16 December 2015 Issue

Look inside for practical advice on separation science and thought–provoking commentary.

Solid-Phase Microextraction in Clinical Diagnostics

Researchers at the University of Waterloo in Canada are collaborating with clinicians at Toronto General Hospital to develop preclinical and clinical applications of solid-phase microextraction (SPME). The Column spoke to Barbara Bojko from the team to find out more.

How to Get a Job in Analytical Science

Incognito offers some careers advice to aspiring separation scientists.

HPLC Column Transfer from Fully Porous to Core–Shell Particles in Three Simple Equations

LCGC blogger Tony Taylor describes how to easily transfer column dimensions and particle morphology using three equations.

New Developments in the Analysis of Complex Environmental Matrices

A review of the New Developments in the Analysis of Complex Environmental Matrices meeting, which was held on 6 February 2015 at the Royal Society of Chemistry (RSC), Burlington House, London, UK, and was organized by the Environmental Chemistry Group and the Separation Science Group.

The Power of Negative Thinking

Incognito discusses how investigating negative data can lead you to an unexpected positive result.

Powerful Protein Characterization Using Capillary Electrophoresis

The Column spoke to Dr. Rob Haselberg from the VU University Amsterdam, The Netherlands, about his work characterizing proteins using capillary electrophoresis.

Environmental Forensics in the Workplace

Populations worldwide are exposed to polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) that can be harmful to human health. The Column spoke to David Megson from Ryerson University in Toronto, Canada, about recent developments in assessing human exposure to PCBs and chiral enantiomer fractions (EFs) in the workplace.

Three-Dimensional Thinking: 3D Printing in Separation Science

Brett Paull from ACROSS — Australian Centre for Research on Separation Science, School of Physical Sciences, University of Tasmania, Hobart, Australia, spoke to The Column about the possibilities for 3D printing in the separation science sector..

The Rise of Hydrophilic Interaction Chromatography (HILIC)

Hydrophilic interaction chromatography (HILIC) is becoming more popular. Dr Tohru Ikegami from the Department of Biomolecular Engineering at the Kyoto Institute of Technology in Kyoto, Japan, reveals more about the evolution of HILIC, important new developments, and tips on how to get the most from this technique..

Phytoforensic Analysis: Thinking Outside The Box

Nearly half of all US FDA class I drug recalls since 2014 have been tainted dietary supplements adulterated with pharmaceutical ingredients. The Column spoke to James Neal-Kababick, who is the Founder and Director of Flora Research Laboratories (FRL) in Oregon, USA, about phytoforensic science and his work on analyzing dietary supplements previously recalled by the US FDA..