Splitless injection and the solvent effect

Abstract Splitless injection is based on the solvent effect as a mechanism condensing large vapour clouds down to infinitely shortened bands. The effect is controlled by the parameters column temperature, volatility and amount of solvent, and rate of injection. By properly selecting the variables the effect can easily be optimized for any combination of sample and column. It is the purpose of this paper to provide the mechanistic understanding as required for this optimization, as well as some rules for the experimental realization. Potentialities and limitations of splitless injection are discussed, and the role of the solvent effect in on‐column injection is emphasized.