Gas Chromatography
Laboratory facilities contain several Hewlett-Packard 5890 capillary gas chromatographs equipped with both on-column and split/splitless injection ports and a variety of detectors (flame ionization detector [FID], electron capture detector [ECD], and atomic emission detector [AED]).

Gas chromatography (GC) with capillary columns is utilized to separate complex mixtures of volatile materials into their individual components. When a GC is interfaced to an FID, the resulting data are essentially proportional to the number of CH groups in the component (GC peak). This can then be related to the weight percentage of the component in the sample. An ECD is sensitive for compounds with strong electronegative atoms such as chlorinated species. An AED, interfaced to a GC, allows for specific element detection.

Liquid Chromatography
Not all compounds are thermally stable and volatile enough to be suitable for GC analysis. For analysis of more polar compounds, high-pressure liquid chromatography (HPLC) with UV and a refractometric detector are available.