DETERMINATION OF ISOTHERMS FROM CHROMATOGRAPHIC PEAK SHAPES

A new method for determining equilibrium isotherms from chromatographic peak shapes is presented. It differs from alternative methods like elution by characteristic point in that the present method accounts for the finite efficiency of real chromatographic columns, and so the new method is used to its best advantage in systems of low plate number. In the new method, initial estimates of the parameters of an isotherm equation are refined by finding simulated chromatographic peak shapes that most nearly approximate the experimental peak shapes. A series of example determinations demonstrate the method's utility.