Sample preparation and enrichment methods in capillary electrophoresis applications

Capillary electrophoresis (CE) provides fast separation with high resolution for complex samples and consumes only small sample volumes. This chapter introduces sample preparation and enrichment techniques in capillary electrophoresis analysis. The first part handles the theory of separation mechanism and instrumentation of capillary electrophoresis. The second part discusses various liquid-phase microextraction (LPME) and solid-phase microextraction (SPME) techniques in-line or at-line, and on-line coupled to commercial CE instruments. The third part covers on-line derivatization procedures to enhance detection sensitivity in CE when coupled with a laser-induced fluorescence detector. The fourth part discusses the on-line sample enrichment techniques specifically focusing on sample stacking methods. The final part covers the off-line LPME-CE techniques. Each part gives examples from the literature on biological, medical, clinical, and environmental analysis.