Nonconventional samplers in capillary electrophoresis

Developments in nonconventional sample introduction in capillary electropho resis have focused on the possibility of forcing the sample stream to pass the separation capillary inlet. The advantages of such input devices are th e absence of a voltage rise/drop time during sampling, ease of operation be cause no vial manipulations are involved, and ease of automation and comput erization. However, besides these the main advantage of such input devices seems to be the fact that they facilitate easy, multiple input from a singl e sample vial. This opens the possibility of monitoring the concentration c hanges taking part in inside the vessel - an important task for - analytica l biotechnology. This article describes some possible designs of CE nonconventional samplers and discusses applications of such samplers in sample preparation, in coup ling CE with flow injection analysis (FIA) and HPLC, in multiple input expe riments (with or without stacking) for reduction of detection limits and fo r monitoring of reaction kinetics.