Recent work has focused on the use of microchips to perform fast separations.However, there is still some benefit in using conventional capillary electrophoresis (CE) for fast separations, particularly when the system is to be applied for the analysis of a large number of samples.This presentation will outline the challenges and issues involved in the development and application of fast CE methods for two entirely different applications.The first method was developed for the high throughput screening of combinatorial catalysts performed and analyzed directly in a single 96 well plate.The second method was developed for the rapid analysis of carbonate used to determine the rate of respiration in bioremediation studies.In both cases, careful consideration of the appropriate electrolyte and instrumental conditions was required to increase throughput and minimize laborious sample pretreatment.The limitations of these methods will be critically discussed and future prospects for improvement will be presented.