ABSTRACT
This chapter provides the process for developing an ion chromatographic method. Method parameters for ion chromatography are a little different than found in other liquid chromatographic techniques and include selection of eluent systems, sample preparation, gradient separations, and choice of column chemistries. The differences between systems designed for the 3 µm and Ultra High-Performance Liquid Chromatography (UHPLC) columns are significant. A change to 3 µm particle did not require new instrumentation. Not only does a change to UHPLC require a change in instrumentation, but it required analytical chemists to go back and learn their chromatography theory again. For many analytical chemists, chirality was only a concept introduced to us in our sophomore organic chemistry classes. For those of us in pharmaceutical laboratories, chirality is routinely included in determination of purity. It is important to note that instrumental technologies will continue to develop. Thin-layer chromatography changed to low-pressure column chromatography, which evolved to high-performance liquid chromatography, which has grown into UHPLC.
