | — |
| General System Specifications | |||
| System Configuration | Modular (Pump, Autosampler, Column Compartment, Detector modules) | — | — |
| Maximum Operating Pressure | 400 bar / 5880 psi (Standard 1200 Series) / 600 bar / 8700 psi (1200 Series RRLC) | — | — |
| pH Range | 1.0 to 12.5 (standard materials) | — | — |
| Solvent Delivery System (Pump) | |||
| Flow Rate Range | 0.001 to 10.0 mL/min (Standard Pumps) / up to 5.0 mL/min (RRLC Binary Pump SL) | — | — |
| Number of Solvents / Channels | Up to 4 (Quaternary Pump) or 2 (Binary Pump) | — | — |
| Flow Precision | ≤ 0.07 % RSD (or ≤ 0.02 min SD) | — | — |
| Pressure Pulsation | < 2 % amplitude (typically < 1 %) at 1 mL/min isopropanol | — | — |
| Compressibility Compensation | User-selectable, based on mobile phase properties | — | — |
| Degasser Type | Vacuum membrane degasser | — | — |
| Sample Management (Autosampler) | |||
| Injection Volume Range | 0.1 to 100 µL (Standard Autosampler G1329A) | — | — |
| Injection Precision | < 0.25 % RSD (from 5 to 100 µL, Standard Autosampler) | — | — |
| Sample Capacity (Vials) | 100 x 2 mL vials (Standard tray) | — | — |
| Carryover | Typically < 0.1 % (without automated needle wash) | — | — |
| Column Compartment | |||
| Temperature Control Range | 10 °C below ambient to 80 °C (G1316A TCC) | 10 °C below ambient to 80 °C (G1316A) | — |
| Temperature Stability | ± 0.15 °C | ± 0.15 °C | — |
| Column Capacity | Up to 3 columns of 30 cm length (G1316A TCC) | Up to three 30 cm columns | — |
| Temperature Accuracy | — | ± 0.8 °C | — |
| Heat-up Time | — | 5 minutes (from ambient to 40 °C) | — |
| Cool-down Time | — | 10 minutes (from 40 °C to 20 °C) | — |
| Internal Volume | — | 3 µL (left heat exchanger), 6 µL (right heat exchanger) | — |
| Detector Specifications (DAD / UV-Vis) | |||
| Wavelength Range | 190 to 950 nm (G1315B DAD option) / 190 to 600 nm (G1314B VWD option) | — | — |
| Light Source | Deuterium and Tungsten lamps (DAD) | — | — |
| Flow Cell Volume | 13 µL (Standard Flow Cell) | — | — |
| Flow Cell Path Length | 10 mm (Standard Flow Cell) | — | — |
| Maximum Flow Cell Pressure | 120 bar (Standard Flow Cell) | — | — |
| Software and Control | |||
| Chromatography Data System (CDS) | Agilent ChemStation, EZChrom, OpenLAB CDS | — | — |
| Connectivity and Interfaces | |||
| Controller Area Network (CAN) | Yes (Inter-module communication standard) | — | — |
| Environmental and Safety Compliance | |||
| Operating Humidity Range | < 95 % non-condensing | — | — |
| Safety Certifications | CSA, UL, CE | — | — |
| Physical and Power Specifications | |||
| Line Voltage Range | 100 - 240 VAC, ± 10 % | — | — |
| Line Frequency | 50 / 60 Hz, ± 5 % | — | — |
| Pump & Fluidics | |||
| Pump Mechanism | Dual-piston in series with proprietary servo-controlled variable stroke drive | — | — |
| Gradient Mixing | Low-pressure quaternary or high-pressure binary mixing (pump module dependent) | — | — |
| Composition Precision | < 0.2 % RSD or < 0.04 min SD (whichever is greater, at 0.2 and 1 mL/min) | — | — |
| Detection | |||
| Data Acquisition Rate | Up to 80 Hz (detector module dependent) | — | — |
| Software & Control | |||
| Maintenance Features | Early Maintenance Feedback (EMF) for continuous usage tracking (e.g., seal wear, lamp hours) | — | — |
| Environmental | |||
| Maximum Operating Altitude | 2000 m | — | — |
| Storage Temperature | -40 °C to +70 °C | — | — |
| Compliance | |||
| Installation Category | II (IEC 61010) | — | — |
| GLP/GMP Features | — | Built-in system suitability, IQ/OQ protocols, electronic logs | — |
| Regulatory Certifications | — | CE, CSA, UL | — |
| System Overview | |||
| System Architecture | — | Modular High-Performance Liquid Chromatography (HPLC) System | — |
| Maximum Operating Pressure | — | 400 bar (5880 psi) | — |
| pH Range | — | 1.0 - 12.5 (standard materials) | — |
| Solvent Delivery System (Pump Module) | |||
| Pump Type | — | Quaternary (G1311A) / Binary (G1312A) / Isocratic (G1310A) options | — |
| Flow Rate Range | — | 0.001 - 10.0 mL/min | — |
| Flow Rate Precision | — | ≤ 0.3% RSD (typically < 0.15% RSD) | — |
| Pressure Range | — | 0 - 400 bar (0 - 5880 psi) | — |
| Composition Range | — | 0 - 100% | — |
| Integrated Vacuum Degasser | — | 4 channels (G1322A standard degasser) | — |
| Degasser Internal Volume | — | ~12 mL per channel (G1322A) | — |
| Sample Management (Autosampler Module) | |||
| Injection Volume Range | — | 0.1 - 100 µL (standard autosampler) | — |
| Injection Precision (RSD) | — | < 0.25% RSD (from 5 to 100 µL) | — |
| Sample Capacity | — | 100 × 2 mL vials (standard tray) | — |
| Needle Wash Function | — | Standard integrated | — |
| Detection (Optical / UV-Vis / DAD) | |||
| Detector Type | — | Diode Array Detector (G1315B) | — |
| Light Source (DAD) | — | Deuterium and Tungsten lamps | — |
| Wavelength Range (DAD) | — | 190 - 950 nm | — |
| Wavelength Accuracy | — | ± 1 nm | — |
| Slit Width (DAD) | — | Programmable: 1, 2, 4, 8, 16 nm | — |
| Number of Diodes (DAD) | — | 1024 | — |
| Detection (Optical / UV-Vis / VWD) | |||
| Light Source (VWD) | — | Deuterium lamp | — |
| Wavelength Range (VWD) | — | 190 - 600 nm | — |
| Control, Software, and Interfaces | |||
| Supported Control Software | — | Agilent ChemStation, OpenLAB CDS | — |
| Instrument Control Protocols | — | CAN bus (internal module communication) | — |
| Environmental and Regulatory Compliance | |||
| Non-operating Temperature Range | — | -40 to 70 °C | — |
| Operating Humidity | — | < 95% at 25 - 40 °C (non-condensing) | — |
| Maximum Operating Altitude | — | 2000 m (6562 ft) | — |
| Physical and Electrical | |||
| Line Voltage | — | 100 - 240 VAC, ± 10% | — |
| Line Frequency | — | 50/60 Hz, ± 5% | — |
| Control & Software | |||
| Hardware Control | — | Optional Handheld Control Module (G1323A/B) for local operation, diagnostics, and method editing | — |
| Safety & Diagnostics | |||
| Leak Detection | — | Built-in leak sensors in all modules with safe leak handling and automatic system shutdown | — |
| Early Maintenance Feedback (EMF) | — | Continuous tracking of instrument usage (e.g., pump seal wear, lamp burn time) with user-set limits | — |
| System Diagnostics | — | Extensive internal diagnostics, error detection, and continuous monitoring with local/remote logging | — |
| Sample Handling | |||
| Supported Sample Containers | — | Standard 2 mL vials; 100 µL / 250 µL microvials; micro-inserts | — |
| Communications | |||
| Inter-module Communication | — | CAN (Controller Area Network) bus | — |
| Additional | |||
| Family | — | — | 8162xB optical power heads |
| Wavelength range | — | — | 750 – 1800 nm |
| Detector type | — | — | Germanium (standard) or Silicon (option) |
| Recommended use | — | — | Ge detector recommended at 850 nm |
| Detector active diameter | — | — | 5 mm |
| Fiber NA compatibility | — | — | to 0.3 |
| Averaging time | — | — | 100 µs – 10 s |
| Power ranging | — | — | Automatic |
| Min/max monitoring | — | — | Yes |
| Logging capacity | — | — | Up to 20,000 samples |
| Adapters | — | — | Fiber adapters for common connectors; MT ribbon and bare-fiber clamps available |
| Adapter mounting | — | — | D-shaped adapters magnetically held; removable 81624DD ring for threaded adapters |
| Special calibration (800–1000 nm) | — | — | ±2.5% uncertainty |
| Special calibration (1000–1650 nm) | — | — | ±1.7% uncertainty |
| Silicon detector wavelength range | — | — | 450 – 1020 nm |
Chromatography Systems Comparison
The Agilent 1200 HPLC and the Agilent 1100 Series are modular, stackable liquid chromatography platforms. They share a wide range of common specifications. Both support a standard flow rate range from 0.001 to 10.0 mL/min, an injection volume range of 0.1 to 100 µL, and a pH tolerance of 1.0 to 12.5 using standard materials. Additionally, both systems feature a temperature control range from 10 °C below ambient to 80 °C with a temperature stability of ± 0.15 °C, and can accommodate up to three 30 cm columns inside the column compartment.
The primary divergence between the two chromatography systems lies in pressure capabilities and specialized configurations. The standard 1100 Series and standard 1200 HPLC operate up to a maximum pressure of 400 bar (5880 psi). However, the 1200 Series RRLC (Rapid Resolution Liquid Chromatography) configuration increases pressure limits up to 600 bar (8700 psi) and features a specialized binary pump option supporting up to 5.0 mL/min.
Optical Measurement with the 81623B
The Agilent 81623B is an entirely different class of device from the HPLC platforms. It is a remote optical power head from the 8162xB family, specifically engineered for fiber and open-beam optical power measurements. Unlike the analytical chemistry systems, the 81623B operates on optical wavelengths and does not feature fluidic pathways, pumps, or autosamplers.
It is designed to connect to 816x mainframes via 81618A (single-channel) or 81619A (dual-channel) interface modules. The unit features a standard Germanium detector operating from 750 to 1800 nm, with an optional Silicon detector covering 450 to 1020 nm. It includes a 5 mm active diameter detector and is compatible with fibers up to 0.3 NA, offering onboard logging capacity for up to 20,000 samples.
Control, Software, and Interfaces
Control options differ significantly across these devices. The 1100 Series can be operated via PC-based software or an optional G1323B handheld control module, utilizing physical interfaces such as CAN, GPIB, RS-232C, APG Remote, or an optional LAN card. The 1200 HPLC shares a similar control structure, relying on ChemStation, EZChrom, or OpenLAB CDS software, and standardizing on interfaces like CAN, LAN, GPIB, RS-232, and APG Remote depending on the configuration.
The 81623B optical power head does not possess standalone interface ports or an independent power supply. Instead, all power, control, and data logging are managed through its dedicated connection to the 816x mainframe.
Frequently asked questions
- Can the Agilent 81623B be controlled by chromatography software?
- No. The Agilent 81623B is an optical power head that connects to 816x mainframes via interface modules, whereas chromatography software like ChemStation and OpenLAB CDS is used to control the Agilent 1200 HPLC and 1100 Series systems.
- What is the key advantage of the 1200 HPLC over the 1100 Series in terms of pressure?
- While standard configurations of both systems support up to 400 bar (5880 psi), the 1200 Series RRLC configuration supports maximum operating pressures up to 600 bar (8700 psi).
- What detectors are available for the Agilent 81623B?
- The 81623B is available with a standard Germanium detector for the 750 to 1800 nm wavelength range, or an optional Silicon detector for the 450 to 1020 nm range.