Chromatography Separation with Flash

Chromatography is a modern separation procedure that consists of different physical techniques and used in many industrial sector especially in the chemical and pharmaceutical sector. This process is mainly applied for the separation of organic compounds mixture. Though, a number of other separation processes are there, applied in the purification process but when it comes to separating two similar physical and chemical nature organic compounds, this process is the best solution. Those mixtures cannot be purified through any other methods; only chromatography process can be applied for the purification.


In this process the components of the mixture are segregated in two different phases; on is called the stationary phase and the other one is called mobile phase. In which chromatography process the stationary phase is a solid adsorbent and acts like a column and the mobile phase passes through that column, that process is called column chromatography. The process of purification takes place depending on the polarity differences between the components. The technique is components with more polarity will be adsorbed by the stationary phase and can be collected separately.


The process of chromatography can be different depending on the nature of the components. Different kinds of chromatography processes are silica gel chromatography, aluminum oxide chromatography, flash chromatography, thin layer chromatography etc. Depending on the nature of the mixture to be purified, the specific chromatography process is applied. And the stationary phase changes accordingly. The role of the adsorbents is undeniable in the entire process. And one of the popular adsorbents for this process is silica gel. Different silica gel powder mesh like silica gel 60-120 mesh, silica gel 200-230 mesh, and silica gel 230-400 mesh can be used as adsorbents in this process. Aluminum oxide in the form of powder is also a very good adsorbent used in this process.

Advantages of column chromatography:

1.   This process is capable of separating complex mixture of similar physical and chemical  nature compounds.
2.       The separation process is much more cost effective. 
3.       It can separate compounds according to the size and chemical properties. 
4.       The process of purification can be accomplished through a variety of methods.
5.       The recovered products are very pure in quality. 


Getting hold of excellent quality adsorbents could have been a tough job but with the help of internet it has become extremely easier and convenient at the same time. There are a number of online adsorbents providers that offer high quality adsorbents to achieve better outcomes of the separation process. Since the quality of the adsorbents has a large role to play in this purification process, purchasing high quality adsorbents from online can prove to be extremely effective. 

Making Chemical Purity using Chromatography

Among all the procedures the most demanded procedures is of column chromatography. In this procedure an absorbent is filled in a one third glass tube with alumina or silica gel. Then the material is soaked in selective solvent. Then the column is filled with slurry of absorbent and solvent. An important thing to be kept in mind is that there should be no space in the column. This type of packed column is termed as well packed column. This method is a little different from the other methods as in this method a less polar column is removed first. The reason for removing this element first is that lesser the polar compound will be lesser it will be absorbed in the stationary phase and in this way more polar compound can be extracted out easily. 

chromatography is considered as an ideal technique for separation whether it is any material solid or liquid. There is another technique used in this column chromatography that is flash column chromatography. This procedure is carried out with a mixture of two or more solvents. This procedure can be adopted in both polar as well as non-polar compounds. Some of the important things to be considered while separating solvents from this procedure is that dichloromethane dissolve compounds in a better way but at the same time silica will take longer time. Benzene is quite useful but in case of non-polar component it shows its best efficiency. It is sometimes even avoided because of its toxicity. If your compound is acidic sensitive you can add 1% to 3% of triethylamine in the mixture in order to neutralize the acidic effect in silica gel.

Column Chromatography Chemical Synthesis

Chromatography is a technique which is used to for the separation of elements from a compound. There are two phases involved in the process that is stationary and mobile phase. Mixture of whose compounds have to be analyzed is first soaked in the stationary phase and then mobile phase is passed through it. If the composition is correct and proper procedure is followed the compounds from the mixture are easily extracted. The compounds get separated on the bases of absorption and solubility. So, depending on the physical properties chromatography is further classified into two categories - Absorption chromatography and partition chromatography. Absorption chromatography is further classified into Column chromatography and thin layer chromatography and partition chromatography is classified into paper chromatography and gas chromatography. 

New Dimension in the World of Chromatography: Flash Chromatography

Chromatography in today’s world has taken completely new dimension. With the advent of new technologies, new methods are being adopted for separating compounds from any substance, whether it is in liquid or solid form. But in case of flash chromatography, the process is usually done with the mixture of two solvents, where one is polar while the other one is non-polar. This method is also called as the state of art. In this method the solvent is pressurized down the column with the help of external air pressure. This will isolate the desired organic compound from the solvent. The solvent choose to be used for the flash column chromatography process depends on the retention factor and it is calculated by measuring the distance covered by the solvent as well as the sample. Some of the solvents which can be used in the process are petroleum, Pentane, Acetate, Hexane and many more. It is a must that all of these solvents have to be used in combination with Ether.  


It is also called as medium pressure chromatography. It differs from the other techniques as the silica gel granules used in this technique is slightly smaller and this is the reason that the flow of solvent is restricted. In this technique pressurized gas is also used for driving the liquid through the stationary phase. Flash chromatography is frequently used nowadays as it is an easy process and the equipment’s required for this process comes in pre-packed plastic cartridges. The solvent obtained in the process is pumped up with the help of cartridge. The unnecessary solvent can be easily flushed out with the help of pressurized gas.  Gradient pumps were introduced, and it enhanced the separation result as now it was quicker and less solvent was used. Flash chromatography can although not be compared with the latest High performance liquid chromatography (HPLC), but it definitely improves the purity of samples to quite an extent. 

Chromatography Adsorbents for Labs Chemical

The time which the compounds take to isolate from the mixture depends on the type of absorbent used and also the polarity of the solvent. If in case the absorbents works very fast while at the same time the polarity of the solvent is low, then the separation process consumes time, but the separated components are in its purest form. On the contrary, if the absorbent does not able to work fast while the solvent has high polarity, then the separation phase completes at a rapid speed, but the separation quality is very poor. So in this state we can say that the separated components are not in its purest form.

The advantage of using this technique over the other chromatography technique is that it uses less solvent and works faster with greater flexibility. The obtained result is obviously higher as compared to the other processes because of the fine particles of silica gel and aluminum oxide. This process of separating compounds is used in various fields like medical chemistry, separation of natural products, laboratories research and many more. In this method, the size of the absorbent particle affects the flow of solvent through the column. Finer the particles will be, higher mesh value it will have. 

Column Chromatography Isolation of Synthesis Chemicals

Column Chromatography
Chromatography is basically a term used for the separation of compounds from a substance. This procedure proves to be very useful when the compounds are available in the substance in very small amount and hence it becomes very difficult to distinguish them from other. This method is also used when those small amount of mixtures present in the compounds have almost same physical or chemical properties. Chromatography is said to be the best and the most convenient method for separation. The method to be adopted in the separation process in chromatography depends on the distribution of components in a mixture during the fixed or stationary and the mobile or moving phase. The stationary phase is said to be the column of absorbent, which can be a paper or a thin layer of any type of absorber on a glass plate or any other thing through which the mobile phase can pass on. The mobile phase can be of liquid or gas. When the stationary phase of a solid takes place in a column it is said to be column chromatography. Column chromatography is said to be one of the best and the most useful method of separation and purification of any solid or liquid substance. It is also said as a solid liquid method of separation where the solid is said to be the stationary phase and liquid is said to be the mobile phase. Column chromatography works on the objective based on the differential absorption of substance based on the capacity of the absorbent. Some of the common absorbents used in column chromatography are calcium carbonate, magnesia, starch, alumina, silica and many more. One the contrary the solvent is selected according to the nature of solvent as well as the absorbent.

Column Chromatography makes easier the Separation of Compounds

Column Chromatography is basically a term used for the separation of compounds from a substance. This procedure proves to be very useful when the compounds are available in the substance in very small amount and hence it becomes very difficult to distinguish them from other. This method is also used when those small amount of mixtures present in the compounds have almost same physical or chemical properties. Chromatography is said to be the best and the most convenient method for separation. The method to be adopted in the separation process in chromatography depends on the distribution of components in a mixture during the fixed or stationary and the mobile or moving phase. The stationary phase is said to be the column of absorbent, which can be a paper or a thin layer of any type of absorber on a glass plate or any other thing through which the mobile phase can pass on.

The mobile phase can be of liquid or gas. When the stationary phase of a solid takes place in a column it is said to be column chromatography. Column chromatography is said to be one of the best and the most useful method of separation and purification of any solid or liquid substance. It is also said as a solid liquid method of separation where the solid is said to be the stationary phase and liquid is said to be the mobile phase. Column chromatography works on the objective based on the differential absorption of substance based on the capacity of the absorbent. Some of the common absorbents used in column chromatography are calcium carbonate, magnesia, starch, alumina, silica and many more. One the contrary the solvent is selected according to the nature of solvent as well as the absorbent.