Are noble metals the ideal material for interfaces in capillary GC?

Summary

According to the experimental evidence reported in this paper, the inner surface of tubings of Pt and other noble metals may, under certain conditions, become strongly active. The activity may increase to such an extent that severe band broadening, tailing, and even total disappearing of organic substances of various classes (not just polar ones) are caused. Typically, noble metals constantly adapt their surface to the actual ambient conditions. It is not possible to maintain their surface in a given, preselected state. The most significant variable parameter influencing the surface is the nature of the effluent from a GC column. Upon column interchange, drastic changes in the surface characteristics of noble metal tubings can be observed. In contrast, a glass surface can be permanently inactivated and is not affected by varying effluents when columns are interchanged.