Personal Overpressured-Layer Chromatography Separation Unit POSU 50
What is OPLC ?
Overpressured-Layer Chromatography (OPLC) is a powerful separation technique that uses a solvent pump (optional item) to deliver eluent into a pressurized ultramicro chamber containing an analytical or preparative planar adsorbent bed to separate the components of a mixture. The eluent is forced to flow through the adsorbent layer at an optimum, constant linear velocity. The openable planar adsorbent bed (OPLC layer) and the forced flow allows OPLC to combine the benefits of HPLC (High Performance Liquid Chromatography) and TLC (Thin-Layer Chromatography) to provide rapid, efficient separations using a variety of stationary phases.
Features and Benefits
- High chromatographic efficiency – Uniformly pressurized OPLC layer to 50 bar reduce interstitial void volume; uniform forced eluent flow reduce run time and diffusion in adsorbent bed, particles size as low as 5μm are available. OPLC provides superb separations thanks to its high efficiency of up to 12000 theoretical plates.
- High throughput parallel separation – using off-line sample application and detection mode, more than 30 samples can be run simultaneously on a 20×20 cm layer with solvent front up to 17 cm using mono-directional development; more than 60 samples in bi-directional development.
- Easy semi-preparative scale-up using the same eluent composition as in analytical separation.
- No loss of information – Visualize compounds retained on the stationary phase.
- Ideal chromatographic technique for bioassay-guided isolation of active natural and synthetic compounds in the innovative BioArena System
- Low operating cost. Inexpensive, semi-disposable OPLC layers, low solvent consumption (up to 100x less than other LC techniques) with no or minimum sample preparation make this technique particularly economical.
- Work with any HPLC Systems in your laboratory. Save on capital investment.
Typical Applications
OPLC is a general separation technique that has been successfully applied to areas such as:
QC and In Process Control of pharmaceutical products.
Natural Products: Chromatography Finger Printing, Bio-Assay Guided screening and isolation of active compounds from natural products.
Drug metabolism: Isolation of metabolites in biological fluids.
Purification of reaction mixtures: Isolate compounds of interest for additional studies (e.g. for NMR or MS).
Toxicology: Determination of toxins in foodstuffs (e.g. aflatoxins in wheat)
Technical Specifications
Personal OPLC Separation Unit 50 – POSU 50
Principle of Operation | Overpressured-Layer Chromatography or OPLC |
Sorbent Bed Compatibility | OPLC layers compatible with OPLC separation unit include: 0.2 mm thick, 5 cm x 20 cm and 20 cm x 20 cm aluminium backed layers, 0.2 mm, 0.5mm thick 20×20 cm glass backed layers. |
Pressurization | The OPLC layers are pressurized to 5 MPa (50 bars/725 psi) via an on-board hydraulic system using a water/glycerol mixture.
Time to reach maximum pressure : less than 1 min Max. Elution Pressure: 4 MPa (40 bar or 580psi) |
Semi- preparative Scale Operation | Capable of semi-preparative separation with on-line fraction collection. Maximum loading capacity depends on sample and OPLC layer dimensions. 0.5mm thick 20x20cm glass backed Si OPLC layers are available. |
Mode of Separation | Uni-directional, bi-directional, one dimensional and two dimensional separation can be performed. |
Solvent Delivery | Solvent can be delivered by any analytical HPLC pump/systems in on-line OPLC system FEW version. For off-line sample application, require pump or software with flow programming capability for solvent linearization.
Upper back pressure limit on the pump should be set to 4 MPa or 40 bar (580 psi). |
Sample Application | Direct Sample Application Mode -samples can be spotted or streaked on the sorbent bed in an off-line mode either manually or automatically using an automatic sample applicator (not included). Multiple samples should be placed on the sorbent bed in a linear arrangement.
On-line Sample Application Mode – samples can be injected into the stream of solvent flowing through OPLC using an optional/existing manual injection valve or autosampler. |
On-line Detection | The POSU 50 can be interfaced to all detectors in HPLC systems (e.g. UV, Fluorescence, Radiometric, Evaporative Light Scattering, MS, NMR). |
Off-line Detection | The OPLC layers can be readily taken out from the OPLC separation unit and can be examined at any point during a separation. Observation of bands can be performed using UV lamp, densitometer, photographic equipment before or after derivatization with a spray/dip reagent. |
Safety | The hydraulic system will not function unless a layer holder (cassette) is properly inserted into the separation chamber. There is an indication that the unit is pressurized and ready for use. |
OPLC Ordering Information: DOWNLOAD
POSU 50 Technical Specifications: DOWNLOAD
POSU 50 Brochure: DOWNLOAD