Effect of pressure drop on solute retention and column efficiency in supercritical fluid chromatography. Part 2: Modified carbon dioxide as mobile phase

The effect of pressure drop on the performance of supercritical fluid chromatography systems using a modified mobile phase (carbon dioxide + ethanol) was studied. Experiments were performed on a Lichrospher-RP-18 column with phenanthrene as a solute. A wide range of back pressures (130 to 210 bar) and modifier concentrations (2 to 7% w/w) have been explored. Experiments yielding both small and large pressure drops were performed. From these experiments, parameters to describe pressure drop, retention, and column efficiency were extracted, and were used to simulate the dynamics of the chromatographic column. A good match between the experimentally measured and calculated values of pressure drop, retention times, and column efficiency was observed. At low back pressure and modifier composition, significant loss of column efficiency was observed.