Sierra's Smart-Trak® Model 100 Series Chosen as Part of Key Test Equipment in Measuring CO2 Absorption in Antarctica

Sierra Instruments, Inc.: MONTEREY, CA – December 19, 2008 – With just days left before Stanford researcher David Mucciarone would leave on his annual pilgrimage to Antarctica, the mass flow controller in his carbon analyzer failed.

His instrumentation supplier recommended that he make the transition to Sierra. On a wing and a prayer, he purchased a Sierra Smart-Trak® Model 100 digital mass flow controller just prior to boarding ship. He installed it on the trip down to Antarctica, and it worked, perfectly. But fierce trials lay ahead as the icebreaker he was travelling on plunged through miles of thick ice before delivering him to one of the most severe environments on Planet Earth. Despite the challenges, the Smart-Trak® has never faltered. “We’re very happy and that’s the bottom line,” says Mucciarone.

No greater challenge faces our planet right now than determining conclusively how we are impacting the environment and what can be done to arrest and reverse global warming. To deepen our understanding, Stanford researcher David Mucciarone spends two months in the Antarctic every year measuring the breakdown of inorganic carbon in both sea and ice to learn how much carbon dioxide the ocean can effectively digest. Based on his success with the carbon analyzer, he plans to employ additional analyzers on ocean reef and other ecosystems around the world—each containing a Sierra Smart-Trak® mass flow controller.

The Smart-Trak® digital mass flow controller offers maximum flexibility, an easy-to-use interface and true digital performance. Smart-Trak’s Dial-A-Gas® feature and pilot module interface are used to change gases and other critical parameters in the field. The microprocessor is programmed for ten gases that are commonly used in biotech, pharmaceutical, analytical and research applications. Other gases may also be specified to create a custom instrument. Smart-Trak® controls gas mass flow from <1 sccm to 1000 slpm and is suitable for any clean gas flow, including toxics and corrosives.

ABOUT SIERRA

Sierra is one of the most trusted manufacturers of high performance flow meters and controllers today. By combining superior product quality with a talented global support network of flow experts in 47 countries, Sierra consistently delivers quality flow measurement solutions for each customer.

Our Thermal Mass, Transit-Time Ultrasonic, Vortex Shedding and Multivariable instruments are available in both standard and customized versions for applications in laboratory, industrial and hazardous environments. Sierra’s flow measurement technologies precisely measure or control very low flows of gas down to less than 1 sccm full scale as well as extremely high flows of gas, liquid, and steam. With rugged product design, cutting-edge innovation, and a worldwide team of flow experts, experience why customers around the globe rely on Sierra.

Visit us at www.sierrainstruments.com or call us at 800-866-0200 to learn more.