Improving temperature gradient interaction chromatography of polyolefins by simultaneous use of different stationary phases

Temperature gradient interaction chromatography (TGIC) at high temperatures is a powerful method for the chemical composition separation of polyolefins. TGIC is a two-step process where the sample is crystallized on the stationary phase at low temperature followed by the elution of the sample components using a temperature gradient towards high temperatures. For TGIC typically a porous graphitic carbon (PGC) stationary phase is used. The separation mechanism is based on crystallization and adsorption/desorption phenomena and it has been shown that co-crystallization and co-adsorption may affect the separation. The present study reports on the simultaneous use of a non-adsorptive and an adsorptive stationary phase (column) in series to utilize both crystallization and adsorption for improved separation in TGIC. A silica column is used as the non-adsorptive support to allow for the crystallization of the polyolefin sample in the absence of an adsorptive force followed by the typical PGC column for adsorption/desorption. Accordingly, the loci of crystallization and adsorption/desorption are well separated from each other and can be adjusted independently. This novel column setup allows the sample to be introduced slowly onto the second (adsorptive) column eliminating possible co-adsorption and poor selectivity. Low molar mass polyethylene comprising of oligomers with approximately C₃₀C₁₃₀ was used to illustrate the importance of a non-adsorptive column for improved separation. Utilizing a non-adsorptive silica column allows for higher dynamic flow rates during crystallization, which improves separation. Shorter adsorptive columns are found to be more efficient in this experimental protocol as compared to standard TGIC experiments. Smaller PGC column sizes result in reduced longitudinal and Eddy diffusion and, hence, higher resolution of low and high molar mass polyolefins.