Challenges of sec and the necessity of round robin tests
- Size exclusion chromatography (SEC) is still the method of choice for determining the molar mass and molar mass distribution of macromolecules. From the distribution curve molar mass averages and the oligomer content (percentage of peak area smaller than 1000 g/mol and 500 g/mol) of polymers can be derived.
The determination of oligomer content is important, because it is often used in regulatory contexts as a measure of small, mobile and potentially more toxic parts of the polymer. Polymer regulations are of increasing political and societal importance. Regulations often strive for narrow limits. But SEC has rather large error margins of 10-20% for the molar mass determination performed in different laboratories or on different instruments. These variances are well known to all experts and users and have been investigated in several round robin tests in the past. These resulted in DIN and ISO standards which, in our opinion, no longer meet today's requirements. Gaps have beenSize exclusion chromatography (SEC) is still the method of choice for determining the molar mass and molar mass distribution of macromolecules. From the distribution curve molar mass averages and the oligomer content (percentage of peak area smaller than 1000 g/mol and 500 g/mol) of polymers can be derived.
The determination of oligomer content is important, because it is often used in regulatory contexts as a measure of small, mobile and potentially more toxic parts of the polymer. Polymer regulations are of increasing political and societal importance. Regulations often strive for narrow limits. But SEC has rather large error margins of 10-20% for the molar mass determination performed in different laboratories or on different instruments. These variances are well known to all experts and users and have been investigated in several round robin tests in the past. These resulted in DIN and ISO standards which, in our opinion, no longer meet today's requirements. Gaps have been identified that require further harmonization. Different polymer types or classes require different methods.
On the other hand, as far as we know, the margins of error in determining oligomer content have not yet been investigated. It is expected that the variation will be rather high. This is because it depends on many factors related to the experimental conditions (column sets used, solvent, temperatures, sample preparation) on the one hand, and the data evaluation mechanisms (choice of baseline and peak limits) on the other. In order to actually measure the error margins and to support this with actual data a round robin test has been performed from June to November 2024 with approx. 40 participating laboratories. Three different solvents were selected, namely THF, DMAc or DMF and water. The samples were selected taking into account a wide range of practical aspects far from narrowly distributed standards: e.g higher distribution range, reduced solubility, included side components, copolymers and dispersions with gel content.
In this contribution we will present the detailed concept of this round robin test and impressions…

