Apparatus and process for chromatographic product detection

Claim 1

A process for detecting products of liquid chromatographic analysis, which products may be either radioactively tagged with Carbon-14 or tritium or not tagged which comprises the steps of: a. Applying either a radioactively Carbon-14 tagged, a tritium tagged or a non-tagged chromatographic sample to a moving wire; b. Moving the sample on the wire first through an evporator oven to dry the sample, and then through a combustion furnace to combust the sample with a combustion gas to form either non-radioactive or Carbon-14 tagged or tritium tagged carbon dioxide gas and water; c. When non-radioactive carbon dioxide gas is formed in step b), contacting the non-radioactive carbon dioxide gas with a nickel catalyst in a first catalytic furnace to convert the carbon dioxide gas to non-radioactive methane and hydrogen; d. Conveying non-radioactive methane to a first detector means for sample detection; e. When Carbon-14 tagged radioactive carbon dioxide gas is formed in step b), conveying the Carbon-14 tagged radioactive carbon dioxide and water to a drying chamber to remove the water, and conveying the carbon dioxide gas to a second detector means for sample detection; f. When tritium tagged radioactive carbon dioxide gas is formed in step b), conveying the tritium tagged radioactive water and carbon dioxide gas to a second catalytic furnace and contacting the water with an iron catalyst in the presence of hydrogen to convert the water to tritium gas and conveying the tritium gas to the second detector means for sample detection.

Claim 15

An apparatus for detecting products of chromatographic analysis, which products may be either radioactively tagged or not tagged which comprise in combination: a. A movable wire having liquid chromatographic sample receiving means; b. An evaporator oven mounted in tandem with a combustion furnace, the wire adapted to move a sample first through the evaporator oven and then through the combustion furnace; c. The evaporator oven having gas egress means, and the combustion furance having at least one gas ingress means and gas egress means; the evaporator oven adapted to remove solvent from a liquid sample leaving a solute remaining on the wire, and the combustion furnace adapted to convert the solute to a gaseous combustion product with a combustion gas; d. The combustion furnace gas egress means in flow communication with a first valve means; e. The first valve means in flow communication with ingress means for a first catalytic furnace; and a second valve means; the catalytic furnace, adapted to convert the gaseous combustion product from the combustion furnace to a gaseous reaction product and having gas egress means in flow communication with a first detector means; f. The second valve means in flow communication with a third valve means and adapted to emit or not the gaseous combustion product to the third valve means; g. The third valve means in flow communication with a fourth valve means and an external, inert gas source, and adapted to either emit the gaseous combustion product to the fourth valve means or to emit the inert gas to the fourth valve means; h. The fourth valve means in flow communication with a drying chamber and a fifth valve means, and adapted to shunt the gaseous combustion product to either the drying chamber or to the fifth valve means; i. The fifth valve means in flow communication with a second catalytic furnace and a source of reaction gas, and adapted to shunt the gaseous combustion product to the second catalytic furnace for conversion to a gaseous reaction product, and simultaneously, emit a reaction gas to the second catalytic furnace; j. The drying chamber and the second catalytic furnace each in flow communication with a sixth valve means, which valve means is in flow communication with a second detector means, the valve means adapted to shunt the gaseous combustion product from the drying chamber or the gaseous reaction product from the second catalytic furnace to the second detector means.

Claim 16

An apparatus for detecting products of chromatographic analysis, which products may be either radioactively tagged or not tagged which comprise in combination: a. A movable wire having liquid chromatographic sample receiving means; b. An evaporator oven mounted in tandem with a combustion furnace, the wire adapted to move a sample first through the evaporator oven and then through the combustion furnace; c. The evaporator oven having gas egress means, and the combustion furance having at least one gas ingress means and gas egress means; the evaporator oven adapted to remove solvent from a liquid sample leaving a solute remaining on the wire, and the combustion furnace adapted to convert the solute to a gaseous combustion product with a combustion gas; d. The combustion furnace gas egress means in flow communication with a first valve means; e. The first valve means in flow communication with ingress means for a first catalytic furnace; and a second valve means; the catalytic furnace, adapted to convert the gaseous combustion product from the combustion furnace to a gaseous reaction product and having gas egress means in flow communication with a first detector means; f. The second valve means in flow communication with a third valve means and adapted to emit or not the gaseous combustion product to the third valve means; g. The third valve means in flow communication with a fourth valve means and an external, inert gas source, and adapted to either emit the gaseous combustion product to the fourth valve means or to emit the inert gas to the fourth valve means; h. The fourth valve means in flow communication with a drying chamber and a fifth valve means, and adapted to shunt the gaseous combustion product to either the drying chamber or to the fifth valve means; i. The fifth valve means in flow communication with a second catalytic furnace and a source of reaction gas, and adapted to shunt the gaseous combustion product to the second catalytic furnace for conversion to a gaseous reaction product, and simultaneously, emit a reaction gas to the second catalytic furnace; j. The drying chamber and the second catalytic furnace each in flow communication with a sixth valve means, which valve means is in flow communication with a second detector means, the valve means adapted to shunt the gaseous combustion product from the drying chamber or the gaseous reaction product from the second catalytic furnace to the second detector means.

Claim 18

An apparatus for detecting products of chromatographic analysis, which products may be either radioactively tagged or not tagged, which comprise in combination: a. A movable wire having liquid chromatographic sample receiving means; b. An evaporator oven mounted in tandem with a combustion furnace, the wire adapted to move a sample first through the evaporator oven, and then through the combustion furnace; c. The evaporator oven having gas egress means, and the combustion furnace having at least one gas ingress means and gas egress means, the evaporator oven adapted to remove solvent from a liquid sample leaving a solute remaining on the wire, and the combustion furnace adapted to convert the solute to a gaseous combustion product with a combustion gas; d. The combustion furnace gas egress means in flow communication with ingress means for a first catalytic furnace; the catalytic furance, adapted to convert the gaseous combustion product from the combustion furnace to a gaseous reaction product and having gas egress means in flow communication with a first valve means; e. The first valve means in flow communication with a first detector means and a second valve means and adapted to shunt the gaseous reaction product to the first detector means or the second valve means; f. The second valve means in flow communication with a third valve means and adapted to emit or not the gaseous reaction product to the third valve means; g. The third valve means in flow communication with a fourth valve means and an external, inert gas source and adapted to either emit the gaseous reaction product to the fourth valve means or to emit the inert gas to the fourth valve means; h. The fourth valve means in flow communication with a second catalytic furnace and a fifth valve means, and adapted to shunt the gaseous reaction product to either the second catalytic furnace for conversion to a second gaseous reaction product or to the fifth valve means; i. The fifth valve means in flow communication with a third catalytic furnace and a source of reaction gas, and adapted to shunt the gaseous reaction product to the third catalytic furnace for conversion to a third gaseous reaction product, and simultaneously, emit a reaction gas to the third catalytic furnace; j. The second catalytic furnace and the third catalytic furnace each in flow communication with a sixth valve means, which valve means is in flow communication with a second detector means, the valve means adapted to shunt the gaseous reaction product from the second catalytic furnace or the third catalytic furnace to the second detector means.

Claim 19

An apparatus for detecting products of chromatographic analysis, which products may be either radioactively tagged or not tagged, which comprise in combination: a. A movable wire having liquid chromatographic sample receiving means; b. An evaporator oven mounted in tandem with a combustion furnace, the wire adapted to move a sample first through the evaporator oven, and then through the combustion furnace; c. The evaporator oven having gas egress means, and the combustion furnace having at least one gas ingress means and gas egress means, the evaporator oven adapted to remove solvent from a liquid sample leaving a solute remaining on the wire, and the combustion furnace adapted to convert the solute to a gaseous combustion product with a combustion gas; d. The combustion furnace gas egress means in flow communication with ingress means for a first catalytic furnace; the catalytic furance, adapted to convert the gaseous combustion product from the combustion furnace to a gaseous reaction product and having gas egress means in flow communication with a first valve means; e. The first valve means in flow communication with a first detector means and a second valve means and adapted to shunt the gaseous reaction product to the first detector means or the second valve means; f. The second valve means in flow communication with a third valve means and adapted to emit or not the gaseous reaction product to the third valve means; g. The third valve means in flow communication with a fourth valve means and an external, inert gas source and adapted to either emit the gaseous reaction product to the fourth valve means or to emit the inert gas to the fourth valve means; h. The fourth valve means in flow communication with a second catalytic furnace and a fifth valve means, and adapted to shunt the gaseous reaction product to either the second catalytic furnace for conversion to a second gaseous reaction product or to the fifth valve means; i. The fifth valve means in flow communication with a third catalytic furnace and a source of reaction gas, and adapted to shunt the gaseous reaction product to the third catalytic furnace for conversion to a third gaseous reaction product, and simultaneously, emit a reaction gas to the third catalytic furnace; j. The second catalytic furnace and the third catalytic furnace each in flow communication with a sixth valve means, which valve means is in flow communication with a second detector means, the valve means adapted to shunt the gaseous reaction product from the second catalytic furnace or the third catalytic furnace to the second detector means.

Claim 22

An apparatus for detecting products of chromatographic analysis, which products may be either radioactively tagged or not tagged, which comprise in combination: a. A first valve means in flow communication with a gas chromatographic sample receiving means, a first detector means, and a second valve means and adapted to shunt the gas chromatographic sample to the first detector means or the second valve means; b. The second valve means in flow communication with a third valve means and adapted to emit or not the gas chromatographic sample to the third valve means; c. The third valve means in flow communication with a fourth valve means and an external, inert gas source and adapted to either emit the gas chromatographic sample to the fourth valve means or to emit the inert gas to the fourth valve means; d. The fourth valve means in flow communication with a first catalytic furnace and a fifth valve means, and adapted to shunt the gas chromatographic sample to either the first catalytic furnace for conversion to a gaseous reaction product or to the fifth valve means; e. The fifth valve means in flow communication with a second catalytic furnace and a source of reaction gas, and adapted to shunt the chromatographic sample to the second catalytic furnace for conversion to a gaseous reaction product and simultaneously, emit a reaction gas to the third catalytic furnace; f. The first catalytic furnace and the second catalytic furnace each in flow communication with a sixth valve means, which valve means is in flow communication with a second detector means, the valve means adapted to shunt the gaseous reaction product from the second catalytic means.

Claim 23

An apparatus for detecting products of chromatographic analysis, which products may be either radioactively tagged or not tagged, which comprise in combination: a. A first valve means in flow communication with a gas chromatographic sample receiving means, a first detector means, and a second valve means and adapted to shunt the gas chromatographic sample to the first detector means or the second valve means; b. The second valve means in flow communication with a third valve means and adapted to emit or not the gas chromatographic sample to the third valve means; c. The third valve means in flow communication with a fourth valve means and an external, inert gas source and adapted to either emit the gas chromatographic sample to the fourth valve means or to emit the inert gas to the fourth valve means; d. The fourth valve means in flow communication with a first catalytic furnace and a fifth valve means, and adapted to shunt the gas chromatographic sample to either the first catalytic furnace for conversion to a gaseous reaction product or to the fifth valve means; e. The fifth valve means in flow communication with a second catalytic furnace and a source of reaction gas, and adapted to shunt the chromatographic sample to the second catalytic furnace for conversion to a gaseous reaction product and simultaneously, emit a reaction gas to the third catalytic furnace; f. The first catalytic furnace and the second catalytic furnace each in flow communication with a sixth valve means, which valve means is in flow communication with a second detector means, the valve means adapted to shunt the gaseous reaction product from the second catalytic means.