chromatography

noun chro·ma·tog·ra·phy \ ˌkrō-mə-ˈtä-grə-fē \

|Updated on: 24 Jun 2018

Definition of chromatography

—

chromatographic

play \krō-ˌma-tə-ˈgra-fik, krə-\ adjective

—

chromatographically

play \-fi-k(ə-)lē\ adverb

See chromatography defined for kids

Recent Examples of chromatography from the Web

Those machines, called gas-chromatography mass-spectrometers or GC-MS, can analyze the air to discover thousands of different molecules known as volatile organic compounds.

— andrea soltoggio, Smithsonian, "Artificial Intelligence May Be Able To Smell Illnesses in Human Breath," 12 June 2018
There, lab officials allowed her to use equipment to conduct high performance liquid chromatography.

— betsy hammond, OregonLive.com, "2 innovative Oregon teen scientists compete for glory at nationals," 11 Mar. 2018
The lessons will cover effervescence (bubbles), chromatography (a chemical separation technique), liquids, and Newton’s laws of motion.

— mika mckinnon, Smithsonian, "In Stellar Tribute, Astronauts Teach “Lost Lessons” From Educator Who Died on Challenger," 22 Jan. 2018
Each product was analyzed three times for cannabinoid contents using high-performance liquid chromatography.

— beth mole, Ars Technica, "Study: Nearly 70% of online CBD marijuana extracts are mislabeled," 7 Nov. 2017
The structure of the battery is formed from a sheet of chromatography paper, divided into a grid of creases.

— nathan hurst, Smithsonian, "This Spit-Powered Biobattery Is Made From a Single Sheet of Paper," 30 Jan. 2017
Gas chromatography then separated the chemical mix into its component parts, providing the researchers with an exact readout of the chemicals contributing to the smell of the pages.

— jessica wapner, Newsweek, "George Washington Stank Here: Emerging Science Charts Our Olfactory Heritage," 1 May 2017
The experiments available cover a wide spectrum of science disciplines: biology, robotics, chemistry, geosciences, electromagnetism, optics and chromatography…

— patricia vollmer, WIRED, "Pensacola MESS Hall: A Hands-On Science Experiment Museum," 9 Aug. 2012
The structure of the battery is formed from a sheet of chromatography paper, divided into a grid of creases.

— nathan hurst, Smithsonian, "This Spit-Powered Biobattery Is Made From a Single Sheet of Paper," 30 Jan. 2017

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'chromatography.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Origin and Etymology of chromatography

borrowed from German Chromatographie, from chromato- chromato- + -graphie -graphy, after earlier chromatographisch "chromatographic" and Chromatogramm chromatogram

Note: Term introduced by the botanist Mikhail Semyonovich Tsvet in "Adsorptionsanalyse und chromatographische Methode. Anwendung auf die Chemie des Chlorophylls," Berichte der Deutschen Botanischen Gesellschaft, Band 24 (1906), p. 387. See note at chromatogram.

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 1936

in the meaning defined above

See Words from the same year