Patent ID: 8187539

Claim:
Assembly for determining material properties and/or material concentrations of components of a sample, comprising: (a) a chromatographic separating column adapted to operate with a liquid mobile solvent, said chromatographic separating column having an inside, said inside of said chromatographic separating column having a temperature, and an outside, said outside having ambient temperature and ambient pressure; (b) means for controlling said temperature between room temperature and 250° C; (c) means for creating an increased pressure level which is greater than ambient pressure within said inside of said chromatographic separating column; and (d) a detector having a sample volume, said sample volume adapted to insert said components of said sample, and wherein (e) an interface is provided between said separating column and said detector, said interface comprising: an interface body, an inlet for the liquid mobile solvent from the separating column, an outlet to the sample volume of the detector, a tube extending through the interface body connecting the inlet and the outlet; and a restrictor inside said tube positioned between the inlet and the outlet, wherein said restrictor is adapted to expand said mobile solvent from said increased pressure level inside said separating column to said ambient pressure producing a phase change of said mobile solvent from liquid to gaseous phase without forming an aerosol, wherein said mobile solvent containing said sample is liquid upstream of said restrictor and is exposed to an increased pressure, and wherein said ambient pressure is present downstream of the restrictor; (f) means are provided for heating a zone in the tube within the interface body downstream of the restrictor; and (g) means are provided for transferring said gaseous mobile solvent containing said components of said sample from the outlet into said sample volume of said detector.