Term: size-exclusion chromatography (SEC)
https://doi.org/10.1351/goldbook.S05705

Definition:
A separation technique in which separation mainly according to the hydrodynamic volume of the molecules or particles takes place in a porous non-adsorbing material with pores of approximately the same size as the effective dimensions in solution of the molecules to be separated.

Source: Purple Book, 1st ed., p. 69 (http://old.iupac.org/publications/books/author/metanomski.html)

Citation: 'size-exclusion chromatography (SEC)' in IUPAC Compendium of Chemical Terminology, 5th ed. International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry; 2025. Online version 5.0.0, 2025. https://doi.org/10.1351/goldbook.S05705

License: The IUPAC Gold Book is licensed under Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike CC BY-SA 4.0 International (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/) for individual terms.

Disclaimer: The International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry (IUPAC) is continuously reviewing and, where needed, updating terms in the Compendium of Chemical Terminology (the IUPAC Gold Book). Users of these terms are encouraged to include the version of a term with its use and to check regularly for updates to term definitions that you are using.