chromatography: Column Chromatography

In column chromatography the adsorbant is packed into a column and a solution of the mixture is added at the top. An appropriate solvent is passed through the column, washing, or eluting, the compounds down the column. A polar substance that is adsorbed very tightly to the surface will be efficiently retarded by the column, while a nonpolar substance will elute (dissolve in the solvent) very rapidly. By varying the nature of the solid adsorbant and the eluting solvent, a wide variety of resolutions, even of very similar substances, can be carried out.

Sections in this article:

• Introduction
• Electrophoresis
• Thin-Layer and Paper Chromatography
• Ion-Exchange Chromatography
• Gel-Permeation Chromatography
• Liquid Chromatography
• Gas Chromatography
• Column Chromatography

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