Claims Analysis
Total Claims: 21
Claim 1
Independent Claim
109 words
A method of performing liquid chromatography comprising the steps of: packing within a tubular container a substantially uniformly distributed multiplicity of rigid, solid, porous particles with chromatographically active surfaces, so as to form a chromatographic column having an interstitial volume between said particles, said particles having average diameters of not less than about 30 μm; and loading said surfaces with at least one solute that is reactive with said surfaces, by flowing a liquid mixture containing said solute through said column at a velocity sufficient to induce flow of said mixture within at least a substantial portion of said interstitial volume at a reduced velocity greater than about 5,000.
Claim 2
Independent Claim
109 words
A method of performing liquid chromatography comprising the steps of: packing within a tubular container a substantially uniformly distributed multiplicity of rigid, solid, porous particles with chromatographically active surfaces, so as to form a chromatographic column having an interstitial volume between said particles, said particles having average diameters of not less than about 30 μm; and loading said surfaces with at least one solute that is reactive with said surfaces, by flowing a liquid mixture containing said solute through said column at a velocity sufficient to induce flow of said mixture within at least a substantial portion of said interstitial volume at a reduced velocity greater than about 5,000.
Claim 3
Dependent Claim
17 words
A method of performing liquid chromatography as set forth in claim 1, wherein said particles are irregularly-shaped.
Claim 4
Dependent Claim
40 words
A method of performing liquid chromatography as set forth in claim 1 wherein said particles are shaped and selected such that said interstitial volume between said particles is not less than about 45% of the total volume of said column.
Claim 5
Dependent Claim
29 words
A method of performing liquid chromatography as set forth in claim 1 wherein said particles are coated with stationary phase layers so as to render said surfaces chromatographically active.
Claim 6
Dependent Claim
22 words
A method of performing liquid chromatography as set forth in claim 1 wherein the induced flow of said mixture is substantially turbulent.
Claim 7
Dependent Claim
41 words
A method of performing liquid chromatography as set forth in claim 1 including the step of selecting said particles from materials that will be substantially incompressible so as to resist deformation up to packing pressures of at least 1×10 4 psi.
Claim 8
Dependent Claim
29 words
A method of performing liquid chromatography as set forth in claim 1, wherein said particles are formed from one or more of alumina, silica, titania, vanadia, zirconia and carbon.
Claim 9
Dependent Claim
35 words
A method of performing liquid chromatography as set forth in claim 1 wherein said particles are selected to have pores having average diameters lying within the range of from about 60 Å to 5,000 Å.
Claim 10
Dependent Claim
31 words
A method of performing liquid chromatography as set forth in claim 1, wherein said step of packing said particles is effected at pressures of substantially not less than 5×10 3 psi.
Claim 11
Dependent Claim
47 words
A method of performing liquid chromatography as set forth in claim 1, wherein said step of packing said particles is effected so as to form substantially no voids in said column except the interstitial volumes between those of said particles that are in contact with one another.
Claim 12
Dependent Claim
59 words
A method of performing liquid chromatography as set forth in claim 1 including the step of eluting loaded solute from said column by flowing an eluant fluid through said column at a velocity sufficient to induce flow of said eluant fluid within at least a substantial portion of said interstitial volume at a reduced velocity greater than about 5,000.
Claim 13
Dependent Claim
54 words
A method of performing liquid chromatography as set forth in claim 1 wherein the step of eluting is effected by flowing said eluant fluid through said column at a velocity selected such that band spreading of solute eluted by said eluant fluid from said column decreases with increasing Reynolds number of the eluant flow.
Claim 14
Dependent Claim
63 words
A method of performing liquid chromatography as set forth in claim 1, wherein the step of eluting is effected by flowing said eluant fluid through said column at a velocity selected such that band spreading of solute eluted by said eluant fluid from said column is an inverse function of the magnitude of the diffusion coefficient of said solute in said eluant fluid.
Claim 15
Dependent Claim
59 words
A method of performing liquid chromatography as set forth in claim 11, wherein the step of eluting is effected by flowing said eluant fluid through said column at a velocity selected such that band spreading of solute eluted by said eluant fluid from said column is a direct function of the magnitude of the molecular weight of said solute.
Claim 16
Dependent Claim
73 words
A method of performing liquid chromatography as set forth in claim 11, wherein the step of eluting is effected by flowing said eluant fluid through said column at a velocity selected such that band spreading of solute eluted by said eluant fluid from said column is an inverse function of both the Reynolds number for the eluant flow and of the magnitude of the diffusion coefficient of said solute in said eluant fluid.
Claim 17
Dependent Claim
44 words
A method of performing liquid chromatography as set forth in claim 11, wherein said particles are selected to have diameters of at least about 500 μm; and said steps of flowing and eluting are effected at reduced flow rates in excess of about 50,000.
Claim 18
Dependent Claim
51 words
In a chromatographic process wherein a solute introduced into a packed bed of chromatographically active particles becomes non-specifically bound to said particulates, a method of reducing such non-specific binding comprising the step of: flowing said solute in a liquid mixture through said column at an reduced velocity greater than about 5,000.
Claim 19
Dependent Claim
51 words
In a chromatographic process wherein a solute introduced into a packed bed of chromatographically active particles becomes non-specifically bound to said particulates, a method of reducing such non-specific binding comprising the step of: flowing said solute in a liquid mixture through said column at an reduced velocity greater than about 5,000.
Claim 20
Dependent Claim
21 words
A method of reducing non-specific binding as set forth in claim 17 wherein the flow of said mixture is substantially turbulent.
Claim 21
Dependent Claim
54 words
A method of reducing non-specific binding as set forth in claim 17 wherein said step of flowing includes injecting said mixture into said column at least at said reduced velocity, and substantially immediately thereafter eluting solute in said mixture from said column with a flow of eluant fluid at least at said reduced velocity.