Learn the History of Gas Chromatography and the Future of GC Simulation Software

The Origins of GC

Modern gas chromatography (GC) was invented by Martin and James in 1952. This was the result of countless years of study, though, not the beginning. In fact, the early history of gas chromatography dates back to the first experiments of Mikhail Tsvet separating plant pigments using paper chromatography in 1903. Two scientists, Schuftan and Eucken introduced vapor as the mobile phase in the 1930s. They were on the right track!

In 1955, the lab bench was populated with analytical instruments that only skilled scientists could operate. They didn't yet have the GC data analysis software we use now! PerkinElmer, INC, a global corporation focused in the business areas of diagnostics, life science research, food, environmental and industrial testing, set out to make GC more accessible to researchers. They did this by introducing their first gas chromatograph, the Model 154 Vapor Fractometer. This was the first ever gas chromatograph to use an oven to adjust the column temperature, a flash vaporizer and a syringe injection. It was a very exciting development at the time!

Making Advancements

Over the decades, many advancements were made. Researchers were finding new applications for temperature-programmable instruments. In response, PerkinElmer developed the Model 222, which attached to the 154 Vapor Fractometer via its detector. By the 1970's, Hewlett-Packard (HP) introduced its first gas chromatograph, the HP 5830. This was also the first microprocessor-controlled analytical instrument ever made.

GC made rapidly performing drug screening possible for routine testing of athletes in the 1976 Olympics. By the late 1980's and early 1990's, the evolution of the GC system and new software meant the demand for a broader range of application-focused detectors grew. Building on an already impressive platform, HP released the 6890 series of gas chromatographs, setting a new standard for the next generation of GC systems. The next huge leap forward came in 2002. With ease of use still being a drawback to most GC data analysis software, PerkinElmer revamped its user interface and introduced the first touch-screen display based graphical user interface to its Clarus 500 gas chromatograph and GC/MS lines.

What's Next in the Industry?

Now it is time to look forward and see what's next. The future is bright in this industry. According to industry experts, it can be expected that GC’s will become more like sensor technology as higher speeds are achieved. Something else to expect includes using heart-cut technology to view compounds in even more detai and a secondary column with different characteristics is used to conduct a more detailed analysis. Manufacturers are confident that gas chromatography will continue to play an ever more important role in labs as the equipment continues to evolve to meet the demands of more challenging applications, as well as increasing efficiency in daily analysis.

One thing is for sure, the past development in gas chromatography has been exciting to watch and the future will be just as great.