Precision on the Loch: delivering Mastersizer 3000+ training on the Isle of Skye and exploring its scientific wonders
Introduction
At Malvern Panalytical, we don’t just sell instruments; we pride ourselves on supporting our customers throughout the entire life cycle of their instruments, whether it involves hardware, software, or applications support. As an applications specialist, it is my responsibility to train and support our instrument users, ensuring they get the best from our Mastersizer 3000+ instruments.
One of our valued customers, Mowi, a multinational fish farming and aquaculture company, produces fish feed products at their site located just over the Skye bridge on the west coast of Scotland. Due to their remote location, attending training at our Malvern headquarters wasn’t feasible. However, recognizing the importance of hands-on training for particle sizing with laser diffraction, which is a new technology for their site, they sought our expertise.
When the opportunity arose to deliver method development training to this new customer on the Isle of Skye, I eagerly accepted. As someone who grew up in Scotland, I love visiting the remote stretches of my home country and my background as a geologist and keen hillwalker further fueled my enthusiasm for this unique location. Most importantly, I am passionate about equipping our customers with the knowledge to maximize the potential of our instruments, with the attractive setting as an added bonus.
The Isle of Skye is one of the largest western isles of Scotland and one of the few accessible by road bridge. The island’s unique geography makes the surrounding sea ideal for salmon farming. To support the island’s fish farming needs, a feed mill has been established, allowing the importation of raw materials to manufacture fish feed products.
Particle sizing in fish feed production
Ensuring consistent particle size in fish meal, the primary ingredient in fish feed, is critical for both product quality and processing efficiency. The particle size distribution (PSD) can reflect different ingredient blending and serves as a key quality control parameter to help monitor batch consistency. Additionally, understanding the PSD is essential for optimizing milling efficiency and managing the proportion of fines, which can reduce waste and mitigate dust-related risks.
Historically, sieving has been the go-to method for measuring fish meal particle size. However, sieving can have limitations such as frequent mesh blockages due to the material’s high oil content, which presents challenges for routine quality control.
To improve efficiency and precision in their PSD characterization, the team at Mowi recently purchased our Mastersizer 3000+ laser diffraction instrument. This high-resolution method provides a faster and more reliable alternative to traditional sieving. Using our Aero S dry dispersion configuration, they can analyze samples efficiently without the need for dispersants, just a compressed air source and a vacuum for sample collection.
During the method development training, Vignesh, Markus, Rona and John from Mowi quickly became proficient in setting up Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) for analyzing their fish meal samples. They were particularly impressed with the speed of results compared to traditional sieving and the software’s flexibility for data visualization and reporting.
With their new expertise in laser diffraction analysis, Vignesh and the team plan to integrate this technology into their quality control workflows, ensuring precise and reliable monitoring of fish meal characteristics. By adding the Mastersizer 3000+ into their workflow, they are enhancing efficiency which will allow higher resolution tracking of the PSD, a key factor in optimizing fish feed production.
Beyond the lab: exploring the Isle of Skye
Arriving the weekend before delivering the training at Mowi Scotland gave me the perfect opportunity to explore the Isle of Skye. With a background in geoscience, I couldn’t resist a bit of geo-tourism while so far from Malvern. Some of my favorite stops included ancient landslide sites such as the Old Man of Storr and the Fairy Glen, along with the Cuillins range, which was formed by ancient volcanic activity over millions of years.
While particle size studies of these specific sites are limited, techniques like X-ray fluorescence (XRF) and X-ray diffraction (XRD) have helped unravel the island’s geological past. And today, particle size plays a crucial role in understanding natural geological processes, whether in modeling the spread of volcanic ash or assessing landslide mobility and risk. It was a fascinating reminder of how the insights from our analytical instruments apply far beyond the lab.
Strengthening partnerships and expanding scientific knowledge
It was a pleasure to deliver the training to Vignesh, Markus and the team at Mowi, Scotland. This collaboration highlighted the value of combining technical expertise with real-world applications, enabling customers to integrate efficient analytical techniques into their workflows and optimize their processes.
If you’re interested in learning more about our training courses or how our products can support your industry, visit our website or get in touch—we’d love to hear from you!