Adsorption and displacement effects in the gas-chromatography of metal beta-diketonates.

A detailed study of the gas chromatography of the aluminium(III), chromium(III) and iron(III) beta-diketonates has shown that their elution and separation characteristics arise from a number of adsorptive effects. Conditions of optimal peak shape for individual compounds are established by varying Chromatographie parameters, and the adsorption of one metal chelate on a column and its subsequent displacement by another chelate are investigated. The chromatography of iron(III) beta-diketonates is seen to be further complicated by gradual elution of a portion of the chelate before the rest of the sample.