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How to optimize the key variables in HPLC analysis-sample preparation and column selection

Systematic toxicological analysis (STA) is an important step in medicolegal investigations of death, poisoning, and drug use. The primary goal is the detection and confirmation of potentially toxic compounds in evidence. This article describes a workflow using non-targeted liquid chromatography–tandem mass spectrometry (LC–MS/MS) for reliable compound identification. Tandem mass spectrometry was performed on a low-resolution quadrupole-quadrupole-linear ion trap instrument. Acquired spectra were submitted to automated library search, and positive matches were verified by expert reviewing. After validation, the non-targeted LC–MS/MS technique was integrated in the STA service provided by our laboratory.

Detectors based on ultraviolet absorbance are the most common detectors in use for liquid chromatography.

The past couple instalments of “Sample Preparation Perspectives” have looked at current trends in the field. Another recent trend is dried blood spot analysis and other analysis methods using minute sample amounts. This month we take a quick look at the role of sample homogeneity and the determination of sample size. Microsampling approaches, including dried blood spots, are discussed.

A selection of profiles on leading separation science companies.

As Klaus Unger turns 80, we review his contributions to the field.

The future of biological and clinical research will depend on technological innovations and cross discipline cooperation as science seeks a deeper understanding of increasingly complex biological systems. The 2016 recipient of the AES Mid-Career Award, Amy Herr, and her team at the University of California Berkeley have explored these areas using a combination of chemical engineering, mechanical engineering, and electrical engineering with strong foundations in biology, material science, and analytical chemistry to innovate new microfluidic analytical technology. She recently spoke to LCGC about this work.

Click the title above to open the LCGC Europe August 2016 regular issue, Vol 29, No 8, in an interactive PDF format.

Click the title above to open the LCGC North America August 2016 regular issue, Vol 34 No 8, in an interactive PDF format.

Continuing MilliporeSigma’s series of podcasts on the impact of water quality on chromatography techniques, Joe Plurad discusses the practical effects of ultrapure water in a specific area of analysis: The importance of water quality on perchlorate analysis by ion chromatography (IC).

Waters Corporation has announced a collaboration with the Bioprocessing Technology Institute (BTI), a research institute within Singapore’s Agency for Science, Technology, and Research.

Researchers from Vienna University of Technology (TU Wien), Austria, have used chip capillary electrophoresis (CE) in combination with molecular beacons (MBs) to analyze the release of the RNA genome from a human rhinovirus.

The University of Manchester unveiled the £18-million Stoller Biomarker Discovery Centre at the beginning of June 2016. The research centre will focus on biomedical research on major diseases, including cancer, psoriasis, and arthritis, using mass spectrometry (MS)‑based proteomics solutions from Sciex.

Kevin A. Schug considers what the study of chemometrics and experimental design statistics can add to an analytical chemist’s work. Do analytical chemists lack an appreciation for the mathematical and statistical tools used to tease out important information?

Preview of the International Symposium on GPC/SEC and Related Techniques.

Raquel Garcia and Maria João Cabrita reveal the theory and practical applications of molecularly imprinted polymers (MIPs).

Supplementary Tables

Click the title above to open The Column July 22, 2016 Europe & Asia issue, Volume 12, Number 13, in an interactive PDF format.

Click the title above to open The Column July 22, 2016 North American issue, Volume 12, Number 13, in an interactive PDF format.

Reservoir sensor monitors HPLC solvent levels during unattended operations over long periods of time. Understand how sensing mechanism ensures HPLC system efficiency.

A group of researchers has studied the migration of monomers and plastic additives from plastic food packaging in microwave heated homemade food and packed liquid food using QuEChERS and gas chromatography coupled to mass spectrometry (GC–MS).

André de Kok, a senior analytical chemist at the at the Netherlands Food and Consumer Product Safety Authority (NVWA), was presented with the Excellence Award at the annual North American Chemical Residue Workshop (NACRW) Conference on July 18, 2016.

While conventional calibration for gel permeation (GPC) and size-exclusion chromatography (SEC) are useful for polymer characterization, there are inherent disadvantages in these analyses. Adding multi-angle light scattering (MALS) detection can help overcome the challenges faced with single-detector chromatography. For more complex polymers, asymmetric flow field-flow fractionation (AF4) offers additional capabilities. This e-book explains what you need to know about using MALS in polymer analysis.

The title of this piece may have put you off reading it – in which case you won’t be insulted when I say that even the most experienced gas chromatographers often fail to install columns in the best way possible.

This instalment of Tips & Tricks shows the influence of analytical parameters on gel permeation chromatography/size-exclusion chromatography (GPC/SEC)–light scattering results when artificially wrong parameters reflecting typical experimental errors are used.