What is chromatography?

Chromatography is a laboratory technique for separating a mixture. The mixture is dissolved in a fluid called the mobile phase, which carries it through a structure holding another material called the stationary phase. The different constituents of the mixture have different affinities for the stationary phase. Those with a high affinity for the stationary phase take longer to travel through it than those with a low affinity. As a result, the components separate from each other as they travel. It is commonly used in analytical chemistry to identify, quantify, and purify the individual components of a mixture.