The function of the chromatographic analysis laboratory is to respond to the Cenicaña investigations that are carried out in the different sugar mills in the sector, providing information on sucrose and its transformation products, in addition to monitoring organic acids that provide information regarding to the transformations that can occur during the process.
In addition to this, analysis methodologies are developed that support the identification and quantification of compounds in the search to generate value-added products.
The main equipment that the laboratory has are:
High Efficiency Liquid Chromatography (HPLC)
This is a technique used to identify and quantify the components of a mixture or product of interest, in liquid chromatography (LC), a moving liquid (mobile phase) carries the sample through a stationary phase (the solid support found inside from an LC column). The components of the sample are separated based on their differences in affinity with the stationary phase. This technique is used for the determination of sugars, glycerol and organic acids.
Ultra High Efficiency Liquid Chromatography (UPLC)
Ultra-high efficiency liquid chromatography is a technique that allows the components of a complex mixture to be separated, identified and quantified. The separation is based on the different distribution of the components between two immiscible phases, one mobile and one stationary, the latter retained within a column, compared to high-efficiency chromatography, it manages to reduce analysis times achieving better definition in the results obtained. This technique is used for the determination of sugars.
Gas chromatography (GC)
Gas chromatography is a technique for the separation and analysis of mixtures of volatile substances based on the distribution of the components of a mixture between two immiscible phases, one fixed and the other mobile. In gas chromatography, the mobile phase is a gas that flows through a column that contains the fixed phase. This technique is used in the determination of ethanol congeners.
