supercritical-fluid chromatography

chemistry

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July 14, 2026

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Supercritical-fluid chromatography (SFC) is a separation technique that utilizes a supercritical fluid as the mobile phase. A supercritical fluid exists at temperatures and pressures above its critical point, exhibiting properties of both liquids and gases. This state allows it to dissolve substances more effectively than a gas while maintaining lower viscosity than a liquid.1

SFC is particularly effective for separating compounds that are relatively nonpolar and nonvolatile. The process involves a stationary phase packed into a column, through which the supercritical fluid mobile phase carries the sample. Different components of the sample distribute themselves between the stationary and mobile phases based on their affinities, leading to separation as they travel through the column at different rates. This method is a type of chromatography, a broader technique used extensively for separating organic and biological substances.12

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chromatography
Subsequent developments
…this state is termed a supercritical fluid. At very high pressure, the density of the fluid can be 90 percent or more of the liquid density. The German chemist Ernst Klesper and his colleagues working at Johns Hopkins University were the first to report separation of the porphyrins with dense…
Read More
…this state is termed a supercritical fluid. At very high pressure, the density of the fluid can be 90 percent or more of the liquid density. The German chemist Ernst Klesper and his colleagues working at Johns Hopkins University were the first to report separation of the porphyrins with dense…
Read More