Liquid Phases for Gas Chromatography

Abstract

In gas chromatography (GC) the liquid phase, also called the stationary phase, provides the medium in which the separation occurs. The magnitude of separation is given by the relative strengths of intermolecular interactions between analyte and stationary phase molecules, thus numerous liquids have been used over the years. The stationary phase can be coated onto a solid support and packed into a tube (packed column GC), or coated onto the wall of a capillary (capillary GC). Today, most GC analyses are performed using capillary columns.