Gel permeation chromatography (GPC), also known as
size-exclusion chromatography (SEC), is a chromatographic
technique that employs specialized columns to
separate natural and synthetic polymers, biopolymers, or
proteins on the basis of their size.
GPC is the most widely
used technique for the analysis of polymers, in relation to
other techniques of molecular weight (MW) measurement;
the analysis is very fast (compared to older techniques) and
can be carried out in a couple of hours.