Fig. 2.

Packing process. (a) The sample suspension is placed in the funnel, up to a 1 mL volume. (b) The packed tool is inserted in its swinging bucket and sealed. (c, d) During UC the bucket achieves a horizontal orientation that ensures even pelleting of the sample within the rotor. (e) After completion of the UC, excess supernatant is removed. (f) A small amount of supernatant is left to maintain excess hydration. (g) After disassembly of the packing tool the rotor is capped. Note that it is important to leave a small gap between the liquid and the spacer or cap (see text). In this figure part III is not shown to scale to best display the sample handling.