Chromatography of inorganic ions on sulfoethyl cellulose layer in mixed sulfuric acid-organic solvent media

Summary The thin-layer chromatographic behavior of 49 inorganic ions has been systematically studied on layers of sulfoethyl (SE) cellulose, a strongly acidic cation-exchanger, with binary solvent mixtures consisting of sulfuric acid and an organic solvent such as methanol or acetone. The characteristic retention on the cellulose layer can be recognized for some ions forming sulfato complexes in the acid-organic solvent medium, and some aspects of the behavior are discussed. Chromatographic separations of analytical interest are also demonstrated on the SE-cellulose layer with acid-methanol and acid-acetone solutions used as mobile phases.