EXtrelut® NT

Working Principle

The aqueous sample is applied onto the dry EXtrelut® NT sorbent. It distributes itself in the form of a thin film over the chemically-inert matrix, thus acting as a liquid stationary phase. Subsequently, elution takes place using organic solvents that are non-miscible with water. All lipophilic compounds are extracted from the aqueous into the organic phase. During this process, the aqueous phase remains on the stationary phase. The eluate is free from emulsions and can be evaporated without further drying prior to further analysis.

Suitable Solvents

All solvents that can be used in classical liquid-liquid extraction with a separating funnel are suitable for EXtrelut® NT columns. Mixtures of these solvents can also be used. In particular, mixtures with polar solvent components, such as chloroform/methanol (90/10 or 85/15), ether/ethanol (90/10, 85/15 or 80/20) and dichloromethane/isopropanol (90/10, 85/15), provide excellent extraction efficiency. However, eluents with very high alcohol content increase the volume of the aqueous phase on the column, which may cause partial displacement from the column. If such high alcohol mixtures are to be employed, slightly less sample should be used to avoid a breakthrough of the aqueous sample.