ABSTRACT
The term “chromatography” was coined by Tswett in 1906 and is derived from the Greek words for color and write. Bulk property chromatography detectors provide little qualitative information but can be used for quantitative analysis when mixture component identities are known. An ideal interface between chromatography and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR) would couple both techniques without sacrificing the performance of either. Mathematical models describing dispersivity for thin-layer chromatography are less accurate than for column chromatography. Applications of FT-IR coupled with column chromatography often require rapid interferometer scan rates in order to avoid an apparent degradation of chromatographic resolution. Capillary gas chromatography is the column separation technique requiring the most rapid data acquisition. Performance of chromatography/FT-IR interfaces depends on the tradeoffs made in chromatographic resolution and FT-IR detection. Chromatography/FT-IR combinations have proven to be very useful for the structural analysis of complex mixture components.
