CAPILLARY FLOW-INJECTION - PERFORMANCE UNDER PRESSURE

Some of the pressure and mixing limitations of capillary flow-injectio n systems using pressure-induced flow are described. The benefits of l ow dispersion and small sample and reagent volumes must be weighed aga inst some of the limitations by potential users. The maximum pressure output of conventional peristaltic or syringe pumps can limit the flow rates through microbore capillaries or the types of solutions that ca n be pumped. Likewise, the peak variance in capillary systems can beco me limited by injection, detection and connector contributions. Mixing can also be inefficient with capillary systems. Potential solutions t o these problems with a new generation of flow-injection instrumentati on are discussed along with the trade-offs involved. (C) 1998 Elsevier Science B.V.