Agilent Technologies G1563A User manual

Installation Guide
Thermal Conductivity Detector on a 6890 GC
Accessories G1563A, G1592A

Agilent Technologies, Inc.
2850 Centerville Road
Wilmington, DE 19808-1610
USA
© Agilent Technologies 2001
All Rights Reserved. Reproduction,
adaptation, or translation without
permission is prohibited, except as allowed
under the copyright laws.
Part number G1532-90337
First Edition, AUG 2001
Printed in USA
Safety Information
The Agilent Technologies 6890 Gas
Chromatograph meets the following IEC
(International Electrotechnical Commission)
classifications: Safety Class 1, Transient
Overvoltage Category II, and Pollution
Degree 2.
This unit has been designed and tested in
accordance with recognized safety
standards and designed for use indoors. If
the instrument is used in a manner not
specified by the manufacturer, the
protection provided by the instrument may
be impaired. Whenever the safety protection
of the Agilent 6890 has been compromised,
disconnect the unit from all power sources
and secure the unit against unintended
operation.
Refer servicing to qualified service
personnel. Substituting parts or performing
any unauthorized modification to the
instrument may result in a safety hazard.
Disconnect the AC power cord before
removing covers. The customer should not
attempt to replace the battery or fuses in
this instrument. The battery contained in
this instrument is recyclable.
Safety Symbols
Warnings in the manual or on the
instrument must be observed during all
phases of operation, service, and repair of
this instrument. Failure to comply with these
precautions violates safety standards of
design and the intended use of the
instrument. Agilent Technologies assumes
no liability for the customer’s failure to
comply with these requirements.
WARNING
A warning calls attention to a condition or
possible situation that could cause injury to
the user.
CAUTION
A caution calls attention to a condition or
possible situation that could damage or
destroy the product or the user’s work.
+Indicates a hot surface
*Indicates earth (ground) terminal
Sound Emission Certification for Federal
Republic of Germany
Sound pressure Lp < 68 dB(A)
During normal operation
At the operator position
According to ISO 7779 (Type Test)
Schallemission
Schalldruckpegel LP < 68 dB(A)
Am Arbeitsplatz
Normaler Betrieb
Nach DIN 45635 T. 19 (Typprüfung)

Overview
1
Overview
This document contains the procedure for installing a thermal conductivity
detector (TCD) on an Agilent 6890 Gas Chromatograph (hereafter referred
to as the GC). Review the safety information on the inside front cover before
following this procedure.
Parts list
EPC
•TCD
• Two screws for attaching the detector to the oven top
• Top insulation
• Bottom insulation
NonEPC
•TCD
• Two screws for attaching the detector to the oven top
• Makeup and reference gas regulator
• Two screws for installing the makeup and reference gas regulator
• Top insulation
• Bottom insulation
Tools
• Electrostatic protection such as a grounded wrist strap (part no.
9300-0969 for large wrists or part no. 9300-0970 for small wrists)
• T-20 Torx screwdriver
•Diagonalcutters
• Small flat-blade screwdriver
• 7/16-inch wrench (nonEPC detectors only)

Overview
2
Steps
1. Preparing the GC
2. Installing the flow manifold
3. Installing the regulator (nonEPC detectors only)
4. Positioning and securing the detector
5. Connecting the detector
6. Routing the tubing
7. Restoring the GC to operating condition
8. Calibrating your detector (EPC detectors only)

Overview
3
Thermal conductivity detector
Makeup and reference
gas regulators
(nonEPC only)
Switching
valve leads
Printed circuit board
Power switch

Preparing the GC
4
Preparing the GC
WARNING Hazardous voltages are present in the mainframe when the GC is plugged in.
Avoid a potentially dangerous shock hazard by unplugging the power cord
before removing the side panels.
1. Turn off the GC and unplug the power cord. Allow time for all heated
zones to cool and then turn off supply gases at their sources.
From the back of the GC (see the figure on the next page):
2. Unsnap and lift off the pneumatics top cover.
3. Remove the RFI cover. Remove the screw with a T-20 Torx screwdriver,
slide the cover to the left until it disengages from the top rear panel, and
remove it.
4. If you are installing a nonEPC detector, remove the detector cover plate
from the front or back position by loosening the two screws with a T-20
Torx screwdriver and sliding the plate up and off.

Preparing the GC
5
5. Loosen the five screws in the top rear panel with a T-20 Torx
screwdriver. Grasp the panel at each end and gently lift it up and then
away from the GC. Be careful not to disrupt the supply tubing.
6. Raise the gray plastic top cover (with the holes and ventilation slots) to
the vertical position. Examine the hinge in the right rear corner.
•Early 6890 models. The hinge is a metal bracket attached to the
oven top. Pull the clip at its top toward you to release the hinge pin.
Push the pin to the left to release the cover. Raise the right side of
the cover and remove it.
Loosen five screws
Pneumatics cover
RFI cover
Detector cover plate

Preparing the GC
6
•Current 6890 models. Raise the right side of the cover and lift to
remove it.
Caution Board components can be damaged by static electricity; use a properly
grounded static control wrist strap when removing the electronics covers.
7. Remove the electronics side and top covers.
Loosen
screws
Press rear
tab (under
cover) and
lift off
Side cover Top cover

Installing the flow manifold
7
Installing the flow manifold
This section describes installation of the current version of the pneumatics
module. For information on the earlier version, see the Appendix.
Caution It is not necessary and not advisable to separate detectors from their
pneumatics modules. Doing so can cause leaks. Although handling the
detector and pneumatics module as a unit is awkward, it can be managed.
1. Locate the correct slot for the pneumatics module.
•Detector in the front position. Use the second slot from the left, as
viewed from the back of the GC.
•Detector in the back position. Use the third slot from the left, as
viewed from the back of the GC.
Caution Hold the manifold by its support bracket to avoid damaging the components.
2. Route the ribbon cable behind the manifold assembly as shown in
Figure 1. Slide the manifold and bracket assembly into the slot until the
bracket seats flush against the end of the rails. See Figure 2.
Figure 1. Routing the ribbon cable
Back view of manifold Manifold installed with cable routed to left

Installing the flow manifold
8
Figure 2. Manifold, after installation
3. Secure the manifold in place using a Torx T-20 screw from the front of
the pneumatics chassis.
4. Route the gas tubing over the top of the chassis and through the slots to
the detector location.
5. Connect the ribbon cable to the mating connector on the pneumatics
board. Arrange the cable to keep it away from the valves and keep it
from being pinched between board components and the manifold.
For the back detector, you may want to loosen the manifold and slide it
out of the carrier a few centimeters to connect the cable to the
pneumatics board. Then, reinstall the manifold.
6. Using a pair of needle-nosed pliers, remove the appropriate top rear
panel detector cutout for the TCD. Also remove any cutouts needed to
access other manifolds or accessories installed in the GC. See Figure 3.
Bracket is flush with
Route tubing along
carrier rails
this path

Installing the flow manifold
9
Figure 3. Top rear panel cutouts
7. Place the top rear panel on its left-most mounting screw. Use the screw
as a hinge and angle the panel while sliding each manifold ID tag
through its cutout in the panel, working from left to right. When all the
tags are through the panel, finish installing the panel on the GC.
8. Install the RFI cover, the pneumatics cover, and the detector top cover.
9. Connect the source gas lines to the manifold. See Figure 4.
Figure 4. Gas line connections
10. Restore gas pressures and leak check all fittings.
Insert tip of
pliers here
Front detector
Back detector
Front inlet
Back inlet
Auxiliary
Left most screw slot

Installing the makeup and reference regulators (nonEPC detectors)
10
Installing the makeup and reference regulators
(nonEPC detectors)
1. Install a screw in the front or back position of the pneumatics carrier.
Do not tighten the screw.
Install a screw in the regulator bracket. Do not tighten the screw.
2. Place the regulators in the front or back position of the pneumatics
carrier. Tighten the screws with a T-20 Torx screwdriver.
3. Connect the tube on the makeup gas regulator to the fitting labeled MU
on the flow manifold. Tighten the nut fingertight, then use the 7/16-inch
wrench to tighten it 3/4 of a turn. Follow the same procedure for
connecting the reference gas regulator to the fitting labeled Reference
on the flow manifold.
Back
Front
Screw

Installing the makeup and reference regulators (nonEPC detectors)
11
4. Locate the RFI and pneumatics covers that you removed in Preparing
the GC.
Cut here
Back
Front
RFI cover Pneumatics cover
Back
Front

Positioning and securing the detector
12
Positioning and securing the detector
1. Remove the round metal cutout on the oven top and the square plastic
cutout in the electronics carrier in the front or back detector position, if
necessary. Cut the metal circle with diagonal cutters so that the nibs are
connected to the piece removed. Cut the plastic in six places with
diagonal cutters. Discard the cutouts.
2. Lift out the die-cut insulation plug from the front or back detector
position, if necessary.
Caution Be careful to remove only the insulation within the scribed circle.
3. Carefully remove the scribed circle of insulation from the oven top to
create an opening into the oven.
Back
Front

Positioning and securing the detector
13
Method 1: Use a sharp knife to cut out the insulation using the scribed
circle as a guide.
Method 2: Pierce the insulation with a screwdriver. Rotate the
screwdriver around the circumference of the scribed circle to remove
excess insulation.
Clean up any pieces of insulation that fall inside the oven.
4. Place the bottom insulation in the detector cavity.

Positioning and securing the detector
14
5. Place the top insulation in the detector cavity.
6. Place the detector pallet in the insulated cavity. Partially tighten the two
captive screws with a T-20 Torx screwdriver. Install the two machine
screws and partially tighten. Tighten all the screws to snugness.
Machine
screws
Captive
screws
Top insulation
Bottom insulation
Pallet

Connecting the detector
15
Connecting the detector
Caution Board components can be damaged by static electricity; use a properly
grounded static control wrist strap when handling the TCD board.
1. Remove the TCD board from its static control bag and slide into the
front or back slot on the main circuit board until it is plugged in. The top
of the board should be lined up with the slot on the TCD pallet.
TCD board
Plugs into main board
Front detector slot
Rear detector slot

Connecting the detector
16
2. Attach the filament leads to the TCD board in the two left-most
positions of the connector block. Insert a small flat-blade screwdriver
in the rectangular slot and depress it while you insert the filament lead
in the round hole. Polarity does not matter.
Caution If the ∆PRT is not properly connected to the detector interface card, filament
burnout can occur.
3. Similarly, connect the ∆PRT leads to the two right-most positions in the
connector block. Polarity does not matter.
Filament leads
TCD board
Connector block
∆PRT leads (thick, black)
(thin, with pins)
Connect ∆PRT
Connect Filament

Connecting the detector
17
4. Connect the heater/sensor wire to the square connector closest to the
front or back detector.
Heater/sensor wire
Heater/sensor connector
(back position)
Heater/sensor connector
(front position)

Connecting the detector
18
5. From the right side of the GC, locate the switching valve leads. Route the
leads across the main board and connect them to the TC board.
Switching valve leads
TCD board