ARCHEM Equipment
Rooted in humble beginnings that include a hotplate purchased from eBay, ARCHEM now utilizes the latest in parallel evaporation — a Büchi Syncore Polyvap system that allows for multiple, parallel extractions in a highly efficient closed system. Thanks to the vision of Eleanor Huffman, Tom Brogan, and Phil Betancourt, the Polyvap was purchased in 2006 by the Institute for Aegean Prehistory Study Center for East Crete (INSTAP-SCEC). Housed at the W.D.E. Coulson Conservation Laboratory at INSTAP-SCEC, the portability of the Polyvap system allows for the growth of archaeochemistry research beyond isolated analyses at distant laboratories typically seen in the past. As of 2008, ARCHEM has extracted over 3000 samples from over three dozen archaeological sites throughout Greece, Israel, Egypt, and Turkey.
In 2007, thanks again to INSTAP, a Savant SpeedVac centrifugal evaporator was purchased. This allows for the efficient and gentle evaporation of 36 subsamples simultaneously. In 2008, a second Savant SpeedVac centrifugal evaporator was acquired, allowing for subsample preparation at multiple locations.
Starting in October of 2007, INSTAP and ARCHEM have contracted with the Museum of Cretan Ethnology Research Centre to maintain and utilize their Shimadzu GCMS-5050A instrument. This will enable ARCHEM to more efficiently analyze its samples locally in Crete.
