Commands and Tips for Third-Party Devices
Perkin Elmer Autosystem (XL) and Clarus GCs: Detectors

The following commands and properties are available for detector control (please note that the display Filter level determines which commands and properties are displayed):

 

Property

Range/Values

Description

Attenuation

1, 2, 4, 8, 16, 32, 64, (and 128, 256, … 65536 if Output is set to Recorder in the Server Configuration program))

Sets the detector attenuation.²

AZCompensation

On or Off

Enables or disables the Autozero option.²

DetectorStatus

Clarus 400/500 and Clarus 480/580:

NotInstalled, Ok, FlameIgnition, FlameOut, BackgroundComp, FilamentOff, Unknown

Clarus 600/680:

NotInstalled, Ok,

FlameIgnition,

FlameOut, FlameCheck,

BackgroundComp, FilamentOff, IgnitionFail,

Unknown

Reports additional information about the status of the detector, especially about the status of the flame. If the flame is out, an error message is displayed.

Note: To monitor the temperature of the detector, please refer to property Status below.

DetectorType

Output, FID, ECD,
TCD, NPD

Indicates the detector type (read-only). Select the detector type in the Server Configuration program:

FID: Flame Ionization Detector
ECD: Electron Capture Detector
TCD: Thermal Conductivity Detector
NPD: Nitrogen Phosphorous Detector

FilterTimeConstant

50 ms (not for the ECD), 200ms, 800ms

Specifies the time constant for the noise filter of the related detector.

FlameThreshold

0.00-9.99 mV

Flame threshold for evaluating whether the detector flame is lit. If the signal exceeds this value, the GC assumes that the flame is lit. Otherwise, the flame is ignited automatically.

MaxAutoStep

0.1 to 5.1 s

Specifies the maximum step for the auto step mode. The default setting is 5.1 s.

Range

1, 20 (FID, NPD)

1 (ECD)

-4 - 4 (TCD)

Sets the detector output range.²

Ready

Ready or NotReady

Indicates whether the detector is ready (read-only; level: Advanced or higher). If a PPC is installed, the status of the gas flows is taken into account, also.

Retention

0 - 10^8 min

Indicates the retention time.

Signal

-10000 - 10000mV

Indicates the current signal value (read-only).

Status

None, Ready, NotReady, FilamentOver, Unknown

Indicates the detector status (read-only).

Step

0.01 to 4.80 s
Auto

Sets the step. The default setting is Auto (recommended). With this setting, the optimum step is selected dynamically.

TempCtrl

On/Off

Turns the heating component of the detector on or off.

Temperature

100 to 450°C
(FID, ECD, NPD

100 to 350°C (TCD)

Properties related to the detector temperature.

  Note:

If a temperature is set, TempCtrl is automatically set to On.

Temperature.
Nominal

Sets the nominal temperature.

Temperature.
Value

Indicates the current temperature (read-only).

 

² If the value is entered manually or at time t=0, the value used at the beginning of the run is adapted.

 Tip: 

If a value is entered at another time, this value remains valid until the next setting or the beginning of the next GC run.

In addition, Chromeleon supports the following commands and/or properties if the Autosystem GC includes a PPC:

 

Property

Values

Description

<Gasname>

0–500 ml/min

<Gasname> is the gas specified on the Detectors tab page in the Server Configuration program, e.g., He, N2, H2, Ar/CH4, or Air.

 Note:

You can enter the gas name on the Detectors tab page in the Server Configuration program.

<Gasname>.
Nominal

Sets the nominal flow for the associated gas.

<Gasname>.
Value

Indicates the current flow for the associated gas (read-only; level: Advanced or higher).

<GasName>_Ctrl

On/Off

 

<GasName>_GasType

He, N2, H2, Ar/CH4, Air

Indicates the gas type in the PPC module (read-only; level: Advanced or higher). Note: The gas type is set in the Server Configuration program.

<GasName>_Status

NotUsed, Ready, NotReady, Alarm

Indicates the current status in the PPC module (read-only; level: Advanced or higher).

 

For installation details, refer to:

 Perkin Elmer Autosystem (XL) and Clarus GCs: Installation.