High-throughput preparative separations

Phenomenex's AXIA is an advanced column packing and hardware design that is claimed eliminates bed collapse as a source of failure in short prep columns. Using hydraulic piston compression (HPC) technology, several fundamental problems faced daily by preparative chromatographers have been solved: collapse, voiding or channelling of the support bed after packing - causing premature column failure; variability in bed density - degrading overall reproducibility; low and/or variable efficiency - making scale-up from analytical more difficult; and peak distortion or asymmetry - reducing the return on each purification cycle.

With AXIA-packed columns, bed density is custom calculated and automated for each support, chemistry and column size. Computer control of the entire process assures the proper bed density and uniformity. With a single, controlled hydraulic compression the piston assembly locks in place and detaches; the support media is never allowed to decompress, 'relax' or require recompression. The result is an improved, more repeatable packing process, giving preparative chromatographers improvements in prep column lifetime, with efficiencies and peak symmetries on par with analytical separations. Overall column-to-column consistency is also improved.

Columns are available in 21.2 and 30 mm IDs, 50 and 100 mm lengths, using high-performance Luna and Gemini chemistries.