The LabPod Mini is for testing the response of fruit or vegetables to controlled atmospheres down to less than 0.1% oxygen and for measuring their respiration and respiratory quotient. It is ideal for post-harvest laboratories working with controlled atmospheres and respiration rates within a controlled temperature environment, or for fruit growers looking to confirm effectiveness of applied MCP treatments.
The LabPod Mini is a hermetically sealed enclosure with a stainless steel base and a clear molded cover that sits in a water trough for perfect sealing. It has a capacity for about 22 pounds of produce in standard 12×16 inch plastic crates.
Each pod is self-contained with built in oxygen, carbon dioxide and temperature sensors with digital communications to a central operating panel. Built-in control valves and gauges regulate the connected nitrogen, air and optional CO2 supply to very accurately maintain the selected controlled atmosphere.
Respiration and RQ are periodically and automatically measured using the built-in high sensitivity analyzers. The atmosphere control is paused and the changes in oxygen and CO2 caused by the product respiration is measured and used to calculate and display the respiration rate. An internal low-power circulation fan periodically stirs the atmosphere and is activated by the system controller.
The central operating panel supports from 1 to 32 LabPods which can be mixed between standard LabPods and LabPod Minis and all the settings are made from this panel through its touch screen or remotely from a PC computer connected through a network. The measured data is regularly collected and can be displayed on a program that runs on the PC and can be exported to Excel or other common programs.
The controller can be dedicated to the LabPods or it can be an addition to an existing GCS6000 CA control system running a conventional system using a single analyzer and pumped sampling systems.