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Liquid chromatography detectors designed to assess the individual molecules that come out (i.e., elute) from the chromatography column of a liquid and/or high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) system based either on oxidation or reduction at an electrode surface (electrochemical detection [ECD]). These detectors consist of an ECD cell with electrodes (both working and reference electrodes) where the electrochemically active substances that elute from the column undergo an electrochemical reaction; electrons are transferred resulting in an electrical current (amperometric) or charge measuring (coulometric) method. The electrodes are connected to electronic circuitry with a powerful low-noise amplifier. The output data is used in a computerized system with appropriate software to display a chromatogram that shows the current peaks versus time which allows the identification of the components of the sample. Electrochemical liquid chromatography detectors are used as a very selective and sensitive detection technique that is applied in a number of analyses (e.g., identification of lipid hydroperoxides and neurotransmitters such as dopamine, serotonin and noradrenalin).
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