A 17-year old New Jersey inventor has developed a small, cheap-to-make centrifuge that may be an enabling new tool for the do-it-yourself biology community, according to Nona Griffin, writing for Popular Science's Biohackers blog.
Karlin Yeh has cobbled together "an exquisite centrifuge for the lab bench," providing a solution to a problem that has "stubbornly lingered" for hackers: how to separate cells, DNA, proteins, and other biological components without spending a fortune.
“I want to make it so every DIYbio hacker has a centrifuge that they can do experiments with,” Yeh says.
So, he created the OpenFuge instrument using parts from his friend's broken remote control helicopter and his father's laser cutter, Nona Griffin writes
The OpenFuge whirs at 9,000 RPM and generates 6,000 g, it offers adjustable speeds, a live RPM monitor, and a safety interlock, Griffin writes.
Yeh has already sold out of the OpenFuge's he produced, selling them via Tindie for $260. But he has provided a guide so that others can make their own on Instructibles after laying out around $200 for materials.