Background / Applications:

Electroporation, or electro-permeabilization means forming pores in the cell membrane gently using pulses of electric field for a very short duration. The SureView Pulsed Electric Field Generator is available for this very purpose.

The idea is to puncture the cell so that the intracellular molecules leak out without squashing.
This method helps immensely in food processing, e.g. for making French fries, it helps reduce oil uptake and improves quality. It helps in cold brewing of coffee by extracting without any damage to the ingredients. Food products that are made with PEF have a longer shelf life without much use of preservatives.

Since application of pulsed electric field (PEF) causes a microbial cell lysis, it is of immense importance in renewable fuel research involving microalgae. Utilizing PEF technology results in 90% of the cells being lysed and enhancement in the rate of lipid recovery using ethyl acetate. The four stages in production of fuels from algae are – a. Algae growth, b. Harvesting of Algae, c. Lipid extraction & d. Catalytic conversion of lipids to bio-fuels. PEF is the best way to conduct lipid extraction without the need of long solvent-algae exposure times.

The SureView Pulsed Electric Field Generator consist of:

Signal Generator –
This is used for creating link voltage to the switching circuit. This is fully programmable through the Programmable Automation Controller. This means that any voltage determined by the control unit will be realised by this unit. This has over-current, short-circuit and other protections such as Input-surge protection and an electronic current limit. The Pulse height, duration & interval is controlled by this circuit.

Solid-State Switching Unit –
The solid state switching unit is used for actually producing pulsed-output and wave-shape. It gets the link-voltage as an input. This is a specially built part for the specific model of the Pulsed Electric Field Generator. This accomplishes flaw-less operation even at elevated temperatures.

High Voltage Pulse Transformer –
Depending upon the model of the PEF generator, a custom-made high voltage pulse transformer is incorporated to produce the High Voltage pulses so as to get pulsed electric field across the electrodes. Selection/Design of this will be determined by the HT level and duration of the pulses. The model in the photograph on this page is a 40kV PEF Generator with maximum 500µsec pulse duration. We make various PEF Generators from 5kV up to 150kV.
On all models, there is an additional protection on the transformer unit using mechanical interlock to prevent accidents while handling.

Programmable Automation Controller –
This is the control system and HMI of the Pulsed Electric Field Generator. All the components of PAC are industrial grade and are carefully selected to work in high voltage environment. The user can set –
• Peak value of voltage
• Pulse-width
• Number of pulses and interval in-between the pulses
• Mode – Single, Discreet, Burst or Infinite
As an option, the PAC can be interfaced using Ethernet or WiFi with Windows PC, Windows Embedded, or any PLC. We have taken in consideration all ‘accidental’ settings so you can use the Pulsed Electric Field Generator in your Automation project without any safety concern.

PC Based Operation –
We provide support to your software developers if you want to integrate our PEF Generator in your project. We also have a software team in our Mumbai, India factory who are expert in industrial automation and can build the software for you. We use NI LabVIEW to develop software to work with the Pulsed Electric Field Generator.

Treatment Chamber –
We offer treatment chambers that are custom-made for your application. The details of the same will be available with quotation on email. If you have a production-line or wish to use a chamber you have built for your specific application, the Pulsed Electric Field Generator has perfect provision to work with the same.

Oscilloscope –
The PEF Generator has isolated BNC connection for connecting your oscilloscope should you wish to see the pulses. We recommend using Keysight or Fluke oscilloscopes and they are available with our machine from us as an option.