What Column Should I Use for Carbohydrate Analysis?

Why Is Carbohydrate Analysis Important?

The food science industry relies heavily upon HPLC analysis for the quality, taste, and concentration of foods. In order to accurately analyze the carbohydrates in food, a proper HPLC column is needed. So, what column should you choose for carbohydrate analysis? Chrom Tech offers various HPLC columns. As an HPLC column supplier, and we are here to help you find what you need. In this blog, we discuss our columns for carbohydrate analysis.

What Columns Are Best for Carbohydrate Analysis?

When it comes to carbohydrate analyses, ligand exchange is often the preferred method for separation, as it allows for a simple water eluent. Ligand exchange columns work by using positively charged metal loaded groups on the column’s substrates to interact with the negatively charged hydroxyl groups on carbohydrate molecules. As with any analysis, consistency is important. We recommend Concise Separations carbohydrate analysis columns to provide consistency from column to column and polymer batch to polymer batch to ensure your results are consistent between runs.

Concise offers a wide range of columns that work for a variety of sugar analyses. By combining ligand exchange (metals), size exclusion, partitioning (cross-linkage of polymer), particle size (column efficiency), and column size (speed vs. resolution), Concise has developed the most complete line of carbohydrate analysis columns on the market. Benefits of these columns include:

• Various particle cross linkages optimize mono, di, tri, and oligosaccharide detection
• Multiple Metal ligands are offered to efficiently separate complex sugar matrices
• Moieties: Ca2+, Na+, K+, Pb2+ and mixed-mode

These columns can be used with PAD Detection, which is the detection mode used for electrochemical detection of carbohydrates. Reach out to our support team for assistance choosing the best column for your assay.

Extending Column Lifetime

As with any column, the lifetime of Concise columns can vary greatly depending on how the columns are used. Because polymers are chemically stable, as long as the columns are used within the operating parameters, they last for a very long time. One benefit of these high-quality columns is the ability to use a simple water eluent. By using pure water (minimum purity of 18 Mohm), you will extend the lifetime of the column significantly. Sample preparation, as well as the use of guard columns and in-line filters, will reduce the possibility for contaminants to enter the column (as is the case with any analytical column). With polymeric gels, keeping the column below the pressure max will also stretch out the column lifetime. The carbohydrate analysis columns are stable at temperatures up to 95 ºC. Make sure to let the column reach operating temperature before starting the flow, since temperature is a key component of pressure and flow rate.