Inertsil

Inertsil is a brand of silica-based stationary phases used in High-Performance Liquid Chromatography (HPLC). These materials are designed to be chemically inert, meaning they are largely unreactive with most analytes and mobile phases under typical chromatographic conditions. This inertness is crucial for achieving reproducible separations and minimizing unwanted side reactions or adsorption of sample components.

The primary component of Inertsil is silica gel, which has been specifically treated and end-capped to reduce the presence of residual silanol groups on its surface. Silanol groups can sometimes cause peak tailing or irreversible adsorption, particularly for basic compounds. By minimizing these active sites, Inertsil columns provide sharper peaks and better performance for a wider range of analytes.

Inertsil phases are available in various pore sizes and particle dimensions, allowing for optimization of separations across different molecular weights and polarity ranges. They are commonly employed in reversed-phase HPLC, a widely used technique for separating nonpolar to moderately polar compounds. The consistent and reliable performance of Inertsil materials has made them a popular choice in analytical and preparative chromatography for applications in pharmaceuticals, environmental testing, and food analysis.