Definition of Chromatography, gas (GC)

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Chromatography, gas (GC): A type of automated chromatography (a technique used to separate mixtures of substances) in which the mixture to be analyzed is vaporized and carried by an inert gas through a special column and thence to a detection device. The special column can contain an inert porous solid (in gas-solid chromatography) or a liquid coated on a solid support (in gas-liquid chromatography). The basic aim with GC is to separate each component that was in the mixture so that it produces a different peak in the detection device output which is graphed on a chart recorder. GC is a valuable tool in biochemistry (and other fields of chemistry, as in the analysis of perfumes).