Lab and analysis
Gas chromatography (GC)
Definition
A separation method for volatile compounds, used for solvents, residual solvents and many organic intermediates.
In GC a vaporised sample is carried by a gas through a column and detected, often by a flame ionisation detector or a mass spectrometer. GC is the standard purity method for solvents and volatile intermediates, and headspace GC is used for residual solvents.
Non volatile or heat sensitive compounds are usually tested by HPLC instead.