Automated Programmable Preparation of Carbonate-Bicarbonate Eluents for Ion Chromatography with Pressurized Carbon Dioxide.

We introduce a novel carbonate-bicarbonate eluent generation system in which CO2 is introduced using programmable CO2 pressures across a membrane into a flowing solution of electrodialytically generated high purity KOH. Many different gradient types are possible, including situations where gradients are run both on the [KOH] and the CO2 pressure. The system is more versatile than current electrodialytic carbonate eluent generators and can easily generate significantly higher eluent concentrations (at least to 40 mM carbonate), paving the way for future higher capacity columns. Demonstrably purer carbonate-bicarbonate eluent systems are possible compared to manually prepared carbonate-bicarbonate eluents and with considerable savings in time. Performance in different modes is examined. The dissolved CO2 is removed by a carbon dioxide removal device prior to detection. Best case noise levels are within a factor of 2-3 of best case suppressed hydroxide eluent operation. The eluent system allows particular latitude in controlling elution order/time of polyprotic acid analytes. Although CO2 introduction is possible prior to hydroxide eluent generation, this configuration causes complications because of electroreduction of CO2 to formate.