Fractionation of triglyceride mixtures by preparative gas chromatography

Abstract

A semiautomatic system is described for gas-chromatographic separation and recovery of triglycerides of uniform molecular weight in milligram quantities. It employs an Aerograph Autoprep 700 (Wilkens Instrument and Research Inc.) equipped with a stream splitter and a hydrogen flame ionization detector. The column is an aluminum or stainless steel tube (1/4 in. O.D.x2 ft) and contains silanized Chromosorb W (60-80 mesh) coated with 5% (w/w) JXR or SE-30. Five to ten milligrams of mixed triglyceride are injected at a time and the temperature is programmed exponentially from 150 to 350C. With split ratios of 1ratio5 to 1ratio10 collections of 20 to 50 mg of each peak can be made with some 10 to 20 injections.