Applications of Chromatography in the Analysis of Inorganic Materials

The role of separations in inorganic analysis is discussed and the advantages of various chromatographic techniques are stressed. Major separation methods include solvent extraction, column extraction chromatography, gas chromatography of volatile metal chelates, ionexchange chromatography, and column chromatography employing chelating resins and non-ionic sorptive resins. The use of each of these methods in analysis is illustrated by specific examples. The state-of-the-art in organic liquid chromatography is contrasted with that in inorganic chromatography. Many organic compounds in a sample can be s eparated in a few minutes with automatic detection and quantitation from electronically integrated peak areas. Unfortunately, many inorganic separations are still carried out slowly with gravity flow columns and manual analysis of collected fractions. The principles of high-speed inorganic chromatography are outlined and specific examples are given. Finally, an important role for chelating ion-exchange resins in inorganic separations is predicted. Recent developments in chelating resins are reviewed briefly. Some new resins are discussed, including a non-ionic resin that is selective for uranium and a chelating resin that is highly selective for gold, silver, mercury, and bismuth.