EVALUATION OF A TRANSFER TECHNIQUE FOR DIRECT COUPLING OF REVERSED-PHASE LIQUID-CHROMATOGRAPHY WITH GAS-CHROMATOGRAPHY

A method that allows direct transfer of liquid chromatographic aqueous eluents into capillary gas chromatography, using a programmed tempera ture vaporizer as interface, was investigated. The method involved bot h the evaporative and nonevaporative modes of solvent elimination and allowed large fractions of methanol-water eluents to be transferred fr om LC to GC. The speed of sample transfer was 1800 mu l/min and the in ternal diameter of the column used in the preseparation step was 4.6 m m. Working rules of the method were investigated to improve sensitivit y for the direct analysis of trace compounds. Reproducibility was achi eved and detection limits ranging from 0.1 to 1.5 mu g/ml of ethyl eat ers covering a wide range of boiling points were obtained. (C) 1998 El sevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.