Pumps, constant-pressure reciprocating

From the last shown elution method, it is clear that the pump is a very important accessory for high-pressure liquid chromatography. There are three main types of pumps used in modern chromatographs membrane pumps reciprocating piston pumps syringe type pumps constant pressure pumps... 

The types of pumps used for HPLC can be divided into two categories constant-pressure pumps (e.g. the inexpensive gas-displacement pump) and the constant-volume type (e.g. the reciprocating and syringe pumps). The most commonly used pumps in HPLC are the single- or multi-head reciprocating type. The former delivers the flow as a series of pulses which must be damped... 

The solvent is moved through the system by constant-flow or constant-pressure pumps which arc driven mechanically (screw-driven syringe or reciprocating) or by gas pressure with pneumatic amplifiers. For gradient elution Iwo pumps may be synchronised and programmed to provide a controlled, reproducible composition change. 

The Micromeritics 7000 liquid chromatograph (Fig.3.30) also uses a reciprocating pumping system. The pump has several unique features. It delivers pulseless flow without a pulse damper, it can operate from an unlimited reservoir, it requires only a single pump for gradient elution and it is capable of operating at constant pressure or constant flow-rate. 

The vast majority of pumps currently used in analytical HPLC are of the constant flow variety. With this type of pump, changes in the chromatographic system, for instance those leading to variations in the back pressure experienced by the pump, are compensated for, and the flow rate remains constant this is an important factor in most analytical applications. Two major types of constant flow pump exist the reciprocating piston design and the syringe type. 

The most commonly used pump for HPLC is the reciprocating pump. This has a small cylindrical piston chamber that is alternately filled with mobile phase and emptied via back-and-forth movement of the piston. This produces a pulsed flow that must be damped. Reciprocating pumps have a number of advantages. They have a small internal volume, are capable of high output pressures, and they can readily be used for gradient elution. They provide constant flow rates, independent of solvent viscosity or column backpressure. Other pumps used are motor-driven syringe pumps and pneumatic (constant-pressure) pumps. 

There are three main designs of solvent delivery system (a) the reciprocating piston pump which may be of the single, dual or triple head design (b) the syringe or displacement design which delivers constant non-pulsating flow (c) the constant pressure or pneumatic pump. 

Reciprocating pumps are constant volume devices producing essentially constant pressure. ... 

If the suspension is fed to the filter with a reciprocating pump at constant capacity, filtration is performed under constant flowrate. In this case, the pressure differential increases due to an increase in the cake resistance. If the suspension is fed by a centrifugal pump, its capacity decreases with an increase in cake resistance, and filtration is performed at variable pressure differentials and flowrates. 

Reciprocating-piston pumps deliver a constant flow at si fixed backpressure. At high pressures some minor flow variability ziay arise due to the compressibility of the mobile phase. Soms instruments incorporate a flow controller which provides a fixadi backpressure for the pump to work against, independent of the column backpressure. The influence of pressure fluctuations, solvent compressibility, and solvent viscosity on the volumetrie output of the pump are thereby eliminated. Reciprocating-piston pumps can provide continuous solvent delivery, fast solvent change--... 

Compared to syringe type or reciprocating pumps, pneumatic amplifier pumps are very cheap. They tend to be rather difficult to dismantle for repairs, and some types are very noisy in operation. Because they do not provide a constant flow of mobile phase, they are not used much in analytical hplc. They can, however, operate at high pressures and flow rates and so are used mainly for packing columns, where high pressures are needed and variations in the flow rate through the column do not matter. 

Rotary pumps deliver a nearly constant flow at a given speed, regardless of the pressure. Bypass control is the usual method, with speed control in larger sizes. Reciprocating pumps also may be controlled on bypass if a pulsation damper is provided in the circuit to smooth out pressure fluctuations Figure 3.21(c) shows this mode. 

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