PACKED-COLUMN HYDRODYNAMIC CHROMATOGRAPHY USING 1-MU-M NONPOROUS SILICA PARTICLES

150X3 mm I.D. columns, packed with 1-mu m non-porous spherical silica particles, were used to separate soluble synthetic polymers by hydrody namic chromatography. The columns exhibited a plate height of about 1. 4 mu m allowing very fast and efficient separations of polymers in the molecular mass range 10(3)-2 . 10(6) g/mol. The migration behaviour o f polymers could be well described by a simple theoretical model. The applicability of packed bed HDC for the fast separation of polymers wa s illustrated with separations of polystyrene and poly(methyl methacry late) mixtures.