Conical columns and low dispersion frits
AssigneeWaters Technologies Corporation
InventorsFabrice Gritti, Jonathan Belanger, Daniel Marc Lemire, Jr.
Life of this patent
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Abstract
Disclosed herein are chromatography columns with conical or reducing inside dimensions and improved fits for use therewith, along with methods for making the columns and the frits.
Claims16
A chromatography column comprising:
- a tubular body having an outside dimension and an inside dimension, the inside dimension defining a passageway extending through the tubular body and having a first opening at a first end of the tubular body and a second opening at a second end of the tubular body opposite the first end, wherein the inside dimension of the passageway reduces in a step-wise manner from the first end of the tubular body to the second end of the tubular body;
- and
- a first frit assembly disposed at the first end of the tubular body and having an outside dimension corresponding to the first opening of the passageway, wherein the first frit assembly has an outside dimension of about 300 μm to about 10 mm;
- and
- a second frit assembly disposed at the second end of the tubular body and having an outside dimension corresponding to the second opening of the passageway, wherein the outside dimension of the second frit assembly is less than the outside dimension of the first frit assembly.
A frit assembly for use in a chromatography process, the frit assembly comprising a substrate having a plurality of ordered structures, comprising a plurality of micro-pores extending through a thickness of the frit assembly, wherein the substrate comprises:
- a first portion of stainless steel mesh sheets stacked at varying rotational angles;
- and
- a second portion of stainless steel mesh sheets comprising varying mesh sizes, wherein the first and second portions of stainless steel mesh sheets are sintered together and machined into a desired shape to produce a finished final frit assembly comprising reproducible micro pore throughways and/or internal volumes.
A method of making a frit assembly for use in a chromatography process, the method comprising forming a substrate comprising a plurality of ordered structures, wherein the plurality of ordered structures comprises a plurality of micro-pores extending through a thickness of the frit assembly, wherein forming the substrate comprises:
- stacking a plurality of stainless steel mesh sheets, wherein the plurality of stainless steel mesh sheets comprises a first portion of stainless steel mesh sheets stacked at varying rotational angles and a second portion of stainless steel mesh sheets comprising varying mesh sizes,
- sintering the plurality of stainless steel mesh sheets;
- and
- machining the sintered plurality of stainless steel mesh sheets into a desired substrate shape.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.