Fractional Factorial Design for the Identification of Important Instrumental Factors Affecting the Quality of Gas Chromatographic Separation of Whiskey Volatiles

TCE

The Chemical Educator

ISSN: 1430-4171 (electronic version)

Table of Contents

Abstract Volume 6 Issue 5 (2001) pp 291-294

Fractional Factorial Design for the Identification of Important Instrumental Factors Affecting the Quality of Gas Chromatographic Separation of Whiskey Volatiles

Richard J. Stolzberg

Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of Alaska Fairbanks, Fairbanks, AK 99775-6160
Received April 26, 2001 Accepted May 22, 2001

Published online: 14 September 2001

Abstract. A fractional-factorial screening experiment that helps students identify important factors in gas chromatographic method development is described. The experiment gives practical experience in relating chromatographic theory to practice. The results of sixteen gas chromatography runs of a single whiskey sample enable students to deduce that mobile-phase flow rate has the major effect on the quality of the separation of this complex mixture. Three other individual factors and an interaction of two factors exert a minor influence on the quality of the separation.

Key Words: Laboratories and Demonstrations; instrumental analysis; chromatography

(*) Corresponding author. (E-mail: ffrjs@uaf.edu)

Article in PDF format (151 KB) HTML format

Supporting Materials:

The sixteen chromatograms, a rationale of factorial-design experiments, and a student laboratory handout are available as a Zip file (204 KB) 10.1007/s00897010504b