Recent Advancements on Greening Analytical Separation.

60-80% of the analysis time for a significant number of analytical methods is taken up by the preparation, treatment, and separation of individual sample components, and most of the chemicals and solvents involved in the analysis are consumed in this step. We will demonstrate that many emerging methods of analytical separation science can meet the requirements of green chemistry by reducing the use of solvents and other reagents, lowering energy consumption by increasing the speed of analysis, and by miniaturizing and making equipment portable. Although recent efforts to make high performance liquid chromatography greener are praiseworthy, capillary electrophoresis, which comprises a group of separation methods that use narrow-bore fused-silica capillaries, is especially promising. It is highly competitive with liquid chromatography, which is the biggest consumer of organic solvents in analytical chemistry. However, capillary electrophoresis has not received the recognition it deserves as a green separation method that consumes microscopic volumes of solvent. It is a technique that is sufficiently mature to promote the greening of analytical chemistry via miniaturization-the most auspicious development in contemporary analytical chemistry. In this review, we will discuss recent developments in greening chromatography, and demonstrate the potential of electrophoresis and microfluidics in this regard. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]