A technique for separating or analysing mixtures of gases by chromatography. The apparatus consists of a very long tube containing the stationary phase. This may be a solid, such as kieselguhr (gas–solid chromatography, or GSC), or a nonvolatile liquid, such as a hydrocarbon oil coated on a solid support (gas–liquid chromatography, or GLC). The sample is often a volatile liquid mixture, which is vaporized and swept through the column by a carrier gas (e.g. hydrogen). The components of the mixture pass through the column at different rates because they adsorb to different extents on the stationary phase. They are detected as they leave, either by measuring the thermal conductivity of the gas or by a flame detector.
Gas chromatography is usually used for analysis; components can be identified by the time they take to pass through the column. It is sometimes also used for separating mixtures.
Gas chromatography is often used to separate a mixture into its components, which are then directly injected into a mass spectrometer. This technique is known as gas chromatography–mass spectroscopy or GCMS.