A chromatography detector is a device that detects and quantifies separated compounds as they elute from the chromatographic column.
Detectors operate based on specific principles, including optical, electrochemical, thermal conductivity, fluorescence, mass spectrometry, and more.
Each type of detector has its unique capabilities and is suitable for specific applications, depending on the nature of the analytes and the sensitivity and selectivity required for the analysis.
The destructive detectors perform continuous transformation of the column effluent (burning, evaporation or mixing with reagents) with subsequent measurement of some physical property of the resulting material (plasma, aerosol or reaction mixture).
The non-destructive detectors are directly measuring some property of the column eluent (for example, ultraviolet absorption) and thus affords greater analyte recovery.