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Restek® MAPD Column Technology

Improves Trace Analysis of Polar Hydrocarbons
The chromatographic analysis of light hydrocarbons, including unsaturated isomers, is common in the
petrochemical industry. Adsorption chromatography using alumina stationary phases has proven to be
very effective for the separation of these compounds. However, challenges still exist, particularly for trace
analysis of polar hydrocarbons like propadiene, acetylene, and methyl acetylene. Successful analysis of
these compounds is highly dependent on the deactivation of the alumina. For example, responses for
these analytes are highly variable on sodium sulfate deactivated columns (Figure 1). While some columns,
known as MAPD columns (for methyl acetylene and propadiene), have been developed specifically for
these compounds, existing MAPD column solutions show limitations in response, reproducibility, capacity,
and temperature stability.
Restek has solved these problems by developing a line of MAPD alumina columns with a unique, highperformance
deactivation. These columns—the Rt®-Alumina BOND/MAPD (fused silica) and MXT®-
Alumina BOND/MAPD (metal) columns—offer several significant improvements over conventional
MAPD columns:

• Reproducible, predictable responses for reduced calibration frequency.
• Exceptional sample loading capacity, which improves resolution and response.
• Highest temperature stability—application range extended to 250 °C.

These features are a significant step forward in MAPD column technology and have resulted in improvements
in column performance compared to other MAPD columns. New Rt®-Alumina BOND/MAPD
and MXT®-Alumina BOND/MAPD columns are not only perfect for analysis of polar hydrocarbons
such as acetylene, methyl acetylene, and propadiene, but also perform well for generic light hydrocarbon
analysis.

Find out more in our detailed PDF here.