SEPARATION OF IMPORTANT PCBS AND PAHS ON A PROTOTYPE SMECTIC LIQUID-CRYSTALLINE POLYSILOXANE STATIONARY-PHASE CAPILLARY COLUMN

A prototype smectic liquid-crystalline polysiloxane GC column was test ed as stationary phase for the separation of 7 BCR PCBs and 16 EPA PAH compounds. The separation efficiency on the smectic phase was much hi gher for both groups compared to a non-polar stationary phase column o f the DB-5 type. Moreover non-ortho substituted (coplanar) PCBs were w ell separated from the mono-ortho and diortho PCBs and appeared as a l ate eluting group. Finally the smectic column is very useful for quali tative analysis of PAHs containing extracts.