HTC-15

HTC-15 - Abstract

Abstract Title: Automated sample preparation: the missing hyphen to hypernation
Abstract Type: Seminar
Session Choice: Fundamentals in Separation Science & Sample Prep
Presenter Name: Dr Camilla Liscio
Company/Organisation: Anatune
Country: United Kingdom

Abstract Information :

In 1980 the term "hyphenation" was firstly coined by Hirschfeld to denote the on-line combination of a chromatographic separation and one or more spectroscopic/spectrometric detection techniques. The marriage, to exploit the advantages of both, was driven by the constant need within the analytical community to push the boundaries of selectivity and sensitivity to tackle the continuously more challenging and demanding analytical applications.

Nearly 40 years down the line, hyphenated analytical techniques are now the favoured approach for complex qualitative and quantitative analytical problems. With hyphenated techniques such as GC-MS and LC-MS well-established techniques of choice, special attention is now devoted to systems in which multiple hyphenation, also known as hypernation, is an integral part of the whole setup. It's within the perspective of hypernation that the on-line automation of sample preparation finds its perfect scope.

Indeed, sample preparation is an essential part of any analytical workflow and despite the excellent performances of the latest available hyphenated techniques, good quality data for complex matrices can only be achieved when counting on a robust and reproducible sample preparation. Nevertheless, the appeal of automated sample prep doesn't lie only in very good method robustness and batch-to-batch reproducibility. The extremely accurate flow control (down to 0.1µL/s) in liquid handling and the ability to control timing accurately (e.g. incubation time for derivatisation purposes) open the doors to what could be considered "high performance" sample preparation.

SmartSPE is an emblematic example of the power of automation for hypernation. The automation of online SPE using ITSP (Instrument Top Sample Preparation) single use miniaturised cartridges allows precise flow control and the ability to achieve SPE chromatographic performance which is not accessible with a manual method. In fact, in contrast to manual larger volume SPE, smart SPE flow profiles follow the expected Van Deemter curves with clearly defined optima. As an outcome of the accurate flow control, absolute recoveries of >99% can be achieved along with a significant reduction in background matrix.

This talk will set the background for the hypernation of automated sample preparation to both GC-MS and LC-MS. It will encompass some relevant qualitative and quantitative applications developed in the Anatune demo lab where the hypernation of automated sample preparation excelled in the delivery of high quality analytical data.