Supercritical fluid chromatography is a type of
normal-phase chromatography in which the mobile phase is a supercritical fluid, having the
properties of both a gas and a liquid.
SFC is often used for chiral separations,
but the growing range of stationary phases available is extending its reach to achiral
separations, for both sample prep and analysis.
A typical SFC system includes a
CO
2 pump, injector, oven, column, detector, and recorder. Since the
chromatographic flow path must be pressurized, a backpressure regulator is also required.
What Are Applications for Supercritical Fluid Chromatography?
SFC can be used to analyze many materials, including:
- Drugs
- Foods
- Pesticides and
herbicides
- Polymers
- Surfactants
- Fossil fuels
- Explosives
- And more!
Systems are
available that feature easy switching for use with HPLC applications.