A process by which complex mixtures of different molecules may be separated from each other. This is accomplished by subjecting the mixture to many repeated partitionings between a flowing phase and a stationary phase. Chromatography constitutes one of, if not the most fundamental separation techniques used in the biochemistry/biotechnology arena to date.
A method of analyzing and comparing chemicals.
A method of separating chemicals through a porous medium, used in analysing compounds and mixtures.
Any of several techniques for analyzing compounds and mixtures by virtue of the differences in absorbency of the various components of the compound or mixture.
A chemical analysis technique in which substances such as hormones, drugs, or enzymes are first separated and then identified by passing them through an adsorbent.
Any of several techniques for separating the components of a mixture by selective absorption. Two such techniques are quite widely used in medicine, for example to separate mixtures of amino; acids. In one of these, paper chromatography, a sample of the mixture is placed at the edge of a sheet of filter paper. As the solvent soaks along the paper, the components are absorbed to different extents and thus move along the paper at different rates. In column chromatography the components separate out along a column of a powdered absorbent, such as silica or aluminum oxide.
The separation of two or more chemical compounds in a liquid or gaseous mixture by their removal at different rates based on differential solubility and adsorption. This separation is often accomplished by letting the chemicals percolate through a column of a powdered adsorbent or by passing them across the surface of an adsorbent paper, among other techniques.
A group of laboratory techniques collectively referred to as chromatography enables the separation of chemical mixtures into their distinct individual components.