Practical Gas Chromatography

Gas chromatography continues to be one of the most widely used analytical techniques, since its applications today expand into fields such as biomarker research or metabolomics. This new practical textbook enables the reader to make full use of gas chromatography. Essential fundamentals and their implications for the practical work at the instrument are provided, as well as details on the instrumentation such as inlet systems, columns and detectors. Specialized techniques from all aspects of GC are introduced ranging from sample preparation, solvent-free injection techniques, and pyrolysis GC, to separation including fast GC and comprehensive GCxGC and finally detection, such as GC-MS and element-specific detection. Various fields of application such as enantiomer, food, flavor and fragrance analysis, physicochemical measurements, forensic toxicology, and clinical analysis are discussed as well as cutting-edge application in metabolomics is covered.

This practical reference helps readers to make full use of gas chromatographic instrumentation. It provides relevant information for successfully performing analytical tasks in various fields of application, from fragrance analysis to forensic toxicology.

Theory of GC.- The Mobile Phase (Carrier Gas).- Columns and Stationary Phases.- Inlet Systems and Sample Introduction.- Detectors.- Programming of Temperature and Pressure.- Qualitative Analysis.- Quantitative Analysis.- Hyphenated Techniques.- Selection of Column and Operating Parameters/Conditions.- Solvent Free Injection Techniques.- Shortening of Analysis Time (Fast GC).- Column Coupling, Column Switching and Comprehensive Two-Dimensional GC.- Method Validation.- Applications: Separation of Enantiomers.- Sample Preparation Techniques for GC.- Derivatization.- Analysis of Gases and Low Boiling Samples.- GC in Petrochemical Analysis and Process Control.- Environmental Applications.- Clinical and Pharmaceutical Applications.- Analysis of Flavours and Fragrances.- GC in Food Analysis.- GC in Forensic Toxicoloy.- GC in Biomarker and Metabolomic Research.- Physicochemical Measurements.- Pyrolysis GC.