Which 96-Well Plate Should I Use for LCMS?

6th Oct 2020

Which 96-Well Plate Should I Use for LCMS?

The decision of which 96-well plate you should use depends on the many characteristics of the well plate. These factors include rimmed vs. non-rimmed, sample recovery capabilities, and the possibility of sample binding.

Rimmed vs. Non-Rimmed Polypropylene 96-Well Plates

Rimmed well plates are proficient in stopping cross-contamination and enabling a better seal with thermal plate sealers. Thermal Plate Sealers work with various heat seal films and foils to give either permanent or peelable seals for all common microplate material types (polypropylene, polystyrene, and polyethylene).

Non-Rimmed plates work well with an easy-to-use adhesive film. When using adhesive films, we recommend our PTFE film, which has an adhesive-free area around each well to allow plastic pipette tips and metal probes to stay clean. Our BST-9790 is the recommended sealing film for trouble-free, high-throughput applications.

What if Sample Recovery Is a Concern?

When sample recovery is a concern in deciding which 96-well plate you should use for LCMS, we have 1mL plates with a unique 50µL tapered reservoir. This unique reservoir allows you to fill the wells with 1mL (round wells) of sample but also enables you to get to the last few µLs of precious sample (or standards).

What if I Am Concerned With My Sample Binding To Plastic?

Many labs are converting more assays over to LCMS platforms as it lends itself to high-throughput automation. But some samples are not ideal to use with polypropylene 96-well plates; therefore, we offer glass microplates and glass inserts pre-loaded into a 96-well plate. One of our customers recently had issues with hydrophobic peptides sticking to their plastic plates and getting erratic results. Our 96-well plates with glass inserts allowed the customer to automate their assay and use glass for sample compatibility. Another advantage of glass is that it is a good heat conductor (compared to plastic plates), so when your assay requires heating your sample, try our glass inserts in 96-well plates. These plates are not just for LCMS assays; see a recently published method for a high-throughput FAMEs analysis via GCMS prominently featuring the Chrom Tech Multi-Tier Glass Inserts in Plate system.