[egatenby]

I want to follow a well-published protocol to hydrolyze collagen that relies on 6M HCl and heat (110C for 24hours) to complete the reaction.  The catch I have found, however, is drying the samples afterwards.  This is typically done by rotovap (for large samples), centrifugal evaporator, or with a lyophilizer.  For all of these cases, the equipment needs to be protected from the corrosive acid vapor.  I have been warned that even a vapor trap might not fully protect a vacuum pump.

My lab does not have a rotovap, vapor trap, or lyophilizer, and given the acid application I am having difficulty finding another lab on campus with a proper setup they are willing to share. Does anyone have any ideas on how to dry my samples without destroying anything (samples or equipment)?.  My samples will likely require less than 1mL of acid per vial with less than 5mg of collagen.  Neutralizing the acid is not an option because salts will interfere with the subsequent analysis steps, and it's important that I avoid sample loss.

[Mr Peanut]

Just thinking out loud. I wonder if you could add an amine which forms a water insoluble hydrochloride.
Just for ideas look at http://www.freepatentsonline.com/5099049.html