Whats the difference between paper chromatography and thin-chromatography?

Question

Whats the difference between paper chromatography and thin-chromatography?

Answer 1

Paper chromatography uses a porous paper as the stationary phase and some solution that can travel up the paper as the mobile phase.  Thin-layer chromatography uses a glass plate covered in silica gel as the stationary phase.  The silica gel is polar, so a nonpolar solvent is usually used for the mobile phase.  In both types of chromatography, samples are placed near the bottom of the stationary phase, which is then set into a beaker containing a small amount of the mobile phase, which travels up the stationary phase via capillary action.  The samples travel different distances up the stationary phase depending on their polarities.  This is also useful for separating the components of one sample.

Answer 2

Paper chromatography

Paper chromatography is a technique that involves placing a small dot of sample solution onto a strip of chromatography paper. The paper is placed in a jar containing a shallow layer of solvent and sealed. As the solvent rises through the paper it meets the sample mixture which starts to travel up the paper with the solvent. Different compounds in the sample mixture travel different distances according to how strongly they interact with the paper. This paper is made of cellulose, a polar molecule, and the compounds within the mixture travel farther if they are non-polar. More polar substances bond with the cellulose paper more quickly, and therefore do not travel as far. This process allows the calculation of an Rf value and can be compared to standard compounds to aid in the identification of an unknown substance.

Thin layer chromatography

Thin layer chromatography (TLC) is a widely-employed laboratory technique and is similar to paper chromatography. However, instead of using a stationary phase of paper, it involves a stationary phase of a thin layer of adsorbent like silica gel, alumina, or cellulose on a flat, inert substrate. Compared to paper, it has the advantage of faster runs, better separations, and the choice between different adsorbents. Different compounds in the sample mixture travel different distances according to how strongly they interact with the adsorbent. This allows the calculation of an Rf value and can be compared to standard compounds to aid in the identification of an unknown substance.

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Answer 3

Resolution.

TLC will have much sharper cut offs. Paper is way too smeary because it is too heterogeneous as a static medium and is also too thick!