HPTLC
Definition
High-performance TLC with smaller silica particles, automated Camag Linomat band application and densitometric scanning that delivers quantitative results comparable to HPLC.
- Full name
- High-performance thin-layer chromatography
- Key improvement over TLC
- Smaller silica particles
- Application system
- Automated Camag Linomat band application
- Quantification
- Densitometric scanning, comparable to HPLC
Common questions
How does HPTLC's resolution compare to standard TLC in practice?+
The finer silica particle size produces sharper, more compact bands and better separation of closely related compounds than conventional TLC plates, which is what allows the densitometric scan to yield quantitative results rather than just a visual comparison.
Why choose HPTLC over HPLC when the results are comparable?+
HPTLC allows many samples to be run in parallel on a single plate with lower solvent consumption and simpler sample preparation, making it efficient for extraction method screening or batch comparisons before committing samples to slower, single-run HPLC analysis.
What kind of extraction work is HPTLC paired with?+
It is commonly used downstream of extraction techniques such as SPE, SPME or accelerated solvent extraction, where HPTLC provides a quick quantitative check of extraction efficiency or analyte recovery across multiple samples at once.
Related terms
- Accelerated Solvent Extraction (ASE)
- Extraction of solid matrices at 100 to 200 degrees Celsius and around 1500 psi in sealed stainless steel cells. Also called pressurised...
- Dried Blood Spot (DBS)
- Sampling format in which 50 microlitres of capillary blood is spotted on Whatman 903 paper, dried and shipped at ambient temperature.
- Mixed-Mode SPE
- Sorbent that combines reverse-phase and ion-exchange chemistry on the same particle. Strata-X-C, Oasis MCX and Bond Elut Certify are the cation-exchange forms...
- Solid-Phase Extraction (SPE)
- Sample clean-up in which analytes are retained on a packed bed of bonded silica or polymer, interferences are washed off, and analytes...
- Solid-Phase Microextraction (SPME)
- Solvent-free extraction in which a fused silica fibre coated with a stationary phase is exposed to the sample or its headspace, and...