Twin column chromatography for industrial-scale decontamination processes

A frontal chromatographic unit was devised consisting of a column–detector–column array. The unit is either equipped with identical columns (identical twins) or with columns of varying length (fraternal twins). Due to the finite nature of the columns, a prerun is formed at the column walls following the same regularities as the main stream. These regularities are used for the identification of the process termination below the detection limits of the monitor. For the implementation, a clear preference is given to the employment of fraternal twins, as the feed assay can be integrated into the separation process.