Chromatography Forum

i was wondering if baking the column near it's max temperature is performed too much, will it hurt the column. my supervisor want to bake the column for an hour everytime after i install it. so if i have to change column for different test, i could be baking a column 2-3 times a week.

I generally bake mine at 10C below the max for a half hour, or until baseline is stable, before every use. Does not matter if I have taken the column off or not.

Ensures no silly mess-ups

Mine approach depends on the column, and is usually for about an hour.

For thermally-resistant non-polar columns, I usually bake at 20C above the method's final temperature, or 20C below the isothermal Max, whichever is lower. For polar columns, I usually bake at the method's final temperature.

I would only increase the baking temperature if peaks were still coming off after an hour or so.

My experience is that, with good quality columns and carrier gases, high-temperature operation of non-polar eventually results in column rejection because of brittleness, rather than performance. For polar columns, they tend to croak if they see oxygen or muck at elevated temperatures, so I tend to minimise thermal exposure.

Please keep having fun,

Bruce Hamilton

Baking out will (or at least should) give a smoother baseline, and less baseline drift during a temperature programme. If neither of these is an issue in your particular analysis then you can save time and stress on the column by not baking.

If you are going to bake columns, make absolutely sure that your carrier gas is clean and that your system has no leaks.

Peter

Baking out will (or at least should) give a smoother baseline, and less baseline drift during a temperature programme. If neither of these is an issue in your particular analysis then you can save time and stress on the column by not baking.

If you are going to bake columns, make absolutely sure that your carrier gas is clean and that your system has no leaks.

Peter