Membrane chromatographic system cation-exchange membranes

Both methods use a low-capacity cation exchanger as a stationary phase and a dilute mineral acid such as hydrochloric or nitric acid as a mobile phase. Although stationary phases and eluents have changed over the years, the principal difference between the methods is the same up to the present day. For his hypothetical experiments. Small kept constant the volume of the stationary phase, the ion-exchange capacity of the separator colunm, the selectivity coefficients for sodium and potassium relative to the hydronium ion, and the injection volume. With these values and the known acid concentration in the mobile phase, it is possible to calculate the elution volumes of sodium and potassium. To further simplify the calculation of the elution profiles, the chromatographic peaks are assumed to be symmetrical, so that they can be described by a Gaussian curve. One can further assume that the membrane-based suppressor system exhibits a very small dead volume and, therefore, subtracts negligibly from the efficiency of the separator column, which is estimated to be 3000 theoretical plates. 

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