
LCGC Europe
While capillary gas chromatography has been undergoing a renaissance, with new columns, detectors, data systems, and multidimensional separations, the classical inlets have remained the same: We are still injecting liquid samples with syringes into split and splitless inlets, as we have for nearly 50 years. Split and splitless injections present several well-known and some not-so-well known challenges, mostly arising from heating of the inlet, that make sample injection and inlets a major hurdle for gas chromatographers. These challenges and some ideas for mitigating them are discussed and a case is made for renewed exploration of the cool inlets and injection techniques: cool on-column and programmed temperature vaporization.















