internal standard calculations in ChemStation (B.04) ?

[rherman]

Looking for any user-contributed macros, or third-party software, that are useful for managing internal standard calculations in ChemStation (B.04).

We currently use batch processing to generate an output file which contains the sample ID, injection run#, and peak area responses for multiple analytes and for the internal standard. The output batch file is formatted for xls, then we do all the weight, purity, and relative response factor calculations post-run in Excel.

Need to generate average response factor using replicate injections and replicate preparations of standards. The average response factor is applied to replicate injections of unknown samples, also prepared in replicate.

Would like to semi-automate this process for upload to an external database application. Unfortunately, we are NOT using a client-server implementation such as Empower, and must stick to ChemStation as the starting point for now.

Any suggestions ?

[mbicking]

There is a simple Excel export macro that will transfer selected pieces of info to an Excel spreadsheet. You could do the processing there, or at least get it formatted.

There is also an XML export feature in ChemStation now, and maybe your computer people could use that capability for gragging data.

[lmh]

presumably you are already using Chemstation's internal standard calibration to handle all the peak area ratio stuff?

[mbicking]

lmh:
Yes, I have used the internal standard calculations, but not often. They work fine once set up properly (like most things in ChemStation).

Are you having problems with this feature?

[lmh]

not at all, and I didn't want to suggest that rherman wasn't exploiting Chemstation to the full, but I have noticed that many labs (including my own!) frequently comment that they are struggling to recreate in Excel, or other 3rd party software, features that are actually already in their chromatography software, if only they'd found the right menu item... (which is frequently well-hidden by the manufacturer!). It wasn't clear to me from the original post exactly how much calculation was already being done in Chemstation, or whether Chemstation was merely producing peak-areas in an uncalibrated fashion, to be calibrated in Excel.

[mbicking]

lmh:
This is very true. I spend a great deal of time training people on ChemStation software, and probably only 10 % of the users are actually using the program's full capabilities. About 25-40 % are still typing results into Excel for calibration. Many don't know how to do recalibration in a sequence. Most can't figure out how to use the integration feature. My experience with Empower suggests similar problems, but more along the lines of integration and custom calculations.

The manufacturers are somewhat to blame, but more for their documentation than their program design. The ChemStation is easy to use, but not intuitve to learn. And little from Agilent helps that situation.

[mbicking]

lmh:
This is very true. I spend a great deal of time training people on ChemStation software, and probably only 10 % of the users are actually using the program's full capabilities. About 25-40 % are still typing results into Excel for calibration. Many don't know how to do recalibration in a sequence. Most can't figure out how to use the integration feature. My experience with Empower suggests similar problems, but more along the lines of integration and custom calculations.

The manufacturers are somewhat to blame, but more for their documentation than their program design. The ChemStation is easy to use, but not intuitve to learn. And little from Agilent helps that situation.

And the other problem is that everyone wants to learn, but no one wants to pay for it!

[lmh]

so true, so true. But what we paid here in the UK to Crawford scientific to get them to send someone out for just a single day was one of the best training investments we ever made. (sorry, unashamed plug for a company, but I don't work for Crawford and never have...)

[mbicking]

unashamed plug for a company

Don't be ashamed, please continue. One of the real benefits of a forum like this is for people to highlight the good things they see in our industry.

There is too much effort wasted at complaining about problems. It's nice to see someone who had a success!

I know firsthand that these kinds of testimonials are worth more than all the marketing in the world. Reputation matters!