A capillary electrophoresis chip for the analysis of print and film photographic developing agents in commercial processing solutions using indirect fluorescence detection

The separation and detection of both print and film developing agents (CD-3 and CD-4) in photographic processing solutions using chip-based capillary electrophoresis is presented. For simultaneous detection of both analytes u nder identical experimental conditions a buffer pH of 11.9 is used to parti ally ionise the analytes. Detection is made possible by indirect fluorescen ce, where the ions of the analytes displace the anionic fluorescing buffer ion to create negative peaks. Under optimal conditions, both analytes can b e analyzed within 30 s. The limits of detection for CD-3 and CD-4 are 0.17 mM and 0.39 mM, respectively. The applicability of the method for the analy sis of seasoned photographic processing developer solutions is also examine d.