Analytical Uses of Critical Fluids
Critical fluids such as carbon dioxide and water in their supercritical and subcritical states can be used not only for processing purposes, but also for sample preparation/analysis in analytical chemistry. The result is methodology which miminizes or totally elimates the use of organic solvents in the laboratory (see image at left), hence assuring compliance with EPA, NIOSH, and other regulatory agencies/acts. The diversity of experience in analytical chemistry not only in the Supercritical Fluids Facility, but in the C-ACT Group at LANL, permits the development of analytical methodology utilizing supercritical fluids.
Such applications can include the solvent-free determination of fat in food products (candy in the image above right) or the supercritical fluid extraction of small samples (right, middle), coupled either off-line or on-line with chomatographic and/or spectroscopic instrumentation.The Supercritical Fluid Facility staff partners with companies producing supercritical fluid instrumentation (see images below, right) to produce improvement in instrument design as well as new methodology.
Operated by the