The Analysis of Hydrocarbon Distillates for Group Types Using HPLC With Dielectric Constant Detection: A Review

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Abstract
The hydrocarbon group-type composition of distillate products can be measured with speed and accuracy using high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) with a dielectric constant detector (DCD). The DCD ensures a genuine uniformity of response independent of the carbon number distribution of the sample type or the group types resolved by the chromatographic process. As HPLC columns offering distinct selectivities are assembled upstream in configurations with backflushing or switching valves, a variety of hydrocarbon group types can be resolved and ultimately quantified. The kinds of hydrocarbon classes separated include: saturates + olefins, alkylbenzenes, alkylnaphthalenes; saturates, olefins, aromatics; normal + branched paraffins, cycloparaffins, unsaturates; normal + branched paraffins, cycloparaffins, olefins, aromatics; and, previously unreported, saturates, unsaturates. Some of the HPLC separations are accomplished on commercially available bonded phase columns, while others require argentation columns of different activities. Hydrocarbon mixtures of known group-type composition are analyzed to verify the accuracy of a particular HPLC/DCD configuration. The results of the HPLC/DCD analysis schemes are compared, when appropriate, to several other methods for group-type determinations for a range of distillate products. Steps to optimize analysis time, solvent consumption, and minimum detectability are discussed.

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