Automated Column Washer

University of California, San Diego

Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering

MAE 156B: Senior Design Project

Overview

Project Background:

Our sponsor, Dr. Gerry Boss, is a Professor of Medicine at UC San Diego developing a combinamide Vitamin B12 analog, used as a potential life-saving treatment for chemical posining. He is currently in the process of testing its effectiveness, which involves analyzing serum samples to measure cobinamide concentration after oral administaration to evaluate its effectiveness.

A key part of this process is manually washing chromatography columns through 13 sequential chemical washes. This takes about 20 minutes for a single column. Automating this process will improve consistency, reduce human error, save time, and increase efficency - directly supporting advancement of cricitcal medical treatement and research.

Figure 1: Hydrophobic Chromatography diagram illustrating the process and purpose

Project Objectives:

This project focuses on developing an automed column-washing system capable of processing 1-10 columns within the baseline 20 minutes. The system must deliver the required fluid per wash cycle(~1 mL), and must fully purge fluids between washes to prevent cross-contamination. User access to the column between stages for manual sample and radioactive solution insertion is also required, and the resin must remain visible throughout the operation, for observation purposes.

The proposed design includes four solution safe reservoirs (Methanol, Water, 0.1N HCL, 1M NaPO4), consistent distribution to each column, adequate column spacing, and separated automation stages that can be paused or started at specific points. An insertable tray with properly sized filter paper slots prevents splashing cross-contamination, and a waste container to collect run-through fluid safely.

Description of Design Solution

The Automated Column Washer is a programmable cleaning system designed to automate laboratory column washing and reduce manual labor. The system uses multiple fluid peristaltic pumps and an air pump to deliver cleaning solutions and air pulses through fully primed tubing, ensuring consistent and repeatable wash cycles.

A microcontroller-based system manages the washing sequence, timing, and pump operation through an easy-to-use interface with displays for process status and remaining time. Check valves prevent backflow and contamination between fluids, improving reliability and cleaning performance.

By automating fluid delivery and air purging, the design increases efficiency, improves consistency, and reduces operator error while remaining compact and customizable for different laboratory applications.

Narrated Video Showing Design