6. Conclusion

The seven applications of gas chromatography presented in this article illustrate its vast field of use, particularly in the analysis of complex mixtures. The problems addressed call for a variety of sample preparation techniques prior to injection into the chromatograph, as well as the judicious use of specific detectors providing an additional dimension of information for a better understanding of the detailed composition of these samples. As some of the figures show, the processing of complex chromatograms is not straightforward, and it is in this area in particular that advances in data processing software and the integration of chemometrics should facilitate the task of users in the future.