Carbon analysis filters

This story was very important for my life, since it only used about 6hr/week and paied my simple living, giving me time to follow the musical creations.

Arround 1974, my father Kurt Grob invited me to manufacture a tiny filter he needed. Kurt was a specialist in high resolution gas chromatography and in the early seventies, he developed the most sensitive analysis method for organic substances in drinking water, called CLSA, used for drinking water survey and many other research and control purposes.

I started in his laboratory with a lot of his help and then evolved the method on my own to reach more regularity and mass production. In the beginning I sent the products directly to the colegues of my father who used the method all over the world. Then, arround 1980, Kurt arranged the distribution through Brechbühler AG.

Arround 1983 I started to share the well going business with Rosmarie Quarteiro, and in 1983 we moved to a special room in Winterthur.
At the end of 1985, we made a stock so I could go to Brasil, but the Seveso ambiental catastrophy bought the whole stock and over night, I had to teach my part of the work to Daniel Gränicher who then got together with Rosmarie and they later moved to france and do the business up to day.

To capture the sample from one liter of "clean" water, a tiny quantity of carbon is needed, mounted in a perfectly clean and narrow tolerated glass holder (no plastic nor glue allowed!). Together with my father I developed the method to mount those filters by hand. continue manufacturing the product for drinking water survey and many other research and control purposes.

Filter holder, sample tube and filters of 0.5 and 1.5mg of active carbon



Two tables in a small room are dedicated to this product:

On the left, the filters are mounted and melted...














... on the right, they are cut, polished, tested and packed.