Review. Use of laser detectors in capillary liquid chromatography

The main relationship of high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) are considered. It is shown that the optimum conditions of ultrasensitive trace analysis should be achieved by using packed capillary columns manufactured from flexible quartz capillaries with dc approximately less than 0.2 mm. The main features of these columns (v opt = 0.6 v opt of that for conventional HPLC columns with double the hydraulic permeability) make it possible to obtain two or three times higher plate numbers for the same analysis time and column pressure characteristic of conventional HPLC, as a result of using a submicrometre sorbent. The main features of laser detection in capillary liquid chromatography (laser-induced fluorescence and cross-beam thermal lens absorption detectors) are considered. The requirements that should be met by a modern capillary liquid chromatograph based on using flexible quartz capillary columns with a submicrometre sorbent and laser detectors are formulated. Examples of using these systems for femtomole and attomole analyses of biological samples (amino acids and prostaglandins) are given.     

Relative molar response factors for thermal conductivity detectors

This paper describes an investigation into the universal nature of relative molar response factors for thermal conductivity detectors. Relative molar response factors are measured on multiple gas chromatographs equipped with thermal conductivity detectors, and the values are compared with values in the literature. As was observed previously, relative molar responses obtained on a single instrument for a homologous series vary linearly with respect to the number of carbon atoms in the hydrocarbon chain. However, significant differences are observed for the slope of this line depending on the instrument studied. This contradicts previous literature results that demonstrated an indepedence of the relative molar response with regard to the detector. The current results show that the calibration of thermal conductivity detectors using literature values for relative molar response factors could produce significant errors in the concentrations measured by the laboratory chromatograph.     

A Robust Thermal Modulator for Comprehensive Two-Dimensional Gas Chromatography

In comprehensive two-dimensional gas chromatography (GC×GC), two capillary columns are connected in series through an interface known as a “thermal modulator”. This device transforms effluent from the first capillary column into a series of sharp injection-like chemical pulses suitable for high-speed chromatography on the second column. Dramatic increases in the resolving power, sensitivity, and speed of the gas chromatograph result. This paper describes the development of a robust and reliable thermal modulator for GC×GC.     

Automated capillary gas chromatographic analysis of pesticide residues in food

A method for multiresidue pesticide analysis in food is described. After a conventional clean-up, gas chromatographic analysis is performed in a gas chromatograph equipped with two fused-silica capillary columns coated with methylsilicone SP 2100 and methylphenylsilicone OV-17. The effluent from each column is split to electron-capture and nitrogen-phosphorus detectors, which are connected to a dual channel integrator. Therefore, from each gas chromatographic run parallel records of signals from the two detectors are obtained. Calibration of the system is carried out for the SP 2100 column with three test mixtures covering all pesticides. Additionally, four internal standards are included, two responding to the electron-capture detector and the other two to the nitrogen-phosphorus detector. Automated analysis is performed with test mixtures and food samples on the SP 2100 column overnight as a screening procedure. After selection of positive samples a confirmatory test and quantitation are carried out manually applying appropriate test mixtures according to the results of the screening runs.     

三检测通道-气相色谱法快速分析天然气的组成

采用配有五阀(2个十通阀和3个六通阀)、七柱(2根毛细管柱和5根填充柱)和三检测器(氢火焰离子化检测器A、热导检测器B和C)的气相色谱法测定了天然气的组分。借助阀的切换系统及设置的分析程序,一次进样便可实现天然气常规组分的测定。检测器A用于烃类气体的检测,检测器B用于永久气体的检测,检测器C用于氢气检测。根据标准样品组分的保留时间对未知样品作定性检测,用外标法进行定量测定。方法的精密度符合国家标准GB/T 13610-2003中的规定,本方法所测得的由标准气体所混合组成的标准样品中,各组分的测定值与标准值之间的相对误差均小于5%。     

气相色谱仪双毛细管柱双检测器技术在毒物检测中的应用

利用双毛细管柱双检测器技术建立常见毒物的检验方法, 并对其进行定性分析. 样品进样后通过VSOS装置同时进入两根不同极性的毛细管柱, 经分离后到达两个不同选择性的检测器. 利用VSOS装置可对毒物进行较好的分离、定性. 该方法可对常见毒物进行准确定性.     

Study of an electroosmotic pump for liquid delivery and its application in capillary column liquid chromatography

A packed-bed electroosmotic pump (EOP) was constructed and evaluated. The EOP consisted of three capillary columns packed in parallel, a gas-releasing device, Pt electrodes and a high-voltage power supply. The EOP could generate output pressure above 5.0 MPa and constant flow rate in the range of nl/min to a few microl/min for pure water, pure methanol, 2 mM potassium dihydrogenphosphate buffer, the buffer-methanol mixture and the pure water-methanol mixture at applied potentials less than 20 kV. The composition of solvent before/after pumping was quantitatively determined by using a gas chromatograph equipped with both flame ionization detector and thermal conductivity detector. It was found that there were no apparent changes in composition and relative concentrations after pumping process for a methanol-ethanol-acetonitrile mixture and a methanol-water mixture. Theoretical aspect of the EOP was discussed in detail. An capillary HPLC system consisting of the EOP, an injection valve, a 15 cm x 320 microm i.d., 5 microm Spherigel C18 stainless steel analytical column, and an on-column UV detector was connected to evaluate the performance of the EOP. A comparative study was also carried out with a mechanical capillary HPLC pump on the same system. The results demonstrated that the reproducibility of flow rate and the pulsation-free flow property of the EOP are superior to that of mechanical pump in capillary HPLC application.     

Two-dimensional capillary gas chromatography without intermediate trapping. Electron capture detector quantitation of an amino alcohol (KABI 2128) in serum after trifluoroacetylation

A two- dimensional gas chromatograph based on the Deans switching principle is described. The unit comprises two separate ovens, each containing a fused silica capillary column. The columns are joined in a specially designed manifold permitting heart cuts to be performed without significant decrease in efficiency. The switching speed and the retention time stability of the system made it possible to perform heart cuts of only a few seconds' duration. The system has been used under isothermal conditions for the determination of an amino alcohol (KABI 2128) in the low ng/ml range after trifluoroacetylation and with electron capture detection. A much shorter clean-up procedure could be used in combination with the two-dimensional gas chromatograph as compared to a method using a single glass capillary column.     

Analysis of gases containing inorganic compounds and light hydrocarbons on fused-silica open-tubular columns prepared with a thick liquid phase film

Capillary columns having a thick liquid phase film and a low phase ratio permit the separation of low molecular mass compounds which would have a very small capacity factor on columns with a classical thin film. At the same time, the increased sample capacity allows conventional hot-wire thermal conductivity detectors to be used with such columns. The analysis of natural and refinery gases, containing both inorganic compounds and light (C₁? C₇) hydrocarbons, utilizing a combination of hot-wire and flame ionization detectors, is demonstrated.     

毛细管离子色谱进展

从毛细管离子色谱柱制备和毛细管离子色谱仪器研制两方面评述了毛细管离子色谱目前的发展状况。毛细管离子色谱柱包括开管离子色谱柱，毛细管颗粒填充离子色谱柱以及最近几年发展起来的整体毛细管离子色谱柱。对毛细管离子色谱仪的总结包括微流量泵、小体积进样器、适合毛细管离子色谱系统的小体积抑制器、电导和光学检测器等。     

Gas chromatography method for the characterization of ethanol steam reforming products

Ethanol steam reforming is a promising reaction for producing fuel cell hydrogen. Depending on catalyst and reaction conditions, mixtures of condensable hydrocarbons and organic and inorganic gases are produced. This paper proposes an economic and effective solution for separating and detecting these compounds employing a gas chromatograph equipped with two columns, two 6-way valves, and two detectors.     

Open tubular columns prepared with very thick liquid phase film II. Investigations on column efficiency

The performance of a column prepared with an immobilized (chemically bonded) methylsilicone phase having a film thickness of 5μm is investigated in detail. Due to their high sample capacity, such columns are particularly useful when directly coupling gas chromatography with spectroscopic techniques such as Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy. Thick-film columns can even be used with thermal conductivity detectors.     

离子色谱的抑制系统及相关技术的发展

抑制系统是抑制型(双柱型)离子色谱系统极为重要的一个组成部分,也是离子色谱有别于其它类型的液相色谱的最重要特点之一。抑制器的发展经历了多个发展时期,而目前商品化的离子色谱仪亦分别采用不同形式的抑制手段。近年来,还发展了一些特殊的辅助抑制器,如接在抑制器后面CO2除去装置,用于提高被测离子的信号或进一步降低背景电导值。     

A Study of Oxidative Degradation of Plastics by GC and GC-MS

Abstract

The behaviour of plastics, namely, polyethylene, polypropylene, polystyrene, polyvinyl chloride, polyamide and some copolymers, was studied in a combustion chamber in which the conditions of large-scale fires were simulated. Volatile combustion products were frozen-out or analyzed directly on two columns, one packed with Porapak Q and the other capillary column coated with squalane or CP Sil 5 CB. Carbonyl compounds were determined as the 2,4-dinitro-phenyl hydrazones on an OV-101 stationary phase. Thermal conductivity and flame ionization detectors were used. The decomposition products were identified either on the basis of retention data (retention indices) or by combined capillary GC-MS. The data obtained are used for the cataloguing of plastics from the point of view of their product toxicity during fires.     

Purge and trap/thermal desorption device for the determination of dimethylselenide and dimethyldiselenide

A method is described for the determination of dimethylselenide and dimethyldiselenide using a purge-and-trap/thermal desorption device (PT/TD) coupled to a capillary column gas chromatograph with a six-way Valco valve. The system is constructed in such a way that it allows also on-column injections of the volatile compounds in organic solvents for external calibration purposes without the need to disassemble the PT/TD. The influence of the purge flow, purge time and volume of sample, on the purge efficiency of the PT system is studied. Desorption time and temperature are optimised for the TD mode of operation. Atomic absorption spectrometry (AAS) and flame photometric detection (FPD) have been used for the final determination of the volatile compounds. The figures of merit achieved with both detectors are reported.     

Joule heating in packed capillaries used in capillary electrochromatography

Effective heat dissipation is critical for reproducible and efficient separations in electrically driven separation systems. Flow rate, retention kinetics, and analyte diffusion rates are some of the characteristics that are affected by variation in the temperature of the mobile phase inside the column. In this study, we examine the issue of Joule heating in packed capillary columns used in capillary electrochromatography (CEC). As almost all commonly used CEC packings are poor thermal conductors, it is assumed that the packing particles do not conduct heat and heat transfer is solely through the mobile phase flowing through the system. The electrical conductivity of various mobile phases was measured at different temperatures by a conductivity meter and the temperature coefficient for each mobile phase was calculated. This was followed by measurement of the electrical current at several applied voltages to calculate the conductivity of the solution within the column as a function of the applied voltage. An overall increase in the conductivity is attributed to Joule heating within the column, while a constant conductivity means good heat dissipation. A plot of conductivity versus applied voltage was used as the indicator of poor heat dissipation. Using theories that have been proposed earlier for modeling of Joule heating effects in capillary electrophoresis (CE), we estimated the temperature within CEC columns. Under mobile and stationary phase conditions typically used in CEC, heat dissipation was found to be not always efficient. Elevated temperatures within the columns in excess of 23 degrees C above ambient temperature were calculated for packed columns, and about 35 degrees C for an open column, under a given set of conditions. The results agree with recently published experimental findings with nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) thermometry, and Raman spectroscopic measurements.     

Gas chromatographic analysis of trace impurities in chlorine trifluoride

The gas chromatographic determination of trace gaseous impurities in highly reactive fluorinated gaseous matrices presents unique requirements to both equipment and techniques. Especially problematic are the gases normally present in ambient air namely oxygen and nitrogen. Analysing these gases at the low microl/l (ppm) level requires special equipment and this publication describes a custom-designed system utilising backflush column switching to protect the columns and detectors. A thermal conductivity detector with nickel filaments was used to determine ppm levels of impurities in ClF3.     

Analysis of ppb levels of organics in water by means of purge-and-trap, capillary gas chromatography and selective detectors

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has issued a series of methods (500 and 600 series) for the analysis of organics in drinking water and industrial discharges. Methods 601 and 602 employ packed-column gas chromatography (GC) with electrolytic conductivity (E1CD) and photoionization detection (PID), respectively. A purge-and-trap system is used for concentration of volatiles. The EPA is in the process of converting methods 601 and 602 and certain 500-series methods to capillary column analysis. We have also initiated the conversion of a number of these methods, using E1CD and PID and have described them in detail in this paper. We have evaluated both 0.32- and 0.53-mm diameter capillary columns, using helium and nitrogen as carrier gases with each detector. We found that with nitrogen optimum results are obtained at a flow-rate of 15 ml/min, and with helium at 6-8 ml/min. As a result of system optimization, including operation of the two detectors in series, and converting from packed to capillary columns, we found that analysis time could be reduced from 80 min (for two methods separately) to ca. 30 min. In addition, the elution of more than five components in one peak, observed when the packed column specified in method 601 are used, was eliminated.     

Recent applications of conductivity detection in capillary and chip electrophoresis

The review provides a comprehensive survey of the recent applications of contact and contactless conductivity detection in capillary electrophoretic and chip electrophoretic analyses of a broad scale of compounds, from low-molecular-mass highly mobile small inorganic and organic ions, via medium-molecular-mass peptides and oligo- and polynucleotides up to high-molecular-mass biopolymers, proteins and nucleic acids fragments. The review presents also the recent developments in the construction of different types of conductivity detectors (detectors with galvanic contact of the sensing electrodes with the BGE and sample components, contactless conductivity detectors with capacitively coupled tubular and semitubular electrodes and combined conductivity/optical detectors) applied in the capillary electromigration methods performed in classical fused silica, polytetrafluorethylene, and polyetheretherketone capillaries or on glass and polymethylmethacrylate microchips. In addition, the principle and theoretical bases of conductivity detection in capillary electromigration techniques, zone electrophoresis, ITP, micellar EKC, and electrochromatography are briefly described.