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Wide rotor selection for application versatility
Selecting the appropriate centrifuge rotor for a specific application is essential for achieving optimal separation results, maintaining sample integrity, and supporting the efficiency of the centrifugation process.
Our broad choice of fixed-angle and swing-out rotors lets you select a rotor that precisely meets your requirements. Each rotor has been engineered with capabilities to improve sample safety, centrifuge performance, and ease of installation and removal.
Rotor guides for superspeed and ultraspeed centrifuges
Swing-out rotors
In a swing-out rotor, the sample containers (often tubes or bottles) are inserted into buckets that are free to swing out horizontally as the rotor spins. This design allows the samples to move from a vertical position when at rest to a horizontal position when the rotor is in motion.
Swing-out rotors usually consist of the rotor cross, buckets and adapters.
Benefits of swing-out rotors
- Horizontal separation: In a swing-out rotor, the tubes start in a vertical position and swing out to a horizontal position as the rotor spins. This allows for sedimentation to occur along the length of the tube, leading to a clear and even separation of components. This is particularly beneficial for applications requiring complete separation of phases, such as blood sample separation.
- Better layering: The horizontal orientation in a swing-out rotor helps ensure that the layers of separated components (e.g., plasma, buffy coat, and red blood cells) are flat and distinct. This can make it easier to extract specific layers without cross-contamination.
- Versatility: Swing-out rotors can accommodate a wider variety of tube sizes and types, including microplates and blood bags, helping make them more versatile for different laboratory applications.
- Reduced pellet smearing: Since the pellet forms at the bottom of the tube in a horizontal position, there is less risk of smearing, which can be an issue with fixed-angle rotors where the pellet forms at an angle.
- Ease of use: The clear separation and layering make it easier to visually inspect the samples and to pipette or decant the supernatant without disturbing the pellet.
Fixed-angle rotors
Fixed-angle rotors keep the tubes in a fixed position throughout the spin. Fixed-angle rotors are generally capable of achieving higher speeds and greater centrifugal forces compared to swing-out rotors.
Benefits of fixed-angle rotors
- Higher speed: Fixed-angle rotors can typically achieve higher rotational speeds compared to swing-out rotors. This allows for faster centrifugation and can be particularly useful for applications requiring rapid sedimentation of particles.
- Greater centrifugal force: Due to their design, fixed-angle rotors can generate higher g-forces. This is advantageous for applications needing efficient pelleting of small particles, such as nucleic acids, proteins, or cellular debris.
- Structural stability: Fixed-angle rotors are generally more robust and stable under high-speed conditions. This makes them suitable for handling samples that require high centrifugal forces without the risk of rotor failure.
- Reduced run time: The higher speeds and greater centrifugal forces mean that fixed-angle rotors can often achieve the desired separation in a shorter amount of time compared to swing-out rotors.
- Lower maintenance: Fixed-angle rotors have fewer moving parts than swing-out rotors, which can translate to lower maintenance requirements
Fiberlite carbon fiber rotors
Maximize centrifuge performance with the innovative, lightweight, corrosion-resistant and versatile Fiberlite rotors. Fiberlite rotors take less energy to run than metal rotors, so they can prolong the life of your centrifuge. Their corrosion-resistant design helps ensure structural integrity. Additionally, Fiberlite rotors come with a 15-year warranty to help protect your investment.
Features and benefits
- Ergonomic and lightweight design - Fiberlite rotors weigh almost 60% less than metallic rotors, and so have faster acceleration/deceleration rates for shorter run times. They also facilitate a safe work environment and help minimize risk of damage to centrifugation equipment because of these ergonomic improvements.
- Robust material - Carbon fiber composite rotors are corrosion-resistant and are safe to use with most mild laboratory detergents and solutions, providing easy rotor care and maintenance. Substantial load or stress, because of high rotational speeds and repeat cycles, can also threaten metal rotor structure by causing it to stretch and change in size, limiting rotor life or leading to failure. Fiberlite rotors are fatigue-resistant, mitigating this threat.
- Excellent insulation - Carbon fiber material possesses naturally insulating properties, which helps to maintain sample temperature integrity.
- Complete support to disposable conical tubes - Fiberlite rotor cavities are molded to the exact shape of many disposable conical tubes to enable maximum support. In addition, a cap support is designed to relieve high g-forces.
- Comprehensive range of adapters for different tube/bottle volumes - From 1L bottles, to 15 mL and 50 mL conical tubes, to microplates and tissue culture flasks, the versatile selection of Thermo Scientific centrifugation labware works seamlessly with your complete centrifuge and rotor system, bringing together quality and performance.
- 15-year warranty- Unlike the limited lifetime of metal rotors due to potential failure risks, Fiberlite carbon fiber rotors are backed by a warranty up to two times longer than other rotors.
Popular Fiberlite options for our centrifuges:
General purpose centrifuges |
Ultraspeed centrifuges |
Superspeed centrifuges |
Large capacity centrifuges |
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Continuous flow rotors
A continuous flow rotor in a centrifuge is a specialized type of rotor designed to handle large volumes of liquid samples continuously, rather than in discrete batches. This type of rotor is particularly useful for applications that require the processing of large quantities of material, such as in industrial or large-scale laboratory settings.
Benefits of continuous flow rotors
- High throughput: It can process large volumes of samples in a relatively short period, making it efficient for large-scale operations.
- Continuous operation: Unlike traditional batch centrifuges, continuous flow rotors allow for uninterrupted processing, which is advantageous for certain industrial and research applications.
- Efficient separation: The design helps ensure effective separation of components based on density differences, which is critical for applications such as cell harvesting, blood processing, and clarification of liquids.
Zonal rotors
A zonal rotor in a centrifuge is a specialized type of rotor designed for the separation of particles or molecules within a density gradient. This type of rotor is particularly useful for applications that require precise analytical and preparative separations, such as in research and biochemical laboratories.
In a zonal rotor centrifuge, a density gradient (e.g. sucrose or cesium chloride) is established within the rotor. The sample is loaded on top of the gradient, and the rotor is then spun at high speeds. The centrifugal force causes particles or molecules in the sample to migrate to the position in the gradient where their density matches that of the gradient medium. After centrifugation, the rotor is typically unloaded in fractions using a gradient pump, allowing for the collection of separated components.
Benefits of zonal rotors:
- Density gradient separation: The design utilizes a pre-formed density gradient to achieve precise separation based on the density of particles or molecules.
- Analytical and preparative uses: Zonal rotors are designed for detailed, high-resolution separations needed in research and biochemical analysis.
For Laboratory Use. It is the customer’s responsibility to ensure that the performance of the product is suitable for customers’ specific uses or applications.