1. NORMAL PHASE HPLC: This method separates analytes on the basis of polarity. NP-HPLC uses polar stationary phase and non-polar mobile phase. Therefore, the stationary phase is usually silica and typical mobile phases are hexane, methylene chloride, chloroform, diethyl ether, and mixtures of these. Polar samples are thus retained on the polar surface of the column packing longer than less polar materials.
2. REVERSE PHASE HPLC: The stationary phase is nonpolar (hydrophobic) in nature, while the mobile phase is a polar liquid, such as mixtures of water and methanol or acetonitrile. It works on the principle of hydrophobic interactions hence the more nonpolar the material is, the longer it will be retained.
3. SIZE-EXCLUSION HPLC : The column is filled with material having precisely controlled pore sizes, and the particles are separated according to its their molecular size. Larger molecules are rapidly washed through the column; smaller molecules penetrate inside the porous of the packing particles and elute later.
4. ION-EXCHANGE HPLC : The stationary phase has an ionically charged surface of opposite charge to the sample ions. This technique is used almost exclusively with ionic or ionizable samples.The stronger the charge on the sample, the stronger it will be attracted to the ionic surface and thus, the longer it will take to elute. The mobile phase is an aqueous buffer, where both pH and ionic strength are used to control elution time.
