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retardation factor

science
Also known as: Rf value

Quick Summary

The retardation factor, often denoted as Rf, is a value used in chromatography to describe how far a substance has moved relative to the solvent front. It is calculated by dividing the distance the center of a solute zone has traveled from the origin by the distance the mobile phase front has traveled from the origin. This value is constant for a given solute under specific solvent conditions and helps in qualitative analysis by comparing the Rf of unknown components to known substances. In planar chromatography, the Rf value is a key measurement reported for separated zones.12

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