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GasChromatography
CapillarycolumnsandStationaryphases
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AnalysisbyGasChromatography
Thisisaspecialpageongaschromatography,withsomeimportantpracticalandtheoretical
considerations:infoontheory,stationaryphases,capillarycolumns,gasdetectors,analytical
performanceandtroubleshooting.

Onthispage:
Clickonthelinksbelowtojumptotherelevantinfo
Theory
Stationaryphases
Columndeterioration
Troubleshooting

GASCHROMATOGRAPHY

ThegaschromatographytechniquewasfirstcarriedoutinAustria,andthefirstexploitationofthe
methodwasmadebyMartinandATJamesin1952,whentheyreportedthegaschromatographyof
organicacidsandamines.The"support"wascoatedwithanonvolatileliquidandplacedintoaheated
glasstube.Mixturesinjectedintothetubeandcarriedthroughbycompressedgasresultedinwell
definedzones.

Thisdevelopmentwasagreatassettopetroleumchemistswhorecognizeditasasimpleandrapid
methodofanalysisofthecomplexhydrocarbonmixturesencounteredinpetroleumproducts.Amajor
advancecamewiththeeliminationofthesupportmaterialandthecoatingoftheliquidontothewallof
alongcapillarytubetheadventofcapillarycolumns.Thisdevelopmentmadeitpossibletocarryout
separationsofmanydifferentcomponentsinasinglechromatographicanalysis.

Thediscoveryofthestructureofinsulin,forexample,wasmadepossiblewhentheBritishbiochemist,
FrederickSanger,rationallyandmethodicallyappliedthetechniquetothefragmentsoftheruptured
insulinmolecule,forwhichhereceivedthe1958Nobelprizeforchemistry.

THEPRINCIPLESOFGASCHROMATOGRAPHY

Chromatographyistheseparationofamixtureofcompounds(solutes)intoseparatecomponents.By
separatingthesampleintoindividualcomponents,itiseasiertoidentify(qualitate)andmeasurethe
amount(quantitate)ofthevarioussamplecomponents.Therearenumerouschromatographic
techniquesandcorrespondinginstruments.Gaschromatography(GC)isoneofthesetechniques.Itis
estimatedthat1020%oftheknowncompoundscanbeanalyzedbyGC.TobesuitableforGC
analysis,acompoundmusthavesufficientvolatilityandthermalstability.Ifallorsomeofacompound
ormoleculesareinthegasorvaporphaseat400450Corbelow,andtheydonotdecomposeatthese
temperatures,thecompoundcanprobablybeanalyzedbyGC.

OneormorehighpuritygasesaresuppliedtotheGC.Oneofthegases(calledthecarriergas)flows
intotheinjector,throughthecolumnandthenintothedetector.Asampleisintroducedintotheinjector
usuallywithasyringeoranexteriorsamplingdevice.Theinjectorisusuallyheatedto150250Cwhich
causesthevolatilesamplesolutestovaporize.Thevaporizedsolutesaretransportedintothecolumn
bythecarriergas.Thecolumnismaintainedinatemperaturecontrolledoven.

Thesolutestravelthroughthecolumnatarateprimarilydeterminedbytheirphysicalproperties,and
thetemperatureandcompositionofthecolumn.Thevarioussolutestravelthroughthecolumnat
differentrates.Thefastestmovingsoluteexits(elutes)thecolumnfirstthenisfollowedbythe
remainingsolutesincorrespondingorder.Aseachsoluteelutesfromthecolumn,itenterstheheated
detector.Anelectronicsignalisgenerateduponinteractionofthesolutewiththedetector.Thesizeof
thesignalisrecordedbyadatasystemandisplottedagainstelapsedtimetoproducea
chromatogram.

Theidealchromatogramhascloselyspacedpeakswithnooverlapofthepeaks.Anypeaksthat
overlaparecalledcoeluting.Thetimeandsizeofapeakareimportantinthattheyareusedtoidentify
andmeasuretheamountofthecompoundinthesample.Thesizeoftheresultingpeakcorrespondsto
theamountofthecompoundinthesample.Alargerpeakisobtainedastheconcentrationofthe
correspondingcompoundincreases.Ifthecolumnandallofoperatingconditionsarekeptthesame,a
givencompoundalwaystravelsthroughthecolumnatthesamerate.Thus,acompoundcanbe
identifiedbythetimerequiredforittotravelthroughthecolumn(calledtheretentiontime).

Theidentityofacompoundcannotbedeterminedsolelybyitsretentiontime.Aknownamountofan
authentic,puresampleofthecompoundhastobeanalyzedanditsretentiontimeandpeaksize
determined.Thisvaluecanbecomparedtotheresultsfromanunknownsampletodeterminewhether
thetargetcompoundispresent(bycomparingretentiontimes)anditsamount(bycomparingpeak
sizes).

Ifanyofthepeaksoverlap,accuratemeasurementofthesepeaksisnotpossible.Iftwopeakshave
thesameretentiontime,accurateidentificationisnotpossible.Thus,itisdesirabletohavenopeak
overlaporcoelution

RETENTIONTIME(tR)
Retentiontime(tR)isthetimeittakesasolutetotravelthroughthecolumn.Theretentiontimeis
assignedtothecorrespondingsolutepeak.Theretentiontimeisameasureoftheamountoftimea
solutespendsinacolumn.Itisthesumofthetimespentinthestationaryphaseandthemobile
phase.

COLUMNBLEED:

Columnbleedisthebackgroundgeneratedbyallcolumns.Itisthecontinuouselutionofthe
compoundsproducedfromnormaldegradationofthestationaryphase.Columnbleedincreasesat
highertemperatures.

COLUMNTEMPERATURELIMITS:

Columnshaveloweranduppertemperaturelimits.Ifacolumnisusedbelowitslowertemperaturelimit,
roundedandwidepeaksareobtained(i.e.,lossofefficiency).
Nocolumndamagehasoccurredhowever,thecolumndoesnotfunctionproperly.
Usingthecolumnatoraboveitslowerlimitmaintainsgoodpeakshapes.
Uppertemperaturelimitsareoftenstatedastwonumbers.Theloweroneistheisothermaltemperature
limit.Thecolumncanbeusedindefinitelyatthistemperatureandreasonablecolumnbleedandlifetime
arerealized.
Theuppernumberisthetemperatureprogramlimit.Acolumncanbemaintainedatthistemperaturefor
1015minuteswithoutseverelyshorteningcolumnlifetimeorexperiencingexcessivelyhighcolumn
bleed.
Exposingthecolumntohighertemperaturesorforlongertimeperiodsresultsinhighercolumnbleed
andshortercolumnlifetimes.Exceedingtheuppertemperaturelimitsmaydamagethestationary
phaseandtheinertnessofthefusedsilicatubing.

COLUMNCAPACITY:

Columncapacityisthemaximumamountofasolutethatcanbeintroducedintoacolumnbefore
significantpeakdistortionoccurs.
Overloadedpeaksareasymmetricwithaleadingedge.Overloadedpeaksareoftendescribedas
"sharkfin"shaped.TailingpeaksareobtainedifaPLOTcolumnisoverloaded.Nodamageoccursifa
columnisoverloaded.
STATIONARYPHASES
POLYSILOXANES:

Polysiloxanesarethemostcommonstationaryphases.Theyareavailableinthegreatestvarietyand
arethemoststable,robustandversatile.

Themostbasicpolysiloxaneisthe100%methylsubstituted.Whenothergroupsarepresent,the
amountisindicatedasthepercentofthetotalnumberofgroups.Forexample,a5%diphenyl95%
dimethylpolysiloxanecontains5%phenylgroupsand95%methylgroups.The"di"prefixindicates
thateachsiliconatomcontainstwoofthatparticulargroup.Sometimesthisprefixisomittedeven
thoughtwoidenticalgroupsarepresent.

Ifthemethylpercentageisnotstated,itisunderstoodtobepresentintheamountnecessarytomake
100%(e.g.,50%phenylmethylpolysiloxanecontains50%methylsubstitution).

Cyanopropylphenylpercentvaluescanbemisleading.A14%cyanopropylphenyldimethylpolysiloxane
contains7%cyanopropyland7%phenyl(alongwith86%methyl).Thecyanopropylandphenylgroups
areonthesamesiliconatom,thustheiramountsaresummed.

POLYETHYLENEGLYCOLS:

Polyethyleneglycols(PEG)arewidelyusedasstationaryphases.Stationaryphaseswith"wax"or
"FFAP"intheirnamearesometypeofpolyethyleneglycol.Polyethyleneglycolsstationaryphasesare
notsubstituted,thusthepolymeris100%ofthestatedmaterial.Theyarelessstable,lessrobustand
havelowertemperaturelimitsthanmostpolysiloxanes.

Withtypicaluse,theyexhibitshorterlifetimesandaremoresusceptibletodamageuponoverheating
orexposuretooxygen.

Theuniqueseparationpropertiesofpolyethyleneglycolmakestheseliabilitiestolerable.Polyethylene
glycolstationaryphasesmustbeliquidsunderGCtemperatureconditions.

GASSOLID:(PLOTColumns)

Gassolidstationaryphasesarecomprisedofathinlayer(usually<10um)ofsmallparticlesadhered
tothesurfaceofthetubing.

Theseareporouslayeropentubular(PLOT)columns.Thesamplecompoundsundergoagassolid
adsorption/desorptionprocesswiththestationaryphase.Theparticlesareporous,thussizeexclusion
andshapeselectivityprocessesalsooccur.

Variousderivativesofstyrene,aluminumoxidesandmolecularsievesarethemostcommonPLOT
columnstationaryphases.

PLOTcolumnsareveryretentive.Theyareusedtoobtainseparationsthatareimpossiblewith
conventionalstationaryphases.Also,manyseparationsrequiringsubambienttemperatureswith
polysiloxanesorpolyethyleneglycolscanbeeasilyaccomplishedaboveambienttemperatureswith
PLOTcolumns.

Hydrocarbonandsulfurgases,nobleandpermanentgases,andlowboilingpointsolventsaresomeof
themorecommoncompoundsseparatedwithPLOTcolumns.

SomePLOTcolumnsmayoccasionallyloseparticlesofthestationaryphase.Forthisreason,using
PLOTcolumnsthatmayloseparticleswithdetectorsnegativelyaffectedbyparticulatematterisnot
recommended.Massspectrometersareparticularlysusceptibletothisproblemduetothepresenceof
astrongvacuumattheexitofthecolumn.

BONDEDANDCROSSLINKEDSTATIONARYPHASES:

Crosslinkedstationaryphaseshavetheindividualpolymerchainslinkedviacovalentbonds.
Bondedstationaryphasesarecovalentlybondedtothesurfaceofthetubing.
Bothtechniquesimpartenhancedthermalandsolventstabilitytothestationaryphase.Also,columns
withbondedandcrosslinkedstationaryphasescanbesolventrinsedtoremovecontaminants.

Mostpolysiloxanesandpolyethyleneglycolstationaryphasesarebondedandcrosslinked.
Afewstationaryphasesareavailableinannonbondedversionsomestationaryphasesarenot
availableinbondedandcrosslinkedversions.Useabondedandcrosslinkedstationaryphaseifone
isavailable.

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COLUMNDEGRADATION
CAUSESOFCOLUMNPERFORMANCEDEGRADATION

COLUMNBREAKAGE:

Fusedsilicacolumnsbreakwhereverthereisaweakpointinthepolyimidecoating.Thepolyimide
coatingprotectsthefragilefusedsilicatubing.Thecontinuousheatingandcoolingoftheoven,
vibrationscausedbytheovenfanandbeingwoundonacircularcageallplacestressonthetubing.
Eventuallybreakageoccursataweakpoint.Weakspotsarecreatedwhenthepolyimidecoatingis
scratchedorabraded.Thisusuallyoccurswhenasharppointoredgeisdraggedoverthetubing.
Columnhangersandtags,metaledgesintheGCoven,columncuttersandmiscellaneousitemson
thelabbencharejustsomeofthecommonsourcesofsharpedgesorpoints.

Itisrareforacolumntospontaneouslybreak.Columnmanufacturingpracticestendtoexposeany
weaktubingandeliminateitfromuseinfinishedcolumns.Largerdiametercolumnsaremoreproneto
breakage.Thismeansthatgreatercareandpreventionagainstbreakagemustbetakenwith0.450.53
mmI.D.tubingthanwith0.180.32mmI.D.tubing.

Abrokencolumnisnotalwaysfatal.Ifabrokencolumnwasmaintainedatahightemperatureeither
continuouslyorwithmultipletemperatureprogramruns,damagetothecolumnisverylikely.Theback
halfofthebrokencolumnhasbeenexposedtooxygenatelevatedtemperatureswhichrapidly
damagesthestationaryphaseThefronthalfisfinesincecarriergasflowedthroughthislengthof
column.Ifabrokencolumnhasnotbeenheatedoronlyexposedtohightemperaturesoroxygenfora
veryshorttime,thebackhalfhasprobablynotsufferedanysignificantdamage.

Aunioncanbeinstalledtorepairabrokencolumn.Anysuitableunionwillworktorejointhecolumn.
Nomorethan23unionsshouldbeinstalledonanyonecolumn.Problemswithdeadvolume(peak
tailing)mayoccurwithmultipleunions.

THERMALDAMAGE:

Exceedingacolumnuppertemperaturelimitresultsinaccelerateddegradationofthestationaryphase
andtubingsurface.Thisresultsintheprematureonsetofexcessivecolumnbleed,peaktailingfor
activecompoundsand/orlossofefficiency(resolution).Fortunately,thermaldamageisaslower
process,thusprolongedtimesabovethetemperaturelimitarerequiredbeforesignificantdamage
occurs.Thermaldamageisgreatlyacceleratedinthepresenceofoxygen.Overheatingacolumnwitha
leakorhighoxygenlevelsinthecarriergasresultsinrapidandpermanentcolumndamage.
Settingthemaximumoventemperatureatorafewdegreesabovethecolumntemperaturelimitisthe
bestmethodtopreventthermaldamage.Thispreventstheaccidentaloverheatingofthecolumn.Ifa
columnisthermallydamaged,itmaystillbefunctional.Removethecolumnfromthedetector.Heat
thecolumnfor816hoursatitsisothermaltemperaturelimit.Remove1015cmfromthedetectorend
ofthecolumn.Reinstallthecolumnandconditionasusual.Thecolumnusuallydoesnotreturntoits
originalperformancehowever,itisoftenstillfunctional.Thelifeofthecolumnwillbereducedafter
thermaldamage.

OXYGENDAMAGE:

OxygenisanenemytomostcapillaryGCcolumns.Whilenocolumndamageoccursatornear
ambienttemperatures,severedamageoccursasthecolumntemperatureincreases.Ingeneral,the
temperatureandoxygenconcentrationatwhichsignificantdamagesoccursislowerforpolarstationary
phases.Itisconstantexposuretooxygenthatistheproblem.Momentaryexposuresuchasan
injectionofairoraveryshortdurationseptumnutremovalisnotaproblem.
Aleakinthecarriergasflowpath(e.g.,gaslines,fittings,injector)isthemostcommonsourceof
oxygenexposure.Asthecolumnisheated,veryrapiddegradationofthestationaryphaseoccurs.This
resultsintheprematureonsetofexcessivecolumnbleed,peaktailingforactivecompoundsand/or
lossofefficiency(resolution).Thesearethesamesymptomsasforthermaldamage.Unfortunately,by
thetimeoxygendamageisdiscovered,significantcolumndamagehasalreadyoccurred.Inless
severecases,thecolumnmaystillbefunctionalbutatareducedperformancelevel.Inmoresevere
cases,thecolumnisirreversiblydamaged.
Maintaininganoxygenandleakfreesystemisthebestpreventionagainstoxygendamage.GoodGC
systemmaintenanceincludesperiodicleakchecksofthegaslinesandregulators,regularsepta
changes,usinghighqualitycarriergases,installingandchangingoxygentraps,andchanginggas
cylindersbeforetheyarecompletelyempty.

CHEMICALDAMAGE:

Therearerelativelyfewcompoundsthatdamagestationaryphases.Introducingnonvolatile
compounds(highmolecularweightorhighboilingpoint)inacolumnoftendegradesperformance,but
damagetothestationaryphasedoesnotoccur.Theseresiduescanoftenberemovedand
performancereturnedbysolventrinsingthecolumn
Inorganicormineralbasesandacidsaretheprimarycompoundstoavoidintroducinginacolumn.The
acidsincludehydrochloric(HCl),sulfuric(H2SO4),nitric(HNO3),phosphoric(H3PO4)andchromic
(CrO3).Thebasesincludepotassiumhydroxide(KOH),sodiumhydroxide(NaOH)andammonium
hydroxide(NH4OH).Mostoftheseacidsandbasesarenotveryvolatileandaccumulateatthefrontof
thecolumn.Ifallowedtoremain,theacidsorbasesdamagethestationaryphase.Thisresultsinthe
prematureonsetofexcessivecolumnbleed,peaktailingforactivecompoundsand/orlossofefficiency
(resolution).Thesymptomsareverysimilartothermalandoxygendamage.

Hydrochloricacidandammoniumhydroxidearetheleastharmfulofthegroup.Bothtendtofollowany
waterthatispresentinthesample.Ifthewaterisnotoronlypoorlyretainedbythecolumn,the
residencetimeofHClandNH4OHinthecolumnisshort.Thistendstoeliminateorminimizeany
damagebythesecompounds.Thus,ifHClorNH4OHarepresentinasample,usingconditionsora
columnwithnowaterretentionwillrenderthesecompoundsrelativelyharmlesstothecolumn.
Theonlyorganiccompoundsthathavebeenreportedtodamagestationaryphasesareperfluoroacids.
Examplesincludetrifluoroacetic,pentafluoropropanoicandheptafluorobutyricacid.Theyneedtobe
presentathighlevels(e.g.,1%orhigher).Mostoftheproblemsareexperiencedwithsplitlessor
Megaboredirectinjectionswherelargevolumesofthesamplearedepositedatthefrontofthecolumn.

Sincechemicaldamageisusuallylimitedtothefrontofthecolumn,trimmingorcutting1/21meter
fromthefrontofthecolumnofteneliminatesanychromatographicproblems.Inmoreseverecases,5
ormoremetersmayneedtoberemoved.Theuseofaguardcolumnorretentiongapwillminimizethe
amountofcolumndamagehowever,frequenttrimmingoftheguardcolumnmaybenecessary.The
acidorbaseoftendamagesthesurfaceofthedeactivatedfusedsilicatubingwhichleadstopeak
shapeproblemsforactivecompounds.

COLUMNCONTAMINATION
ColumncontaminationisoneofthemostcommonproblemsencounteredincapillaryGC.
Unfortunately,itmimicsaverywidevarietyofproblemsandisoftenmisdiagnosedasanotherproblem.
Acontaminatedcolumnisusuallynotdamaged,butitmayberenderedunusable.
Therearetwobasictypesofcontaminants:nonvolatileandsemivolatile.Nonvolatilecontaminantsor
residuesdonoteluteandaccumulateinthecolumn.Thecolumnbecomescoatedwiththeseresidues
whichinterferewiththeproperpartitioningofsolutesinandoutofthestationaryphase.Also,the
residuesmayinteractwithactivesolutesresultinginpeakadsorptionproblems(evidentaspeaktailing
orlossofpeaksize).Activesolutesarethosecontainingahydroxyl(OH)oramine(NH)group,and
somethiols(SH)andaldehydes.

Semivolatilecontaminantsorresiduesaccumulateinthecolumn,buteventuallyelute.Hourstodays
mayelapsebeforetheycompletelyleavethecolumn.Likenonvolatileresidues,theymaycausepeak
shapeandsizeproblemsand,inaddition,areusuallyresponsibleformanybaselineproblems
(instability,wander,drift,ghostpeaks,etc.).

Contaminantsoriginatefromanumberofsourceswithinjectedsamplesbeingthemostcommon.
Extractedsamplesareamongtheworsetypes.Biologicalfluidsandtissues,soils,wasteandground
water,andsimilartypesofmatricescontainhighamountsofsemivolatileandnonvolatilematerials.
Evenwithcarefulandthoroughextractionprocedures,smallamountsofthesematerialsarepresentin
theinjectedsample.Severaltohundredsofinjectionsmaybenecessarybeforetheaccumulated
residuescauseproblems.Injectiontechniquessuchasoncolumn,splitlessandMegaboredirectplace
alargeamountofsampleintothecolumn,thuscolumncontaminationismorecommonwirhthese
injectiontechniques.

Occasionallycontaminantsoriginatefrommaterialsingaslinesandtraps,ferruleandseptaparticles,
oranythingcomingincontactwiththesample(vials,solvents,syringes,pipettes,etc.).Thesetypesof
contaminantsareprobablyresponsiblewhenacontaminationproblemsuddenlydevelopsandsimilar
samplesinpreviousmonthsoryearsdidnotcauseanyproblems.

Minimizingtheamountofsemivolatilesandnonvolatilesampleresiduesisthebestmethodtoreduce
contaminationproblems.Unfortunately,thepresenceandidentityofpotentialcontaminantsareoften
unknown.Rigorousandthoroughsamplecleanupisthebestprotectionagainstcontamination
problems.Theuseofaguardcolumnorretentiongapoftenreducestheseverityordelaystheonsetof
columncontaminationinducedproblems.Ifacolumnbecomescontaminated,itisbesttosolventrinse
thecolumntoremovethecontaminants.
Maintainingacontaminatedcolumnathightemperaturesforlongperiodsoftime(oftencalledbaking
outacolumn)isnotrecommended.Bakingoutacolumnmayconvertsomeofthecontaminating
residuesintoinsolublematerialsthatcannotbesolventrinsedfromthecolumn.Ifthisoccurs,the
columncannotbesalvagedinmostcases.

Sometimesthecolumncanbecutinhalfandthebackhalfmaystillbeuseable.Bakingoutacolumn
shouldbelimitedto12hoursattheisothermaltemperaturelimitofthecolumn.

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PROBLEMSINGASCHROMATOGRAPHY
TROUBLESHOOTING:
EVALUATINGTHEPROBLEM:
Thefirststepinanytroubleshootingeffortistostepbackandevaluatethesituation.Rushingtosolve
theproblemoftenresultsinacriticalpieceofimportantinformationbeingoverlookedorneglected.In
additiontotheproblem,lookforanyotherchangesordifferencesinthechromatogram.Manyproblems
areaccompaniedbyothersymptoms.Retentiontimeshifts,alteredbaselinenoiseordrift,orpeak
shapechangesareonlyafewoftheothercluesthatoftenpointtoornarrowthelistofpossible
causes.Finally,makenoteofanychangesordifferencesinvolvingthesample.Solvents,vials,
pipettes,storageconditions,sampleage,extractionorpreparationtechniques,oranyotherfactor
influencingthesampleenvironmentcanberesponsible.

SIMPLECHECKSANDOBSERVATIONS:

AsurprisingnumberofproblemsinvolvefairlysimpleandoftenoverlookedcomponentsoftheGC
systemoranalysis.ManyoftheseitemsaretransparentinthedailyoperationoftheGCandareoften
takenforgranted(setitandforgetit).Theareasanditemstocheckinclude:

1.Gasespressures,carriergasaveragelinearvelocity,andflowrates(detector,splitvent,septum
purge).
2.Temperaturescolumn,injector,detectorandtransferlines.
3.Systemparameterspurgeactivationtimes,detectorattenuationandrange,massranges,etc.
4.Gaslinesandtrapscleanliness,leaks,expiration.
5.Injectorconsumablessepta,liners,Oringsandferrules.
6.Sampleintegrityconcentration,degradation,solvent,storage.
7.Syringeshandlingtechnique,leaks,needlesharpness,cleanliness.
8.Datasystemsettingsandconnections.

GHOSTPEAKSANDCARRYOVER:

Systemcontaminationisresponsibleformostghostpeaksorcarryoverproblems.Iftheextraghost
peaksaresimilarinwidthtothesamplepeaks(withsimilarretentiontimes),thecontaminantswere
mostlikelyintroducedintothecolumnatthesametimeasthesample.Theextracompoundsmaybe
presentintheinjector(i.e.,contamination)orinthesampleitself.Impuritiesinsolvents,vials,caps
andsyringesareonlysomeofthepossiblesources.Injectingsampleandsolventblanksmayhelpto
findpossiblesourcesofthecontaminants.Iftheghostpeaksaremuchbroaderthanthesample
peaks,thecontaminantsweremostlikelyalreadyinthecolumnwhentheinjectionwasmade.These
compoundswerestillinthecolumnwhenapreviousGCrunwasterminated.Theyeluteduringalater
runandareoftenverybroad.Sometimesnumerousghostpeaksfrommultipleinjectionsoverlapand
eluteasahumporblob.Thisoftentakesontheappearanceofbaselinedriftorwander.

Increasingthefinaltemperatureortimeinthetemperatureprogramisonemethodtominimizeor
eliminateaghostpeakproblem.Alternatively,ashortbakeoutaftereachrunorseriesofrunsmay
removethehighlyretainedcompoundsfromthecolumnbeforetheycauseaproblem.Performinga
condensationtestisagoodmethodtodeterminewhetheracontaminatedinjectoristhesourceofthe
carryoverorghostpeaks.

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Source:
J&WCatalogue"Gaschromatography"1998.

Signature:DhanlalDeLloyd,Chem.Dept,TheUniversityofTheWestIndies,St.Augustinecampus
TheRepublicofTrinidadandTobago.
Copyright:delloyd2000Allrightsreserved.