Chromatography Forum

Hello, I was wondering what is the absolute best way to remove sulfur from a GC/MS system. I ran some soil samples which were high in sulfur and now it is effecting my earlier compounds in QC. Any tips or advice will be helpful. Thanks.

Is this a purge and trap method ?
The sulphuris likely to be deposited on the solid surfaces of the injector etc.
You may have to bake all hardware ( after removing column), replace septa etc.
As far as I know, sulphur is only soluble in CS2, a foul-smelling and inflammable liquid; you do not want to go there!

JMB

Yes, it is a purge and trap method. Thanks for your response. Will the source need to be cleaned or the trap need to be replaced? Or will simply baking and replacing septa do the trick?

Yes, you will have to clean EVERY item that the sulphur could have been deposited on.
Baking, sonication with a detergent and any other cleaning method you can think of.
I would be interested to learn from you what does/ does not work regarding the removal of sulphur.
Good Luck,
JMB

Since it is affecting the early part of the run I would begin with removing the first loop or two of the front of the column then try another injection and see if that helps. Then clean back to the trap from there, which would be liner, injection port, transfer line, valves and tubing.

If the needle in the sparge tube is stainless steel, has it turned black? I find often that really high sulfur samples will turn the needle black and you either have to replace it or clean it with sand paper to remove the sulfur staining on it.