Normal phase separations are based on the polar interaction of compounds with a stationary phase. The mobile phase usually contains a mixture of polar and non-polar organic solvents, such as hexane/isopropanol, hexane/tetrahydrofuran, or chloroform/alcohol. Superior columns use high purity silica gels with a high surface area to provide maximum resolution. The cyano-phase can be used in both normal and reverse phase separations as well as hydrophilic interaction chromatography (HILIC).