INTERFACE FOR COUPLING LIQUID CHROMATOGRAPHY TO SOLID OR GAS PHASE DETECTORS

摘要

Improved techniques are provided for interfacing liquid chromatography with gas phase and solid phase detectors. Heated liquid effluent including sample solute of interest and solvent is sprayed into a desolvation chamber, where controlled vaporization of the solvent occurs while maintaining sample particles of interest. A carrier gas is added to the desolvation chamber, and the discharged aerosol is transmitted through a uniform cross-sectional flow path to a condenser, gas diffusion cell, or other solvent removal device. Substantially all transmitted solvent is thereby removed, with the carrier gas and substantially all of the sample particles Or interest passing to the detector for analysis. The interface of the present invention is applicable to thermospray technology and other spraying techniques resulting in vaporization and nebulization of the LC effluent. The methods and apparatus of the present invention may be reliably employed with various gas phase or solid phase detectors for sample analysis, and may be used over a wide range of chromatographic conditions.