Nanomaterials as tools in chromatographic methods

The impact that different nanomaterials have had on improving the features of chromatographic methods is critically discussed and evaluated in this review. Although the use of nanomaterials in the main three steps of chromatographic methods (sample treatment, chromatographic separation and derivatization-detection) has been widely revised, considering individually each of these steps, this review is focused to assess the real benefits that nanotechnology has provided in chromatographic determinations. Several articles have been selected for this purpose, in which the results obtained in the presence and the absence of nanomaterials are critically compared. Also, the advantages and limitations of the nanomaterials used in each step of the chromatographic process are discussed. (C) 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.