Laboratory Innovation Project of Substance Separation and Detection Using Self-Made Low-Pressure Liquid Chromatography

The chromatography method is deeply used in separation and analysis of organic compounds, and it is also an important element in organic chemistry experiment or advanced experiment courses. However, in undergraduate teaching laboratories, the number of liquid chromatography instruments is relatively limited, and most of the components of the instrument are enclosed in a box, which can not meet the learning and operating needs of all students. Thus, in our project, self-made low pressure liquid chromatography (SLLC) was designed and applied in an innovative experimental project to make sure that every student could build the device independently and use it to separate and detect chlorophyll and colorless conjugated organic mixtures. Gratifyingly, all students were interested in the experimental content. With the aids of hands-on activities and visually intuitive phenomena, the structure, principles, and operation of liquid chromatography (LC) can be fully understood and mastered. The project is suitable for promotion and practice in universities at all levels because it only took four credit hours and about 100 RMB (about 13 dollars) on the self-made SLLC.