Systematic investigations of different capillary electrophoretic techniques for separation of methylquinolines

The migration behaviour of isoquinoline, quinoline, and methyl derivatives of quinoline in different capillary electrophoretic modes has been systematically investigated. Optimised separation conditions were established by varying the key parameters (solvent, pH, temperature, surfactant concentration, core phase) for aqueous and non‐aqueous capillary zone electrophoresis (NACE), micellar electrokinetic chromatography (MEKC) with anionic or non‐ionic micelles (SDS, Brij 35), and microemulsion electrokinetic chromatography (MEEKC) with charged or uncharged microemulsion droplets. A separation of all quinolines could be achieved by MEEKC with charged droplets, by MEKC or by formamide‐based NACE. Comparing the separations with respect to separation selectivity, substantial changes in migration order could be observed between the different techniques. Regarding separation efficiency, the number of theoretical plates and limits of detection (LOD) have been compared. The best LODs were achieved using SDS as surfactant in MEKC, followed by MEEKC.     

Microemulsion electrokinetic chromatography of corticosteroids. Effect of surfactants and cyclodextrins on the separation selectivity

The separation of neutral hydrophobic corticosteroids (cortisone, cortisone acetate, hydrocortisone, hydrocortisone acetate, prednisolone and prednisolone acetate) by microemulsion electrokinetic chromatography (MEEKC) was studied. In the preparation of microemulsion, heptane was the solvent, n-butanol the co-surfactant and, as anionic surfactants, sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS) or taurodeoxycholic acid sodium salt (STDC) were employed. Using an acidic running buffer, (phosphate pH 2.5) a strong suppression of the electroosmotic flow (EOF) was observed; this resulted in a fast anodic migration of the analytes partitioned into the negatively charged microemulsion droplets. Under these conditions, STDC showed better separation of corticosteroids than the conventional SDS; however, the use of a single anionic surfactant did not provide the required selectivity. The addition of the neutral surfactant polyoxyethylene glycol octadecyl ether (Brij 76) significantly altered the migration of each analytes allowing a better tuning of separation; however, in order to obtain adequate resolution between couples of adjacent critical peaks, the addition of neutral cyclodextrins (CDs) was found to be essential. This apparently complex system (CD-MEEKC), was optimized by studying the effect of the most important parameters affecting separation: STDC concentration, Brij 76 concentration, nature and concentration of cyclodextrins. Following a rational step-by-step approach, the optimised conditions providing the complete separation of the analytes were found to be: 4.0% STDC, 2.5% Brij 76, 6.6% n-butanol, 1.36% heptane and 85.54% of a solution 5 mM beta-CD in 50 mM phosphate buffer (pH 2.5). The optimized system was preliminary applied to the detection of corticosteroids related substances at impurity level and it could be considered a useful orthogonal alternative to HPLC methods.     

Microemulsion electrokinetic chromatography of drugs varying in charge and hydrophobicity: I. Impact of parameters on separation performance evaluated by multiple linear regression models

The separation of anionic, cationic and neutral drugs in microemulsion electrokinetic chromatography (MEEKC) was studied with a statistical experimental design. The concentration of sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS, surfactant), 1-butanol (co-surfactant) and borate buffer and the factors Brij 35 (surfactant), 2-propanol (organic solvent) and cassette temperature were varied simultaneously, while the parameters pH (9.2), the concentration of octane (oil, 0.8% w/w), the voltage (10 kV) and the dimension of the fused-silica capillary, were kept constant. Eight different model substances were chosen with different hydrophobicities. Two of the analytes were positively charged, two were negatively charged, and the remaining four were neutral or close to neutral at the pH explored. The importance of each parameter on the separation window, the plate height and the retention factor for each of the analytes was studied by means of multiple linear regression (MLR) models. A new response was evaluated for anions, the quotient between the effective mobility in the microemulsion and the effective mobility in the corresponding buffer. Factors affecting selectivity changes were also explored, and it was found that SDS and 2-propanol had the largest effect on selectivity.     

Determination of food colorants by microemulsion electrokinetic chromatography

A microemulsion electrokinetic chromatography (MEEKC) method was developed to analyze and detect eight food colorants (tartrazine, fast green FCF, brilliant blue FCF, allura red AC, indigo carmine, sunset yellow FCF, new coccine, and carminic acid), which are commonly used as food additives in various food products. The effects of sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS) surfactant, organic modifier, cosurfactant, and oil were examined in order to optimize the separation. The amount of organic modifier (acetonitrile) and SDS surfactant were determined as apparent influences on the separation resolution while the type of oil and cosurfactant rarely affected the separation selectivity of the eight colorants. A highly efficient MEEKC separation method, where the eight colorants were separated with baseline resolution within 14 min, was achieved by using a microemulsion solution of pH 2.0 containing 3.31% SDS, 0.81% octane, 6.61% 1-butanol, and 10% acetonitrile. This optimal MEEKC method has a higher separation efficiency and similar detection limit when compared to conventional capillary electrophoresis (CE) method. Furthermore, a sample pretreatment is rarely needed when this MEEKC technique is used to analyze colorants in food products, whereas a suitable sample pretreatment (for example solid-phase extraction) has to be employed prior to CE separation in order to eliminate matrix interferences resulting from the constituents of the food sample.     

Separation of Six Pyridoncarboylxic Acid Derivatives by Micellar and Microemulsion Electrokinetic Chromatography

Micellar electrokinetic chromatography (MEKC) and microemulsion electrokinetic chromatography (MEEKC) are two kinds of electrokinetic capillary chromatography (EKC), which are characterized of high solubilization capacity and separation efficiency. In our previous work, some polar organic compounds and hydrophobic neutral compounds were separated successfully by EKC1-3. In this paper, these methods were used for separating six pyridoncarboylxic acid derivatives with similar structures. T…     

Phase-transfer catalytic determination of phenols as methylated derivatives by gas chromatography with flame ionization and mass-selective detection

A microemulsion electrokinetic chromatographic (MEEKC) method was developed for the separation of six catechins, specific marker phytochemicals of Cistus species. The MEEKC method involved the use of sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS) as surfactant, heptane as organic solvent and butan-1-ol as co-solvent. In order to have a better stability of the studied catechins, the separation was performed under acidic conditions (pH 2.5 phosphate buffer). The effects of SDS concentration and of the amount of organic solvent and co-solvent on the analyte resolution were evaluated. The optimized conditions (heptane 1.36% (w/v), SDS 2.31% (w/v), butan-1-ol 9.72% (w/v) and 50 mM sodium phosphate buffer (pH 2.5) 86.61% (w/v)) allowed a useful and reproducible separation of the studied analytes to be achieved. These conditions provided a different separation profile compared to that obtained under conventional micellar electrokinetic chromatography (MECK) using SDS. The method was validated and applied to the determination of catechin and gallocatechin in lyophilized extracts of Cistus incanus and Cistus monspeliensis.     

微乳液毛细管电动色谱法快速测定消炎利胆片中的穿心莲内酯和脱水穿心莲内酯

建立了微乳液毛细管电动色谱同时分析消炎利胆片中穿心莲内酯和脱水穿心莲内酯的方法。考察了缓冲溶液的浓度、pH值、十二烷基硫酸钠(SDS)以及助表面活性剂的含量对分离测定的影响。在由乙酸乙酯-SDS-正丁醇-30 mmol/L硼砂缓冲液(pH 9.5)（质量比为0.5∶0.6∶6.0∶92.9）组成的微乳液体系中,两种内酯在6 min内完成分离。该法简便、快速、选择性好,用于实际样品中穿心莲内酯和脱水穿心莲内酯的分析,获得了满意的结果。     

微乳液毛细管电动色谱-场放大富集法灵敏分析尿液中的9种麻醉剂类药物

建立了一种微乳液毛细管电动色谱(MEEKC)-场放大富集(FASI)分析尿液中多种麻醉剂(吗啡、可待因、纳洛酮、海洛因、蒂巴因、可卡因、哌替啶、芬太尼、美沙酮)的方法。考察了微乳液组成、分离电压等因素的影响,得到的最佳微乳液组成(质量分数)为0.6%十二烷基硫酸钠、1.2%正丁醇、0.6%乙酸乙酯和97.6% 10 mmol/L硼砂缓冲液(pH 9.5);分离电压为25 kV。在上述微乳体系中,9种化合物在15 min内得到了基线分离。采用场放大在线富集技术提高了分析灵敏度,检出限(S/N=3)低至0.3 μg/L。模拟尿样样品中9种麻醉剂的加标回收率介于79.4%～119.9%之间,日内相对标准偏差小于5.5%。将该方法应用于美沙酮大鼠体外代谢样品的测定,结果令人满意。     

Comparison of oil-in-water and water-in-oil microemulsion electrokinetic chromatography as methods for the analysis of eight phenolic acids and five diterpenoids

Oil-in-water (O/W) and water-in-oil (W/O) MEEKC were compared for their abilities to separate and detect eight phenolic acids and five diterpenoids in Radix et Rhizoma Salviae Miltiorrhizae (RRSM). The effects of oil type and concentration, organic modifier, SDS, and buffer concentration on separation were examined in order to optimize the two methods. Oil contents and organic modifier were found to markedly influence the separation selectivity for both O/W and W/O systems. SDS concentration rarely affected separation resolution for O/W MEEKC, and separation of eight phenolic acids and five diterpenoids could be improved by changing the buffer concentration for W/O MEEKC. A highly efficient O/W MEEKC separation method, where the 13 compounds were separated with baseline resolution, was achieved by using a microemulsion solution of pH 8.0 containing 0.6% cyclohexane, 3.0% SDS, 6.0% 1-butanol, and 3.0% ACN. The W/O MEEKC was unable to resolve all the components. In addition, the analytic time in O/W MEEKC was shorter than that in W/O MEEKC. Finally, the developed O/W MEEKC method was successfully applied to determine analytic compounds in RRSM samples.     

Analysis of catechins in extracts of Cistus species by microemulsion electrokinetic chromatography

A microemulsion electrokinetic chromatographic (MEEKC) method was developed for the separation of six catechins, specific marker phytochemicals of Cistus species. The MEEKC method involved the use of sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS) as surfactant, heptane as organic solvent and butan-1-ol as co-solvent. In order to have a better stability of the studied catechins, the separation was performed under acidic conditions (pH 2.5 phosphate buffer). The effects of SDS concentration and of the amount of organic solvent and co-solvent on the analyte resolution were evaluated. The optimized conditions (heptane 1.36% (w/v), SDS 2.31% (w/v), butan-1-ol 9.72% (w/v) and 50 mM sodium phosphate buffer (pH 2.5) 86.61% (w/v)) allowed a useful and reproducible separation of the studied analytes to be achieved. These conditions provided a different separation profile compared to that obtained under conventional micellar electrokinetic chromatography (MECK) using SDS. The method was validated and applied to the determination of catechin and gallocatechin in lyophilized extracts of Cistus incanus and Cistus monspeliensis.     

Determining organic impurities in mother liquors from oxidative terephthalic acid synthesis by microemulsion electrokinetic chromatography

In this study, a microemulsion electrokinetic chromatography (MEEKC) method was developed to analyze and detect several aromatic acids (benzoic acid (BA), isophthalic acid (IPA), terephthalic acid (TPA), p-toluic acid (p-TA), 4-carboxylbenzaldehyde (4-CBA), trimesic acid (TSA), trimellitic acid (TMA), o-phthalic acid (OPA), and hemimellitic acid (HMA)), which are common organic impurities produced by liquid-phase catalytic oxidation of p-xylene to TPA. The effects of microemulsion composition, column temperature, column length and applied voltage were examined in order to optimize the aromatic acid separations. This work demonstrated that variation in the concentration of surfactant (sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS)) and oil phase (octane) had a pronounced effect on separation of the nine aromatic acids. It was also found that a decrease in column length had the greatest effect on shortening separation time and improving separation resolution for these aromatic acids when compared to that of an increase in column temperature or applied voltage. However, the nature and concentration of cosurfactants and organic modifiers were found to play only minor roles in the separation mechanism. Thus, a separation with baseline resolution was achieved within 14 min by using a microemulsion solution of pH 2.0 containing 3.7% SDS, 0.975% octane, and 5.0% cyclohexanol; and a 50-cm capillary column (effective length of 40-cm) at 26 °C. As a result, the developed MEEKC method successfully determined eight impurities of aromatic acids in the mother liquors produced from the oxidation synthesis of TPA.     

Comparison of resolution in microemulsion EKC and MEKC employing suppressed electroosmosis: application to bisphenol-A-diglycidyl ether and its derivatives

The resolution (R(s)) of hydrophobic analytes in microemulsion EKC (MEEKC) and MEKC with suppressed electroosmosis was investigated using bisphenol-A-diglycidyl ether and its derivatives (BADGEs) as test analytes. Separation scales were compared using our equation for the resolution, R(s)= (square rootN/4)(alpha-1)/(1+K(2)),where k is the retention factor, alpha the selectivity (alpha = k(2)/k(1) for k(2) > or = k(1)>0), and N the average efficiency. At given concentrations of SDS and organic cosolvent in the buffer, in comparison with MEKC, MEEKC was found to provide better resolution of BADGEs, mainly due to the significantly smaller k in MEEKC, but not the greater alpha in MEEKC, while a comparable range of N. Significantly improved resolution of BADGEs was obtained with increase in the concentration of organic cosolvent in the MEEKC and MEKC buffers, while small change in R(s) with the SDS concentration in a range of 100-180 mM. In addition, a decrease in temperature or voltage resulted in slightly better R(s).     

微乳液毛细管电动色谱快速分析解热镇痛药中的有效成分

建立了微乳液毛细管电动色谱快速测定解热镇痛药中非那西丁、氨基比林和咖啡因的新方法。采用由乙酸乙酯-十二烷基硫酸钠(SDS)-正丁醇-硼砂缓冲液组成的微乳液体系,以氯霉素为内标,3种有效成分在2.5 min内完成分离,峰面积相对标准偏差(RSD)在1.2%～1.6%之间,回收率在95.6%～104.0%之间。实验考察了缓冲溶液的浓度、pH值、SDS浓度以及助表面活性剂的种类、含量对分离测定的影响。该法可用于实际样品分析。     

Investigation of solvent effects in capillary electrophoresis for the separation of biological porphyrin methyl esters

The effects of organic solvents on the capillary electrophoresis (CE) separation of a number of important biological porphyrin methyl esters - six weakly basic, hydrophobic cyclic tetrapyrroles possessing two and four to eight methyl ester groups around the periphery of the porphyrin ring - were investigated in the mode of micellar electrokinetic chromatography (MEKC), microemulsion electrokinetic chromatography (MEEKC), and nonaqueous CE. In aqueous MEKC, partial separation of the six neutral porphyrin methyl esters was obtained with an organic modifier (acetonitrile) in the concentration range between 20 and 40%, in which sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS) molecules might be present in the form of SDS micelles and/or SDS micelle-like aggregates. Relatively stable SDS micelles can be formed in nonaqueous MEKC using formamide as the separation medium, but the separation of the target analytes remained unsatisfactory. Improved resolution of all six porphyrin methyl esters was obtained using MEEKC with the running buffer consisting of 0.8% w/w n-heptane (oil phase), 2.25% w/w SDS and 1.0% w/w Brij 35 (mixed surfactant), 6.6% w/w 1-butanol (cosurfactant), and 30% v/v 2-propanol (second cosurfactant), but reproducibility in terms of peak areas for certain porphyrins (especially uroporphyrin I octamethyl ester) was found to be very poor. Best separation performances were achieved with nonaqueous CE separations in which the weakly basic porphyrin methyl esters were protonated under strongly acidic conditions (e.g., using 10 mM perchloric acid) in mixed organic solvents. For example, using a 50:50 mixture of methanol and acetonitrile as the separation medium, baseline separation of all six (positively charged) porphyrin methyl esters can be obtained within 3 min and the average precision (RSD, N = 13) in terms of migration time and peak area were 0.55 and 2.16%, respectively.     

Comparing micellar electrokinetic chromatography and microemulsion electrokinetic chromatography for the analysis of preservatives in pharmaceutical and cosmetic products

In this study, separation and determination of nine preservatives ranging from hydrophilic to hydrophobic properties, which are commonly used as additives in various pharmaceutical and cosmetic products, by micellar electrokinetic chromatograpy (MEKC) and microemulsion electrokinetic chromatography (MEEKC) were compared. The effect of temperature, buffer pH, and concentration of surfactant on separation were examined. In MEKC, the separation resolution of preservatives improved markedly by changing the sodium dodecyl sulfate concentration. Temperature and pH of running buffers were used mainly to shorten the magnitude of separation time. However, in order to detect all preservatives in a single run in a MEEKC system, a microemulsion of higher pH was needed. The separation resolution was improved dramatically by changing temperature, and a higher concentration of SDS was necessary for maintaining a stable microemulsion solution, therefore the separation of the nine preservatives in MEEKC took longer than in MEKC. An optimum MEKC method for separation of the nine preservatives was obtained within 9.0 min with a running buffer of pH 9.0 containing 20 mM SDS at 25 degrees C. A separation with baseline resolution was also obtained within 16 min using a microemulsion of pH 9.5 which composed of SDS, 1-butanol, and octane, and a shorter capillary column at 34 degrees C. Finally, the developed MEKC and MEEKC methods determined successfully preservatives in various cosmetic and pharmaceutical products.     

Comparison of microemulsion electrokinetic chromatography and micellar electrokinetic chromatography methods for the analysis of phenolic compounds

In this study, microemulsion electrokinetic chromatography (MEEKC) and micellar electrokinetic chromatography (MEKC) were compared for their abilities to separate and detect thirteen phenolic compounds (syringic acid, p-coumaric acid, vanillic acid, caffeic acid, gallic acid, 3,4-dihydroxybenzoic acid, 4-hydroxybenzoic acid, (+)-catechin, (-)-epigallocatechin, (-)-epicatechin gallate, (-)-epigallocatechin gallate, (-)-epicatechin, and (-)-gallocatechin), and two other ingredients (caffeine and theophylline) in teas and grapes. Separation of phenolic compounds was improved by changing the SDS concentration for MEEKC, but the SDS concentration rarely affected the resolution for MEKC. Organic modifier (acetonitrile or methanol) was found to markedly influence the resolution and selectivity for both MEEKC and MEKC systems. In addition, a higher voltage and a higher column temperature improved the separation efficiency without any noticeable reduction in resolution for MEEKC whereas they caused a poor resolution for the MEKC system. Although separations with baseline resolution were achieved by the optimized MEEKC and MEKC methods, the separation selectivity resulting from the proposed MEEKC method was completely different from that of MEKC.     

Miniaturized membrane-based reversed-phase chromatography and enzyme reactor for protein digestion,peptide separation,and protein identification using electrospray ionization mass spectrometry

Separation and determination of water- and fat-soluble vitamins by micellar (MEKC) and microemulsion electrokinetic chromatography (MEEKC) are compared. MEKC is only useful in the quantitative analysis of water-soluble vitamins when sodium dodecylsulfate (SDS) is used as the surfactant. However, the separation of mixtures containing water- and fat-soluble vitamins is only achieved by MEEKC using a microemulsion prepared by mixing SDS as the surfactant, butanol as the co-surfactant, octane as the non-polar modifier and propanol as the second co-surfactant. The injection time and the solvent used for the dilution of samples have a significant effect on the analysis of lypophilic compounds. The most reproducible results in the analysis of fat-soluble vitamins are obtained by using the same microemulsion electrolyte as the solvent for samples and an injection time of 10 s.     

Microemulsion electrokinetic chromatography for the analysis of acrylamide in food

The influence of microemulsion electrokinetic chromatography (MEEKC) operating conditions, such as the type of water-immiscible alcohol, aqueous phosphate buffer concentration, pH, as well as the addition of methanol and 2-propanol, on acrylamide migration has been studied. These parameters have been optimized taking into account the presence of matrix signals, in order to avoid the interference of these peaks in acrylamide determination. The best separations were achieved using a microemulsion consisting of 0.8% m/v n-amyl alcohol, 3.3% m/v sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS), 6.6% m/v 1-butanol, and 89.3% m/v 40 mM phosphate buffer at pH 6.5 working at 15 kV in uncoated silica capillaries. Linear calibration curves over the range studied (1.25-125 microg x mL(-1)), the detection limit (0.70 microg x mL(-1)), and both run-to-run (up to 3.4% for concentration and 1.6% for time values) and day-to-day precision (lower than 11.6% for concentration) have been established. Finally, the applicability of the MEEKC method developed has been demonstrated by analyzing levels of acrylamide present in samples of home-made French fries.     

Microemulsion electrokinetic chromatography hyphenated to atmospheric pressure photoionization mass spectrometry

CZE is an appropriate technique for separating charged species, but lacks selectivity for neutral compounds. Alternative approaches such as microemulsion electrokinetic chromatography (MEEKC) have been developed to broaden its range of applications. Hyphenation of MEEKC with MS is an attractive perspective since it can enhance sensitivity and selectivity. The on-line coupling of MEEKC with MS, however, is not straightforward due to the low compatibility of non-volatile surfactant additives (e.g. SDS) and the commonly used API source, namely ESI. In order to hyphenate MEEKC with MS detection, the atmospheric pressure photoionization (APPI) source was investigated. Possibilities offered by the coupling of MEEKC with APPI-MS were highlighted for the complex separation of ionized and neutral compounds in both the positive and negative modes. MEEKC-APPI-MS performance, in terms of selectivity, efficiency and sensitivity was compared to CZE-ESI-MS and MEEKC-ESI-MS for the screening of doping substances (beta-blockers, central stimulants, diuretics, etc). Relevant selectivity and detectability, particularly for neutral, structurally related and isobaric compounds was demonstrated with the MEEKC-APPI-MS approach opening new avenues for CE-MS, in addition to the well-established CZE-ESI-MS technique.