Efficient Method Development through Design Space Evaluation on Different Brands of Columns

User Benefits

- Shim-pack Arata C18 can improve separation that is difficult to do with other C18 columns because of its unique selectivity. - By using LabSolutions MD it is possible to easily identify the difference of selectivity of columns by evaluating the design space. - Matrix view enables visual comparison of a large number of chromatograms, allowing rapid identification of optimal separation conditions.

Introduction

Since the column selection in method development has large effect on separation patterns of analytes, an efficient screening of various columns is often required. LabSolutions MD, a new Shimadzu software for method development, supports efficient method development based on Analytical Quality by Design (AQbD). AQbD-based analysis method development consists of different phases: initial screening, optimization and robustness evaluation. This article introduces an example of column screening using the design space evaluation concept. The selectivity of six brands of C18 columns was visualized by design spaces considering different mobile phases composition and different gradient program. This makes it possible to understand the impact of the parameters on separation, enabling to search for the best column with a smaller number of analyses. In this article, it was found that the Shimadzu Shim-pack Arata C18 column has unique selectivity in comparison with the other C18 columns.

April 15, 2026 GMT