Category Archives: artificial perspiration

PTS Product Updates for September 2020

By David Mazawa

Artificial Body Fluids brochureDear valued customer,

We continue to receive frequent inquiries from customers for new types of Product Testing Solutions, resulting in both proprietary and open market formulations being created. As our product line expands, we will be reaching out to you via our Newsletter for periodic product updates and announcements. You can also check our PTS website for up-to-date product information.

In addition to all the new products below, we are excited to announce an updated PTS brochure is available for free download on our website. This brochure has a fresh new look and includes all the latest PTS products. Please contact us to request a hard copy.

Here are the newest formulations of Product Testing Solutions that we have added:

Artificial Saliva ASTM E2720-16/ASTM E2721-16 with Mucin

This artificial saliva formulation is prepared according to official methods ASTM E2720-16 and ASTM E2721-16, which specify for the evaluation of decontamination procedures for surfaces and materials contaminated with human pathogenic viruses. The formulation has a mineral composition and pH close to human saliva and contains Mucin to increase the viscosity and lubricating ability of the solution. This artificial saliva can also be used for dental, drug delivery or pharmaceutical studies. The stabilized solution is pre-mixed and includes an added preservative to prevent bacterial growth; it is stored at room temperature. The two-part non-stabilized formulation comes with dry pre-weighed mucin powder to be mixed in before use. Non-stabilized solution should be stored refrigerated. The pH of the formulation is 7.

1700-0316     Artificial Saliva, ASTM E2720-16 and ASTM E2721-16 with mucin, Stabilized, each (200 mL/bottle)

1700-0317     Artificial Saliva, ASTM E2720-16 and ASTM E2721-16 with mucin, 2-part, Not Stabilized (200 mL after mixing)

1700-0318     Artificial Saliva, ASTM E2720-16 and ASTM E2721-16 with mucin, Custom pH, Stabilized, each (200 mL/bottle)

1700-0319     Artificial Saliva, ASTM E2720-16 and ASTM E2721-16 with mucin, Custom pH, 2-part, Not Stabilized (200 mL after mixing)

α-Amylase

Amylase is the main enzyme in human saliva and it is needed for starch digestion. As some testing applications require studying the effect of enzymes in saliva, Pickering Laboratories offers an easy way to add biological activity to your chosen artificial saliva product. Once added to the 200 mL bottle of artifi­cial saliva, our Amylase product will provide 80 U/mL of enzyme activity.

1700-0320     α-Amylase from Aspergillus oryzae

Modified Saliva for Testing Products for Corrosion, Colorfastness and Discoloration

This ready-to-use solution closely resembles the mineral composition of natural saliva and can be used for testing a wide variety of products, including dental metal alloys. The modified formulation has added Potassium Thiocyanate to achieve better stability at higher pH and make it more similar to human saliva This product is manufactured to order at the customer-requested pH and it can be stored at room temperature.

1700-0315     Artificial Saliva, Modified Fusayama/Meyer, Custom pH up to 6.5, Not Stabilized, each (200 mL/bottle)

Custom Formulation Eccrine Perspiration

We will occasionally receive requests to modify our existing Eccrine formulation to fit a customer’s desired testing conditions. In these cases, the customer only wants to customize the Eccrine formulation is small ways in addition to modifying the pH. These customers can now use the part number below for minor customizations in component concentrations. Contact support@pickeringlabs.com for details.

1700-0535     Artificial Eccrine Perspiration, Custom Formulation, Stabilized, each (950 mL /bottle)

Buffered Sweat

The pH of the solution is an important consideration in product testing, affecting corrosion rate, level of color degradation and leaching of metals and organic components from wearable products. Many procedures require a tight pH range during testing. To accommodate these pH requirements and to improve pH stability over time, Pickering Laboratories is offering buffered versions of industry-specific artificial perspiration formulations. By adding a Phosphate buffer to the original formulation, the pH stability of the solution is greatly improved while its effect on corrosion and colorfastness remains unaffected. Contact support@pickeringlabs.com for details.

Buffered DIN 53160, BS EN 1811:2011 Artificial Perspiration

Method DIN 53160-2:2010-10 specifies an artificial perspiration solution that is used to determine the colorfastness of articles for common use. This test establishes whether coloring on materials can migrate from the daily use articles to the skin. The test method is applicable to all articles of daily use, independent of the coloring procedure applied (dyeing, staining or coating). Method BS EN 1811:2011 is used for the testing of nickel release from jewelries and other products that come with prolonged contact with skin. The primary perspiration components and pH described by methods BS EN 1811:2011 and DIN 53160-2:2010-10 are the same, and now Pickering Laboratories is offering a buffered version of the original formulations. Phosphate ions do not affect color migration rates nor the rate of nickel release, so these modified formulations can be used for the same testing protocols. The buffered formulation is offered at pH 6.5, as specified by DIN 53160 and BS EN 1811:2011 methods, as well as at a custom pH by customer request. Stabilized formulations contain a preservative to prevent bacteria growth and can be stored at room temperature.

1700-0567     Artificial Perspiration, DIN 53160, BS EN 1811:2011, Buffered, Not Stabilized, each (200mL/bottle)

1700-0568     Artificial Perspiration, DIN 53160, BS EN 1811:2011, Buffered, Stabilized, each (200mL/bottle)

1700-0569     Artificial Perspiration, DIN 53160, BS EN 1811:2011, Buffered, Custom pH, Not Stabilized, each (200mL/bottle)

1700-0570     Artificial Perspiration, DIN 53160, BS EN 1811:2011, Buffered, Custom pH, Stabilized, each (200mL/bottle)

Simulated Sea Water for Permeation Testing

This solution was formulated according to Test Operations Procedure 08-2-501A that describes permeation testing of materials with chemical agents or simulants (Swatch Testing).

1700-0807     Simulated Sea Water for Permeation Testing (950 mL/bottle)

For more information about these or any of our other products, please don’t hesitate to reach out to myself and the rest of the Technical Support team.  We stand ready to help answer questions or work with you on a custom, proprietary formulation you’re currently preparing in-house.

Best regards,

David Mazawa
Technical Support Chemist
Pickering Laboratories, Inc.
1280 Space Park Way
Mountain View, CA 94043, USA
david@pickeringlabs.com
Phone: (650) 694-6700 x710

Congratulations to Young Scientist Abby Loney, Bronze Award Winner in the State Science Fair!

By Maria Ofitserova

At Pickering Laboratories, we are always excited to support young scientists as they explore their interests. Let us introduce Abby Loney from Moorhead, Minnesota. Abby’s science fair project idea was to investigate the durability of ballet pointe shoes and to see if some non-traditional materials could provide increased longevity. 

It is not a secret that hard working ballerinas put tons of effort into their training and performances, resulting in sweat-soaked pointe shoes! So, Abby wanted to study the effect of sweat on different materials. Abby’s search for sweat solutions that could be used for testing brought her to Pickering’s artificial perspiration products. She’s in good company – several well-known footwear companies have followed the same line of thought and currently use Pickering artificial perspiration products to test the materials used in design and production of footwear insoles, leathers/uppers and soles.

After Abby contacted our technical support chemists about her proposed project, Pickering was happy to donate the artificial perspiration needed to complete her science fair work. We left off by wishing Abby luck in her experiment and future presentation at her local Science Fair.

Recently, Abby shared with us that over the last couple of months, her project earned the ASM Materials Education Foundation Award, as well as 3rd place in Middle School Division at the Regional Science Fair, then finally earning the Bronze Award at the Minnesota State Science Fair! These are really great accomplishments and we would like to wholeheartedly congratulate Abby on her wonderful work.

If you would like to learn more about this project and whether or not manufacturers of ballet pointe shoes should change their ways, please take a look at Abby’s presentation:
https://youtu.be/AMANaauFzYM

Congratulations again, Abby! Best of luck with all your future scientific adventures!

New Products for 2019!

By David Mazawa

In case you’ve missed our recent activity, here is a summary of the new products we made available this year. Look for more exciting product testing solutions and post-column applications in the New Year!

1700-0165 Sodium AA Standard with Norleucine
Expanded amino acids standard for hydrolysate samples.

1700-0542 Sweat DIN EN – IEC 60068-2-70. Not Stabilized
1700-0543 Sweat DIN EN – IEC 60068-2-70. Stabilized
Abrasion of markings and letterings caused by rubbing of fingers and hands. This formulation is intended to provide a standard method to determine the resistance of markings and letterings on flat or curved surfaces against abrasion as it may occur by manually operating actuators and keyboards. The method is also suitable to test the resistance against fluid contamination as it may occur under normal use.

1700-0556 Artificial Apocrine Sweat non-stabilized 250mL.
Apocrine sweat is secreted by apocrine glands located in the areas of the body with an abundance of hair follicles such as the scalp, armpits and groins. Apocrine sweat is initially sterile and odorless but when acted upon by bacteria it forms odorous compounds. Artificial Apocrine Perspiration was developed to mimic the composition of human apocrine sweat and contains several volatile fatty acids that are responsible for the unpleasant odor associated with it. The ready-to-use solution is stored frozen and could be used for testing that requires the presence of malodor. It also could be used to culture bacteria that are commonly present on human skin.

1700-0557 ISO 3160, 19.8L, Stabilized
This formulation is used to determine corrosion (tarnishing, oxidation and surface penetration) resistance for gold alloy coverings on watch cases and accessories, including bracelets when they are permanently attached to the case. The solution is at pH 4.7 per ISO 3160 specifications.

1700-0558 Artificial Urine DIN EN 1616, Stabilized, 200mL
1700-0603 Artificial Urine DIN EN 1616-1999, 19.8L
Artificial Urine is prepared according to DIN EN 1616:1999 standard procedure. DIN EN 1616 specifies the method to test sterile urethral catheters. This ready-to-use solution should be stored frozen to avoid bacteria growth. The pH of the solution is 6.6.

1700-0800 Simulated Lung Fluid, Gamble’s, Not Stabilized, 200mL.
Gamble’s solution represents the interstitial fluid deep within the lung and is used to simulate different lung conditions. It is used in pulmonary drug delivery studies as well as in studies of particles inhalation effects. Citrate is used in Gamble’s solution instead of proteins to avoid foaming and acetate instead of organic acids. Gamble’s solution has a pH of 7.4. Inquire about other simulated lung fluid formulations.

1700-0801 Substitute Ocean Water, ASTM D1141-98
Substitute ocean water is prepared according to official ASTM method D1141-98. This product could be successfully used in a wide variety of tests where solution simulating sea water is required, such as oil contamination testing, detergent evaluation and corrosion testing. The pH of the solution is 8.2.

Larger Formats Abound!

By Rebecca Smith

Seen here posing with our new Artificial Perspiration carboys![/caption]Pickering Laboratories has again increased our Product Testing Solutions offerings to provide even more options and savings to our customers!  As our products continue to gain in popularity, we are increasingly getting requests for larger volume bottles and bulk purchases.

larger
David Mazawa, Technical Support Chemist for Pickering Labs. Seen here posing with our new Artificial Perspiration carboys!
David Mazawa, Technical Support Chemist for Pickering Labs. Seen here posing with our new Artificial Perspiration carboys![/caption]

Larger sized bottles are now available of our new Artificial Sebum, giving customers the choice to purchase as 25 grams or 200 grams per bottle.  The new 200g bottles, part number 1700-0702, will provide significant savings over purchasing large amounts of Artificial Sebum in the smaller bottles (part number 1700-0700).  This product is available off the shelf, as inventory permits.

Our AATCC Test Method 15 Artificial Perspiration is a very popular formulation, particularly as the stabilized version with two years shelf life.  We currently offer this stabilized formulation in our standard 200mL bottles (part number 1700-0015), and as a case of 4 x 950mL bottles with part number 1700-0541 for larger volume users. 

It is with much excitement that we now offer the ability to order stabilized AATCC Test Method 15 Artificial Perspiration in even larger volumes!  By purchasing one of our new 19.8L carboys, our customers can save significantly on their large volume purchases.  Carboys of AATCC Test Method 15 stabilized sweat, part number 1700-0555, are available now as a made-to-order product.

These carboys, which hold almost 20 liters in a single container, are available for any customer wishing to purchase stabilized artificial perspiration in bulk volumes.  Please contact support@pickeringlabs.com for more information on bulk volumes of your artificial perspiration formulation of choice.

New Pickering Test Solutions products:

1700-0702            Artificial Sebum, 200g

1700-0555            AATCC Test Method 15 Artificial Perspiration, stabilized, 19.8L

Also feel free to visit our webpage at www.pickeringtestsolutions.com for more information.  Thanks!

 

 

CES 2016… wait, what?

That’s right, Rebecca and I attended The Consumer Electronics Show (CES) 2016 in Las Vegas, Nevada. This massive show takes over Las Vegas for a whole week. Many of our Product Testing Solutions customers were going to be exhibiting at the show, so we thought it would be a good opportunity to meet our current customers and see if we could interest other companies in our Product Testing Solutions as well. We saw many cool devices being displayed. Drones, virtual reality rigs, augmented reality goggles, fitness tracking gadgets, and smart fabrics were all well-represented.

We decided to focus on the wearable technology section of the show. Any device or material that is worn on the human body would benefit from design testing or quality control testing with our Product Testing Solutions. Wearable technology companies already use our artificial perspiration solutions to see how their electronics or materials will tolerate constant contact with the human body. We have received feedback from customers that testing with our artificial perspiration solution will give different results, when compared to testing with just water. After testing with our artificial perspiration solutions, our customers are confident that their device or material will be able to withstand the harsh environment of the human body.

We met lots of passionate people promoting their awesome products. Many of these people thought we bottled actual perspiration! By the end of the day, Rebecca and I had walked over 7 miles so it was certainly possible for us to collect our own perspiration… However, Pickering Laboratories does not collect actual perspiration. We manufacture artificial perspiration and other body fluids according to industry standard protocols and our own proprietary formula for eccrine perspiration. No humans are harmed in the making of these products.  

ces_blog_2016

Additional information on Pickering Laboratories Product Testing Solutions can be found at www.pickeringtestsolutions.com.

David Mazawa
david.mazawa@pickeringlabs.com
Technical Support Chemist
Pickering Laboratories, Inc.
1280 Space Park Way
Mountain View, California 94043 USA
Phone: 650-694-6700 ext. 710

AATCC Meeting

aatcc-logo-largeArtificial Eccrine Perspiration and Consumer Goods Testing

American Association of Textile Chemists and Colorists (AATCC) is a worldwide association of professionals active in textile wet processing. It was my great pleasure to join the AATCC regional California meeting in San Francisco and meet all of the other new members.  AATCC approved the new chapter, and it will be great to work with these textile professionals more in the near future.  Recently, AATCC also published a great article about artificial perspiration and how it impacts the textiles and wearable technology industries.  I am including more information below, but please check out the article at: http://www.aatcc.org/pub/aatcc-news/newsletters/1015b-story1/

Perspiration mimics have long been used by many industries to “sweat test” products such as textiles, dyes, cosmetics, credit cards, shoe leather, jewelry, and forensic fingerprint I.D., etc. Normally, a sweat mimic is concocted at the time of the test from a formula that varies by industry.  The industry-specific formulas contain only two to four components that represent a specific challenge: corrosion, textile staining, dye bleeding, magnetic strip damage, etc. 

The American Society for Testing and Materials (ASTM) describes procedures to test many products in the presence of a sweat mimic. According to Michael Pickering, “we were guided by the multiplicity of such tests to develop an artificial perspiration that can yield reproducible results independent of the test.”

Pickering Laboratories created an eccrine solution that allows standardization across all industries; it is the only formula that can satisfy all test challenges.  To facilitate tests on such materials as leather or cosmetics, where culture growth is the challenge, non-preserved formulas are available. 

Reproducible Results Anywhere, Anytime

A typical example of sweat testing in the jewelry industry is to determine the amount of nickel released by perspiration from alloys of gold, nickel, platinum or palladium, called “white gold.”  The nickel leached from these alloys by natural perspiration can cause allergic reactions. Increasing the amount of platinum/palladium in the alloy helps prevent the release of nickel but steeply increases the cost. The problem is thus to determine the minimum amount of noble metals necessary to keep the level of nickel released so as not to exceed the regulated level.  The test specifications vary by country wherever nickel is permitted.  Since the frequency of allergic reaction to nickel is high, the United States forbids the use of nickel in white gold formulations. 

Reproducible artificial perspiration solutions are paramount to forensic fingerprint investigation. Latent prints are made visible by reagents like ninhydrin that dye amines found in eccrine perspiration. To check that a null result is actually the absence of prints and not the results of test failure, crime scene investigation technicians make a control print of their own finger on a similar surface. To standardize this control print, Crime Science, Inc. offers Swetcheck™ artificial perspiration manufactured by Pickering Labs and dispensed in single-use sterile swabs.

Applications

Consumer products testing laboratories and manufacturers that do sweat testing on materials such as textiles, dyes, cosmetics, credit cards, jewelry and metals, coatings and finishings, polymers, leather, wood, keyboards, and any other testing application that would benefit from guaranteed reproducible results with artificial perspiration.

 

 

 

 

 

Sweat, a History of and New Products Coming

sweatThe Evolution of Artificial Perspiration, Pickering-Style
By Rebecca Smith

Our employees’ favorite response to the standard “what do you do?” question plays into the novelty of some of our lesser known products:  “We make artificial sweat!” 

Coming from a traditional chromatography background (with over 30 years of reputation as the “post-column people”), it has always been a fun conversation starter, not to mention a great way to illustrate exactly how unique Pickering Labs is. 

Pickering was initially approached by the forensics industry.  Our first sweat customer, Crime Sciences Inc., inquired into the possibility of an artificial perspiration solution that would mimic a human fingerprint.  The goal was to provide a control for the fingerprinting tests used by forensic investigators.   Intrigued by the possibilities, Michael Pickering jumped on the opportunity. He began researching the chemical composition of actual human eccrine sweat.  As a result, our artificial perspiration is the only formulation standardized to be used across all industries as it mimics true human sweat and does not rely on any one desired testing result. 

After adding artificial perspiration to our catalog, we spent several years selling a bottle here and there.  Other than the catalog and webpage, we weren’t really focusing in on ‘sweat’ as a product line.  Beginning in 2011, our sweat sales unexpectedly began to take off.  We also started getting an increased number of inquiries for industry-specific artificial perspirations, with specific components designed to test one particular trait of the product.  It appeared that the time had come to expand our sweat offerings!

Today, we offer about ten different formulations of artificial perspiration (in addition to five artificial saliva formulations and three urines).  We make numerous proprietary custom formulations for our customers as well.  We have also expanded our offerings to include the ability to modify the pH or stabilization of any sweat formulation to suit specific needs a customer might have. 

Pickering continues to see increasing sales of our very popular artificial eccrine perspiration.  To accommodate growing use and facilitate larger orders, we have even begun selling our stabilized eccrine perspiration in larger bottles!  Now a customer can choose the best fit for them – 5mL, 200mL (most popular), and now 950mL. 

The unique qualities of Pickering Labs that make us so responsive to customer needs continue to thrive.  And now with our expanded product testing offerings, we are starting to be known not just as the “post-column people,” but also be recognized as “those people that make sweat” too!

It’s been a fun ride so far.  And our primary source of advertising continues to be word of mouth, so feel free to bring us up the next time you’re looking for a conversation starter!