Capillary zone electrophoresis in laboratory-made fluorinated ethylene propylene capillaries

Capillaries made of fluorinated ethylene propylene (FEP) with an inner diameter of 50 μm have been employed in capillary zone electrophoresis with UV–Vis absorbance detection. The capillaries were made in the laboratory with a recently developed technique using fluoropolymer heat shrink/melt tubing and a tungsten wire as a template for the channel. An electroosmotic flow was obtained in the channels and it is shown that an FEP capillary is more effective for a cationic test solute than a fused-silica capillary. The compatibility of FEP capillaries with optical detection is evaluated briefly.