Laboratory mills, used primarily for sample prep prior to analysis, use particle size reduction (comminution) to grind or homogenize wet, dry, hard, soft, elastic, brittle, and fibrous materials. Mills and grinders are used in labs in widely varying scientific areas, including chemistry, pharmaceuticals, food analysis, materials testing, and life science. Disk, hammer, mortar, planetary ball, rotor, and cutting mills are available to achieve coarse, mid-range, and fine results, all the way down to the nano range, <0.1 µm. Cryogenic mills, or freezer mills, are a type of unit that freezes a material prior to reducing its particle size.
What to consider when choosing a laboratory mill?
When purchasing a mill, power, speed, and cleanability are useful parameters; however, it is also important to keep in mind the instrument’s throughput, reproducibility, and yield, as well as the option of a cooling system, if necessary.
Compare and request a quote for laboratory mills from various manufacturers:
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| Company | RETSCH | RETSCH | RETSCH | RETSCH |
| Item | Planetary Ball Mill PM 100 | Knife Mill GRINDOMIX GM 300 | Ultra Centrifugal Mill ZM 300 | XRD-Mill McCrone Laboratory Mill |
| Citations | | | | |
| Catalog Number | PM 100 | GM 300 | ZM 300 | MCCrone |
| Price | | | | |
| Description | Planetary Ball Mills are used wherever the highest degree of fineness is required. Apart from the classical mixing and size reduction processes, the mills also meet all the technical requirements for colloidal grinding and have the energy input necessary for mechanical alloying processes. The Planetary Ball Mills are used wherever the highest degree of fineness is required. Apart from the classical mixing and size reduction processes, the mills also meet all the technical requirements for colloidal grinding and have the energy input necessary for mechanical alloying processes. The extremely high centrifugal forces of the Planetary Ball Mills result in very high pulverization energy and therefore short grinding times.
The PM 100 CM is a convenient benchtop model with 1 grinding station. It operates in centrifugal mode mode, which leads to a more gentle size reduction process with less abrasion.
Features - Powerful and quick grinding down to nano range
- Perfect stability on lab bench thanks to FFCS technology
- Innovative counter weight and imbalance sensor for unsupervised operation
- Gentle grinding in centrifugal mode
- Comfortable parameter setting via display and ergonomic 1-button operation
- Automatic grinding chamber ventilation
- 10 SOPs can be stored
- Programmable starting time
- Power failure backup ensures storage of remaining grinding time
- Reproducible results due to energy and speed control
- Suitable for long-term trials and continuous use
- 2 different grinding modes (dry and wet)
- Optional pressure and temperature measuring system PM GrindControl
- Measurement of energy input
- Wide range of materials for contamination free grinding
- Safety Slider for safe operation
... Read More | The new knife mill GRINDOMIX GM 300 is the ideal instrument for the grinding and homogenization of foodstuffs. It allows to process sample volumes up to 4.5 liters quickly and reproducibly.
With four sharp, robust blades and a powerful motor which can reach temporary peaks of 3 kW, it is ideal for The new knife mill GRINDOMIX GM 300 is the ideal instrument for the grinding and homogenization of foodstuffs. It allows to process sample volumes up to 4.5 liters quickly and reproducibly.
With four sharp, robust blades and a powerful motor which can reach temporary peaks of 3 kW, it is ideal for homogenizing substances with a high water, oil or fat content as well as for grinding dry, soft and medium-hard products. The GRINDOMIX GM 300 meets and exceeds all special laboratory and analytical requirements and is a professional device superior to any commercial household mixer.
Features - Efficient size reduction of up to 4,500 ml feed quantity due to a powerful 1.1 kW motor (peak power input >3 kW)
- Pre- and fine-grinding in one mill: cutting action in regular mode, grinding by impact in reverse mode, pre-grinding in interval mode
- All parts which come into contact with the sample material are autoclavable
- Perfect adaptation to application requirements by variable speed from 500 to 4,000 min-1 with an increment of 100 min-1
- Optional gravitation lid for automatic reduction of the grinding chamber volume
- 10 SOPs can be stored
- Grinding jar in plastic and stainless steel available
... Read More | The Ultra Centrifugal Mill ZM 300 is a high speed rotor mill with unmatched performance. It is used for the rapid size reduction of soft to medium-hard and fibrous materials.
Because of the efficient size reduction technique the ZM 300 ensures the gentle preparation of analytical samples in a very The Ultra Centrifugal Mill ZM 300 is a high speed rotor mill with unmatched performance. It is used for the rapid size reduction of soft to medium-hard and fibrous materials.
Because of the efficient size reduction technique the ZM 300 ensures the gentle preparation of analytical samples in a very short time. The comprehensive range of accessories including a large variety of ring sieves and rotors as well as collection systems makes the Ultra Centrifugal Mill a versatile instrument that can be easily adapted to varying applications. The optional Vibratory Feeder is load-controlled via an interface and ensures a uniform grind at maximum output rate. With thousands of installations, the ZM 300 has become a standard for food and feeds, for the chemical industry as well as for agricultural testing.
Features - Powerdrive with optimally matched frequency converter and 3-phase motor
- Comfortable parameter setting via touch- display and ergonomic 1-button operation
- operational speed up to 23,000 rpm
- temperature indication and load indication
- Wide range of accessories including various collection and feeding systems, rotors and sieves
- Gentle and very rapid size reduction by pre- and fine grinding in one run
- Wide speed range
- Patented cassette system for maximum sample recovery and easy cleaning, special 600 ml cassette available
- Easily exchangeable grinding and sieve inserts
- Defined final fineness due to ring sieves sieves with aperture sizes from 0.08 - 10 mm
- Comfortable safety housing with automatic cover closure
- Motor compartment and electronics protected against dust and material penetration
... Read More | The XRD-Mill McCrone was specially developed for the preparation of samples for subsequent X-ray diffraction (XRD). The mill is used for applications in geology, chemistry, mineralogy and materials science, quality control as well as R&D. Because of its unique grinding motion, the XRD-Mill McCrone The XRD-Mill McCrone was specially developed for the preparation of samples for subsequent X-ray diffraction (XRD). The mill is used for applications in geology, chemistry, mineralogy and materials science, quality control as well as R&D. Because of its unique grinding motion, the XRD-Mill McCrone is particularly effective for this analytical method: The 48 cylindrical grinding elements grind the samples gently via friction. The result is a short grinding time with almost no sample loss and an exceptionally narrow particle size distribution. The crystal lattice is almost entirely preserved during grinding operation, a pre-requisite for meaningful X-ray diffraction results.
Features: - Crystal lattice preserved during grinding operation
- Very narrow and reproducible particle size distribution
- Minimal cross contamination
- Compact, bench-top sized model
- Suitable for dry and wet grinding
... Read More |
| Principle | Impact and Friction | Cutting | Impact and Shearing | Friction |
| Sample Size | < 10 mm | ~ 130 mm | < 10 mm | <0.5 mm |
| Sample Type | Soft, Hard, Brittle or Fibrous - Dry or Wet | Soft, Medium-Hard, Elastic, Containing Water/Fat/Oil, Dry or Fibrous | Soft, Medium-Hard, Brittle or Fibrous | Medium-hard, Hard, Brittle, Fibrous |
| Applications | Pulverizing, Mixing, Homogenizing and Colloidal Milling: Agriculture, Biology, Chemistry / Plastics, Construction Materials, Engineering / Electronics, Environment / Recycling, Geology / Metallurgy, Glass / Ceramics, Medicine / Pharmaceuticals | Size Reduction, Homogenization and Mixing: Agriculture, Biology, Food, Medicine / Pharmaceuticals | Inquire | Grinding, Mixing and Triturating, Dry and Wet |
| Speed | 100 to 650 min-1 | 500 to 4000 min-1 | 6,000 to 23,000 min-1 | 1000 to 1500 min-1 |
| Rotor Type | grinding jar and balls | Stainless steel knife, knife with titanium-niob coating | 6, 12 or 24 tooth rotor, titanium for heavy-metal free grinding or tungsten carbide coated for abrasive materials available | <0.5 mm |
| Final Fineness | < 1 um or < 0.1 um for Colloidal Grinding | < 300 um | < 40 µm | <1 µm |
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